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WALTHAM FOREST ECHO

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Human rights campaigners face trial for blocking deportation flight

Evidence racking up for Mini Holland, according to cycle campaigner

Youth circus group appeals for help in finding new training base

Celebrating 50 years since Walthamstow was put on the Tube Map

Exhibition helps to celebrate Leytonstone's most famous son

Tackling plastic pollution in Waltham Forest

reen groups, shops, cafés, and even hospi-tals, are stepping up to the challenge of tackling

plastic pollution in Waltham Forest. As the extent of the damage caused by single-use plastics around the world has become clear, more and more people are now demanding that retailers of all kinds switch to alternative sources of packaging. Campaigners from a local Green-peace group have been highlighting the poor track record on plastic of several major supermarkets, while one shop in Walthamstow Village has introduced refillable facilities so that certain items can be bought without any packaging. Whipps Cross Hospital's newly-refurbished

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FreeSept 2018, No. 42

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restaurant has also started offer-ing 20p discounts for customers who bring in their own reusable mugs and containers. According to Greenpeace there is an estimated 12.7 million tonnes of plastic being dumped in our oceans each year, where it kills wildlife and takes centuries to degrade. While this has been going on for decades, Sir David Atten-borough's latest documentary Blue Planet 2 dramatically highlighted the extent of the problem last year – drawing promises of action from government and industry. This year campaigners from Greenpeace Waltham Forest have targeted the borough's biggest supermarkets, as well as organis-ing local litter-picks. The group's co-ordinator Hannah Boustred said: “Tackling plastic pollution

Customers at Eat17 in Walthamstow Village can now buy many food items without packaging

Greenpeace campaigners have taken action against big supermarkets in Waltham Forest that use excessive plastic packaging Credit John Cobb/Greenpeace

has been a key campaign for us in recent years. We have organised community litter picks in places like Walthamstow Marshes and Hollow Pond in Leytonstone, and we have put pressure on the leading supermarkets to change their policies on plastic packaging. “We targeted well-known super-markets in the borough, replacing their plastic bags in the fruit and veg aisle with our paper-based alternatives. We also encouraged the public to take action them-selves by returning excess plastic packaging and sending a clear message to supermarkets that it is unacceptable. “With recent commitments by Morrisons and Iceland to reduce their plastic footprint, it now seems the tide is turning on plastic – al-though there is still a long way to go.”

While supermarkets are among the worst offenders when it comes to plastic packaging, one shop in Walthamstow has been leading the way in tackling the problem. Eat17 in Orford Road has intro-duced a range of refillable units that allow customers to buy ev-eryday items without any need for packaging. Customers can bring in their own wine bottles to be re-filled and containers for rice and pasta, which are then weighed and priced at the till. Eat17 manager Saskia Parks said: “Our customers are defi-nitely looking to be eco-friendly and are making efforts not to buy pre-packaged foods and use dis-posable items such as coffee cups. “They are happy to have the option to buy what they need without buying the plastic packaging as well. We now have our sights set on expanding our refillable services to include other products.” Another local shop going plas-tic-free is Coffee Boxx in Wood Street. All take-away items come

in compostable packaging, with straws and bags made from paper. The shop's owner, Sunny, told the Echo: “We decided against using single-use plastics as we want to do our bit for the environment, and from an ethical view, the amount of plastic waste found in oceans is phenomenal. We made this deci-sion from the day we opened and even though it costs us a lot more, we absorb these costs and do not put up the price of our drinks.” Local organic food grower Organ-icLea, a workers' co-operative based in Chingford, has for years been of-fering residents a veg box scheme. Although it is not completely free from plastic packaging, the majority of its fruit and veg is delivered loose. Marlene Barrett, from Organ-icLea, said: “We're ahead of the game because a lot of what we sell is unpackaged. Supermarkets put produce, especially organic, in containers that we don't. When we do need punnets or containers, we have paper bags and cardboard or cornstarch containers.”

by James Cracknell

2 No. 42 SEPTEMBER 2018 WALTHAM FOREST ECHO

SEPTEMBER 2018 – No. 42

Waltham Forest Echo is an independent community newspaper. We publish monthly and distribute 20,000 free copies of each issue to libraries, cafés, pubs, and other places around Waltham Forest.

PublisherDavid Floyd

EditorJames Cracknell

DesignerJonathan Duncan

ManagerPenny Dampier

ContributorsPaul Gasson, Russell Hargrave, Shelly Berry, Richard Baxell, Jean Anderson, Lindsay Collier, Jo Sealy,Helen Bigham, Anthony Fernandes,Fran Jameson, William Stok, Sonia Klug, Michelle Edwards, Marlene Barrett

MembersAdam Pike, Chris Lemin, Darrel Hunneybell, David Gardiner, David Hamilton, David O'Driscoll, Dexter Coles, Graham Millington, Jean Duggleby, Melanie Strickland, Michael Grimshaw, Roland Karthaus, Sanjoy Kumar, Sarah Jones, Keith Magnum, Renetta Neal, Graham Larkbey, Paul Schneider, Megan Lucero, Andrew Sharp, Deri Jones, Scott Davies, Abigail Woodman, Pat Stannard, Lee Mitchell, Ian Cadogan, Madeleine Munday.

The member organisations of WFWellComm CIC are:Community Transport Waltham Forest, Social Spider CIC, HEET.

WFWellComm CIC Management Board:David Floyd (Social Spider CIC)Tom Ruxton (HEET)Helen Tredoux (Community Transport WF)

Waltham Forest EchoThe Mill, 7 - 11 Coppermill Lane, E17 7HAE [email protected] 020 8521 7956

Advertising EnquiriesContact Ben Cawthra:E [email protected] 020 3892 0061

The Echo began with Big Lottery funding.

Plastic is not so fantastic

COMMENT

FELLOWSHIP IS LIFE

An introduction from Waltham Forest Echo editor James Cracknell

Environmental campaigner Paul Gasson gives his views on how new cycling infrastructure is boosting local people's health

ello and welcome to Issue 42 of Waltham Forest Echo. Our front page story this

month looks at the many ways that local people and organisations are helping to reduce plastic pollution in the borough. It's great to see that the issue has really grown in prominence across the media in the last year, although plastic is a problem that has been growing in significance for decades – and it's concerning it has taken us so long to realise it. I must declare an interest here; I am myself an environmental cam-

ith little more than half of the borough’s Mini Holland cycling

programme completed, research undertaken by King’s College London indicates better air quality will see today's five-year-olds living an extra six weeks – thanks to air quality improvements since 2013. Their report estimates that Waltham Forest residents could gain 40,000 years of human life in the coming century. Researchers found that last year, 6,300 Waltham Forest households were exposed to more than the EU recommend-ed guidelines for NO2 (nitrogen dioxide), a highly significant im-provement from 2007, when 58,000

paigner and have been actively in-volved with the group Greenpeace Waltham Forest for several years. Last year we organised a commu-nity litter pick at Hollow Pond in Leytonstone and in the space of only an hour we collected enough plastic waste to fill eleven large bags. It was shocking to see a green space – part of the ancient land-scape of Epping Forest – being trashed in such a blatant way. The progress on reducing plastic pollution detailed on our front page is really just a starting point; we have to go so much further. Mayor of London Sadiq Khan

households were suffering from this level of pollution. Evidence keeps stacking up for Mini Holland, with research also published in June 2018 by Dr Rachel Aldred on behalf of the University of Westminster. Her report showed that people living in the three Mini Holland boroughs (Waltham Forest, Enfield and Kingston) are becoming more physically active year-on-year, spending an extra 32 minutes per week walking, or nine minutes per week cycling. By making car use for short trips a little less attractive we can get more people walking and cycling, which frees up road capacity for those who have little choice but to drive, such as those with mobil-

recently announced the installa-tion of 20 public water fountains to help people refill their reusable bottles and negate the need for buying plastic bottles from shops. But 20 is nowhere near enough – we need them in every town centre and every high street. Elsewhere in the paper this month; read about Walthamstow Youth Circus and its search for a new training base on Page 6, help celebrate the Victoria Line's 50th birthday on Page 9, and join the campaign for an outdoor swim-ming pool on Page 15. I hope you enjoy the paper!

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Waltham Forest Echo is a member of IMPRESS: The Independent Monitor of The Press. For more information on the Echo’s complaints policy and how to make a complaint visit: walthamforestecho.co.uk/complaints

Evidence racking up for cycle scheme

ity impairments. While some may experience personal inconvenience because their driven trips take a little longer, many appreciate the social justice implications of un-fettered car use and the need to consider what's best from the col-lective public interest perspective.Half of households in the south-ern part of Waltham Forest have no access to a car and thus experi-ence few of the benefits, but suffer all the downsides – including the fear of road danger whenever they leave their homes and the impact of life-limiting air pollution. So far, public health profession-als have been seemingly unable to combat the relentless rise in obesity and inactivity with its spiralling NHS costs. I believe Waltham Forest is leading the way in demonstrating that courageous and meaningful measures have the potential to deliver huge benefits for local communities. The explosive growth in car use over the past 50 years is a major factor in driving climate change, so Mini Holland is also showcasing how communities can adopt more sustainable travel patterns. Across the globe cities like London are struggling to deal with crippling road network congestion, casualties, and pollution, with their immense eco-nomic costs, but few are able to iden-tify and deliver affordable solutions. That's why our borough is getting visits every week from MPs, coun-

"Waltham Forest is leading the way in demonstrating meaningful measures have potential to deliver huge benefits"cillors, community groups, council officers, and organisations from across the UK, wanting to under-stand how it is done. Of course the Mini Holland pro-gramme isn’t perfect – changes on this scale will always be controver-sial. There are a number of issues which need to be resolved and many will be with continued political will and support from Transport for London. But overall this is a huge step in the right direction which few in power seem brave enough to take. I'm proud to live in a borough where its leadership is prepared to put doing what’s right ahead of risking short-term popularity.

The new cycle highway in Lea Bridge Road, built as part of the Mini Holland programme

3No. 42 SEPTEMBER 2018 WALTHAM FOREST ECHO

Long-awaited external review shows how well council is managing its budget

altham Forest has conquered Europe at top speed, thanks to

outstanding performances by local athletes at the European Cham-pionships this summer.

review of Waltham Forest Council's financ-es concludes the author-ity is doing a good job

– but needs to better prepare for future risks such as Brexit. The “financial health check” carried out by external accountan-cy firm Grant Thornton found the council to be performing well in five out of ten assessment areas and needing to improve in five others. Although the report was compiled by Grant Thornton last autumn, it was only made available last month. A Freedom of Information (FOI) request made by Bureau Local, a regional reporting project run by the Bureau of Investigative Journal-ism, found that the council was one of only ten local authorities in the

Three sprinters from the borough – Asha Philip, CJ Ujah and Reece Prescod – brought home medals, as Great Britain topped the table at the end of the games in Berlin. Asha, who is 27 and grew up in Leyton, won gold as part of the four-woman 100-metre relay team. CJ, 24, studied at Sir George Monoux College in Walthamstow and also

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NEWSNewsHuman rights campaigners face trial for blocking deportation flight

xtra support will be provid-ed for carers, older people, and people with disabili-

ties or mental health issues, after Waltham Forest Clinical Commis-sioning Group (CCG) was awarded £400,000 to extend its social prescribing service. The three-year grant from the government's Health and Wellbeing Fund extends a pilot scheme initially set up in June 2016. Health or social care professionals suggest a person they think might benefit from social prescribing – including a range of non-clinical services and support. Waltham Forest CCG chair Dr Anwar Khan said: “The social prescribing service gives GPs a single referral point where residents can get help with non-medical issues and get the support they need.”

Chingford-based fundrais-ing group for care charity Marie Curie has celebrated

reaching the milestone of £50,000.Members of the group have been hosting various events and activ-ities around Chingford over the past three years, including stalls and high street collections. The money raised helps Marie Curie's nurses provide free care to people living with terminal illness. Hannah Woolcott, a community fundraiser at Marie Curie, said: “The Chingford group raised an incredible amount towards local nursing.” To get involved email: [email protected]

omeowners who want to help save the planet as well as save money

can now club together to buy discounted solar panels after Waltham Forest Council joined a London-wide scheme. Waltham Forest residents can now register for Solar Togeth-er London, the solar photovol-taic (PV) group-buying scheme. The borough is one of eleven that have partnered with the Mayor of London and iChoosr, a collective energy-switching company. Those who sign up can buy solar panels to generate their own renewable energy, using the group-buying model to unlock significant savings. To find out more visit walthamforest.gov.uk/solartogether

Help extended

Big raise

Going solar

Borough's European champs

Financial review published

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Former Walthamstow student CJ Ujah (pictured left) won gold in Berlin as part of the men's 4x100m relay team Credit Mark Shearman

Leyton-born Asha Philip won gold in Berlin as part of the women's 4x100m relay team Credit Filip Bossuyt (Wikimedia Commons)

country to have commissioned such a review – and also revealed that it had cost taxpayers in Waltham Forest around £20,000. The areas in which Grant Thorn-ton recommends the council improve include “aligning” its financial plan to strategic objec-tives; reviewing the potential for more “income-generating activ-ities”; ensuring it has “adequate contingencies” in place; consid-ering “a range of options” for financial planning beyond 2020; and making more effort to chal-lenge the way that services are delivered across the council. One specific suggestion was that the council should look at its fees and charges in comparison to other London boroughs and consid-er whether there was potential to generate more income from them.Grant Thornton also highlight-

ed an upcoming “budget gap” of £8million, which the council currently expects to be filled by increased tax revenues. Changes to the way local authorities are funded mean the council will soon be able to retain more of its local business rates, while council tax income is also increasing as 12,000 new homes are built. However, according to the report: “There is large uncertainty in re-lation to business rates and there has not been a range of scenarios formally presented by the council.” Regarding service delivery, Grant Thornton suggests the council should consider cutting bureau-cracy, as in one particular de-partment “there is still a lot of manual form filling and data entry, which is clearly time-con-suming and inefficient”. The report also revealed the council

has set up a policy group to examine the impacts of Brexit, in line with precautions being taken by many other local authorities, but that “the council should continually monitor and deal with the challenges and opportunities of Brexit”. In a statement, a council spokes-person said: “The financial resil-ience review shows that the council has managed its finances admira-bly in the face of unprecedented cuts to government funding. We have put ourselves in a position to improve services for residents while at the same time being pre-pared for future pressures. “The report also helps us to understand how our spending compares with that of other bor-oughs and informs our Creating Futures strategy, a new way of working to ensure residents have the best start in life.”

celebrated gold, this time in the men’s sprint relay. Reece, who grew up in Walthamstow, won a silver medal in the individual 100m final. After his final, CJ took to Twitter to declare the relay team “Kings of Europe,” adding: “What a way to end a fantastic championship. Much love for the kind words.” Asha had fought back from ca-

reer-threatening injuries sustained as a teenager while competing in mini-trampoline events. She told the BBC: “In the end it’s about knowing what’s important to you and what makes you thrive. That’s not just athletics – that's life.” Reece, 22, received a sports bursary from Waltham Forest Council between 2013 and 2016 to help make sure he had the right coaching and equipment to support him in his bid to become a world-class athlete. Speaking two years ago, he said: “The Waltham Forest Sports Bursary has been brilliant, and without it I would not have had access to some amazing fa-cilities and coaches. “I feel very fortunate.”

by Russell Hargrave

by James Cracknell


NEWS

Campaign to save town square's trees

Human rights activists face trialLibrary sell-off confirmed

ampaigners fighting to save Walthamstow Town Square from being built on are creating a

children's art gallery along a row of condemned trees. On Saturday 1st September the group Save Our Square will tie more than 100 children's pic-tures to the mature trees set to

hree activists from Walthamstow are among 15 due to stand trial after they blocked a

mass-deportation flight from taking off at Stansted Airport. The human rights campaigners have been charged with a terror-ism offence under the Aviation and Maritime Security Act, the first time this law has been used

he leader of Waltham Forest Council has defended the deci-sion to sell the current

Wood Street Library site for redevelopment. Councillor Clare Coghill hit back at opposition Tory coun-cillors after they 'called in' the decision so that it could be scru-tinised by a council committee. One of the main points of contention was the estimated cost of refurbishing and refitting the existing 68-year-old library bui ld ing , in i t ia l ly put a t £2.5million but now revised down to £2.4m. This high cost was used by the Labour-run council cabinet to justify selling the site and creating a new library on the Marlowe Road Estate for £2m. Cllr Coghill said: “It is outra-geous that Conservative coun-cillors are calling into ques-tion the integrity of officers without a shred of evidence. There has been a lengthy consul-tation process leading up to this decision and we have heard from a number of people who spoke passionately in favour of the new facilities.

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A row of lime trees in Walthamstow Town Square is under threat

The Stansted 15, including three activists from Walthamstow

To view an online gallery of the children's town square artwork:Visit forestradio.co.uk

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be cut down. Locals are invited to bring a picnic to the square, where there'll be fun activities and a talk about its history. The open space is due to be reconfigured – and shrunk by one-third – as part of the redevelop-ment of The Mall shopping centre and construction of 500 homes by developers Capital and Regional

(C&R). The scheme was granted planning permission by Waltham Forest Council last December. Save Our Square recently commissioned an aboriculture consultant to assess the condemned trees and the details on them included in the planning applica-tion submitted by C&R. Russell Miller claimed to find discrep-ancies including the numbering, making identification difficult, as well as “enormous underes-timates” in the life expectancies given for many trees. Among his conclusions, Russell wrote: “The lime avenue in par-ticular is an extraordinary asset, creating a people and wildlife friendly corridor in a busy and polluted urban context. There is solid scientific evidence that removing this avenue will have an adverse effect on mental health. “New trees do not replace old trees. Replacement suggests like for like, or equivalence. but there is no equiva-lence when removing a mature tree

and planting a young one. “It is difficult to overstate the tree cover loss and associated loss of human and environmental ben-efits that would result from the felling of these trees. In the local context this would represent a very significant destruction of a public amenity.” C&R claims its plans will see £200million invested in Waltham-stow town centre. Regarding the loss of trees in the town square, a company spokesperson said: “With our specialist consultants, we have reviewed the tree report in question from Russell Miller in light of the queries raised. We are satisfied, following that review, that the findings from our original planning submis-sion were accurate. “We understand that there are concerns around the provision of trees in the new town square and garden, and we would like to reassure the local community that new trees will be planted in

the square, resulting in an overall increase in the number of trees and sensory gardens, transform-ing this public space.”

"It is difficult to overstate the loss of human and environmental benefits that would result from felling these trees"

by James Cracknellagainst peaceful protesters, and could face life imprisonment if found guilty at their trial in Chelms-ford next month. The flight prevented from taking off in March 2017 was destined for Nigeria and carried 50 migrants and asylum seekers who faced violent persecution in their home countries. The defendants were initially charged with aggravated trespass, but this was later changed by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to endangering safety at an

aerodrome, a much more serious offence introduced following the 1988 Lockerbie bombing. Green Party MP Caroline Lucas is among several politicians who have expressed support for the activists, saying they “follow in the footsteps of many brave people who have put their bodies in the way of state violence”. Others who have expressed support, signing an open letter expressing concern over mass-de-portation flights and the conflation of peaceful protest with terror-ism, include actor and screenwriter Emma Thompson, rapper Akala, film director Ken Loach, barrister Baroness Helena Kennedy QC, and author Naomi Klein. Walthamstow Migrant Action Group is also backing the three activists from Walthamstow who have been charged; Melanie Strickland, Emma Hughes, and Melanie Evans. A CPS spokesperson said: “Follow-ing a review of this case in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecu-tors, these defendants were charged with the intentional disruption of services at an aerodrome, contrary to section 1(2)(b) of the Aviation and Maritime Security Act 1990.”

“I’m pleased the committee have upheld the decision. As we go forward with these proposals we will make sure residents get a say in shaping the design of the new Wood Street Library, and the existing site will remain open until the new site is ready.” A demonstration organised by the Campaign to Save Wood Street Library Building was held outside the town hall prior to August's scrutiny meeting. In a statement the group said: “We are bitterly disappointed about the decision to sell the build-ing and the blocking of scruti-ny, which we allege took place at the meeting. The decision does not make financial sense over the long term. “While we recognise auster-ity measures are in place, it is shocking that this communi-ty asset will be put up for sale, given that next year we will be the first London Borough of Culture and the building is a fine architectural example of civic pride and potentially a fantas-tic income-generating commu-nity and cultural space. “We are considering a commu-nity bid to buy the building.”


INTERVIEW

Singing and socialising

hen I heard about Choir17 around this t ime last year, I signed up

straight away. Having been in a choir before, I was keen to get back into singing – but knew that a choir in Walthamstow would be some-

thing special. Founder Rosie Dow had a similar hunch. “Everyone here’s up for getting together and doing stuff, so I just went for it,” she tells me. It’s clear Rosie cares about her choir members and admits that, at the choir’s performance at the

Walthamstow Garden Party in July, she was more interested in the reaction of her singers than the audience. “I get really proud of people when I can see that they’re a bit scared but they’re going for it anyway. Seeing that blossoming and their faces when it sounds really good – when you’re all looking really proud, when you’re singing and you’re bopping away – I love that.” Rosie’s motivation for setting up Choir17 is embedded in her personal history. While learning the flute came with the stress of exams, singing in a choir was a positive experience. “It was some-where I could go and literally just have a nice time,” she remembers, before telling me about one partic-ular choir leader she met aged 14. “She had so much energy. Ever since then I’ve emulated that desire to inspire people and make some-thing with a group of people that

was lovely and special and warm.” Rosie’s work towards a masters degree in anthropology and com-munity arts at Goldsmiths has deepened her understanding of the benefits of being in a choir, describing it as a community in itself. “It’s about finding something that’s essential to that group of people and then giving them a focus and a way to understand each other.” It is in this context that Rosie sees the rise in choirs as a “show of unity” against divisive politics that encourages individuality at the expense of wider society. “That’s one of the best weapons we have against some of the stuff that we see in the world at the moment,” she argues. As well as the stress-reducing and possible immune-boosting bene-fits of singing, which may explain the 'rush' some singers describe, Rosie tells me about more recent biological research into the simi-

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Shelly Berry talks to Choir17 founder Rosie Dow

FeatureYouth circus group appeals for help in finding new training base P . 6

Choir17 meet every Wednesday in Walthamstow at CentrE17

larity between the hormones apes produce when they groom each other and those released in humans when they sing in a group. “It’s like a social bonding hormone,” she explains. While the theory is compelling, what Rosie has personally wit-nessed illustrates how Choir17 has made a difference to people’s lives. “People stop me and say it’s made them feel more at home here because they see people in the street that they know from choir. I’ll go out jogging on a Saturday and I’ll see people and wave at them, and it’s so nice.” And, as Choir17 approaches its first birthday, I would certainly encourage anyone whose sense of belonging or mental wellbe-ing could do with a boost to come along and give it a go.

For more information on Choir17:Visit choir17.com

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We would like to invite prospective parents to visit to see for yourself how we nurture our young people, giving them a rich diet of art, philosophy, music, modern foreign languages, local and international trips and so much more.

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We are a values driven school with the most extraordinarily talented staff and wonderful site, located next to Jubilee Park and the edge of the Hackney Marshes. @WillowBrookGST

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FEATURES

or many among the large crowds basking in the summer heat of this year’s Walthamstow

Garden Party, the high point (literally) was the astonishing display by the Walthamstow Youth Circus and their interna-tional all star guests. Suspended above the audi-ence, children as young as six performed fearlessly, showing enviable poise, strength and balance. It was, as local MP Stella Creasy tweeted, “extraordinary” a wonderful showcase for the London Borough of Culture 2019. Walthamstow Youth Circus (WYC) was formed just over four years ago and made its début at the Chingford Big Weekend-er in 2015. This year is now the third year running that the talented young troupe of aerial acrobats have wowed the crowds at Walthamstow Garden Party. Sadly, it seems that future shows are in doubt, following the loss of the group's vital training venue in Waltham Forest. Exhaustive

searches for a future space in the local area have, so far, proved un-successful. In the lead-up to this year’s Walthamstow Garden Party, the National Centre for Circus Arts inHoxton and Aerial Days in Dart-mouth Park were incredibly sup-portive, providing temporary training spaces, but neither were sustainable in the long term. Clearly for the aerial circus to have any sort of future, it needs a dedicated home in the borough, with both a practice space for classes and a performance venue. While they look for a more per-manent base, the children’s aerial circus group are urgently search-ing for a temporary local venue, tall enough to house the five-metre high rig from which their equip-ment is suspended. Despite the challenges, WYC’s dynamic leader, Layla Rosa, says that she has not given up hope. She has met with the Arts Council, which endorsed the search for a new home within the borough. Parents clearly support her efforts too, proudly recount-ing the impact that learning aerial circus skills has had on their chil-

dren’s fitness and self-confidence. Not surprisingly, the children are just as passionate. Carmel, 12, enthuses: “I never thought I'd be able to do the things that I have managed to do in Layla's classes.” Fellow circus performer Jessie adds: “I love the unique combi-nation of physical activity, team-work and performance. It’s unlike any activity I’ve ever done.” WYC is open to anyone aged six and above and no prior experience is required. There are currently two groups running on Tuesday evenings after school, though if a new home can be found, Layla would like to open up the aerial circus to other local children. Can you help this amazing activ-ity to continue and grow? If you know of a potential practice space in the borough, or would like to get involved, please get in touch.

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For more information and to get in touch with Walthamstow Youth Circus:

Email walthamstowyouthcircus@ gmail.comFacebook /walthamstowyouthcircus

by Richard Baxell

Young performers from Walthamstow Youth Circus show off their skills at Walthamstow Garden PartyCredit Jess England

High flyersAfter wowing crowds this summer, Walthamstow Youth Circus is looking for a new home

Open DaySaturday, 22 September 2018

8.30am - 1.00pm

Forest School encourages outstanding academic progress and personal development, offering single-sex teaching in a co-educational environment for girls and boys aged 4-18yrs. Forest is a city school on the edge of North London with 30 acres of grounds.

Forest - Where People Grow 0208 520 1744 | [email protected] | www.forest.org.uk

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HistoryCelebrating 50 years since Walthamstow was put on the Tube Map P . 9DEMOCRACY

In our interest?What Waltham Forest Council's Register of Interests tells us about our local councillorsThis is the second in a series of features scrutinising local democracy and the work of councillors in Waltham Forest.For our first such feature, in Issue 40, we introduced you to the newly-appointed council cabinet, which is the primary decision-making body at the town hall. This included a summary of each cabinet member's interests, which they are required to declare on the council's Register of Interests. This month we have taken a more in-depth look at what this register tells us about all 60 of the borough's local coun-cillors. We have collated the information each councillor has provided on their form and have broken this down into three sections – employment, property, and non-pecuniary inter-ests (non-financial). In the first of these categories, councillors are required to state any employment they may have, whatever form that may take. On the chart opposite, you can see that the most common type of employment for councillors in Waltham Forest is the private sector. Among them are accountants, bar-risters, public relations professionals, bankers, and company directors. There are also a significant number of self-employed councillors, including business owners, landlords, and artists. Public sector roles include teachers and civil service workers, while the third sector includes charity workers. The most significant discovery from the register in respect to employment, however, was that not a single councillor was working in any of the traditional 'blue collar' professions such as in construction, maintenance, or manufacturing. In the second category, property, councillors are simply required to list the land they own in the borough. All but three councillors (five percent) own at least one property, and at least eleven councillors own multiple properties – with one owning seven. This is in stark contrast to the bor-ough's population as a whole, of whom around one third are renting privately. The final category we have presented here is non-pecuniary interests, which is any interest that does not involve income or financial gain. Among the organisations councillors have declared their membership of are the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND), Fabian Society, and National Trust. We have not been able to list every organisation here but have included the most well known. Curiously, for a town hall that has 46 Labour councillors, only 14 have declared that they are members of the Labour Party. Similarly, only two councillors have declared their membership of the Conservative Party, despite there being 14 Tories elected to the council. Most councillors – 35 out of 60 – have declared no non-pecuniary interests on the register whatsoever, calling into question the accuracy of its information – something all coun-cillors are required to provide by law. One councillor has also erroneously listed a shareholding under this section of the form. Deliberate failure by councillors to declare interests can result in a criminal conviction, according to the government. A council spokesperson said councillors were required to list memberships of campaigns and charities. Regarding inconsis-tencies, they said: "Councillors who have listed membership of a party have been overly cautious, as opposed to anyone having not submitted the required information."

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To examine the Register of Interests for yourself:Visit walthamforest.gov.uk/content/councillors- declarations-interest

Out of 46 Labour councillors in Waltham Forest, only 14 have declared their membership of either the Labour or Co-operative parties


PHOTOGRAPHY

I have lived in Walthamstow since 1987. A lot has changed since then. These photographs look at the conflict between beauty and progress. At Walthamstow Wetlands, the cranes (not the feathered sort) in the background presage the tower blocks that must surely follow. I took these pictures on a Transport for London (TfL) organised free walk. Continuing the theme of change, I understand that TfL will sadly not be doing their free walks anymore. Even more lamentable is the loss of the beautiful avenue of trees by Walthamstow Central which will soon be cut down to make way for the The Mall's redevelopment (see page 4).

Send us your photosIf you would like to submit your photos for consideration: Email [email protected]

Photographs by Jean Anderson

9No. 42 SEPTEMBER 2018 WALTHAM FOREST ECHO 9ColumnConnect with the community thanks to Waltham Forest Connected P . 11

altham Forest can not only boast of being the home of renowned innova-

tors in art and film-making – but also in transport and engineering. While William Morris and Alfred Hitchcock remain the borough's two most famous sons, the area's contribution to innovation in transport must not be forgotten. In 1882 Britain's first form of bat-tery-powered vehicle, a tram, was built in Leytonstone; in 1894 the first British internal combustion engine car was constructed by Frederick Bremer in Walthamstow; in 1909 the first all-British aviation flight was flown by Alliott Verdon (AV) Roe over Walthamstow Marshes; and in 1910 the first standardised bus in the world, the double-decker B Type, was built in Walthamstow. But there is one additional achieve-ment that is missing from this

list, and it is one being celebrat-ed at Walthamstow Pumphouse Museum this month. Saturday 1st September marks the 50th anniversary of the opening of the world’s first fully-automated underground railway. The Victoria Line opened in September 1968, without a ceremony of any kind, between Walthamstow Central and Highbury and Islington. The full route to Brixton was not opened until 1972. The museum in South Access Road has three original 1967 Vic-toria Line carriages, a complete car numbered 3186 and two sections numbered 3049 and 3016. Car 3186, given to us by Trans-port for London, has been com-pletely refurbished and is often used for filming. It also boasts a pop-up restaurant as well as a display exhibit. Car 3049 is a cab section and was

W

HISTORY

Walthamstow Pumphouse Museum is marking a special anniversary this month, writes Lindsay Collier

Celebrating Walthamstow's old Vic

Original Victoria Line carriages have undergone restoration at Walthamstow Pumphouse Museum and are now open for the public to see

For more information on Walthamstow Pumphouse Museum:

Visit e17pumphouse.org.uk

purchased by the museum from London Underground. This will eventually become part of a small Victoria Line carriage when joined up with car 3016; this section will also be used as a museum celebrat-ing the history of the line.

“This is a Good School” Ofsted Report November 2017

Open EveningWednesday 3rd October 6pm–8.30pm

Buxton opens doors for our community.

We are an honest, kind family of learners,

inspiring ambition for our pupils’ futures.Opening doors,

inspiring ambition

Cann Hall Road E11 3NNTel: 020 8534 3425www.buxtonschool.org.uk

We welcome visits to the school via appointment, please contact Stacey Bell

Twitter: @BuxtonSchInfoInstagram: @BuxtonSchInsta

Facebook: /BuxtonSchoolLeytonstone

Car 3016 is the star attraction as it has not been refurbished, with the interior being the same as it was when it first came into service in 1968. It is the only original 1967 Victoria Line car that exists and is worth a look inside for a trip down memory lane. Over the weekend of 1st and 2nd September there will be various vintage vehicles on display at the museum, as well as models and an exhibition on the history of the Victoria Line. Our unique 1896

Marshall steam engines will also be running. If you miss the event you can still come down to the museum on one of our regular Sunday open days, between 11am and 4pm, and check out our fantastic collection of vintage transport.Advertisement

Victoria Line turns 50This month marks half-a-century since Walthamstow was finally put on the Tube Map. The Victoria Line's Walthamstow Central and Blackhorse Road stations were officially opened on 1st September 1968, although trains initially only went as far as Highbury and Islington. The line's northern terminus was going to be called ‘Walthamstow Hoe Street’ to distinguish it from the existing overground railway station, then called Hoe Street, until the decision was made to join together both stations and name them ‘Walthamstow Central’. Construction took eight years and at the time of its opening the Victoria Line was the first new underground railway in London for more than 60 years. The route was extended south to Brixton in 1971 and in 1972 the opening of Pimlico Station completed the line as we know it today. The Victoria Line now operates 36 trains per hour at the busiest times, with 100 seconds between trains, making it the most frequent train service in the UK and second-most frequent in the world. Two years ago it also began running overnight services on weekends, as part of the Night Tube. The Victoria Line's head of operations Frank Ibe said: “The Victoria Line has been a key part of London’s transport network for 50 years and it’s amazing to think how many billions of journeys have been made in its history. “When it opened, the Victoria Line was one of the most modern subways in the world and thanks to the recent improvements it still sets the standard for the rest of the world today.”


LETTERS

When I left Higham Hill for pastures new the regeneration of Blackhorse Road seemed a mere illusory 'pipe dream'. Waltham Forest Council has managed to convince me, with their myriad of developments in and around Blackhorse Lane, that they are serious about this area, which has

I write in response to Adrian Stan-nard’s letter in July's Waltham Forest Echo. He was voicing his concern over all the new housing developments both at Waltham-stow Central and Blackhorse Road, causing travel chaos for the Victoria Line. He is perfect-ly right of course but the con-stant building of new housing all over the borough is causing other issues as well. While the council is focused only on additional housing they seem to have forgotten that to live some-where people need more than just four walls and a roof. Extra school places, hospital beds, leisure facilities, and social services, are all needed to provide a life rather than just an existence. But these things are not being improved at the required rate to match the increased population, if indeed they are being improved at all. In many cases the new housing

As a Jew, I, along with what I un-derstand to be a substantial mi-nority of Israeli Jews, am horri-fied at how the Israeli government and army treats Palestinians. To label any critic of Israel as antise-mitic, however understandable, is unreasonable and controlling. Free speech was banned in the au-thoritarian states of Soviet Union, apartheid South Africa, and Nazi Germany. What is there to fear from public discussion? Are we to be permitted to criticise any country but never Israel? Apologists for anything that Israel does seem terrified of the slightest criticism. They do not seem to know of, or admit, the ter-rible destruction and cruelty com-mitted. Some Palestinians commit violence too and all violence is ugly. But can this excuse Israeli over-re-action which, of course, inevita-bly leads to retaliation? Israeli behaviour should be dis-cussed publicly, like that of any other nation. The actions and attitudes of all sides need to be mutually understood if there is to be a solution. But Israel’s actions and its recent Nation State Bill, prioritising Jews over Arabs, is hardly likely to make peace more possible. I don’t know Jeremy Corbyn personally but imagine it would be hard to find anyone less racist and less – dare I say – antisemitic. Ros KaneMatcham Road, Leytonstone

In your July letters page, Council-lor John Moss implies that people will not lose out when they shift to Universal Credit. Yet an article in Issue 28 of [council publication] Waltham Forest News says that "Universal Credit is for people of working age as a contribu-tion towards living expenses and housing costs". Can Cllr Moss say how claim-ants are to meet the balance of their living expenses and housing costs not met by this contribution?

Jean AndersonWestbury Road, Walthamstow

We've probably all heard of car- sharing, where a car driver will offer a neighbour a lift to work and the neighbour helps out with a financial contribution. But how many have considered home-sharing? For instance, elderly people, espe-cially those now widowed, may feel under pressure from well-mean-ing friends or family to downsize

The Child Poverty Action Group has, again, highlighted the prob-lems caused by Universal Credit (UC). This time it's with assess-ments of income, and the effects of being paid weekly, fortnight-ly, four-weekly, or monthly. It is time to stop, fix, or scrap UC – it was supposed to be simpler and is anything but that. The government is burying its head in a house built of sand. Meanwhile, many claimants are in debt, facing eviction, using foodbanks, and struggling badly. No-one seems bothered. We need an election now!

Gary MartinCarr Road

declined over the past 100 years since it was a hotbed of invention and industry. The missing link appears to be around Blackhorse Road Station. The axis of access has turned and many people will approach from the north-west side, where a new entrance and ticket hall for London Overground are necessary. A critical point is looming with the development at 4-10 Forest Road straddling the location of such an entrance. These blocks must part to allow for such an entrance and a third platform at surface level; the small 'park-land' is otiose. The provision of student accommodation, on the periphery of London, frees up land for more profitable use in the centre of town. My idea would be to place an Asda and/or Waitrose shop on the ground floor of these blocks, alongside a banking hall and shops. This area can be a coun-terpoint to the town centre and needs these facilities. Further, from the station, bars and restau-rants like those on Hoe Street are also required.

Paul DonnellyWalthamstow

Campaigners are fighting for the life of the Wood Street Library building following Waltham Forest Council's recent decision to sell its site and relocate the library ser-vices to smaller premises* – which inevitably means destruction of the old library by a developer. Next year, Waltham Forest will be the first London Borough of Culture; our campaign appeals to the council to turn this loved and iconic building into a modern library and income-generating community and cultural hub. It could serve the needs of local groups, including a café, rented spaces, and meeting rooms. The council has stated that it has no funds for building repairs and that it cannot find an external funder. Our campaign calls upon the council to halt the rush to sell and instead work with the com-munity to fully explore options. There is irony in that the build-ing’s façade proudly bears names of those who contributed so much to the municipal and cultural life of the old borough, including that of William Morris whose writings and activities helped shape our national pride in archi-tectural conservation – now under dire threat because of the actions of a council that simultaneously celebrates the life of Morris.

Joanna ConwayWood Street, Walthamstow

* Editor's note: The council has since promised that the new library will be of at least equal size.

Making pipe dreams a reality

More housing won't solve our problems

We must be able to criticise Israel

Out of creditWe need to tackle loneliness

Universally annoyed

Council must rethink libraries decision

Dear Waltham Forest Echo





Dear Waltham Forest EchoDear Waltham Forest Echo

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is actually being filled in on sites which previously housed these facilities and therefore the services are actually decreasing. As a result we are getting many more social and criminal issues as people's frustrations and lack of opportunities bubble up and boil over. When will both local and national governments realise that building more and more housing in London and the south is just creat-ing more of these issues, and start instead to encourage businesses to move further north so that the people will follow the jobs?

Mary WykesChingford Hatch

their accommodation, or even to move into a care home. Either way, they have to leave their familiar surroundings and probably part with many of their treasured pos-sessions, leaving them feeling even more bereft and alienated. How much better it could be if they were to consider taking in a lodger or a companion – perhaps someone much younger who could at least partly 'pay their way' by getting in shopping or helping around the house. Of course, the practice could be open to abuse, but could be reg-ulated by a vetting and referral system. The possible advantag-es, however, could be a decrease in loneliness, demand for care home places, and the number of people needing housing.

Mike GrimshawLeyton


COLUMNS

move to Leytonstone six years ago prompt-ed Yahya El-Droubie to fulfil his long-held

ambition to set up his own pub-lishing company. Yahya, better known as Yak, is the founder of Korero Publishing. He said: “I had been working in publishing, mainly as a graphic designer, since the early 1990s, for such companies as Dorling Kindersley, Quarto and Guin-ness Book of Records. “I really wanted to contribute to the careers of the artists I admired and wanted to work with. So I put my own funds into getting started and now it really gives me a great deal of satisfaction to see our artists and authors gain international recognition.” Korero Press is an art book publisher, selling its books all over the world, with titles ranging from pop culture and street art, to graphic design and horror titles. At the heart of its titles is the company’s love of what Yak calls “lowbrow ‘kustom kulture’ and illustration”.

He’s justifiably proud to have gradually built Korero Publish-ing’s reputation over the past six years: “We've published books by such renowned contemporary artists and leading luminaries as Ron English, who blends stun-ning visuals with biting politi-cal statements, Patrick J. Jones, an award-winning sci-fi fantasy artist, and Derek Yaniger who has his own unique interpretation on mid-century modern graphic art. “Our latest publication is Lo-go-a-gogo: Branding Pop Culture. The book is a total brick; 576 pages and packed with almost 5,000 images! It is an inspira-tional visual history of the iconic brand identities created by design supremo Rian Hughes over the past 20 years and includes case studies revealing the 'making of' his famous comic book logos – including Batman and Robin, Spi-der-Man, The X-Men, Captain America and Wolverine.” One of the biggest challenges for Yak is fighting for media at-tention faced with the dominance of a few very big publishers and

N

A

Yahya El-Droubie is the founder of Korero Press

Well connected

Drawing ambition

Exhibition helps to celebrate Leytonstone's most famous son

Event

P . 13

In her regular column on life at The Mill, Helen Bigham makes connections with the community

Waltham Forest Business Network's Jo Sealy meets a Leytonstone publisher with a global reach

o place or person is perfect, there’s always room for improve-ment. Earth-shatter-

ing news I know! I’ve got the choice to do the best I can to change the things I don't like about where I live or how I act. That goes hand-in-hand with

other competition in the guise of video games, film streaming services and social media. “It’s a crowded marketplace but we have built a loyal network of customers,” explains Yak. “We have become known as a brand that publishes particular types of work. Basically, this translates into only publishing what we really love and by far the best part of running this business is having the chance to work with and support top artists. “I'm just amazed at the talent out there and I've met some great people.”According to Yak, 2019 is shaping up to be Korero’s busiest yet with some exciting new projects planned, includ-ing its first graphic novel. “At present most of our sales come from North America. A lot of people are surprised to find out we are from the UK. Our plan is to work to expand our domestic market and get more local recognition.”

For more information about Korero Press:Visit koreropress.com

To find out more about Waltham Forest Connected:Visit wfconnected.co.uk

a wider social responsibility in which I have an obligation to act and behave in a way that is for the benefit of society at large. Every-body will interpret this in their own way but for me a concern for the wellbeing of others as well as myself is fundamental. This belief influenced me to join

the steering group for Waltham Forest Connected (WFC). This partnership currently led by the council was launched in March 2017 with the aim to help bring businesses, the vol-untary sector, and communi-ty groups in Waltham Forest together to network, share ideas

The Waltham Forest Connected team meet up four times a year

to keep afloat, and promote growth in our borough. Their mandate is to support the development of Waltham Forest which in turn will have a benefi-cial effect on local people. The chair is Riley Ramone from TicketLab; a local ticketing plat-form that is completely free for event organisers to set up and sell tickets and, for those buying tickets, their booking fees are really low. In the spirit of social respon-sibility they’re very helpful in sup-porting local charities and volun-tary organisations with events. Originally I got to know Riley at The Mill community centre. He’s one of our volunteers and has been instrumental in devel-oping our website. Volunteers have lots of different reasons for getting involved but his reason is one of my favourites: “As I work from home most other days, vol-unteering at The Mill has been a fantastic way to meet new people

and socialise with people who aren’t my cat.” Another excuse to get away from his pet are the quarterly WFC meetings. In celebration of Tech-nology Week the summer meeting covered broadband voucher schemes and co-working spaces. The next get-together will be on Wednesday 26th September and the emphasis will be on culture, unveiling some of the plans and activities in 2019 as Waltham Forest becomes the first-ever London Borough of Culture. We’ve had some great feedback from attendees coming to the meetings. But to move forward we welcome suggestions, as Venus Wil-liams states: “I'm always in search for perfection. If it's not perfect, I'm back to the drawing board.”


LISTINGS

Upcoming OngoingMorris and Me Exhibition at The MillThroughout September, 9.30am – 6pm Tuesday-Friday, 10am–2pm Saturday-SundayThe Mill, 7-11 Coppermill Lane, Walthamstow E17 7HA

Walthamstow Jazz and Blues FestivalEvery Sat in September, 8pm – 11pmThe Bell, 617 Forest Road E17 4NE

St Mary's Music Hall presents Kasai MasaiThursday 6th September, 6.30pm – 10.30pmSt Mary’s Music Hall, St Mary's Church, Church End E17 9RJ

Last Frame Club: Land of the FreeFriday 7th September, 7.15pm – 10pmThe CentrE17, 1 Church Hill, Walthamstow E17 3AB

You Should Be Dancing in September!Friday 7th September, 8pm – 11.55pmWalthamstow Trades Hall and Institute, 61/63 Tower Hamlets Road, Walthamstow E17 4RQ

An exhibition of mixed media celebrat-ing the life of William Morris and the effect he has had on us.

Walthamstow Jazz and Blues Festval pres-ents Tim Holehouse (Saturday 1st), Mike Tennesee Willis (8th), The Fabulous Red Diesel (15th), Bosco Rogers (22nd), and The Dials (29th).

Congo’s Kasai Masai bring their fast-paced, vibrant soukous and rumba sounds to St Mary’s Music Hall, led by percus-sionist, singer and dancer Nickens Nkoso. Galloping rhythms, strong melodies and passionate beats combine to create an in-fectious form of music guaranteed to get you up and dancing in the aisles!

UK premiere of Land of the Free, which follows three ex-convicts and their loved ones in the two years after their release from prison, as they strive to find a new place in society. An intimate portrait of hu-manity in a deeply troubling environment where the prison industrial system often targets and holds back people of colour.

YSBD! returns after the summer with some cooler than cool tunes for your delight. Not been before? This night is for everyone who cut their dancing teeth in the 1970s and 80s but still loves to boogie with a friendly, mixed crowd. Expect soul, funk, pop and disco favourites from the 60s to the mid-90s

Free entryVisit themille17.org

Free entryVisit belle17.com

Advance tickets £9-£12Email [email protected] stmarysmusichall.co.uk

Tickets £5Email [email protected] lastframeclub.com/7thseptember

£5.50 advance £7 on the doorEmail [email protected] wegottickets.com/event/446518

Waltham Forest Music Society presents The Changing Face of MusicFriday 14th September, 7.15pm – 9.45pmAll Saints Church Hall, Church Avenue, Highams Park E4 9QD

First World War Open DaySaturday 15th September, 11am – 5pmVestry House Museum, Walthamstow Village E17 9NH

The Battle of the Ancre, Advance of the TanksSaturday 15th September, 7.30pm – 9.30pmSt Mary’s Church, 8 Church End, Walthamstow E17 9RJ

The Chicken Shack band night: Race with the DevilSaturday 15th September, 8pm – 1amSinbin at The Plough and Harrow, 419 High Road, Leytonstone E11 4JU

Highams Park LiveThurs 27th September, 7.30pm – 11pmUpstairs at The County Arms, 420 Hale End Road, Chingford E4 9PB

Archaeology Class: Explore Pre-historic CivilisationsTuesdays, 7.30pm – 9.30pmMain hall, Shern Hall Methodist Church, Shern Hall Methodist Church E17 9HX

The Poozies & TashkezarThursday 20th September, 6.30pm – 10.30pmSt Mary’s Music Hall, Church End, Walthamstow Village E17 9RJ

Last Frame Club: Radio Kobani & MeryemThurs 27th September, 7.15pm – 10pmThe CentrE17, 1 Church Hill, London E17 3AB

Miniature Steam and Electric Train Rides in ChingfordSundays, 2pm – 5.30pmRidgeway Park, Peel Close, off Old Church Road E4 6XU

An evening of classical music on record presented by society chairman Andrew Golds. A look back at over five hundred years of changing styles of music. The new season will include four live music recitals.

Learn about the First World War and its impact on Waltham Forest.Open day organised by the East London Western Front Association. All ages welcome.

This screening of the 1917 film The Battle of the Ancre with live accompaniment by the Waltham Forest Youth Orchestra is the special finale to our 2018 World War One Day. It is the official film of the British Army’s autumn campaign on the Somme and contains haunting images of trench warfare, mud, troops advancing into no man’s land, use of horses and the first views of the ‘tank’

For our autumn band night we are very pleased to present Race with the Devil! House DJs The Witch Doctor and The Caveman will be providing the tunes between sets. Come and join us for a great night of rock’n’roll.

Highams Park Live presents an acoustic evening of live music performance with an eclectic programme of local songwrit-ers, poets and storytellers.

Adult education class run by the Workers' Educational Association. Experienced ar-chaeologist Jill Hummerstone will introduce students to past lives and cultures revealed through great archaeological discoveries. Course booking reference: C2419989.

Legendary all-female Gaelic band The Poozies have been mainstays of the folk scene for over 20 years, winning fans with their eclectic choice of material and unusual arrangements. Seven-piece su-per-band Tashkezar present a refreshing retelling of classics from the Middle-East, Turkey, Greece and the Balkans.

Living in The Netherlands since 1998, award-winning director Reber Dosky studied film direction at the Netherlands Film Academy. We present his two latest films.

Trains run every Sunday and Bank Holiday Monday afternoon between April and the end of September. Bring your children along for a lovely afternoon out. Great fun for youngsters and adults.

Free entryCall 020 8531 5695Email [email protected] forestrecordedmusicsociety.co.uk

Free entryEmail [email protected] /EastLondonWesternFrontAssociationTwitter @WFAEastLondonVisit westernfrontassociation.com/branches/united-kingdom/london-east

Tickets £10 + booking feeEmail [email protected] eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-battle-of-the-ancre-and-advance-of-the-tanks-live-tickets-47727365836

£5 entryCall 020 8493 0303Email [email protected] /TheChickenShackRnR

Free entryVisit highamsparklive.co.uk

£8.60 per session (concessions available for benefit claimants)Call 0300 303 3464Email [email protected] enrolonline.wea.org.uk

Tickets £8-£12Visit stmarysmusichall.co.uk/calen-dar/2018/9/20/the-poozies

£5 entryVisit lastframeclub.com/26th-septem-ber-radio-kobani-meryemEmail [email protected]

Tickets £1-£1.50Call 02085 059 274Email [email protected] chingford-model-engineering.com

Wellness in ChingfordSaturday 8th September, 10am – 4pmHandsworth Medical Practice, Handsworth Avenue, Chingford E4 9PD

Join the Patient Participation Group (PPG) for an informative and fun day with ac-tivities including Tai Chi, talks, health checks and massages, leaflets and stands.

Free entryVisit handsworthmedicalpractice.com

Submit your listingSubmit your event via the online form available at walthamstuff.com/echoThe deadline for October listings is 15th September

FOR MORE INFO:email to or [email protected] lowalthamstow.com

Advertisement


EVENTS

re you looking for something fun and arty to do this autumn? After over 30 years

teaching graphics, illustration and comic illustration I am now offer-ing an evening course in illustra-tion and comics in Leytonstone. The course will cater for all levels of ability. You will be able to get tips and ideas if you are a begin-ner and develop your skills if you already have drawing experience. Although I trained as a fine artist and practise painting and sculpture at a studio in Walthamstow, I have illustrated for many well-known magazines and book publishers and have taught graphics and illustra-tion since I was offered a job many years ago at Il Scuola del Fumetto, a comics school in Milan, Italy. At that time comic books were not really part of mainstream culture as they are today; comics meant The Beano and were for children only. Now I feel there is so much more interest in illustra-tion and comics that the time is right for this course and Waltham Forest, as the first London Borough of Culture, is the right place for it. This illustration and comics course will be drawing-based, not computer-aided, as this is the way I think people can learn best.

his autumn an exciting new project launches in Waltham Forest, bring-ing monthly live music

gigs to the historic St John’s Church in Leytonstone. Created in partnership with the church and local community, St John’s Music Hall will showcase folk, jazz and roots music from around the world. The initiative is part of the Music Halls Project, which brings world class arts programming into public spaces, working with community partners. St John’s is the second undertaking, with our St Mary’s Music Hall project having already been successfully

running for the past year at St Mary's Church in Walthamstow Village, hosting everyone from jazz legend Soweto Kinch to the London Syrian Ensemble. As with St Mary’s, the program-ming emphasis at St John’s will be on acts of the highest artis-tic quality, some of them will be bigger, recognisable names, and others will be lesser-known, but no less good! A working church since the mid-1700s, St John’s has had a state-of-the-art sound-system installed to complement it’s naturally-im-pressive acoustics, providing the perfect environment for people toexperience live music. The venue can accommodate more than 400 people, and with pop-up street food and a temporary bar set up

ne of the world’s finest and most instantly rec-ognisable directors, Sir Alfred Hitchcock,

made more than 50 films. Yet remarkably, the story of his local roots remains largely unex-plored. Save for the mosaic gallery at Leytonstone Underground Station and a mural or two, relatively little commemorates his connection to his hometown. He was born at 517 Leytonstone High Road, which is today a petrol station and vacant

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OA display of Alfred Hitchcock memorabilia is currently on display at Leytonstone Library in Church Lane

Learn comic illustrationNot without a Hitch

Church hall of fame The Comics and Illustration Art Course starts on Wednesday 12th September at Connaught School for Girls in Leytonstone and will run each week from 7pm to 9.30pm. For more information:Email [email protected]

For more information on Here’s To Hitchcock:Call 07904 323 198Email [email protected]

For more information on The Alfred Hitchcock of Leytonstone Society:Facebook /AlfredHitchcockLondon

Email [email protected] @stjohnsMHVisit musichalls.org

An exhibition in Leytonstone celebrates its most famous son

Music Halls Project launches second local venue in Waltham Forest

Chicken Shack, where there is an incorrectly dated plaque on the wall. To help do more to celebrate the famous film director's local roots, this month a curated collec-tion of Hitchcock related books, photographs and film stills will be on show at Leytonstone Library, until Thursday 13th September. It is part of the annual Hitchcock Appreciation Month, an initia-tive from the Here’s To Hitchcock group and The Alfred Hitchcock of Leytonstone Society; locally-driv-en projects which aim to “preserve, promote and progress” his legacy. The wider aim is to help repo-

sition Leytonstone and Waltham Forest as a cultural destination, utilising Hitchcock's iconic, global cultural impact. We seek to collab-orate with organisations such as Vestry House Museum, McGuf-fin Society, Hitchcock’s Home, Leytonstone Pop Up Film Club, Magik Lantern, Shake The High Road, Stone Space, and Creative Bloc, to help promote and harness the talents, cultural capital and resources within the borough. Our ambitions include (but are not limited to) the creation of a social enterprise-based creative hub and community centre with adjoining

by Anthony Fernandes

by Fran Jameson

by William Stok

for the events it makes a brilliant new addition to the night-time offering in the borough, provid-ing residents with the chance to engage with vibrant culture on their doorstep. Handily it’s also only one minute from the tube and bus stations! Our first show is on Friday 28th September with the virtuoso Kora player, singer and multi-in-strumentalist Diabel Cissokho, part of the great line of Cis-sokho griots from Senegal, fol-lowed by Danish traditional duo Andreas and Rune on Sat-urday 20th October. On Friday 9th November we’ll be welcom-ing Tarantella Roots band Tel-amure, bringing the sounds and culture of southern Italy to our corner of north-east London,

along with fêted melodeon player Andy Cutting for a folk double-bill. This show is part of the 2018 London Roots Fes-tival which we’re excited about, as it provides a great opportu-nity to showcase Leytonstone to a wider audience. Promoting the area and engaging with the community is something we’re passionate about so over the coming months we will also be programming shows that are of interest to the local audience, particularly groups who may not typically engage with cul-tural activities in the borough.

museum, art house cinema with media training and employment opportunities, walking tours, and eventually perhaps even a themed hotel to host visitors if a local heritage trail were to become reality. We have been fortunate enough to be able to host screenings and talks with the help of local sponsors such as The Birds Pub, Leytonstone Festival, and residents. We are looking to increase activities during 2019 for the London Borough of Culture celebrations, to help inform and ensure a successful Hitchcock Film Festival and other events. Our modest initiative is currently self-funded, however we are looking at a revenue model which could include crowd-funding, to help us operate and develop our next proj-ects. Anyone wishing to volunteer, learn more, or help with funding, is welcome to get in touch.

Crowdfunder launched to create outdoor classroom in Chingford

Feature

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COMMENT

Brockwell Park Lido in Brixton is one of the few outdoor pools still open in London Credit David Sim (Wikimedia Commons)

We need space to swim

Surveying the scene

Hundreds have signed a petition demanding a new outdoor pool for Waltham Forest

In her regular column about life on Marlowe Road Estate, Michelle Edwards challenges council spin

Sign the petition for an outdoor swimming pool in Waltham Forest:Visit tinyurl.com/outdoorswim

LONDON BOROUGH OF WALTHAM FORESTSPECIAL TREATMENT LICENCE

NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR A LICENCE

• manicure• massage • pedicure • lash & brow treatments

• facials • hairdressing

Notice is hereby given that The Beauty Lounge East Ltd (Vivienne Nweke, Company Director), has applied to the London Borough of Waltham Forest for the grant of a Special Treatment Licence at:

The Beauty Lounge E11 561 High Road LeytonstoneLondon E11 4PB

The nature of the application is to carry out the following treatment(s) (eg. massage, manicure, pedicure, facials, lash and brow treatments, hairdressing):

Anyone wishing to oppose the application must give notice in writing to the LICENSING OFFICER, Neighbourhoods & Commercial Services, Licensing Service, Magistrates Building, 1 Farnan Avenue, Walthamstow E17 4NX, specifying the grounds of opposition.

Representations must be received no later than 29th September 2018

Persons objecting to the grant of a licence must be prepared to attend in person before a Committee of the Council.

he borough is getting behind a petition for a new outdoor pool or natural swimming

pond, launched by Walthamstow Open Water Swimmers. We are a diverse and welcoming group of swimmers who use Face-book to share tips and arrange the occasional meet up for outdoor swims. Our group is growing rapidly, and the popularity of the outdoor swimming society shows that there is an ever-increasing appetite for all-year outdoor swim-ming – be it for people enjoying the adventure and pure pleasure a dip under the open sky brings, or for competitive races such as triathlons. We feel that the whole borough would benefit tremendously from an outdoor pool or swimming pond. It could be like a new commons, where people meet – a truly inclu-sive place accessible to all. The health benefits of swimming

ats off to Waltham Forest Council. They came up with some Grade A bullshit to

counter my piece for ITV News London about life on Marlowe Road Estate. Viewers, don't pity the plebs! Ac-cording to the authority, the estate's ongoing redevelopment was "backed by 80 percent of residents on that estate and will provide hundreds of quality new homes for the borough". Seriously? They really thought I was just going to let that slide? In late 2012, as a resident of the estate, I was asked to take part in a "fact-finding exercise". A letter from the council described as "aspirations" the opportunity "to move home either temporarily, or if people wish, more permanently away from the estate". The survey summary was pub-lished in May 2013 and produced a few interesting nuggets. It stated

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by Sonja Klugin cool water are well document-ed, from improved circulation to a boosted immune system, but there is now more and more evidence that swimming outdoors can also significantly improve mental health and even make people more creative. Especially with hot summers on the rise, and 12,000 new homes being built in the borough (mostly flats without gardens or parking), there is a real need for local recre-ational facilities that allow people to enjoy the outdoors in summer and to cool down on a hot day. Our online petition was greeted with a hugely enthusiastic re-sponse, gaining 500 signatures on the first day. At the time of writing it has risen to over 1,500 and is still going strong. The Facebook post spread widely and prompted long-term residents to reminisce about fun summer days spent at the now demolished Hollow Pond and Larkswood lidos, while local parents wished they didn't have to ferry their children half-way across London to queue at

an overcrowded lido. I also spoke to people about this petition at the recent Waltham Forest Pride event – many had enjoyed swimming in the natural ponds in Hamp-stead and were hugely enthu-siastic about the possibility of having one in this borough. A few people raised the cost of building a lido, which is con-siderable. Establishing a natural swimming pond would only be a fraction of the cost. In these, the water is cleaned by reed beds, which are very cost-effective to build, staff, maintain, and are environmentally friendly. Our neighbours on the con-tinent are ahead of us when it comes to reaping the benefits of outdoor swimming. For example in Germany and Austria, many natural swimming ponds are established, and the swimming in lakes and rivers is encouraged and supported by the government. But there is also a renaissance of outdoor swimming in this country–

Lewisham is even going to get a natural swimming lake next year. If you would also like to bring outdoor swimming to Waltham Forest, please sign our petition!

that "residents were advised that their answers were not decisions" but – unsurprisingly – damp, plumbing and heating issues, secu-rity, and vermin, all ranked highly for residents answering the "reasons for perception of poor condition of home" question. "Perception"? I guess the lawyers threw that one in. Looking back now at the survey results, I had a real 'light bulb' moment. Did the council also use the data to justify the upcoming closure of the Wood Street Library building – as well as already-closed The Soul Project (TSP) youth space? It states that of those surveyed, 51 percent did not use local libraries and 63 percent didn't use TSP. After the last of four burglaries, TSP, a charity which engages and invests in children and young adults, shut its doors in February this year. Founder Stephen Barnabis said the landlords sold the building they were renting to property de-

velopers without their knowledge and that the new owners asked them to vacate to make way for the development of luxury apartments.The leasehold/freehold transfer of TSP roughly ties in with the release of the Wood Street Area Action Plan (AAP) in July 2013 – the plan-ning document which "guides re-generation" over the next 15 years. According to property website Zoopla, the TSP property sold for £2.2million in 2014, £2.5m in 2016, and a whopping £3.75m in 2018. I put all of this to the council. Shrugging off suggestions of a link between their (in my opinion, flawed) data collection and deci-sion-making, a spokesperson said: "The survey was carried out solely to inform the council’s ambition to redevelop the run-down Marlowe Road Estate to provide a decent roof over all our residents' heads."Well, I wonder who it was that let the estate become “run-down”?

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FEATURES

Woodland classrooms are made from natural materials and blend in with the surrounding landscape

Help children discover the great outdoorsCrowdfunder launched to create outdoor classroom in Chingford

To support the woodland classroom appeal and to find out more: Email [email protected] Visit organiclea.org.uk/classroom

rganicLea’s market garden site, Hawk-wood, is on land that the ‘peasant poet’ John

Clare will surely have meandered through during his four-year stay in Epping Forest from 1837. Clare harvested his poems from nature. He found companionship in the flowers, peace in the woodland,

Oby Marlene Barrett

and distress at the great changes brought about by the Enclosures and the Industrial Revolution which changed many people’s relationship to the land and nature irrevocably. OrganicLea’s work is focused on food growing, and the connections created when people come togeth-er to grow food. A large propor-tion of our 12-acre forest edge site in Chingford remains woodland, bramble hedge and meadow; we share this land with nature and seek

to maintain it to the benefit of all that grows and lives in it. It’s this link with nature that we are now focusing on, so that even more people can benefit from na-ture-based learning and activities at our site. Thanks to Heritage Lottery funding, we are starting a project in September called Bee Wild, which will offer volunteer-ing and training opportunities in protecting pollinator habitats, and raising awareness of how vital pol-linator species are to maintaining biodiversity. To allow this new direction to really take root we are also fund-raising to build a classroom tucked into the woodland at our Hawk-wood site. It will be a low-impact roundhouse structure built using organic materials with tradition-al greenwood techniques. This new space is crucial to our learning programmes. Our current classroom is fully booked and we can’t meet the demand from groups who want to come to our site. But we also want to create the op-

portunity for people to enjoy and experience Hawkwood differently – with an outdoor space away from the main hub that allows us to be in touch and in tune with nature. Food growing remains the heart of what we do, but we recognise the growing need for people to reconnect with nature in different ways and we want to provide those opportunities. And, of course, supporting a healthy and diverse ecosystem goes hand-in-hand with sustainable food growing. So please help us get our wood-land classroom off the ground and support us to offer some of the nature connections that John Clare experienced as he spent time in the “mid-wood silence”.

We’d really welcome any dona-tions to our crowdfunder appeal, no matter how small, to help us raise the funds we need for our woodland classroom. We’re also running a competition for schools in September, so if you’re linked to a school send us an email. The school whose supporters generate the most engagement and donations will win a prize of three free class visits to Hawkwood.

In mid-wood silence, thus, how sweet to be;Where all the noises that on peace intrude,Come from the chittering cricket, bird and bee,Whose songs have charms to sweeten solitude.

– John Clare

t Most improves school in Waltham forest

OPEN EVENINGThursday 18th October 6pm - 8.30pm

The Executive Principal will make a presentationat 6.30pm and 7.30pm in the main hall.

Experience an inspirational curriculum, diverse extension programme, exemplary student behaviour and aspirational student work

Prospective parents, guardians and students are welcome to visit every Tuesday and Thursday at 9.15am.

SOUTH CHINGFORD FOUNDATION SCHOOL is a vibrant educational establishment

INSPIRINGA NEW GENERATION”

“

Call for an appointment on 020 8531 9231 | email: [email protected] Rushcroft Road, Chingford, London E4 8SG www.southchingfordfoundation.org

FOUNDATION SCHOOLSOUTH CHINGFORD

An Ofsted rated GOOD school

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ALSO AVAILABLE

Gypsy Caravan for Taro & Psychic Readings

Beach Hill Park Pynest Green Lane

Epping Forest EN9 3QL

020 8508 5111

HIGH BEACH

BRICK BUILT LOCK UP STORAGE£25 WEEKLY

020 8508 5111

16

We're proud supporters of ART TRAIL WANSTEAD

8 - 23 September 2018

The Stow Brothers, are proud to support the trail as well as hosting a preview reception on Friday 7th September.

The Trail Party will be open from 6pm-8pm.

Come and join us for drinks, nibbles and a wide array of artwork that will be on display!

ART

TRAIL WANSTEAD

No. 42 SEPTEMBER 2018 WALTHAM FOREST ECHO

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