Great news for Leyton Station
Yesterday we received the fantastic news that we've secured £31 million for projects in the borough from Round Two of the government’s Levelling Up fund.
I’m glad to say this includes around £14 million to improve Leyton Station. We’ve been working with TfL for many years to make this a reality and it’s wonderful news that our plans will now go ahead. Anyone who uses the station will know these improvements will make a huge difference to people in the area, including a new entrance, ticket hall, lifts and overbridge to create step free access from street to platform level.
We’ve also been awarded over £17 million for other projects in Walthamstow, including significant funding towards improvements across the High Street, Hoe Street and St James Street areas and the restoration and creation of cultural hubs, including at Hatherley Mews.
Sadly, our bids for funding for wider projects in Leyton and Chingford were not successful this time. Our Leyton bid included a sizable amount towards improving the station, in case TfL’s separate bid wasn't successful and the Council remains committed to delivering the refurbishment and re-use of the Cricket Pavilion at Leyton Sports Ground, which was another key project in that bid. We had asked the government for money towards improvements in Chingford Mount and Highams Park town centres, as well as for parks, play spaces and sports facilities, and we will review the government’s feedback on the bids and opportunities for submitting them again in Round Three of the Fund.
We are committed to improving infrastructure across the borough and will continue to work hard to bring in funding from outside sources to help improve Waltham Forest.
Leyton Station is set for big improvements
This week, we launch two new Space4All youth hubs in the borough, run by qualified and committed youth workers. They are safe and welcoming spaces for young residents to meet new people and develop new skills. The first projects of this type, in Leytonstone and Chingford, are open now – find out more on our website. We are hoping to open more in the future so watch this space,
Grace
Cllr Grace Williams, Leader of Waltham Forest Council
Cllr Alistair Strathern, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, on a recent Breakfast Club visit. Primary schools have been given over £300,000 to help make sure students start the day with a healthy, nutritious breakfast to set them up for success
To help support our residents with the cost-of-living crisis, we have invested £4 million in our cost-of-living response, which includes direct financial help, support with retrofitting homes to help reduce fuel bills, and investment in community initiatives.
We have taken action to tackle this crisis, including:
- provided 11,000 families with additional support to keep young people warm and fed this winter
- supported primary schools to distribute £300,000 to support with nutritional breakfasts, which schools are already seeing learning benefits from
- established 46 Winter Spaces in Council and community settings. Since launch, we have worked with groups in the north of the borough to create six additional Winter Spaces and there have been over 80,000 visits to the Winter Spaces online directory.
Read more about how we’re tackling the crisis for our residents on our website via the link below.
The Project Zero team is involved in our Chingford hub
This week, we’ve opened up two pilot youth hubs for young people aged 11-25. The two pilots are part of our family hubs programme, bringing local services to residents in their local neighbourhood.
We know how important it is for young people to have safe spaces to spend time in, and we’re working hard to make sure the young people of Waltham Forest have this locally to their home.
Our first two pilot hubs called Space4All are located in Chingford and Leytonstone:
Open every Wednesday (term time) 3.30pm-5.30pm at The Parish Church Hall of St Peter and Paul, The Green Walk, E4 7EN
Open every Thursday (term time) 4.30pm-6.30pm Pastures Youth centre, 15 Davies Lane, E11 3DR
We’re pleased to be working in partnership with Project Zero to run our Chingford Hub and Lymore Gardens to run the Leytonstone hub.
Image: Osman Rana/Unsplash
Low temperatures are back and look set to last for another couple of days.
In this cold weather, it’s important to keep your home warm and have plenty of hot food and drinks, if you can. If you’re struggling to heat your home, warm spaces are available for all residents across the borough, where you can work, relax and even cook. There is cost of living support if you’re struggling to buy food or prepare hot meals.
Here are some other tips:
- Wear a few thin layers of clothes. It can be more effective than wearing one thick layer.
- Be mindful when you’re out and about as roads and pavements might be icy. Our gritters have been deployed across the borough but it’s still important to be on the lookout.
- Check up on your neighbours and your loved ones and look out for others who might be more vulnerable. You can help someone you know, or suspect, is sleeping rough by alerting local outreach services via the StreetLink app or by calling 0300 500 0914. Please always call 999 if you think the person you’re concerned about is in immediate danger or needs urgent care.
In early 2023, Waltham Forest will be launching an ambitious Digital Inclusion Strategy and three-year programme to tackle the barriers that prevent our residents from accessing digital services.
There are many ways that we can help you get connected, including access to low-cost broadband and data, and support on how to access these. If you have someone in your life who might benefit from this help, please have a look at our cost of living webpage, which has digital inclusion support information.
And stay tuned for our digital inclusion strategy, where you can read more about how you can get involved.
Lea Bridge Library has won the 2023 Civic Trust Award, celebrating excellence in the built environment. The award if for the recent extension, which has added a warm and welcoming space to the original building, including a café that's proved a hit with local residents and is currently home to one of our Winter Spaces community living rooms.
Inside Soho Theatre Walthamstow on the BBC's recent visit with Cllr Grace Williams and Lee Griffiths, Soho Theatre’s Comedy Producer, being interviewed by Anna O’Neill
This week, BBC Radio London picked four Waltham Forest sites to visit for their series, The 32, covering all of London’s boroughs. You may have heard broadcasts from Gods Own Junkyard, the Wetlands, William Morris Gallery or inside the former EMD/Granada, which will be the site of Soho Theatre Walthamstow when it opens next year. There, they chatted to Cllr Grace Williams about the building’s illustrious past and exciting future. Watch a clip of the Leader’s chat on Instagram or listen on the BBC website (go to around 1:50:00 of each day’s clip).
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Are you ready to start an exciting new career in the construction industry? You could earn more money and help build the London of the future. There are so many trades and professions within the construction industry, so people from all backgrounds can find a really good job. Come to the Construction Jobsfest, speak to lots of employers and training providers, and find out how to take the first steps into a career with real prospects. Bring your CV and an open mind and you never know, you could leave with a whole new future.
When? Tuesday 7 February 2022, noon to 4pm.
Where? London Academy of Sustainable Construction, Hollydown Way E11 4DD.
We understand how important taking care of your mental health is, and we’re doing our best to support our residents.
That’s why for Great Mental Health Day, we’re hosting a Wellbeing Fair. Join us on Friday 27 January from 2pm to 7pm at Waltham Forest Town Hall for coffee, refreshments, help for financial worries, support for families and carers, arts and crafts and much more!
Image: Mike Tinnion/Unsplash
Join award winning writer Adam Kammerling and workshop leader Salma Chand at a free creative writing workshop, beginning next Thursday, 26 January and running until Thursday 6 Ap ril. You’ll learn the skills of getting your ideas out of your head and onto paper and all forms of creative writing are welcome, including poetry, rap, spoken word and short stories.
To register or find out more information, email futureprogramme@walthamforest.gov.uk.
This Saturday, 21 January, Tamil Heritage Month in Waltham Forest is being marked with a series of events to celebrate the culture and contribution of the Tamil community.
- Pongal (Harvest) celebration: Bedford Road Car Park, E17 4PX, from 1pm
- Tamil Heritage Parade: From Fulbourne Road (Forest Road junction), E17 4UH, to Fredrick Bremer School, from 3pm
- Cultural evening: Fredrick Bremer School, E17 4EY, from 5.30pm
More information on the events.
Officers meet residents at Leytonstone Library, left, and Lea Bridge Library
A joint partnership between the Council and the Metropolitan Police, Pop-up Police Stations give residents the chance to talk directly with local police officers as well as Council Anti-Social Behaviour and Neighbourhoods officers every week, in a relaxed and informal setting.
Additionally, Humphreys Café in Highams Park, IG8 9RB, continues to host Cuppa with a Copper mornings every Wednesday from 11am to similarly allow residents face-to-face interaction with their Neighbourhood Policing Team.
The most borrowed adult non-fiction paperbacks from Waltham Forest libraries for the week beginning 16 January.
1 The Fast 800 Keto Recipe Book by Clare Bailey
2 Atomic Habits: Tiny Changes, Remarkable Results by James Clear
3 This Much Is True by Miriam Margolyes
4 Taste: My Life Through Food by Stanley Tucci
5 And away... by Bob Mortimer
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Ambulance service strike action: 23 January
The London Ambulance Service has planned industrial action next Monday, 23 January. If the action goes ahead, services will be extremely busy that day. If you need medical help, use NHS 111 or speak to your GP or local pharmacy. The advice is to only call 999 in a life-threatening emergency. Find your best route to urgent care.
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Road closures near Walthamstow Central this weekend
Selborne Road E17 will be closed to vehicles in both directions at the 17&Central mall development site (just west of the bus station entrance) from 1am on Saturday 21 January until (at the latest) 5am on the morning of Monday 23 January. This is to enable installation of a tower crane during construction of 500 new homes and new retail sites. Traffic delays should be expected on surrounding routes including Hoe Street and Palmerston Road.
Access to Walthamstow Central rail/Tube station, bus-station and shoppers' car parks will be maintained. Buses will continue to access the bus-station from the Hoe St. direction. Buses normally accessing from the Palmerston Rd. end will be diverted.
Traffic diversions will be in place via South Grove; Markhouse Rd; Lea Bridge Rd; Hoe St; via Hoe St; Forest Rd; Palmerston Rd; and via Hoe St.; High Road Leyton; Church Rd; Markhouse Rd.; South Grove.
Inspiring women start up programme
Are You a Woman in Waltham Forest thinking of Starting a Business in 2023? Inspiring Women Start Up Programme offers free support via webinars, live group sessions, 121 advice and support to develop business ideas. This is a great opportunity to develop your knowledge, improve your confidence and meet some of our successful Female Founders Ambassadors. Programme starts Thursday 9 February 2023 and last for 6 months. Deadline for applications is 10am, Monday 30 January.
More info and apply.
Current council vacancies and other local jobs
We regularly update the vacancies and local jobs listing on our Waltham Forest Jobs website. Explore available job opportunities and apply for roles that suit you.
And you can find the latest Waltham Forest Council jobs online on our website or LinkedIn.
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