Walthamstow Village in Bloom Portfolio 2011

Walthamstow Village in Bloom 1



Contents

Walthamstow Village in Bloom

1 Introduction

2 Walthamstow Village in Bloom and its Boundary

3 Gardening Club

4 Adoption of Planters, Flowerbeds and Floral Display

6 Front Garden and Communal Areas Challenge

8 Beautiful Premises Challenge

9 Flower Planting in Vestry Road Playground

10 Village Square – Eden Road Project and New Planting

12 Plant, Seed and Produce Swaps

13 Our Green Spaces

14 Annual Spring Clean & Big Clean Up

15 Crime Prevention and Civic Pride

17 Bulb Planting

18 Fundraising and Awareness

20 Removal of Conifer on Green by Ancient House

21 RHS Away Day

22 Village Veg – Your Doorstep Allotment

23 Recognition

24 Henry Maynard Junior School Community Garden

25 Vestry House Museum

26 St Mary’s

27 Sponsors and Credits


Walthamstow Village is an ancient nucleus of present day Walthamstow, located in north east London. The Domesday Book records that Walthamstow, at the time of the Norman Conquest, comprised four separate village settlements. The parish at the time was called Wilcumestou, probably Old Engish for the welcome place.

The Village was designated a conservation area by Waltham Forest Council in 1967. At its centre is St Mary’s Church which was consecrated 900 years ago and a 15th century timber-framed hall house known as The Ancient House.

From the 18th century the church common was encroached upon with the erection of the workhouse (now Vestry House Museum), the Squires’ Almhouses and the National School and other notable buildings, many of which will be seen in our tour of Walthamstow Village in Bloom.

William Morris was born in Walthamstow in 1834 and the family lived locally and attended St Mary’s Church until 1856.

The coming of the railway in 1869 generated a rapid population increase and the railway cutting created a physical barrier between the old village centre and the Victorian

development. With the houses came the shops and by 1877 Orford and Beulah Roads had become the shopping centre of Walthamstow. The relocation of the town hall from Vestry House to Orford Road in 1876 confi rmed its status as the centre of Walthamstow.

The Village was saved from disfi gurement by the opening of the station at the Central which drew commercial development away and the relocation of the town hall to a new building on Forest Road in 1941. In 2003 the WVRA successfully campaigned for Retail Parade Status to be re-granted to Orford Road and it is currently thriving.

The Village has a very distinct atmosphere with its quaint buildings, alleys and quirky streets, shops, pubs and restaurants and has a superb community spirit. Those living here consider themselves part of a very special area.

Walthamstow Village in Bloom includes the Walthamstow Village and the Orford Road Conservation Areas and surrounding streets. It encompasses areas of the Hoe Street and Wood Street wards of the London Borough of Waltham Forest.

Introduction


Walthamstow Village in Bloom and its boundary

In 2003 Walthamstow Village Residents’ Association (WVRA) formed its Environment Committee in response to concerns voiced by residents at Open Meetings. The Village was in a terrible state so we organised the fi rst of our annual spring cleans and started a monthly gardening club and have, over the years, adopted most public spaces and added more events to our calendar.

In late 2008, as a reward for everyone’s hard work, we entered London in Bloom and in September, Walthamstow Village in Bloom, achieved a silver-gilt award and was awarded London’s Best Urban Community for the second year running. We are again fi nalists in the national competition RHS Britain in Bloom 2011 after achieving silver-gilt in September 2010.

We have not formally increased our boundaries this year but surrounding areas are being noticeably improved with residents further afi eld adopting fl owerbeds, working on their front gardens and forming a Friends’ Group to care for the nearby Wingfi eld Park recreation ground.

We are still 100% volunteer led but this year we have been invaluably assisted and supported by Waltham Forest council. Their wonderful Contracts Monitoring Offi cer Paul Tickner and his colleagues have worked with us in partnership and have been inspired by our success in improving the Village to enter Waltham Forest in London in Bloom and to initiate policies based on our ideas to improve the whole borough.



The Walthamstow Village Residents’ Association’s Gardening Club started in August 2004 to tend the garden on the corner of Eden and Orford Roads (later becoming the Village Square). We also maintain the adopted planters, fl owerbeds, tree pits and any public spaces that require attention.

We have a core group of stalwarts who turn up every month, come rain or shine. Before each gardening day a reminder email is sent to the 500 people on the WVRA contact list; some of whom come along if they are available and if they want to participate in a certain project.

Those who join in include families with children and people of all ages, abilities and from a variety of backgrounds. We have great support from the youth club of the Taoist Temple.

We meet on the fi rst Saturday of each and every month until May when we increase meetings on an ad hoc basis. We have a year-round list of activities that includes weeding, planting and pruning, litter-picking, painting out and cleaning off graffi ti, re-painting street furniture and clearing and cutting back vegetation from footpaths.

We separate gardening waste and have installed a compost bin on the square.

Volunteers bring their own tools and gloves and we are supplied with bags by Waltham Forest. All other equipment and items are funded by WVRA.

Gardening Club


Around the Village are several brick pavement planters that were an eyesore; the brickwork was damaged, the dense shrubs had far outgrown their situations, they blocked light and sightlines of roads and pavements and were a magnet for litter and fl y-tipping and were providing cover for other anti-social activity.

In 2007 Waltham Forest ran an initiative to enable residents to adopt a fl owerbed. The WVRA funded the planting of six planters with another being sponsored for planting and annual maintenance by Fuller’s Builders, designed in their livery colours.

In 2008 WVRA adopted and funded the planting of the fl owerbed on Vestry Green and local horticultural journalist, Martyn Cox donated thousands of bulbs to further enhance it.

In 2010 we received a grant of £6,740 from the Community Council to adopt, repair and replant two more dreadfully overgrown planters on Church Lane.

This year we have replanted the Village Square (see pages 10-11).

Adoption of Planters, Flowerbeds and Floral Displays

before

before


Walthamstow is the birthplace of William Morris and, with this in mind, Graham Sherman of Outer Space Gardens has designed the planting for year-round interest in texture, movement and colour. Plants chosen are hardy and drought-tolerant and we are able to collect seeds, divide the plants and take cuttings so that we can sustain and maintain these beds and more.

We have planted tree-pits with collected seeds and plants and those by the playground in Vestry Road are cared for by two younger resident volunteers as part of their Duke of Edinburgh Award project.

The monthly gardening club and Graham have a year-round programme of pruning, dead-heading, seed-collecting and weeding and we use no herbicides or pesticides and only organic feed. We divide and take cuttings from established plants. The beds are mulched to suppress weeds and retain moisture and, in times of drought, we put out a plea for residents to collect their ‘grey’ water to use on them .

Waltham Forest kindly supplies and maintains the lamppost baskets with summer and winter displays.

Adoption of Planters, Flowerbeds and Floral Displays (continued)


On 26 March the Front Garden Challenge 2011 was launched to encourage residents to participate in Walthamstow Village in Bloom. 2000 booklets containing an entry form, information, news, our aims and some encouragement and advice were distributed within and around our in Bloom boundary; another booklet is delivered in June.

We encourage residents to use peat-free products, to use water wisely, to compost garden waste and to garden organically.

All entrants receive a certifi cate of participation and are invited to our own little awards ceremony at the WVRA AGM and we choose an overall best entry for nomination in the London in Bloom Front Garden Award. In 2010 we had over 50 entries with Don Mapp’s garden at 47 Maynard Road winning overall. Don’s garden was featured in the April edition of RHS The Garden magazine.

Infl uenced by our success in improving the residential street-scene, in late 2010 Waltham Forest launched a borough-wide Filthy Front Gardens campaign and has cleared over 500 front gardens and rewards its residents with a Best Kept Front Garden Award which was won in April at the Love Your Borough award ceremony by our 2009 winners Mr & Mrs Martin of 9 Church Lane; the runners-up were Mr & Mrs Meigh-Andrews of 59 Beulah Road!

Front Garden and Communal Areas Challenge 2011

Editor: Jenny England

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Want to have your say?

In my opinion

News

2

Claire ThomasSecretary - Waltham Forest Bilingual Group

Sunday 26 September is European Day of Languages. People all over Europe will celebrate all the languages from around the world that are spoken on our continent.

Over 20 per cent of people in Waltham Forest speak a language other than English to

a very high level, and Waltham Forest Bilingual Group estimates that over 300 languages are spoken in the Borough. This means any children living here have the potential to grow up speaking more than one language.

Being multilingual brings many advantages – to the children, to our community, to our economy. However in many cases due to a lack of information, commonly repeated myths or a lack of support, parents choose to speak to their children in English and children either never learn or quickly lose a second language.

It used to be thought that speaking more than one

language confused children. Parents often think that if a child speaks a language other than English at home, they will fall behind at school. These beliefs have been shown to be false, and research has demonstrated that multilingual children who are born in the UK or arrive when they are very young do at least as well at school and in fact consistently outperform monolingual children in certain thinking tasks.

English is a powerful and popular global language, but that doesn’t mean that we should needlessly jettison other languages. The English find it hard to imagine speaking several languages well, and many people believe that monolingualism is normal but, in fact, more than two thirds of people in the world speak more than one language.

Fortunately in today’s climate, this is not an issue where we are talking about needing to spend money. Parents will do all of the work and can teach their children languages if they can just be given a tiny amount of advice and support, and if we can change the outdated negative attitudes to multilingualism.

We now have a Deputy Prime Minister who himself has multilingual children. Perhaps finally this is the right moment for a major shift in attitudes. We should take this opportunity to debunk the old myths once and for all and ensure that we retain all of the languages that we are lucky enough to have in our community.

Village best in bloomWalthamstow Village residents are celebrating after winning a prestigious London in Bloom award for the second year running.

The Village won the award for best urban community at a ceremony hosted by the City of London on Friday 3 September. They also received a ‘silver-gilt’ award for their efforts.

The Walthamstow Village Residents’ Association (WVRA) prepared for the competition, which was judged in July, by holding a number of local challenges.

Village residents, businesses, restaurants and schools competed for the best floral displays. Vestry House Museum garden was awarded best community garden, Trattoria La Ruga won the best pub or restaurant display, I Kuan Tao Temple triumphed in the best business display category and Don Mapp of Maynard Road won the best front garden award.

The WVRA also encouraged residents to keep the village looking good by organising clean ups, having social and fund-raising events and

For information on Walthamstow Village Residents’ Association visit www.walthamstow village.net. Free internet access is available at all libraries in the borough.

More info

“English is a powerful and popular global language, but that doesn’t mean that we should needlessly jettison other languages.”

• Residents’ Association scoops London-wide horticultural award

• Success thanks to hard work and community spirit

Don Mapp won WVRA’s best front garden category for his lush garden

swapping plants and seeds with each other.

Helen Lerner, of WVRA, told Waltham Forest News: “It feels fantastic to have won the award for the second year running. The fact we received full marks in the community participation section of the award is testament to the hard work people have put in and the great community spirit we have.

“I’d like to thank everyone who was involved. The award is for everyone who worked so hard for our success.”

WVRA now awaits the

results from the Britain in Bloom finals, to be held in Birmingham on 29 September, where they are up against nine other urban communities. Keep an eye out for future editions of Waltham Forest News to find out how they did.

Love Your Borough

Walter and Beatrice Martin’s beautifully tended front garden

Walthamstow School for Girls staff were delighted to win

the Go Green award

Best kept front garden award• An individual, group or business that has improved their

front garden or balcony making Waltham Forest a greener,

more colourful boroughWinnerWalter and Beatrice Martin

Helen Learner, of Walthamstow Village Residents’ Association, nominated Walter and Beatrice

Martin for the best kept front garden award. Unfortunately the couple were unable to attend the ceremony due to personal commitments. What they said:Helen Learner said: “Beatty

and Wally’s front garden looks consistently beautiful in every season. Its wonderful seasonal displays give year-round colour and interest and the Martins work very hard to ensure that there is never a weed to be seen or a leaf out of place.”

Go Green school award• Schools worked along the theme of ‘Reduce, Reuse and

Recycle’ to implement one project that will raise awareness

of the issue of resources - natural and man made - to impact the

school, local or global environmentWinnerWalthamstow School for Girls

Walthamstow School for Girls has begun a two year project to support the Pakistan flood relief project. They are working to build links in the area and have raised a considerable amount of

money by holding fundraising events that have supported the ‘Reduce, Reuse, Recycle’ philosophy. This has been a whole school scheme that has utilised the varied talents of children, staff and the local community.What they said:School Business Manager Helen Chamberlain said: “It is fantastic to win the

Go Green award, our pupils and staff have worked really hard on the project to raise money for victims of the devastating floods in Pakistan last year.“The headteacher decided the school should get heavily involved in raising money for victims of the Pakistan Floods because we have a large Pakistani population in the school and we have children here whose families were affected.“We wanted to help those people less fortunate than ourselves and we decided this should be a significant project so we could get involved in how the money is spent and watch the progress. We also want it to be something educational in character such as rebuilding a school or providing another type of educational establishment.”

Keeping the streets of Waltham Forest moving

NSL are proud to support theLove Your BoroughAwards 2011

www.nsl.co.uk


We have gardens in Brunswick Street and Maynard Road that open under NGS.

Following our work at the fl ats on Grosvenor Rise East and in Church Lane, we were also approached by residents in Wingfi eld Road and helped them improve their communal garden by providing a work party of WVRA volunteers and plants donated by local residents.

We have a large number of sheltered and alms houses in the Village and they have all entered the challenge.

Front Garden and Communal Areas Challenge 2011 (continued)

We launched the Beautiful Premises Challenge 2011 on 26 March and leafl eted all businesses, schools, organisations, and religious and community groups within our in Bloom boundary.

The leafl ets contained an entry form, information, news, our aims and some encouragement and advice and also ways in which businesses may wish to help by sponsoring a display or making a donation; another leafl et is delivered in June.

All entries receive a certifi cate of participation and we will choose overall best entries for nomination in the London in Bloom Business Premises and Pub and Restaurant Award. Last year our overall winners were the I Kuan Taoist Temple at the Old Town Hall and Trattoria La Ruga.

Vestry House Museum is again entering its wonderful garden and was our overall winner in 2010 and our nomination for the London in Bloom Community Garden Award. Henry Maynard Junior School is also entering their pupils’ fantastic community garden.

Beautiful Premises Challenge 2011

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On 27 March to launch our entry as Walthamstow Village in Bloom 2010 and to celebrate the United Nation’s International Year of Biodiversity, we ran a free children’s workshop planting sunfl ower seeds. The children took their pots of seeds home with instructions on how to grow and nurture them.

On 2 April we ran a free children’s workshop planting cottage-fl ower seeds. The children took their pots of seeds home with instructions on how to grow and nurture them.

On 4 June the children returned with their seedlings to Vestry Road Playground to plant them along the serpentine fl owerbed. The plants were labelled with their name and the children promised to return to water and tend them.

It was clear that some of the children had never planted anything before so it was a perfect opportunity to talk to them and help them discover the joys of growing plants from seeds and to explain about the science of plants. Others had attended our workshops before and were proud to show off their planting skills.

The fl owers will cheer up the playground and give the children a sense of pride and ownership of their recreation area. They will attract bees, butterfl ies and other benefi cial insects and their seed heads will feed the birds in autumn.

Flower Planting in Vestry Road PlaygroundVillllllaaaaaaaaaaaaaaage s ldrennnnnnnnnnnnnn’s

ook thhhhhhhhhhhhheeeeeeeir

PPLANT YOUR FLOWERS

SATURDAY 4 JUNE 10:30-12.30

V

ESTRY ROAD PLAYGROUND

Bring your little plants to the VVestry Road Playground on Saturday 4 June and

plant them in the bed along the playground fence. We have grown some extra for th

ose

who would like to join in but didn’t come to the workshop in April!

They will look beautiful flowering together in August and will attract butterflie

s and

bees and other beneficial insects and their seed heads will provide food for th

e birds in

Autumn.


It started in 2003 when, fed up with the appalling state of the garden on the corner of Orford and Eden Roads, the WVRA Environment Committee ran a gardening day to weed and clean up the area. There was no bin, the benches were broken and often inhabited by street drinkers and the beds were full of weeds and rubbish and were being used as a toilet.

In 2005 we were awarded a Living Spaces grant of £3,970 for a bench, a bin and a notice board. Residents and a local builder supplied all the labour. A second bench was donated by a family in memory of a resident.

Each month we carried out a different job and these activities led to the birth of the WVRA Gardening Club; we still use the Square as our meeting point.

Since 2005 Waltham Forest has donated a Christmas tree and lights and the WVRA holds a carol singing event that is attended by 300+ residents. The notice board is well used by local groups and residents.

The Square is also used for craft events, the Plant and Seed Swaps and by the Safer Neighbourhood Team for their crime prevention stall.

It has become one of the focal points of the Village and is a pleasant place in which residents and shoppers can meet or sit.

Village Square – Eden Road Project & New Planting

before


In November 2010 we were awarded £2,862.50 by our Community Council to replant the Village Square and really make it beautiful.

In December the gardening club cleared the beds and drastically pruned back the overgrown shrubs and in February we spread tonnes of compost to improve the soil.

The fl owerbeds have been beautifully designed and replanted by Outer Space Gardens to match the other areas we have adopted.

We have dedicated a rosebush to the memory of Janice Tildsley, one of our chief sponsors and a staunch supporter of our activities, who very sadly suddenly passed away at the end of 2010.

Village Square – Eden Road Project & New Planting (continued)


We held our fi rst Plant and Seed Swap on the Village Square in March 2009 to encourage residents to improve their front gardens, window boxes and planters, and to raise the profi le of our In Bloom campaign. It was such a success that we now run Plant and Seed Swaps every spring and autumn.

In September 2010 we expanded the event to include a produce swap and, as part of the RHS Dig Together Day, we were joined by RHS’ Sophie Dawson for an article in their Autumn 2010 Growing Communities magazine.

Packets of collected seeds are given out to children and people bring their surplus seeds, plants, pots, produce and gardening equipment to swap. Graham answers gardeners’ queries and identifi es plants. Vegetable seeds are also swapped and we have made leafl ets with food-growing advice.

Free workshops are held making window boxes and insect houses from reclaimed wood and bamboo and children are shown how to plant seeds.

Plant, Seed and Produce Swaps

04/ RHS Dig Together Day 2010

Autumn 2010

Dig Together

celebrates

two years

Gardening clubs and horticu

the UK were out in force

– 5 September to enjoy

Together Day – held to celebra

and encourage more people t

President of Hampstead Ga

Society, Jonathan Ross, su

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Gardening clubs are great for gettin

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together, getting outdoors and

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can go along and learn about anything...

Jonathan Ross

Image: Katie Robinson enjoyed a workshop making insect houses

at Walthamstow’s community day

her

s scultural societies around

e on the weekend of 4

y the second annual Dig

rate the work societies do

e to get involved. Honorary

arden Suburb Horticultural

upported this year’s event.

clubs are great for gettin

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oors and exchanging gardening

o along and learn about anything

our own veg to how to prune a bonsai

o much from my own society.”

g’ encourages groups to share their

edge and expertise with the local

oviding fun activities which are open to all.

HS Affiliated Societies got in

volved,

ything from willow weaving to winter tu

b

monstrations, community garden restoration

hid seed sowing.

thanks to all involved for th

eir efforts. There was

deal of press coverage about this year’s event,

we will be sharing with participating groups shortly

.

are already underway for next year’s event and

l be using groups’ feedback to make sure that DTD

11 is an even greater success. More details to follow in

e January issue.

Gardening clubs are great for gettin

g

together, getting outdoors and

exchanging gardening know-how. You

can go along and learn about anything...

Jonathan Ross

Image: Katie Robinson enjoyed a workshop making insect houses

at Walthamstow’s community day

/05

www.rhs.org.uk/communities

Restoring Great Dixter’s tradional

wildflower meadows

In East Sussex, Northiam Hortic

ultural Society

invited the local community to help the group

reinstate one of several traditional meadows

around Great Dixter House and Gardens. Led

by head gardener, Fergus Garrett, the group

scattered hay bundles full of native wild flower

seeds from Dixter’s diverse flower meadows

around fields pre-prepared with a spike harrow.

Summarising the day, Fergus said, “With so

many meadows being lost to agriculture over the

years, it’s w

onderful that we can help to spread a

bit of diversity back into the local landscape.

“The group was fantastic. We dispersed a

broad mix of native wildflower seeds, including

orchids, and we hope that everyone will come

back in a few years time to see the results of

their work.”

‘Brilliant’ y

oung gardeners lead the way

Mickleton Young Gardeners (MYG) in

Gloucestershire showed off the fru

its of their

labours at an open allotment ‘Dig Together

Day’ event. Young members were on hand

to show visitors around and explain the work

they’d been doing on their plot.

Barry Metcalfe, of MYG, said, “It

’s been a

fantastic day and we had almost 300 people

turn up – many more than we expected. The

children were brilliant – it w

as their day and

they really enjoyed showing visitors around.

Everyone was very impressed with their

efforts, including the other plot holders, and

it was a great chance for diffe

rent sections

of the community to meet and enjoy an

afternoon together.”

New ‘gateway’ to village

Blunsdon Village Garden Club in Wiltshire

gave something back to the community with

their Dig Together Day, planting a new gravel

border around three large stones at the

gateway to the village. The 16-strong team

gallantly braved the rain to dig in a selection of

plants chosen for the site

, rewarded at the end

of the day with free chips fro

m the local pub!

“Our members were joined by parish

councillors and fellow villagers to plant up

our new ‘Gateway’” said Lou Johnson, Chair

of Blunsdon Village Garden Club. “We had a

very rewarding day; the weather cleared up

and we enjoyed planting out 45 herbaceous

plants and about 3000 seasonal bulbs

together as a team. Next year we’d like to

brighten up another area in our village as

part of th

is scheme.”

Walthamstow’s community day

In London, Walthamstow Village Residents’

Association (WVRA) celebrated Dig Together

Day with a community plant, produce and

seed swap. Children enjoyed a workshop

making insect houses out of reclaimed wood,

bamboo and straw, while parents found

inspiration for the garden with new plants

and seeds. Horticultural experts from the

society were on-hand to answer questions

and offer advice.

“It was a wonderful event and a great

opportunity to get people together and

spread some enthusiasm for gardening” said

Helen Lerner, of WVRA. “W

e have a strong

sense of community in this area and it’s

great to encourage people to get in

volved in

caring for their lo

cal environment.”

New bee border for M

arket Weston village hall

In Suffolk, P.O.T.S. Hopton & District

Gardening Club enjoyed a day of digging as

part of th

eir activities, with the preparation of

a new bee border in front of th

e village hall.

The area had been completely overgrown

before the group decided to take it under

their wing and create a community garden

for wildlife, stocked with pollinating insect

friendly plants, such as lavender, fo

xgloves,

Rudbeckia sp and Verbena bonariensis.

Anita Dawkins, P.O.T.S. Secretary, said, “We

had a really enjoyable time – and many hands

made light work of the digging! Ten willin

g

volunteers gathered in the misty hour after dawn

to begin creating the garden. We’ve prepared

the bed and now look forward to completing

the planting and enticing the fauna in with

lots of seductive flora.”

Left: Blunsdon Village Garden Club

Above: Northiam Horticultural Society

Above: Walthamstow’s community day

Above: Mickleton Young Gardeners

Above: P.O.T.S. Hopton & District Gardening Club

Highlights of Dig Together Day 2010

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Being an Urban Village every green space is most important. The largest is the ancient St Mary’s Churchyard. We are now in close consultation with the church groundsman Tim. The churchyard is spread over more than three acres in which there are about 1,300 monuments (the oldest dated 1710). There are over 26,000 burials, of which more than 16,000 since the mid 17th century are recorded in the registers. We and the church do a lot of work to keep Vinegar Alley clean and tidy but leave the native plants and wildfl owers to encourage wildlife and to give the path a woodland feel. We have sown thousands of seeds and planted bulbs along the length.

The deep railway cutting is home to much wildlife and we liaise with Network Rail to try and keep it as nice as we can.

There is a small enclosed wildlife area in Vestry Road and last year we erected bird boxes, insect houses and created woodpiles.We have been given the thumbs up by a pair of bluetits who have, this year, brought up their family in one of the boxes.

Vestry House Museum garden has a wonderful wildfl ower area.

Our Green Spaces



We launched Walthamstow Village in Bloom 2011 on 26 March with our 9th annual clean attended by over 60 people of all ages, abilities and from a wide variety of backgrounds. Residents were also joined by members of Clean Up UK, council offi cers and operatives from contractors Kier and JB Riney. We and members of our local Taoist Temple laid on a picnic lunch on Vestry Green for all volunteers.

This year, as a direct result of our example, Waltham Forest held their fi rst borough-wide Spring Clean with 44 cleans taking place, of which we were one, involving 1,500 volunteers.

It all started in 2003 when the newly formed Walthamstow Village Residents’ Association (WVRA) Environment Committee ran its fi rst spring clean. The Village was in a terrible state and many complaints received at Open

Meetings were about litter, graffi ti and the piles of rubbish and fl y-tipping that had been accumulating in every nook and cranny, path and alley of the Village.

Over the years the rubbish collected has become markedly less so we have added gardening and painting street furniture and junction boxes to our list of tasks. Now when someone dumps something or graffi ti appears it instantly stands out and we encourage people to report items immediately to Waltham Forest Direct so that it is dealt with before it becomes a problem.

The Spring Clean is a very satisfying and enjoyable event and has helped instil pride in the area; it gives everyone a chance to work together, meet their neighbours and improve the Village. In June we hold a similar Big Clean Up to spruce up the area before judging.

Annual Spring Clean & Big Clean Up


Walthamstow Village is a quaint area that has many old paths and alleys and a large churchyard. Unfortunately, over the years there have been spates of muggings and robberies and even a murder that have taken place in these areas. On the advice of the Metropolitan Police the Gardening Club carries out work to “eliminate recesses, blind corners and hiding places” and remove graffi ti.

Work includes:

• clearance of churchyard and Vinegar Alley sites in March and down Beulah Path in May by the Community Payback Team

• clearance by Waltham Forest of the giant Leylandii from the green adjacent to The Ancient House

• removal of graffi ti and fl y-tipping and maintenance of verges in Vinegar Alley

• removal and painting over of graffi ti on walls, signs and street furniture

• reporting, and encouraging residents to report lighting defects and street problems to Waltham Forest Direct

• reporting fl y-tipping and graffi ti on the railway embankments to Network Rail

• cutting back of vegetation blocking sightlines and pathways

• running anti-dog mess campaigns• liaising with property companies to

ensure signs are removed within two weeks of let or sale

We also:• attend Ward Forum meetings held by

councillors to ensure residents’ voices are heard.

• consult with Waltham Forest and attend their meetings re planning, transport, environment, rubbish collection, cleansing etc.

• hold open meetings for residents to voice their concerns and feedback

• attend Waltham Forest Street Watchers meetings

• liaise with Clean Up UK

Crime Prevention & Civic Pride

cludes:

Bag it - and Bin it!

Dog waste can be disposed of in normal litter

bins, so long as it is bagged - there is no excuse

to leave dog mess on our streets and in our parks

Waltham Forest Council actively encourages dog

owners to act responsibly and clear up after their

dogs. Those who leave their mess behind are

liable to a

£80 Fixed Penalty Notice.

i.


Crime Prevention & Civic Pride (continued)

Last autumn we were informed that our dedicated PCSO, Russell Gillingham was being moved to another ward and residents launched a successful campaign for him to stay; he knows everybody, keeps an eye on elderly and vulnerable folk, deals with any problems, has moved on the street drinkers, encourages responsible dog-ownership and attends our events.

Our friendly street cleansing operative Cecil works hard to keep Village streets and alleys spick and span.

We work closely with our ward councillors, Waltham Forest and Stella Creasy, the MP for Walthamstow, who lives locally, joins in activities and is a staunch supporter of In Bloom.


In 2003 Waltham Forest, through the Pride in Waltham Forest campaign, supplied community groups with spring bulbs to brighten up their areas. The Environment Committee applied for crocuses and daffodils to plant in the Village Square.

Since then we’ve held a planting event every year and thousands of bulbs have been planted throughout the Village area.

In 2010 we received crocus bulbs supplied by the Council via the nearby Organiclea group and the WVRA funded 500 February Gold daffodil bulbs. On 6 November we planted them in the newly adopted planters in Church Lane. Our Megan Whitear again donated thousands of snowdrops ‘in the green’ and planted them along Vinegar Alley. Local horticultural journalist Martyn Cox donated his free, sample bulbs for Vestry Green.

We were one of the fi rst 50 communities in UK to sign up for the Big Bulb Plant in conjunction with The Eden Project and we received 250 lily bulbs that we planted around the Village on 30 April.

Bulb Planting


Bulbs provided by Walthamstow Village Residents’ Association

Bring a trowel and gloves

and make the Village

bloom in Spring!

event suitable for all ages and abilities

meet your gardening

For further information please call 020 8503 6308

or contact [email protected]


The WVRA has an Events Committee that arranges a year-round programme of events and fundraisers.

The Annual Garden Party in the Museum garden in July attracted over 1,300 residents and is our main fundraiser. A craft market is held on the Vestry Green, there is music and Pimm’s on the lawn, a barbeque, stalls, games, activities and a raffl e.

In November we hold our Annual Curry Quiz in the Welcome Centre. The 120 tickets are always sold out and a home-cooked curry supper is served and a raffl e held.

The Asian Centre kindly let us use their hall free of charge for Open Meetings and our AGM.

This year the ever-popular Apple Day, held in the Vestry House gardens, will be organised by WVRA, Organiclea and the Hornbeam Centre.

Fundraising and Awareness7

www.walth

amforest.gov

.uk

In brief

• Council tells residents where it will be clamping down on dirty front gardens

• Crackdown aims to make the borough tidier and reduce fly-tipping

Front gardens warning

Residents will get an early

warning of when Council

enforcement officers are

cracking down on dirty

front gardens in their area.

A list of locations will be

published on the Council

website as a way of giving

people the chance to clean

up and avoid the need for

formal action to be taken

against them.

The crackdown comes

as the Council re-launched

its award winning ‘Wiping

out enviro-crime’ campaign

last month.

Officers are currently

travelling the borough

handing out notices to the

owners of dirty front gardens

giving them 48 hours to clear

the mess. If they don’t, the

council can move in and

do the work for them - then

charge the owner of the

property for the clear up.

Residents can order a

free bulky waste collection

to help tidy their gardens.

Collection of specified items

is completely free, but it is not

a house or garden clearance

service and certain items

cannot be collected.

Cllr Clyde Loakes, Cabinet

Member for Environment,

told Waltham Forest News:

“We want front gardens in

Waltham Forest to be

cleaner and tidier but we

also want to give residents

every opportunity to clean up

their act before the Council

gets involved.

“That’s why when we visit

residents to tell them to clean

up their front gardens we tell

them about our free bulky

waste collection service.

As well as the scheduled

enforcement visits, dirty front

gardens that are spotted in

other areas will be also be

dealt with promptly.

Walthamstow Village

celebrates again

In issue 27 we told you about Walthamstow Village winning a

prestigious London in Bloom Award, and that they would represent

London in the national Best Urban Community category at the RHS

Britain in Bloom awards. Representatives from The Walthamstow

Village Residents’ Association (WVRA) attended the awards

ceremony in Birmingham on Wednesday 29 September, and were

awarded a silver-gilt medal – a fantastic achievement in their first

year as national finalists. The judges commented: “The whole

community has worked hard to rejuvenate the area, to encourage

and motivate community spirit and to reduce crime. There is a busy

events calendar throughout the year which helps to create real civic

pride. Walthamstow Village is an inspiration to any community.”

Congratulations to everyone at WVRA for their success.

• For more information on WVRA visit

www.walthamstowvillage.net

More info

To find out which areas

enforcement officers

will be working in visit

www.walthamforest.gov.

uk/dirty-front-gardens

People without access to the

internet can phone Waltham

Forest Direct on 020 8496

3000 to ask for a list to be

printed and sent to them.

Issue 29, 18 October 2010

The Council has received hundreds of complaints about dirty front gardensC

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Private Fostering

For more information call 020 8496 3000 or visit

www.walthamforest.gov.uk/private-fostering

Do you look after

someone else's child,

or know someone

who does?

If you do, please

contact the Children

and Families Service.

A private foster carer is anyone

who cares for a child or young

person:

• who is under 16 or 18 if they

have a disability

• for 28 days or more; and

• is not their step-parent,

grand-parent, brother, sister,

uncle or aunt.

abcdeThe law requires us to assess such an arrangement and provide support.

rivate F

ostering

Ad QTR

Page (WF

N):Layou

t 1 11/

9/09 15

:00


We hold social events such as a tea dance for our older residents.

Local businesses donate money, or goods or vouchers for raffl es or to use at events.

Three times a year WVRA produces a newsletter or booklet that is delivered door-to-door to two thousand properties locally.

WVRA has an email list of over 500 residents and community groups who are sent details of what’s on. The notice board on the Village Square is kept up to date with posters and information.

We send press releases to our local newspapers and TV press desks before events and we were featured on ITV London News on the Britain in Bloom judging day in August 2010.

We have been approached by the producer and have applied to host Radio 4’s Gardeners’ Question Time in St Mary’s Church.We have a Walthamstow Village Residents’

Association website and a Walthamstow Village in Bloom Facebook group.

We apply for grants via our Wood Street and Hoe Street Ward Forums that replaced the larger Community Council.

We are members of Volunteering England and are featured on their website in the Inspiring Stories section.

We have close links with, amongst others, WF Civic Society, Walthamstow Historical Society, the Drive Housing Co-op, Organiclea, the Hornbeam Centre, E17 Art Trail and WF Literature Festival.

Fundraising and Awareness (continued)

● Follow on Twitter● Contact us

Accessibility Options

Helen Lerner - RHS

Helen Lerner is the organiser and chair of Walthamstow Village in Bloom. She began her involvement in a bid to improve the local community and environment with other local residents. From humble beginnings, they have gone on to achieve great success, winning London s Best Urban Community 2009 and 2010.

In 2003 I attended a public meeting organised by the Village Residents' Association and listening to complaints about the local area regarding fly-tipping, litter, grafitti etc, I realised that together we could do something about it so I volunteered to chair an Environment Committee. The London Borough of Waltham Forest is a wonderful place to live and the council is very supportive but it has an awful lot to do with not much money. We decided to band together to work and over the years have adopted and maintained public areas and fundraised and been awarded grants to re-design and replant these areas.

I was born into a volunteering family so it is second-nature to me - I can't remember a time when I wasn't involved in something via our synagogue, schools or connected charities. My own children (Tom 23 & Josh 19) are also keen volunteers and have been all their lives; they can muck-in and turn their hands to almost anything.

I organise and chair Walthamstow Village in Bloom and the Environment Committee of the Walthamstow Village Residents' Association and run the monthly gardening club and the events connected with these roles. With my fellow committee member Teresa Deacon I co-ordinate a band of cheerful and willing volunteers; the youngest is two and the oldest is in his eighties! At our annual Spring Clean we get around 60 volunteers. Our annual fund-raising garden party attracts 1,300 residents.

I spend most evenings doing admin, grant work and preparation and once a week doing gardening unless there's a big event coming up when I'll be busy

Apart from the end results of improving and making our local environment beautiful our volunteers benefit from the friendship and achievement brought about by working together towards a common aim. When we decided to enter London in Bloom in 2009 a few residents were very negative and scoffed at our ambition but we showed them when we won London's Best Urban Community 2009 and again in 2010!

You can let your imagination run riot and plan and organise all sorts of weird and wonderful things. When you work as a team, everyone has different ideas and skills and together you can do so much and make such a difference - it's amazing! One day you can be washing up for hundreds or scrubbing graffiti off a wall and the next attending a dinner at the Guildhall!

You can choose to do anything that interests you and join in with a group or instigate something yourself - the possibilities are endless. There are always people, groups and projects that need helpers. I love working with people and organising events. I can't bear sitting around - it seems such a waste of time when one could be doing something interesting and useful.

I wish I didn't have to work and could do volunteering work all the time .

Around the UK, hundreds of thousands of volunteers get involved in improving their local areas as part of the RHS Britain in Bloom and RHS It s Your Neighbourhood campaigns. Find out more and see what you can do locally (linking to www.rhs.org.uk/communities)

- Read other inspiring stories from environmental volunteersSite by Cubik© Volunteers' Week, 2011

● Site Map

.


The gigantic Leylandii on the corner of Orford and Church End has at last been removed. It had been deemed by Waltham Forest’s Tree Preservation and Nature Conservation Offi cer as unsuitable for the long-term on that site. It was planted in 1990s by residents as a Christmas tree and had totally outgrown its space.

Following a crime survey report in 2008 that recommended its removal, the council did some interim work to remove the lower branches to stop the area being used as a hidey-hole. In the meantime the tree continued to grow ever higher, blocking out light and not allowing anything else to grow there and we have been pushing for its removal. Many thanks to Waltham Forest Council for getting this work done.

After consultation with Waltham Forest and Mathew Pottage the RHS’ tree expert, a single-stemmed Strawberry Tree (Arbutus unedo) has been chosen as it is historically in context and inspired William Morris’ design Arbutus. In autumn we plan to plant a perennial meadow to commemorate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and 2012 Year of the Meadow.

Removal of Conifer on Green by Ancient House

before


On 12 April we were honoured to be chosen to host the RHS’ Community and Development Team’s Away Day where 22 employees had a chance to get ‘under the skin’ of an In Bloom group. Some volunteers came from RHS gardens as far afi eld as Harlow Carr in Yorkshire and Rosemoor in Devon; some from Wisley, Hyde Hall and the offi ces in Westminster.

Helen and RHS’ Stephanie Eynon planned and organised the day’s programme with three-and-a-half hours being dedicated to the work. Teresa gave an informative presentation, Helen talked about the work and health and safety and the volunteers had their own presentations too.

In consultation with Waltham Forest’s Conservation Offi cer and St Mary’s groundsman and with tools borrowed from our and Vestry House Museum gardeners we tackled the long-overdue job of clearing the heavy growth of ivy from the Grade II listed wall of the old Georgian estate The Walnuts between the churchyard and 9 Church Lane.

Flossie and Roger of The Nag’s Head kindly let us use the pub throughout the day as our ‘hub’ and for a catered lunch.

We cleared over a hundred sacks of green waste that was kindly taken away for composting by Waltham Forest.

The day was deemed hugely enjoyable, productive and a complete success.

RHS Away Day

before


With some front gardens being unused or neglected in the Village and so many residents on the waiting list for an allotment we’re matching the two!

If residents are unable to care for their front garden or have no interest in gardening and would be willing to let their neighbours use it or if they would like use someone else’s garden for this purpose they contact us and we get them together. Growing food has so many benefi ts and is a great way of slashing the shopping bills.

Graham has produced vegetable growing information leafl ets and we provide seeds at the Plant & Seed Swaps.

Many residents are using their front gardens to grow food and they look great! We are seeking a coordinator to expand this exciting project.

Village Veg – Your Doorstep Allotment


Recognition

Leader’s view

Cllr Chris RobbinsLeader - Waltham Forest Council

Every day, residents in our communities do inspirational and selfless things which lift your spirits and restore your faith in human nature.

This week I was invited to Vestry House Museum by the Walthamstow Village Residents’ Association for the judging of the Britain in Bloom competition.

Through their dedication and hard work the people living in Walthamstow Village are finalists of Britain in Bloom 2010, and I was privileged to meet them and the judges who will be marking their entry.

Since their formation in 2003, in response to concerns voiced by residents at open meetings, the residents’ association has done a huge amount to improve the quality of life in the area.

They have organised annual spring cleans, adopted public spaces and set up a gardening club to maintain adopted trees, flowerbeds, tree pits and public spaces.

Speaking to people at the event at Vestry House showed just how dedicated and committed this band of people are to their community and we are extremely lucky to have them living in our borough.

The Council has been working with this community and we would like to extend this into other areas. The attitude of working together and improving neighbourhoods is something we should applaud and encourage. There is so much a group of volunteers and the Council can do when we work together hand in hand.

I hope Walthamstow Village Residents Association is celebrating when the results of Britain in Bloom are announced later this year.

3

www.walthamforest.gov.uk

Volunteers dig in• Local friends group gets helping hand from big business

• Community Service Volunteers puts not-for-profit groups in touch with companies seeking volunteering opportunities

Volunteers in Leyton were able to put the old saying “many hands make light work” into practice

recently when they were joined by employees from Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC).

Overseeing the work were four members of the Friends of St Mary’s Nature Reserve, who volunteer

their time tending the historic churchyard in order to make it more visually appealing and improve the site as a habitat for a surprisingly diverse array of flora and fauna.

The Friends were partnered with PwC by Community Service Volunteers, an organisation that puts local charities and non-profit organisations in touch with businesses keen to pay a little back. “It’s a superb idea and the work they’ve done will really be appreciated by the local community,” said Steve Williams, chair of the friends’ group. “At the moment there are 11 of us who work on the site every Sunday from 12.30 – 4pm, but we’re always on the lookout for more people to help out.”

Also in attendance was Waltham Forest’s Cabinet Member for Leisure, Arts and Culture, Cllr Geraldine Reardon, who told Waltham Forest News: “It’s always great to see people going out of their way to make their local community a better place, and the Friends of St Mary’s Nature Reserve are a great example. Their hard work has made a real difference and I’d encourage anyone feeling similarly community-spirited to join in and lend a hand.”

Cllr Reardon with the Friends of St Mary’s Nature Reserve

Cllr Chris Robbins with members of the Walthamstow Village Residents’ Association and Britain in Bloom judges

I’d like to hear from you. I have a page on the Council website where you can find out how to contact me, visit www.walthamforest.gov.uk/leader for more information. Free Internet access is available at all libraries in the borough. You can also write to me: Leader’s office, Town Hall, Forest Road, Walthamstow, E17 4JF.

Get involved

If you’d like to get involved with the Friends of St Mary’s Nature Reserve, contact Steve Williams on [email protected] or 07834 195417. If you think your charity or friends group could benefit from the work that Community Service Volunteers do, visit www.csv.org.uk or phone 020 7278 6601.

More info

Nominations must be received by 6 September 2010

To find out more or request a nomination packTelephone 020 8496 3000 Email [email protected] www.walthamforest.gov.uk/celebrating-sport-awards

Taking place this autumn, categories include

Why not nominate someone you know or your club or school?

Sports performer of the yearVolunteer of the yearYoung disabled sports performer of the yearYoung sports performer of the yearYoung volunteer of the year

Adult team of the yearClub of the yearCoach of the yearDisabled sports performer of the yearJunior team of the year

Issue 25, 9 August 2010


7

www.walthamforest.go

v.uk

In brief

• Council tells residents where it will be clamping down on dirty front gardens

• Crackdown aims to make the borough tidier and reduce fly-tippingFront gardens warning

Residents will get an early

warning of when Council

enforcement officers are

cracking down on dirty

front gardens in their area.

A list of locations will be

published on the Council

website as a way of giving

people the chance to clean

up and avoid the need for

formal action to be taken

against them.

The crackdown comes

as the Council re-launched

its award winning ‘Wiping

out enviro-crime’ campaign

last month.

Officers are currently

travelling the borough

handing out notices to the

owners of dirty front gardens

giving them 48 hours to clear

the mess. If they don’t, the

council can move in and

do the work for them - then

charge the owner of the

property for the clear up.

Residents can order a

free bulky waste collection

to help tidy their gardens.

Collection of specified items

is completely free, but it is not

a house or garden clearance

service and certain items

cannot be collected.

Cllr Clyde Loakes, Cabinet

Member for Environment,

told Waltham Forest News:

“We want front gardens in

Waltham Forest to be

cleaner and tidier but we

also want to give residents

every opportunity to clean up

their act before the Council

gets involved.

“That’s why when we visit

residents to tell them to clean

up their front gardens we tell

them about our free bulky

waste collection service.

As well as the scheduled

enforcement visits, dirty front

gardens that are spotted in

other areas will be also be

dealt with promptly.

Walthamstow Village

celebrates again

In issue 27 we told you about Walthamstow Village winning a

prestigious London in Bloom Award, and that they would represent

London in the national Best Urban Community category at the RHS

Britain in Bloom awards. Representatives from The Walthamstow

Village Residents’ Association (WVRA) attended the awards

ceremony in Birmingham on Wednesday 29 September, and were

awarded a silver-gilt medal – a fantastic achievement in their first

year as national finalists. The judges commented: “The whole

community has worked hard to rejuvenate the area, to encourage

and motivate community spirit and to reduce crime. There is a busy

events calendar throughout the year which helps to create real civic

pride. Walthamstow Village is an inspiration to any community.”

Congratulations to everyone at WVRA for their success.

• For more information on WVRA visit

www.walthamstowvillage.net

More infoTo find out which areas

enforcement officers

will be working in visit

www.walthamforest.gov.

uk/dirty-front-gardens

People without access to the

internet can phone Waltham

Forest Direct on 020 8496

3000 to ask for a list to be

printed and sent to them.

Issue 29, 18 October 2010

The Council has received hundreds of complaints about dirty front gardens

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Private Fostering

For more information call 020 8496 3000 or visit

www.walthamforest.gov.uk/private-fostering

Do you look after

someone else's child,

or know someone

who does?

If you do, please

contact the Children

and Families Service.

A private foster carer is anyone

who cares for a child or young

person:

• who is under 16 or 18 if they

have a disability

• for 28 days or more; and

• is not their step-parent,

grand-parent, brother, sister,

uncle or aunt.

abcdeThe law requires us to assess such an arrangement and provide support.

Private Fost

ering Ad QTR

Page (WFN):

Layout 1 11

/ /

n


Official O

pening Jun

e 2010

Potato pl

anting – M

arch 2011

Before

the garden

Early

Spring 201

1


Walthamstow Village in Bloom 25Walthamstow Village in Bloom 25

Garden layout and horti culture

The planti ng of the garden is inspired

by its history as a workhouse garden.

There is an emphasis on useful plants

including fruit, vegetables, culinary

and medicinal herbs and dye plants.

There is also a woodland bed, gravel

bed, wild meadow area and a bed

designed to att ract butt erfl ies.

Each bed is named aft er a former

inhabitant of the workhouse, thereby

increasing the heritage interest.

• We aim to provide a mixture of

aestheti c and educati onal interest

year round.

• To ensure conti nuity of interest

we grow plants with evergreen

foliage such as curly kale and ruby

chard. We maintain a balance of

perennial plants and annuals in

additi on to vegetable varieti es.

• A gravel area is planted with

varieti es of thyme off ering the

opportunity for a multi -sensory

learning experience for visitors.

• We maintain a balance of culti vated

and wild areas to increase the

biodiversity and learning potenti al

of the garden.

• Our dye plants are of parti cular

horti cultural interest.

The volunteer team

Our garden conti nues to fl ourish

thanks to the help of our fantasti c

team of garden volunteers. The team

is gathering momentum. In additi on

to monthly meeti ngs the team

now meets fortnightly to do extra

gardening with more experienced

members coaching and mentoring

new recruits. Thursdays are also a

regular drop-in day. We are acti vely

recruiti ng new members and

welcome volunteers with all ranges

of ability.

We are extremely fortunate that a

team of young adults with learning

disabiliti es from the 247 Markhouse

Road Centre come in weekly to tend

to the vegetable patches and help

keep the garden ti dy.

Sustainability

We are committ ed to ensuring

best practi ce in environmental

sustainability. Some of the ways

we ensure this are by:

• Making our own compost

• Using organic methods and

avoiding the use of chemicals

• Leaving areas untouched to

encourage biodiversity

• Planti ng to att ract butt erfl ies

• Using produce from our garden,

including vegetables and herbs

Interpretati on and educati on

This year we are starti ng to focus on

enhancing the interpretati on of the

garden and the opportuniti es

for learning that it presents.

• We are labelling all the beds

with the names of inhabitants of

the former workhouse to emphasis

the connecti on with the Vestry

House building.

• A volunteer who is a qualifi ed

herbalist is preparing a herb trail

for children.

• Another volunteer is preparing

an informati on sheet for museum

visitors

• We are creati ng a web page on

the Vestry House site dedicated

to the garden.

Community use

Visitor numbers to the Museum

conti nue to rise due in part, no

doubt, to the conti nuing popularity

of the garden as a space for families,

adults and school groups to enjoy.

Last year we att racted over 24,000

visitors, a signifi cant proporti on of

whom used the garden. The garden

is also a major factor for many people

choosing to use the Community

Room for events including parti es,

functi ons and wedding recepti ons.

Events

We have hosted a number of

successful events in the garden,

including Apple Day – a highly

popular celebrati on of everything

and anything connected to apples –

and the Residents’ Associati on garden

party. This year we are planning a

volunteers’ garden party to celebrate

the hard work of our teams.

Vestry House Community Garden

The garden at Vestry House Museum was created

with investment from the Heritage Lott ery Fund.

This project transformed a bare space into a

delightf ul community garden which takes its

inspirati on from the fact that the Museum

was originally built as a workhouse in the

18th century. The aim is to complement the

heritage of Vestry House and to create a space

for relaxati on, enjoyment and learning for

visitors and members of our local community.

The garden is enti rely maintained by volunteers.

Walthamstow Village in Bloom 26Walthamstow Village in Bloom 26

In recent years there have been

ti mes when weeds, grass, ivy and

bramble have overwhelmed the

graves. The churchyard contains

many hundreds of tombs and graves;

four of these are Grade II listed.

Whilst the most important tombs

were restored as part of a two-year

programme of work a few years ago,

the conditi on of some of the other

early tombs is deteriorati ng as a

result of root damage from trees,

the ingress of ivy and self-sown

seedlings.

Tim Daniels took over the

management of the grounds in 2010

and set out an 18 month plan to

return them to a manageable state

where routi ne maintenance would

be all that is required. On average

there is one man working one day

a week throughout the year. The

areas just behind and south of the

Church are subject to a separate

maintenance contract with Mencap

who have teams of supported

adults to undertake the work as a

therapeuti c and meaningful acti vity.

The whole site was subject to

many broken and derelict graves;

hundreds of self-seeded trees

litt ered the site, oft en growing from

within tombs. Most large trees were

infested with ivy growth and a large

amount of litt er, concrete debris and

fallen wood was strewn around. In

parti cular the self-seeded saplings

and extensive bramble growth are

ti me-consuming to dig out as it is

our policy not to use poison.

We started in the triangle by Church

End by clearing unwanted growth,

debris and then strimming/mowing

grass to desired length. Each month

the cleared areas received ongoing

maintenance and work commenced

slowly and systemati cally moving

across the whole site unti l all

areas were included in the routi ne

maintenance schedule; this process

is almost complete.

We have a “compost all waste”

policy and have not yet had to resort

to burning. We are planning to

construct wooden bays on two sites

to contain compostable material

with a view to distributi ng compost

and keeping waste materials in a

controlled and ti dy fashion.

All fallen or pruned wood is stored

in woodpiles to act as habitat for

fauna.

We encourage the growth of nati ve

wild fl owers so they are spared the

strimmer wherever possible.

We are considering installing bird

and bat boxes and starti ng

a beehive.

We have allocated secti ons in areas

north of Vinegar Alley and north-

west of the Church to leave “wild”.

This “long grass policy” will include

10-15% of total site and at present

these areas have much dense shrub,

ivy ground cover and bramble. We

plan to mark the wild areas into

four sub-plots that will each receive

clearance once every four years

on a rotati onal basis. There will

always be a corridor of wilderness to

connect the remaining wild areas to

allow animals to move freely.

Areas around the Church and the

Welcome Centre are kept relati vely

clear to improve sight-lines and

visibility for people using the public

paths and to open vistas of the

Church.

St Mary’s

The St Maryʼs Walthamstow - Nature Conservation Management Plan

1997 forms the basis of our ground works strategy and also includes

a map, a survey of fl ora and fauna and a map with a full arboreal survey.


Sponsors and Credits

• The Vestry House Museum, Lorna Lee, Vicky Caroll, the staff and the volunteer gardeners and 247 Group for all their hard work, for use of their wonderful premises for hosting the judging days and for the lunch provided.

• Walthamstow Village Residents’ Association Committee – funding projects and support

• Fullers Builders – sponsorship of planting and annual maintenance of the planter on the junction of Beulah and Grosvenor Rise East

• Spar Village Stores – sponsorship and profi ts from the sales of Eat17 range of jams and chutneys.

• Musa Ballikaya and the staff and committee of the Asian Centre

• John Chambers Plumbing & Building Services – sponsorship, mulch, van, tools

• Abbey Lithographic – printing and scanning

• Outer Space Gardens – Graham Sherman

• Lisa Peachey – portfolio design

• Ray Yates, Sarah Vincent, Paul Gasson, Teresa Deacon, Jamie Orchard-Lisle, Don Mapp & Helen Lerner – photographs

• London Borough of Waltham Forest and contractors Kier and JB Riney and especially WF Offi cer Paul Tickner – equipment, rubbish disposal and green waste composting, compost, fl oral lamppost baskets, extra cleaning etc.

• Cllrs Saima Mahmud, Mark Rusling & Ahsan Khan and MP Stella Creasy for support and promotion of events.

• I Kuan Taoist Temple – hospitality and refreshments on gardening and clean up days.

• Flossie and Roger for their hospitality and use of The Nag’s Head as a hub for the RHS Community & Development Team’s Away Day

• Liza Sumpter, LBWF Community Project Coordinator for support and help with the grant.

• Guy Osborne, LBWF’s Conservation Offi cer

• Nick and Sarah Trivuncic, Paul Gasson – poster design

• East London Sausage Company – donations of products for events

• La Ruga Trattoria, The Village Deli, Village Kitchen, Orford Saloon Tapas bar, The Nag’s Head, The Castle, The Village, Mon Dragone Restaurant, Petals in Bloom, Sean Pines, The Queen’s Arms, Penny Fielding’s Beautiful Interiors – for raffl e prizes

• Our apologies to all those who have helped or donated items that have been missed off the list above, or donated after the portfolio went to print.

Walthamstow Village in Bloom CommitteeHelen Lerner, Teresa Deacon, Graham Sherman, John Chambers

Walthamstow Village Residents’ Association CommitteePaul Williams, Ray Swingler, Shameem Mir, Helen Lerner, Paul Gasson, Sue Carter, Sarah Vincent, Megan Whitear, Gordon Harnett

Monthly Gardening Club StalwartsHelen Lerner, Teresa Deacon, Graham Sherman, Ivan White, Megan Whitear, Colin and Bonnie Stinton, Yvonne Cross, Paul and Sophie Gasson, Don Mapp, Nicole and Joss Thomas, Jakob Hartmann, Daniel Barry, Marion Osbourne, Maggie Brundle, Susanna O’Brien, Josh Lerner (tea boy and help in the hols).

And to all the good folk who live, work or play in Walthamstow Village: for their remarkable community spirit, encouragement, support and enthusiasm for Walthamstow Village in Bloom.

Walthamstow Village in Bloom Portfolio 2011

Documents

Transcript of Walthamstow Village in Bloom Portfolio 2011