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Once again this year the Council has been investing in our parks and open spaces as part of our commitment to improving our green areas.
Many of this year's schemes have been to help bees and other pollinators, which in turn attracts birds and other wildlife to the area. This work follows the overwhelming support from residents who completed the Pollinator Survey earlier this year.
All the projects play their own part in helping reduce the impact of the Climate Change Emergency, often using plants known to improve air quality.
Below there are details of some of the schemes we have been doing so you can pop along and enjoy your local park but please do take your litter home with you, or put it in a bin, to avoid injuring or killing the wildlife we are encouraging to share these spaces with us.
 The Making Places programme is breathing new life into Waltham Forest's public spaces through transformative arts and cultural commissions.
Many of these are in the parks and open spaces in our borough.
Details of three of the current projects are highlighted here.
Abbotts Wood, Abbotts Park
Public consultation on The Decorators, the proposal for the Abbotts Park Making Places project, is now completed and the feedback received will inform the final design of this project.
The survey showed that 98 per cent of respondents think that improving biodiversity and natural habitats within the park is important or very important to them.
The project includes landscaping, planting scheme, sculptural installation and provision of natural play elements like boulders and tree logs to inspire creative play in the park.
The construction is due to start in mid-September.
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Langthorne Community Junction, Brierley Road, Leytonstone
As part of the Making Places programme the construction of the stepped brick elements with incorporated lighting at Brierley Road is now completed.
In Autumn, a new maple tree and turf will be planted to improve natural habitats and bring the area to life.
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Stoneydown Park, Blackhorse Road, Walthamstow
The first part of the construction is underway on What If Projects’ expansion at Stoneydown Park, with removal of the old fence and redesign of the brick element using reclaimed bricks from the site.
The ground is being prepared for a new bespoke fence, entry sign and seating which are currently being manufactured.
A wildflower meadow, new trees and hedges will be planted in Autumn to offer new and improved habitats and shield the park from the road.
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The Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) is a tariff paid by developers as part of the planning requirements on schemes across the borough.
The neighbourhood portion of the CIL is then spent on projects which will benefit local residents, including schemes to improve our parks.
Named after Jack Cornwell, who was born in Leyton and at the age of 16 won a posthumous Victoria Cross for gallantry at the Battle of Jutland in World War One, the park is popular with families from the area.
The existing wooden play equipment now needs replacing, after just 10 years, and around £80,000 has been set aside to install metal equipment and perhaps a rope climbing area.
Work is due to be completed by November 2020 but before designs are agreed, residents and park users are invited to send in their ideas of the type of equipment they would like to see installed.
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Ten years ago wooden ramps and slopes were installed to create a skate board area at Cann Hall Park and since then around £105,000 has been spent refurbishing the area.
The Council would like to retain the skateboard facility in Cann Hall Park however the ongoing cost for its provision as a wooden skate park is not sustainable.
The Council is now proposing to replace the wooden facilities with concrete ones.
Work is due to be completed by November 2020 but before designs are agreed, there will be an opportunity for residents and park users to comment on them.
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There are six tennis courts in Memorial Park. Tree roots have lifted the surface on two courts rendering them unusable and beyond economic repair.
The chain-link fences around the perimeter of the courts are over 25 years old and becoming unsafe and unsightly.
The wooden bollards between the car park and playing field are damaged and need replacing.
Because of health and safety concerns some work has already been commissioned:
- Renew three sides of the tennis court fencing
- Re-locate the west side tennis court fence to bring the two root damaged tennis courts on to the outside of the facility
- Install new bollards between the car park and the park itself
- Undertake replacement of the more significantly damaged less effective east side perimeter fencing
Outdoor gym equipment is due to be installed on one of the disused tennis courts with raised planters and similar green initiatives installed in the remaining area to support pollinators and other wildlife.
Work is due to be completed on the new security bollards by September 2020.
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Visitors to Langthorne Park in Leytonstone will have noticed a new look to the entrance gates.
The leaves are an artwork developed by artist Heather Burrell, who specialises in fine art and metalwork.
They form part of the overall improvements to the park entrance which will include exterior improvement works to the Lime Tree Surgery, resurfacing and additional planting.
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Two metres to Shakespeare is a riotous compilation of Shakespeare's most famous stories, performed by local professional actors and musicians in Waltham Forest's outdoor public spaces... with a socially distanced twist.
All the romance of Romeo and Juliet but the lovers must remain two-metres apart, which you - the audience - will need to help with!
Enjoy a wild 30 minute ride of live music, physical theatre and comedy... FOR FREE!
There will be four performances at Langthorne Park Amphitheatre, E11 4YG:
- Saturday 12 September 2020, 11 and 3pm
- Sunday 13 September 2020, 11 and 3pm
This is a free event, but seats must be reserved. Book your space and bring the whole family for some fun, frolics and Shakespeare!
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There are a number of videos on YouTube which have been made by John Rogers as part of the London Borough of Culture in which he explores some of our local parks and the history that can be found in them.
Pictured is the renovated Dovecote in Pimp Hall Park and Nature Reserve.
He has also recorded videos of walks through the borough highlighting some of the historic features of Waltham Forest, including some of the hidden gems in our borough.
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Our thanks go to everyone who shared their views about growing their own food in our recent survey.
Around 800 replies were received and are being analysed with the results due later this year.
An added bonus of the survey was that the last vacant plots on eight sites across the borough have now been let and a waiting list has been started.
Joining the waiting list helps us see where demand is so if you are interested in having an allotment please do join the waiting list today.
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The Friends of Higham Hill Park has been busy bidding for grants with great success.
A pollinator corridor, connecting habitats and including a 100 sq metre ribbon of wildflowers, will make the park an even greater haven for bees and other pollinating insects.
The project was possible thanks to a £5,000 grant from the Mayor of London’s environment team and the hard work of volunteers to plant the wildflowers.
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Some funding from the Coop means that a new tennis net has been bought for the tennis courts.
The tennis courts are now open but are subject to social distancing rules.
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The hot weekend left more than people and pets feeling thirsty, so Cheney Row Park’s Tree Champions have been making sure that the 467 trees that were planted stay alive.
There’s a growing band of volunteers who have adopted one or more trees to keep them watered and remove weeds and litter from around them so they can get better established. The trees guards have recently been raised to make it easier for rubbish left by park users to be removed.
But the Friends of Cheney Row Park is keen to hear from more volunteers willing to adopt a tree or two at the new Walthamstow park.
Water is available on site so the time taken can be less than an hour a month.
So, if you want to see more trees in the borough this is a practical and easy way to help achieve that.
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Do you want to be involved in improving your local park?
'Friends of Parks' groups work with the Council's Greenspace team to create better open spaces.
Each group helps care for a specific park or green space in the borough.
All Waltham Forest residents are welcome to join a Friends Group, or help to establish one in your local green space.
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Following the COVID-19 pandemic Lloyd Park Market opened on Sundays to offer hot food and the last day of Sunday opening at this market was Sunday 30 August 2020.
The market will continue on Saturdays.
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You received this newsletter because you signed up for news about the parks and open spaces in Waltham Forest.
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Please encourage friends and family to sign up so they too can stay connected with what's happening in our borough.
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