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High Street Wanstead will be closed to traffic between Grove Park and Wanstead Place on 12 September to create a car-free Wanstead Festival.

“This will allow for easy movement between High Street shops and cafés and Christchurch Green,” said Councillor Jo Blackman. The community event – which runs from 11am to 6pm – is making a return this year along with the Wanstead Fringe (3 to 19 September). “These events highlight the best of Wanstead, so we wish organisers every success.”

Visit wnstd.com/festival21

In the third of a series of articles by plot holders at the Redbridge Lane West allotments – which are under threat from the adjacent gas works – Geoff King explains why his fruit and veg is unsurpassed

I never knew or met Sandy Sanderson or his wife Gemma. If I had, I’m sure we would have shared our knowledge of gardening for many hours. Sandy was the predecessor of my allotment in Redbridge Lane West. There is no mistaking his skill and the amount of sheer hard work he put in. It is etched (literally) in every corner of my plot. Numerous carvings appear everywhere. He built seats, raised beds and fruit cages, all laid out against neat paths.

Around five years ago I was similarly employed in my large North Lincs garden. A garden I tended for 26 years, which encompassed a veg plot, orchard and herbaceous borders. Little did I think I would be ‘up-sticking’ to Wanstead within months of revamping my own vegetable patch, but that’s another story, and I now find myself on Sandy and Gemma’s former – and much-loved – plot.

Pruning the apple, pear and plum trees and feeding the soil were first on my list of tasks. I also planted new raspberry canes, strawberry beds and a rhubarb patch. All of these require a two-year bedding-in period before maturing or picking. So, patience is required.

The sheer pleasure of working on this plot and watching things grow has been immeasurable. I had help, of course: Sandy had left his ‘man cave’ little shed packed with tools, books and every conceivable item you could ever want. In the early days of the pandemic, I found myself drawn to the plot almost daily. What a mental life-saver. Then came the news of the Cadent gas company proposed takeover. Am I to be uprooted again?

If this is the case, do I have the sheer will to start over again? Bearing in mind, if one is offered a new council plot, it is most likely to be untouched by spade or fork for a considerable time. I don’t know the answer yet, but what I do know is that my investment on the plot has been substantial, not just my time, but financially.

I am often asked if the investment in an allotment is worth the expense. The answer is yes and no. My personal opinion is: no, you can eat cheaper from your supermarket shop. But yes, the fruit and veg from my plot is unsurpassed. Until you have tasted your own potatoes, which were in the ground an hour before, or eaten strawberries that have never seen a plastic carton, then you have missed a rare treat.

So, if you’re thinking of starting an allotment yourself, seek me out at Redbridge Lane West and I will show you around.

For more information and to view the petition to save the Redbridge Lane West allotments, visit wnstd.com/rlw

As the Wanstead Society prepares to celebrate its silver jubilee, the group’s chair Scott Wilding reflects on their work to date and looks forward to the next 25 years of ‘protecting and enhancing Wanstead’

The Wanstead Society celebrates its silver jubilee in 2022, and as we have been active now for nearly a quarter of a century, we thought it would be good to take a look back at what we think we got right, where we can improve and how we might change to meet the challenges of the next 25 years.

The Society was formed in 1997 when the average cost of a pint of beer was £1.84, leaded petrol was around 60p a litre and the average cost of a three-bedroom terrace house in Wanstead was around £190,000. How times have changed. What hasn’t changed is the Society’s founding principles of protecting and enhancing Wanstead.

Our main aim 25 years ago, when a small group of like-minded individuals got together, was to prevent overdevelopment in Wanstead and protect its historical characteristics. This soon branched out to a wider movement to help improve the area where we live. Over the last quarter of a century, the Society has taken on a variety of projects, from aiding the start of the Wanstead Festival, working with others to create the first art trail, paid for bins and benches on Christchurch Green, planted trees and bulbs, offered advice to help start the South Woodford Society and funded the Wanstead Community Gardeners. We have also spent many hours working with developers to secure good-quality design for new and existing buildings in Wanstead.

While we haven’t got everything right over the last 25 years, we can be proud that our contribution has made a difference to our community.

Looking back to take stock of what has been achieved is always worth doing. It reminds us of how far we have come. But, if the Society is to remain relevant over the next 25 years, we have to adapt and change.

The next quarter of a century will present challenges not yet invented. But one challenge facing us now, and in the future, remains: the climate crisis. Nowhere will escape the effects of changing weather and an altered environment. To pass on a better Wanstead to a future generation, we will update our constitution to have a greater environmental focus, form stronger links with local schools and environmental groups as well as maintaining our core commitment to a better urban realm.

The pandemic has showcased how valuable our parks and green spaces are, but also how important our community is when things get tough. For this reason, and with the advert opposite this article, we hope you will want to find out more about us and join our action group.

For more information on the Wanstead Society, visit wansteadsociety.org.uk or write to:
Wanstead Society, c/o Wanstead House 21 The Green, Wanstead, E11 2NT.

The Wren Wildlife Group, London Wildlife Trust and Wild Wanstead have compiled a list of 10 species at risk of local extinction. In the sixth of a series of articles looking at each species in turn, Alex Deverill reflects on Wanstead’s skylarks

August marks the end of the breeding season for skylarks. Wanstead Flats is home to the only breeding population of these birds in inner London, and this year has seen the use of temporary fencing to stop their nest areas from being disturbed by people and dogs. Initiatives like these are essential if we are to prevent the extinction of skylarks locally – and in the UK more generally.

Skylarks are on the Red List of Birds of Conservation Concern. In the UK, the population halved during the 1990s and is still declining. They are a victim of modern intensive farming. Cereals are now sown in autumn, not spring, which has resulted in a dramatic reduction in the number of chicks raised each year. Skylark numbers are also thought to have been affected by increased use of insecticides and weedkillers (contributing to insect declines), intensification of grazing on grasslands, and the switch from hay to silage, which results in many nests being destroyed by cutting machinery. In their preferred habitat of farmland, numbers crashed by 75% between 1972 and 1996. This makes the survival of the skylarks on Wanstead Flats even more important. In the absence of arable fields locally, skylarks construct their nests on the ground in areas of unmown grass; they also feed on areas of mown grass, such as football pitches.

Skylarks are streaky brown birds with a crest. Their song has inspired many musical and literary works. Male skylarks can be spotted rising almost vertically from the ground before hovering effortlessly and singing at great height. Their song flights can last for up to an hour and the birds can reach 300m before descending.

Despite their aerial activities, skylarks nest on the ground, laying three to four eggs. The nest is a hollow, lined with leaves, grasses and hair. The eggs are incubated for 11 days. The parents feed the chicks on insects for their first week, then gradually introduce small quantities of shoots and seeds for a mixed diet. Chicks become independent after only two weeks, but skylarks need two to three broods of young each year to maintain populations.

How to help:

Being able to rear their chicks in peace is essential if Wanstead’s skylarks are to survive, so please support the ring-fenced areas on the Flats, always stick to the paths and keep dogs on a lead where indicated.

Oppose plans that would create increased disturbance on Wanstead Flats – this would harm the skylarks and many other creatures that rely on this important area of wild land.

For more information about the 10 species under threat of extinction in Wanstead, visit wnstd.com/the10

In the first of a series of articles providing an update on the Cleaner Greener Wanstead initiative, Councillor Paul Donovan (Wanstead Village, Labour) looks at how local biodiversity is being improved

The Cleaner Greener Wanstead initiative (also known as the Environmental Charter) has been gaining momentum over recent months. The framework involves a number of different strands, including biodiversity, reducing litter and plastic waste, sustainable travel and energy efficiency. Over the next four months, there will be updates on how things are going in each of these four areas.

The first, biodiversity, has seen several moves to improve the situation in Wanstead. The Grow Zone initiative, whereby areas are managed but allowed to run wild, now covers parts of Christchurch Green and George Green, as well as Roding Valley Park (at the end of Elmcroft Avenue). The Grow Zone methodology has also been expanded out across the borough. Those who took part in No Mow May will have seen first-hand the fantastic effect that letting an area run wild does for flower and insect life.

There has also been an increase in the number of people adopting tree pits, with more than 1,200 adopted across the borough – these too increase insect life, with bees particularly prospering. The council has also replaced more than 1,000 trees across Redbridge, 50 of those in Wanstead.

The whole High Street area is looking greener, with more planters, people and businesses adopting tree pits, as well as putting in their own hanging baskets and raised beds. The addition of the mobility hub outside the Co-op also brings more greenery, as well as cycle rings and an electric vehicle charging point.

Community composting has begun, with a new project starting out, based on the Wanstead Place side of Christchurch Green. Hopefully, this will lead to a wider uptake. And the work of Wild Wanstead and the Community Gardeners continues to massively add to the biodiversity right across Wanstead.

So, things are happening in terms of creating a really clean, green culture. There is, though, always more to do. There are plans to make Cambridge Park – between the Green Man and Redbridge roundabouts – into a greener corridor, with more trees, hedging and other initiatives to increase biodiversity and combat pollution and climate change. It would also be good if people could be dissuaded from converting their gardens to concrete – this reduces biodiversity as well as drainage capacity. Better still would be if those who have concrete areas returned all, or part, to the natural state.

To really succeed in improving our biodiversity, there has to be a public and private conversion to a new, more green and clean way of living. In Wanstead, the early signs are encouraging, but there is still much to do.

For more information on the initiative, visit cleanergreenerwanstead.org

Wanstead resident Jean Medcalf published her first poetry book last year. To Everything There is a Season is a collection of lyrical, spiritual poems about nature. In the 10th of a series of articles, Jean – who celebrated her 90th birthday earlier this year – recalls some well-known Wanstead people, past and present. Photo by Geoff Wilkinson

I’ve often said that living in Wanstead is like living in a village, partly because of its array of local characters; those familiar faces who seem to have been around for years and are known by everybody.

Some that spring to mind are people with unusual pets – where else would you meet a Vietnamese pot-bellied pig named Winston being taken for walks on a lead, patted and given biscuits by children in the street!

Many people will remember the enormous dog and his owner Ruben, an actor, who used to sit outside Nice Croissant. The dog’s name was Izzy Bubbeleh and he was an English Mastiff, fed on chicken from the kosher butcher. He had a lovely calm nature and was a therapy dog who visited disabled people.

Nice Croissant was such a friendly café frequented by regulars, and I often went there with my little dog Sooty, who enjoyed café society and liked sitting there being admired, partaking of a few sips of cappuccino and nibbling a croissant. Unfortunately, Sooty  took a great dislike to Izzy and used to yap ferociously at him. Izzy was a peace-lover; he took absolutely no notice and lay there placidly, ignoring this indignant little ball of fluff standing on his hind legs and trying to look fierce. Just as well, as Izzy weighed in at 13 stone to Sooty’s diminutive 11 pounds!

Wanstead has always had such knowledgeable and helpful people, too many to name them all, such as Doctor Ali at Wanstead Pharmacy and Mas and Trevor from the Heads’N’ Tails pet shop.

Another was the late Peter Nursey, who had many strings to his bow; as well as being an artist and an electrician, he tackled lots of tricky little jobs for we older ladies; he made a little ramp for my elderly dog Alfie when he became too arthritic to get up the step. My friend Lilian had lots of dogs, and when her favourite dog died, she had him stuffed. One of Pete’s regular jobs was to hoover Lilian’s stuffed dog! Pete always knew what was going on in Wanstead and used to regale me with all the gossip over a cup of tea. Another chap who can turn his hand to many things is Luke the gardener, who also sharpens tools and does DJ-ing.

I am sure nobody will forget the legendary Brian Jobber of Andrews Builder’s Merchants, who ran the shop since the 1960s – he seemed to know the answer to any DIY query and was so good-natured and helpful, people would go to him with all their problems, ranging from how to wire a plug or change a light bulb to making a will and where to go on holiday! I remember chatting with him one day and he said a customer once asked him: “Brian, how do you get a divorce?”

Some well-known ladies of Wanstead are the late Primrose Clarke, who taught piano at her home in Leicester Road for 70 years, and my great friend Beryl Thornton of the Carlton House Terrace Residents Association, who seems to know everything and everybody locally, goes to the council meetings, and tells the council what to do when they get things wrong!

And last but not least, the wonderful green-fingered Marian Temple, who spends her time making Wanstead even more beautiful and planting every conceivable space with a vivid rainbow of colourful flowers.

West Mersea by Jean Medcalf

Illuminated by the lucent moon
The satin mudbanks shine on either side
The river, as with creaking oars we row
Coolly upstream at night. The gentle breeze
Ruffles our hair and slaps the tiny waves
Gently against our boat. The mirrored moon,
Splintered by oar-strokes, runs to coalesce
Like mercury spilt.
Tall withies bend quiet heads
In slender benediction, as we pass
Double-reflected ships with star-ringed masts.
A plaintive bird sings a lament, a sweet
And solitary air; we rest our oars.

Blackwater – silvered – flows on without pause.
Over our tired heads the darkness falls.

Jean’s book To Everything There is a Season is available in paperback (£5.75). Visit wnstd.com/jean

As part of the Plastic Free July campaign, Wanstead Climate Action carried out a survey of nine coffee shops on or near the High Street to rate their efforts in reducing plastic waste.

“Responses ranged from ‘couldn’t care’ to ‘you won’t find plastic here’. La Bakerie, Bare Brew and City Place Coffee came out on top, offering discounts if you bring your own cup. Some shops have plans to source glass bottled drinks, and City Place even grow their own micro herbs,” said a spokesperson.

Visit wansteadclimateaction.com

Elsa Arnold, founder of the Spreading Kindness Through E11 initiative, talks about her summer projects in aid of charity and invites local children to spread joy in the community over the holidays

This summer, I am organising three key projects, each of which will help raise much-needed funds for Haven House Children’s Hospice, which looks after children and young people from birth who have life-limiting or life-threatening conditions.

First up, I have launched a new Spreading Kindness Summer Challenge 2021. This is aimed at four- to 13-year-olds who would like to get involved with spreading some joy, positivity and kindness through our community over the summer holidays by completing six tasks over six weeks. It’s a chance for kids to get creative, help support the local community, get their voices heard and have some of their work showcased in our community kids’ magazine at the end, which will celebrate some of the wonderful tasks completed by the children over the holidays.

We will provide lots of tips and resources along the way to help the young participants complete each task and enjoy taking part. It’s definitely something not to miss! And as a thank you and congratulations for joining in, everyone who gets involved will receive a bag full of treats and surprises, as well as an awesome medal and a certificate.

To take part, we are asking for a minimum £6 donation towards the Haven House fundraiser. Please make sure you only use the links we provide to donate so your contribution can be tracked.

I really hope to see as many children taking part as possible. We are also very grateful to Martin & Co for sponsoring this new project.

Secondly, I am very excited to be able to bring back my Year 6 to Year 7 transition workshops for 2021. These sessions are returning for their fifth year and I’ve got a few more options this time, which include: online (via Zoom) mixed workshops, online workshops with a group of friends and garden workshops with friends. Spaces are filling up fast, so do get in touch if you would like to take part.

The workshops are free, but voluntary contributions to the Haven House fundraiser would be gratefully received.

And last but not least, I am also taking on a three-day trek of Mont Blanc for the wonderful hospice, which will see us walk through France, Italy and Switzerland at the beginning of September. I am so excited about this and to be able to do it for such a fantastic charity, which I know is hugely admired throughout the community.

I’ve got lots going on this summer and can’t wait to see lots of you involved!

To sign up for the summer challenge, visit wnstd.com/summerkind. To contact Elsa, email elsamkarnold@gmail.com

The Epping Forest and Commons Committee has approved a decision to allow cycling throughout Wanstead Park.

It follows a consultation earlier this year in which over two thirds of respondents (675 responses) were in favour of allowing cycling across the whole park. Previously, a 1930s byelaw restricted cycling to one path. “We ask cyclists to observe the cycling code of conduct, stick to the paths and note any areas that remain restricted, such as historic or ecologically sensitive areas,” said a spokesperson.

Visit wnstd.com/parkcycle 

The Wren Wildlife Group, London Wildlife Trust and Wild Wanstead have compiled a list of 10 species at risk of local extinction. In the fifth of a series of articles looking at each species in turn, Susie Knox is in awe of the stag beetle

As insects go, stag beetles are about as impressive as they get – easily holding their own against some of the weird and wonderful invertebrates found in tropical parts of the world. They live in woods, hedgerows, parks and gardens. Stag beetles look scary but pose no threat to humans! They’re rare to see, so if you spot one, you are very lucky.

Adult male stag beetles are 3.5–7.5cm long, with large, antler-like jaws. The females don’t have these mandibles but still grow up to 5cm in size. The males display their massive jaws to attract females and duel with their rivals. Stag beetles can live up to seven years, but they spend most of that time underground in their larval stage. Even the larvae of male stag beetles have large jaws!

When ready to mature, stag beetles build an egg-shaped cocoon in the soil, up to 20cm below ground. It can be as large as an orange and take up to three weeks to construct. Within the cocoon, the larva pupates and turns into its adult form. After spending winter and spring in the soil, adult beetles emerge above ground from mid-May onwards to mate. By the end of August, most of them will be dead. Look out for females on the ground searching for a place near rotting wood to lay their eggs. Males tend to be seen flying on the hunt for a mate.

Stag beetles have declined in Europe and are red-listed in many countries. They are protected in the UK under the Wildlife and Countryside Act and are a Priority Species under the UK Post-2010 Biodiversity Framework. Stag beetles are suffering from loss of habitat. The UK has lost much of its native broad-leaved woodland and the decaying wood they need is often removed to make things look tidy. Stag beetles are found in areas of southern England, but fewer are recorded in east London than other parts of the capital, particularly in the south and west. In Wanstead, they are rarely seen, and are less frequently encountered than their not-quite-so impressive cousins, the lesser stag beetle. The City of London is aware of the need to leave decaying wood, a key habitat for so many species, including the stag beetle. As such, stag beetle sightings are probably a good indicator of the health of many other species locally – which is why the lack of them in Wanstead is so concerning.

How to help:

• When out and about, leave old stumps and deadwood alone. Female stags lay their eggs in rotting log piles, old fence posts and the roots of various rotten trees, including oak, apple, ash and cherry.
• Build a log pyramid for stags in your garden. Find out how at wnstd.com/logpile
• If you’re mulching any of your flower beds, use untreated woodchip, which can also provide ideal habitat for females to lay their eggs in and a food supply for the larvae.
• Create an area of wild lawn. Mow once a year in late summer and remove the cuttings (this will help wild flowers naturalise).

For more information about the 10 species under threat of extinction in Wanstead, visit wnstd.com/the10

Moving to Wanstead four years ago was a creative turning point for Art Group Wanstead Member Leila Skye, who takes inspiration from local scenes

I was born in Forest Gate 72 years ago. I come from a creative background and very much lived under the shadow of my father’s artistic family. My Uncle Maurice was an artist in Whitechapel in the 1930s. His sketches appeared in the Evening Standard and his paintings are in the Cardiff Museum, highlighting the miners’ plight during the war years. His commercial work also appeared in the comics Eagle, Bunty and Judy in the 1950s and 1960s.

My life as a young artist, from the age of nine, was disrupted many times due to my parents’ own restless lifestyle, until the age of 16. I had been to eight different schools by the age of 15, with undiagnosed dyslexia.

At 17, I followed in my uncle’s footsteps and enrolled in evening classes at St Martin’s School of Art. My charcoal life drawings were very well received. But life took over and in those days I had to work. I feel I never found my voice educationally until 1994 when I was in my late 40s and gained a BA Hons in social and developmental psychology with the help of a scribe. After bringing up my daughter, I returned to work, but encountered mobility issues by the time I was in my late 50s.

I dipped in and out of the art world, but never found my way creatively until 2017, when I moved to Wanstead. My life, I guess, was character building.

Since living in Wanstead, I have revisited my interest in art. During lockdown, I enrolled in mixed media painting online courses and that kept me busy whilst still learning. I’m also on the patient panel at Whipps Cross Hospital, my way of giving something back over the last 14 years because of what I gained in mobility through numerous spinal surgeries and hip replacements there.

Lockdown had a silver lining for me. I have since found my creative voice and a distraction from my chronic pain conditions. It’s been – and still is – a marvellous therapy. I’ve undertaken virtual courses and workshops to develop that voice. Despite my life’s challenges, I love experimenting with painting.

Much of my art is of the High Street or other local areas. I’m developing a body of work in expressive and intuitive mark-making as a way to respond to my surroundings. The local community may see me around on Tarzy Wood or in Wanstead Park, sketching.

I sold four paintings in two weeks when Lillies of Wanstead kindly allowed me to use their window to display my work during the last art trail. The experience gave me the confidence to continue well into lockdown. I also enjoy designing greetings cards for family and friends.

I’m now a grandmother as well as a mother, and am pleased to say both generations have a stable lifestyle, unlike mine. But since moving to Wanstead, I’ve never been so happy. I’m coming out of the shadows. And sometimes, that takes a lifetime. And now?… I’m staying in one place.

As Redbridge Council’s Cabinet Member for Planning and Planning Enforcement, Councillor Sheila Bain (Wanstead Park, Labour) explains why the Aldersbrook Conservation Area was extended last year

Redbridge has many areas of historic or architectural interest, and protecting these is an important function of the planning system, achieved through the designation of Conservation Areas.   

Conservation Areas have extra planning rules applied to them to help preserve or enhance their character and protect their settings. The designation of these areas is a vitally important way of protecting and improving the borough’s heritage, and serves to protect the environment and biodiversity. Designating a Conservation Area does not mean prohibiting development but ensures changes are carefully managed to safeguard the appearance of the area.   

There are 16 conservation areas in Redbridge. They are supported by design guidance, which gives advice on how to make improvements to homes in an acceptable way. Local planning authorities are required to periodically review the character and boundaries of Conservation Areas and publish proposals for their preservation and enhancement, and this was most recently carried out in the Aldersbrook Conservation Area and Lake House Estate.

This area of Edwardian housing is one of the most noteworthy examples in the borough.  Our review showed that many alterations and extensions had taken place to properties over the years, resulting in the loss of Edwardian features. Permitted development rights (where planning permission isn’t needed) had allowed owners to undertake additional works to properties which had a major negative impact on the character of the area as a whole.

Following consultation with residents, the boundary of the Aldersbrook Conservation Area was extended to include the Lake House Estate, and the council introduced an Article 4 Direction to tackle the adverse impacts on the area by household development. This was the course of action most supported by residents, many of whom had strong concerns about the condition of the area.

The Article 4 Direction requires that planning permission be obtained for certain, normally exempt, building works. For example, replacing windows, roof coverings, work to porches and removing boundary walls with loss of front gardens. The aim is to prevent further erosion of the area’s Edwardian character, to encourage restoration and to ensure new work preserves or enhances the character and appearance of the area. The objective is to keep the area’s architectural heritage intact and the environment green, which has added benefits for biodiversity.

As Cabinet Member for Planning and Planning Enforcement, I’m proud to be involved in protecting our architectural heritage and environment for the enjoyment and benefit of the community and future generations.

To contact Councillor Sheila Bain, email sheila.bain@redbridge.gov.uk