Big screen sets The Scene: cinema, restaurants, homes
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Issue 1 | Encouraging investment in Waltham Forest
Swan is committed to supporting Waltham Forest to deliver its vision for regeneration.
Issue 1 | Encouraging investment in Waltham Forest
INVEST WALTHAM FOREST
The Local Partner
Changing perceptions: council leader and chief executive
INVEST WALTHAM FOREST
Culture and heritage: William Morris to contemporary art
THE PLACE TO BE SCENE: Walthamstow’s newest leisure destination
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Building and regenerating communities throughout London A family owned, award winning company with a reputation as a dynamic organisation committed to exceeding clients expectations. Delivering high quality regeneration projects throughout London and the South East of England for over 40 years. enquiries@sherrygreenhomes.co.uk www.sherrygreenhomes.co.uk
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Contents
CONTENTS Editorial director Siobhán Crozier Head of design Rachael Schofield Art direction Smallfury Designs Deputy editor Maria Shahid Chief reporter James Wood Production assistant Chris Hazeldine Business development director Paul Gussar Business development manager Shelley Cook Office manager Sue Mapara Subscriptions manager Simon Maxwell Managing director Toby Fox Cover Image The Scene, photo by Simon Harvey Images © William Morris Gallery, Phoebe Fox, Mark Burton, Pollard Thomas Edwards, Grillstock, Simon Harvey, Gar Powell-Evans, Katherine Green, Wood Street Walls, Sharron Wallace, Penny Dixie, Countryside, Circle Housing, Keith Emmitt, Solum, Fine Form Digital, David Tothill, London Borough of Waltham Forest, Iain Wright / Randomly London, Stansted Airport, Antic, © We Made That, Morely von Sternberg, Photo Works / Shutterstock.com Printed by Bishops Printers Published by Southbank House Black Prince Road London SE1 7SJ 020 7978 6840 3foxinternational.com Waltham Forest Council Waltham Forest Town Hall 701 Forest Road, E17 4JF
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6 News
42 Connectivity
Regeneration and economy updates.
Well-connected – Central, Victoria lines and London Overground, with Mini-Holland in the pipeline.
10 Culture and heritage Internationally acclaimed William Morris Gallery and other local gems.
17 Top team Leader and chief executive: how this borough became ready for investment.
Subscriptions and feedback investwalthamforest.com
25 Map and projects
© 3Fox International Limited 2015. All material is strictly copyright and all rights are reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without the written p ermission of 3Fox International Limited is strictly forbidden. The greatest care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of information in this magazine at the time of going to press, but we accept no responsibility for omissions or errors. The views expressed in this magazine are not n ecessarily those of 3Fox International Limited.
Locations and summaries of development schemes.
34 Artisans Quirky, creative local businesses – we tour Waltham Forest with the councillor who leads on high streets.
45 Wanis Case study – Wanis International Foods, in business for 50 years.
46 Town centres Investment helps to transform the borough's retail areas.
51 Leisure Borough-wide council investment has transformed fitness facilities.
54 Sitematch Development opportunity – the Blackhorse Lane station hub.
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NEWS Gnome House launch Almost 1,000 people attended the launch of a new community venture in Walthamstow. Gnome House features a printmaking studio and an area for performances, workshops, exhibitions and meetings, available for hire. A community interest company is running the venture with volunteers who live and work in and around Blackhorse Lane. Its vision is to “transform the local community by offering highquality cultural programming that is accessible, relevant and engaging”. The launch featured activities such as dance workshops, performances, African drumming, bands, t-shirt making, afternoon tea and a bar with locally brewed craft beer. The venue also was used for exhibition space as part of E17 Art Trail. Planning permission and listed building consent has been granted. Works are due to start next year with partial opening planned for 2016, and full opening planned for 2017.
Housing zones confirmed Blackhorse Lane and the Leyton and Lea Bridge areas in Waltham Forest have been designated as housing zones by the Greater London Authority (GLA). This will enable regeneration in two phases, creating two villages connected by the Lee Valley Regional Park. Funding of £41,985,000 will contribute to the delivery of 5,000 homes, at least 1,000 new jobs and supporting infrastructure. The council aims to make 50% of the homes affordable. Khevyn Limbajee, cabinet member for housing, said: “It allows us to accelerate the delivery of much-needed new homes and create many jobs. With over £200 million of investment secured from developers, we now have the opportunity to enhance these unique locations.” Outer London funding of £1.6 million has already been invested in the Blackhorse Lane area, and included Blackhorse Workshops, improvements to shopfronts and industrial estate frontage.
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news
Cinema to be restored
Pub company Antic has bought a former cinema site on Hoe Street. Antic plans to reinstate it as an entertainment venue, which could include a 1,000-seater auditorium. The Grade II-listed building was owned by a church and proposals for it to become a place of worship were turned down at the planning stage. The building opened as The Granada in 1930. It was previously used as a concert venue by such bands as The Beatles and Rolling Stones. A spokesperson for Antic said: “Thousands frequented the building when it was first commissioned in the 1930s and we wish to see these glory days return, albeit in a more inclusive, varied and quirkier fashion.”
Forest Road PRS Legal & General Property is to develop its first private rental sector (PRS) scheme at Ferry Lane industrial estate site in Forest Road, Walthamstow. The location is adjacent to the High Maynard Reservoir, to the west of Blackhorse Road tube station, within the Blackhorse Lane housing zone. Legal & General intends to submit a detailed planning application for the site, which could consist of up to 400 units, including affordable homes, in a tenure-blind scheme. The council’s vision is for new housing projects to open up the reservoirs for leisure use.
Funding for Wetlands project Waltham Forest Council has received £4.4 million from the Heritage Lottery Fund for Walthamstow Wetlands, to create Europe's largest urban wetland nature reserve. Plans for the 200-ha site will see a total of £8 million in investment and the reservoirs opened to the public. Council leader Chris Robbins said: “The borough is
going through unprecedented regeneration and our cultural offer is at the heart of growth. In the Blackhorse Lane area, there’s a great deal of development, with old industrial units making way for homes. We’ve built a new school on one side of the station and this funding opens the way for the wetlands to take shape on the other.”
east Thames homes for Walthamstow
East Thames has planning consent for 59 homes and a medical centre at Sutherland Road, which is within the Blackhorse Lane housing zone. Initially, the site was assembled by the council using growth area funding. The £1.6 million project has started on-site and is due to complete in February 2017, providing 43 homes for shared ownership and 16 for affordable rent. The three completed phases at Papermill Place have provided 323 homes. Levitt Bernstein designed phase three and is also the architect for phase four, working with CMA Planning. In late 2014, planning permission was granted to East Thames for 21 homes on the site of the car park at Wood Street Library. Completion is planned for summer 2016. East Thames is also redeveloping a package of garage sites across the borough. The latest plans, phase two of the project, will provide 35 homes across 11 sites. The developer’s Mayfield scheme in Chingford was launched in February 2015. At Verdon Roe Court East Thames’ 45 self-contained apartments for adults with support needs launched in summer 2015.
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station reViVal Lea Bridge station is to open to passengers in spring 2016 after being closed for 30 years. Passengers will have direct links to Stratford and Tottenham Hale, which provides fast connections to Stansted Airport. Journey times will be five minutes from Lea Bridge to each station. The scheme is funded with £5 million from the council, £1.1 million from the Department for Transport and £5.5 million from Section 106 contributions.
toppinG out A topping out ceremony took place in September to mark a milestone in construction of Waltham Forest Leisure Centre in Chingford Road. It will feature an eight-lane, 25-metre pool, training pool and running track. One of the largest leisure and fitness centres in London, it is due to open in autumn 2016.
WaltHamstoW Gets a GrillinG Grillstock festival came to Walthamstow on 6 and 7 September – the first time the event, featuring bands and a BBQ, has been held in London. Performing at Chestnut Fields behind the town hall, the acts included Razorlight, Hayseed Dixie, Grandmaster Flash, Cuban Bros, DJ Yoda and others. Festival-goers also took part in an American-style barbecue competition, where teams demonstrated their skills over smoky coals. The winner was crowned “King of the Grill”.
Chilli-pepper and hot-dog eating competitions took place. Waltham Forest’s council leader, Chris Robbins, said: “The operators of Grillstock, located at The Scene development, really like it here because they get plenty of footfall and a council they can work with. “The council supported the barbecue festival in partnership with Grillstock. It’s an international festival; the biggest of its kind in the UK, and it is in Walthamstow. The aspiration is massive.”
top aWard for tHe scene The Scene in Walthamstow has been recognised as overall winner of the National Housing Awards 2015. A nine-screen Empire cinema, five restaurants – including Nando’s, Pizza Express and Turtle Bay – and 121 homes were developed as part of The Scene at Cleveland Place in Walthamstow, a joint venture between Hill Residential, the council and Islington and Shoreditch Housing Association. Destination restaurants include Grillstock, with Thai eaterie, Yum Yum E17, due to open in autumn. David Orr, National Housing Federation chief executive, said: "The Scene shows that putting the right homes in the right places can be part of something much bigger, sparking new life into communities and bringing in additional investment.”
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Countryside is proud to be working in partnership with waltham Forest CounCil
Countryside works in partnership with public and private sector organisations to regenerate housing estates and secure the provision of high quality mixed-use and mixed-tenure schemes. Our projects are developed with local authorities, housing associations and local communities, and we regard partnering as key to delivering this. We have undertaken more than 45 estate regeneration schemes since the 1980s and we have been building new homes in London and the South East since 1958.
CGIs showing the new homes, retail and community facilities we are building at Marlowe Road
For further information please visit: www.countryside-properties.com
Hidden Talents
From grassroots artistic movements to established attractions receiving national attention, Waltham Forest has become a hub for cultural endeavours Misconceptions about east London’s bustling markets and gritty neighbourhoods have been dispelled in recent years by its reputation as an area where creativity thrives through cultural and artistic pursuits. Previously, Waltham Forest was perhaps overlooked in favour of neighbouring boroughs, but as London’s popularity is unabated and people search for the next great neighbourhood, the area’s popularity continues to soar. Those seeking an arts scene are unearthing Waltham
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James wood
Forest’s many distinctive museums, galleries, events and venues, beginning to discover that the borough has long been quietly cool, with cultural institutions and creative businesses which have simply had less attention – that is changing rapidly. The capital is rich in world-class art galleries and museums, and the challenge to install an attraction which is truly unique, draws in millions and charms discerning critics
Culture and heritage
along the way is significant, especially for an outer London borough. For Waltham Forest Council, it was about seeing the potential in what was already there. The £5 million redevelopment of the William Morris Gallery was funded by the council, the Heritage Lottery Fund and a number of trusts and foundations. The gallery has been located on the fringes of London for more than 60 years and has delivered an unprecedented coup for the borough’s blossoming cultural scene – and an undisputed success story. Originally opened in 1950 by the then prime minister, Clement Atlee, the gallery is devoted to the life and times of William Morris – the distinguished artist, craftsman, writer, political activist and environmental campaigner – and set in his former family home where he lived between 1848 and 1856. The Grade II*-listed building is in the grounds of Lloyd Park – itself the subject of a £5 million restoration project in 2012 by the council, with additional support from the Heritage Lottery Fund. The park hosts events such as the Walthamstow Garden Party, which the council runs in partnership with the Barbican Centre and Create London, a summer festival attracting more than 30,000 people for each of the last two years. In July 2015, Nigerian Afrobeat musician Femi Kuti, son of Fela, was a headliner and was joined by other world music stars including veteran Ghanaian funk legend Ebo Taylor. Theatre, dance, comedy and circus events took place, as well as arts activities at the William Morris Gallery. Towards the end of the first decade of the 21st century, the gallery was out of favour with the public, but the council was aware of its potential. The vision behind the renovation project was not just to use the building to celebrate one of the borough’s most intriguing and respected former residents, but also to make use of the space for communitybased initiatives and to exhibit respected contemporary artists, as well as a substantial collection of Morris’s work. Refurbishment took place between 2011 and 2012, with new displays of the collections on the ground and first floors. The top storey was turned into a learning and research centre and an extension was built on the site of the old east wing, which also features a tea room, a special exhibition gallery and a store for collections. Now attracting 110,000 visitors a year, the gallery won the Art Fund Prize for Museum of the Year 2013-14 and was shortlisted for European Museum of the Year 2014. Recent exhibitions at the gallery have featured respected modern artists such as Grayson Perry, Jeremy Deller, David Bailey and Yinka Shonibare.
Left, The Barbican Drum Works. Top William Morris Gallery. Above, the 2015 Walthamstow Garden Party.
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perceptions are changing fast, thanks to initiatives like the E17 art trail, william morris museum, cafes, restaurants and other creative businesses in the borough Artefacts and designs by the protagonists of the arts and crafts movement – claimed to be the only major art movement to have originated in Britain – can also be enjoyed. In addition, regular activity programmes for the under-fives, families and people between the ages of 16 and 21 take place, as part of the council’s drive to create an “inclusive community space”. As Lorna Lee, the council’s head of culture, says: “It’s about looking at the borough’s spaces in a different way.” This is a vision shared by the local authority and community alike, and is evidenced through the concept for the E17 Art Trail, set up by Laura Kerry and Chris Thompson in 2003 – two artists living within the postcode boundary, who wanted to find a way of motivating and strengthening the artistic community, and discover new places to exhibit work. Finding willing participants took little effort, says Kerry: “What really surprised me was how
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many talented artists were based in Walthamstow when we first started thinking about the idea,” she says. “The original idea was to identify a way of connecting the artistic community and I feel like we’ve managed to do that.” Beginning as part of the Walthamstow Festival in 2005 – the trail was largely confined to outdoor displays enjoyed by a select few. But the project has evolved over the years, with the objective to find more creative use of the borough’s spaces for locally produced art to be displayed in cafes, bars and on walls. Soon, it was opened up to the whole of Walthamstow, and the challenge the festival organisers have set themselves now is to fill up every space possible. Locals throw open their doors to invite people into their houses to enjoy private displays. Art can be found in cafes, studios, galleries and local businesses, with exhibitions organised by community and faith groups. Music, poetry and theatre performances are now also part of the fortnight’s festivities.
Culture and heritage Left, the hugely popular 2015 Walthamstow Garden Party. Right, Katherine Green's launderette client.
“The energy and momentum has really grown in recent years and we’ve definitely seen a rise in both the number of people who participate in the event and in those who come to enjoy it,” says Kerry. “It’s really inspiring to discover how talented the artistic community is, year-on-year, and that continues to shine through.” In 2015, around 4,000 people showcased their work under the theme ‘storytelling’ between 30 May and 14 June. Practising artists used the event to pilot ideas, refine portfolios and get spotted. “It’s about people making things happen for themselves,” says Kerry. At past art trails, people have built a reputation through work they have exhibited at the festival, helping them to obtain significant commissions. Walthamstow resident Katherine Green has been involved with the E17 Art Trail since 2009, when she and other local artists exhibited work in a disused glass factory on Walthamstow’s Hoe Street. This boosted Green’s exposure and a personal project, where the photographer tracked down people who had taken part in the Olympics when they were previously held in the city in 1948, attracted attention from the national press, with the London Evening Standard, The Independent, the BBC and The Guardian all covering the story. Despite national curiosity about her idiosyncratic ideas, Green remains passionate about the art trail: “The thing I love about it is that it really celebrates the local community and that is something which has always been a part of my work,” she says. Green exhibited work in two laundrettes as part of the 2015 event, continuing to explore the community theme that has marked most of her work and, as she says: “It is celebrating the people and places that others often overlook.” According to another local, Mark Clack, one thing lacking in Walthamstow is affordable studio space for artists – an issue which the council, aiming to retain artists and creative businesses, is working to resolve. In September 2014, he founded a group called Wood Street Walls – now one of the sponsors of the art trail – to address the demand. Clack says: “I’m a great lover of urban street art and one of our ambitions is to bring public displays to our area of east London for residents and visitors to enjoy and to encourage greater footfall and custom to local business. We have already erected six murals in Waltham Forest and have just received permission for another.
“We also want to create studio space for artists. In five years, over 30% of the current 14,000 artists in London will no longer have a place to call their own,” according to Clack. “This is what we want to address.” Clack’s biggest goal is to establish Wood Street Studios. The group has identified a site for the studio, with Waltham Forest Council, which is supportive of the project. Other ventures the authority has supported include the Blackhorse Workshop (see page 37), available for hire for people to use metal and woodwork machinery, with technicians on hand to offer support and courses available in DIY skills and welding. Gnome House, which launched in May 2015 (see page 6), offers printmaking facilities, and performance spaces are also available. There is plenty else on offer around the borough, from events such as regular comedy nights at the Rose and Crown run by the Red Imp Comedy Club and the Stow film lounge in Walthamstow Village to the Stow Festival of Music, which in September 2015 featured more than 100 musical performers at 25 venues across Walthamstow. Lee says that the council is proud of Vestry House, the local history museum, where visitors to the gallery can book a viewing from 80,000 historic photographs of scenes across the borough. Based in the village since 1931 at a former workhouse, Vestry House also includes the first car to be driven in London, the Bremer, built in Walthamstow by Frederick Bremer. The museum also features a Victorian parlour, costume gallery, locally manufactured toys and games, and a garden area, which is popular with visitors.
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Waltham Forest’s cultural scene also features the work of several well-established artists who have long-standing local connections. Those who have lived – or were born – in the borough include musician Damon Albarn, comedian and actor Alan Davies, the late author Ruth Rendell, theatre director Michael Grandage and Peter Blake, who taught at the Walthamstow School of Art, but was most famous for his iconic design for the cover of The Beatles’ classic album, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
Above, Wood Street Walls – dog, ducks and wallpaper in Forest Road. Below, Connor Harrington's fighting soldiers in Ray Dudley Way.
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In the past, Waltham Forest may not have enjoyed the reputation that properly reflected its artistic life but external perceptions of this borough are changing fast, thanks to initiatives like the E17 Art Trail, an acclaimed museum celebrating the life of one of the neighbourhood’s most celebrated residents, as well as cafes, restaurants and other businesses expressing the creative character of the place. Walthamstow has already become one of the most artistically inspiring places in London, and as its reputation continues to grow, it has the potential to become one of the UK’s premier cultural centres.
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top team
Investment Ready In the race to regenerate, Waltham Forest has taken time in preparation – but with 130 hectares of developable land ready to go, schemes can be quick off the blocks. The council leader and chief executive are open to fresh ideas for development, which will need to benefit existing residents as much as incomers
ME: Martin Esom, chief executive, Waltham Forest Council CR: Councillor Chris Robbins, leader, Waltham Forest Council TF: Toby Fox, managing director, 3Fox International and publisher of Invest Waltham Forest
TF: W hat is the council doing to encourage and support development in Waltham Forest? Why would a developer choose to invest here? CR: We’ve greatly improved the overall offer of Waltham Forest. If people want to live here, investors will want to invest here. We’ve helped to make it a much better place to live, over the past few years, since we took over as a team. Now we have the fabulous William Morris Gallery, a brand new Empire Cinema, access to the facilities in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and then there is Leyton Orient FC. We’ve put a great deal of emphasis on improving our town centres, parks, and leisure facilities, which are important in making the area attractive for development. Of the six leisure facilities, the flagship will open next year, Waltham Forest Leisure Centre – one of the biggest in London. We have massive housing regeneration planned, alongside the £8 million investment in Walthamstow Wetlands, the biggest urban wetlands in Europe. We’re trying to create a situation where people who live here spend their money here as well, and we create a good basis for the private sector to invest.
Above, Chris Robbins has been the leader of Waltham Forest Council since 2009. Right, chief executive Martin Esom, leads on the Prevent strategy for London, the government's antiterrorism initiative in communities. Below, publisher of Invest Waltham Forest, Toby Fox, with the interviewees.
ME: W e have land that is ready for development, and some sites are shovel-ready. Currently, we estimate there is 130 hectares of developable land in the borough, and the council is pushing the boat out and identifying other development opportunities to sustain growth and deliver regeneration. A scheme like South Grove [see page 27] can suddenly pop up because there was a cleared site, ready to go. The Arcade site [The Scene in Walthamstow] was built quickly because it was ready and we have other sites like that, right up to the Olympic Park. Stations just don’t open every day
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and the brand new Lea Bridge station has lots of land around it, ready to develop, so we have new transport opportunities plus land. CR: Culture is quite controversial because it’s about spending money. But it makes people want to live here. People can see the benefit of the William Morris Gallery. It was Martin’s project to bring that to fruition – and it went from a standing start to Museum of the Year. We also have a series of summer festivals called the big weekenders, which cost money, but attract huge numbers of residents. Last year over a hundred thousand people turned up and that ranges from the traditional carnival and fireworks night, to the
In the last 18 months to two years, the demographic has completely changed in waltham forest more modern approach, where we have world-class performers such as Fun Lovin’ Criminals, ABC and Boney M, for an open-air, free event. We’re one of the greenest borough’s in London and are bordered by Hackney Marshes and the Olympic Park in the south and Epping Forest in the north. If someone wants to live in the city but experience the benefits of the countryside, there isn’t a better place than Waltham Forest. TF: You’re ten minutes from Epping Forest and ten minutes from the City by tube. That must be helpful. ME: In the last 18 months to two years, the demographic has completely changed in Waltham Forest. It’s no longer the end of the Victoria line – it’s a destination. Ease of access is key to that: people working in London realise that it’s really easy to commute to a lot of places from here, where we have two Central line and two Victoria line stations, as well as London Overground and suburban lines. Then there is Lea Bridge rail station which is set to reopen in 2016 following a 30-year closure, and the £30 million
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Mini-Holland programme, which is making Waltham Forest one of the most cycle-friendly areas in the whole of the country. CR: Because of the demographic change and in the development of The Scene as a mixed-used scheme, including a nine-screen Empire Cinema, we’ve attracted three destination restaurants. Turtle Bay only had one operation in London and took 4,000sq ft. Grillstock chose it for their first in London and we worked with them on a big festival in September. Yum Yum has only one other. These are three special, destination restaurants. Turtle Bay made the jump, after we convinced them of the potential, and they’ve been trading their socks off ever since. TF: How do people describe Waltham Forest now – and how will they describe it in the future? CR: Ten years ago, people didn’t even know where Waltham Forest was. If they knew Leyton or Walthamstow,
Above, making The Scene – destination restaurants choose to locate in Walthamstow – and in September the development was voted overall winner of the National Housing Awards 2015.
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they’d have a pretty dour view, they might think it was out in Essex. That has changed considerably. Our name pops up in magazines – the borough is often featured as a great place to live – and it didn’t before. The Olympics was a hook, which we used to our advantage. People now know there’s a place called Waltham Forest, a place to watch. ME: We sent some graduates out to interview people about the borough’s characteristics. The recurrent themes were that we’re very well connected, it’s easy to get around. People said we’re quite a confident place, ‘at ease’ and ‘it’s friendly here’. Practically everyone said ‘it’s a very green place’. So, we’re ‘well connected’, with ‘quality green spaces’, and ‘an affordable place’ – people who have moved from neighbouring boroughs such as Hackney find us more affordable. nd there’s a trendy vibe as well. It’s focused on the A town centres rather than the borough: people don’t talk about Waltham Forest, they’ll mention Walthamstow or Chingford. Certainly, Leytonstone, Leyton and Walthamstow all have their own great areas. CR: In our annual residents’ survey, we rose from 54% in 2011 to 74% in 2015 for satisfaction with the council, while satisfaction with the local area is above 80% and that gives a strong base on which to build. TF: So in what ways has the council been able to act as a catalyst to change perceptions? ME: We had to become competent as a council, which was doubtful in 2002. We’ve made sure that we have proper conversations with our residents about their needs – then, it’s about getting basic services right. Chris and I go on about the cleanliness of the streets, as we know it’s important to people; they’re pretty much spotless, far better than other boroughs. People feel proud of where they live. Businesses won’t want to set up where there are dirty streets. With competence and getting basic services right, we’re then building on our aspiration and vision for the borough – and we can see it materialising. The budgets are really stretched but we’ve invested in all our town centres, libraries, parks and leisure centres. CR: O ver recent years our four key words have been vision and stability – as politicians we had to provide political stability, which gave Martin and the management team the confidence to implement initiatives in the long term – then competence and delivery. We’ve always
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said what we would deliver, and we’ve done it. One of the first things on both our lists was cleanliness. Martin came from an environment background, so he knew exactly what to do – not leaving fly-tipping for weeks on end; if people think it will be cleared up in 24 hours, they’re happy with that. We make sure that each street is cleaned at least once a week, we offer free bulky waste collections and our refuse and recycling collections remain weekly.
we rose from 54% in 2011 to 74% in 2015 for residents' satisfaction with the council, while 80% are satisfied with the local area ME: It is a safe borough. CR: We’ve seen a 31% reduction in crime in this borough, the highest in London. We have an award-winning anti-gangs programme which works with the whole family to tackle this issue and it’s making a real difference. We set out to have a good relationship with our local police; we invest money in employing police for certain jobs. TF: How effective is the council at working with developers and residents on planning? ME: We’re surveying 4,000 residents this autumn as part of a shaping growth survey, to understand perceptions and needs, so that developers moving into the borough can feel confident. We’ve got a very informed council in terms of what local people want from development. We’re very clear: we want development if it benefits our residents. People are often instinctively wary about development proposals. But these bring fantastic facilities such as a state-of-the-art GPs’ surgery, then we know that this will help local people get on board. CR: We made some big changes in our planning section and we’re now talking the right language with
top team
Above, with £8 million of investment, the Walthamstow Wetlands project will deliver new commercial facilities, as well as enhancements to the environment. Right, sumptuously renovated, the former home of William Morris was designated Museum of the Year in 2013.
developers and understand their needs, as well as our own. We want to encourage developers, as long as what they’re doing brings benefit to the local community. We’ve just launched a landlords’ licensing scheme to push up standards in the private rented sector. We have often felt that this lets the borough down, but we have done something about it, as housing is not just about home ownership. Five, six or seven years ago, we were grateful for developers improving the housing stock in terms of numbers. Now we realise we have a commodity that people want and we’re going about development in a more mature way. We now realise that what we want will benefit the developers, as we know our community, and can feed into the growing expectations of people and make it viable.
ME: We invested in some top quality spatial planners, to look at key development sites and identify what they should look like in terms of our aspirations, what’s achievable in the market, and what would make a fantastic community. Any developer should now have a very clear picture of what the opportunities are and how their scheme could fit. Waltham Forest was particularly wary of building height in the past. Through spatial thinking, we can see that height can be accommodated and it can be beneficial to the borough, which makes it a more viable prospect for developers. If it’s within the spatial plan, if we’re comfortable that it’s of a high design quality, and if we know the benefits it will deliver through more facilities, then we’ve crossed that Rubicon. TF: W hat’s the vision for the housing zone – where does that fit?
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Above, council investment improved shopfronts in gateway locations, such as the Blackhorse Lane junction with Forest Road. Left, the pirate ship in Leyton Jubilee Park.
tf: What overall strategy do you have for the council’s assets and what opportunities might there be for the private sector to work with you? me: This is our moment in terms of the values going up and the interest being there, so we’ve undertaken an inventory of all our assets. We know what areas they’re in and we’re looking to see how they can contribute to regeneration. We’re open to those assets being used, either through our own special purpose vehicle or we can let other people redevelop them on our behalf. me: We injected some ambition around Blackhorse Lane and looked at the area in totality, at the sort of place that we wanted to shape for existing and future residents. The housing zone panel in City Hall said that they really liked our proposal, but wanted it to be even more ambitious and add in the Lea Bridge station and Leyton areas as well. We’re working with the GLA to create something much bigger, that matches all our ambitions. tf: What made you focus on Blackhorse Lane initially? me: Developments approved and delivered on an individual basis were not of the quality we aspired to and we wanted to ensure that we got the most out of the available land in terms of homes, jobs and complementary facilities. Now we think about how we can shape a whole new neighbourhood, including creating something for the existing community.
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tf: What’s the timeline for that? me: For one of our key sites, we’re aiming for Christmas, to have a clear plan. We’re looking at a joint venture between us and a private sector partner. tf: How much have you got? me: We’ve estimated the total value of development opportunity as £1 billion by 2018. tf: What other messages would you send to developers, investors, architects, planning consultants – the whole field? me: We’re investment ready here. There’s land and excellent infrastructure. There are good people to work with and a good community to invest in – for us it is about more than just bricks and mortar. We want to work with ambitious partners who will help our vision for a vibrant, sustainable community continue to unfold.
are committed to investing in the future of Walthamstow, one of the most vibrant and emerging retail markets in London.
8000 | Glasgow 0141 225 6600 | capreg.com
Our newly refurbished Walthamstow Mall highlights the strong artistic culture and heritage of the community in an engaging design-led environment. The refurbishment represents Capital & Regional’s ongoing investment in the exciting regeneration of Walthamstow town centre.
The Mall, Walthamstow, London E17 7LT amp.walthamstow@themall.co.uk facebook.com/themall.walthamstow themall.co.uk/walthamstow
Awarded 5 stars for customer satisfaction
The Exchange | High Road Leyton Leyton | E10 6PY
NEW PHASE LAUNCHING THIS SEPTEMBER
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The Exchange. Contemporary 1, 2 & 3 bedroom apartments in Leyton’s Hainault Triangle. Beautifully designed and constructed, these stunning homes are perfectly placed to allow you to take advantage of all that the City has to offer. Help to Buy will be available for those with only 5% deposit.
BRAND NEW PHASE OF APARTMENTS COMING SOON Call: 0845 548 4038 Click: www.bellway.co.uk Visit: Open Tues - Sat 10am - 5pm and late night Thurs 12pm - 7pm Specification on site may differ. Pictures for illustration purposes only. YOUR HOME MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON YOUR MORTGAGE OR ANY OTHER DEBT SECURED ON IT. Available on new build homes up to £600,000 subject to the Government ‘Help to Buy’ terms and conditions and only available to customers where a primary mortgage is secured. Not available on second, additional homes, buy-to-let or let-to-buy properties. HomeBuy agent eligibility check required. The equity loan is interest free for the first five years and needs to be a minimum of 10% of the purchase price up to a maximum of 20%. After five years, an annual fee of 1.75% of the outstanding equity loan is charged. This is increased annually by RPI plus 1%. Subject to status, terms and conditions apply. Not available in conjuction with any other offer.
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PROJECTS
CURRENT SCHEMES IN WA LT H A M FOREST
CHINGFORD
FEATURED IN PROJECTS 1. Mandora, Blackhorse Lane 2. Marlowe Road 3. South Grove 4. The Wharf 5. Banbury Park 6. The Mall Walthamstow 7. Walthamstow Central 8. The Exchange, Leyton
Chingford
HIGHAMS PARK Highams Park A406
ADDITIONAL PROJECTS 9. Walthamstow Stadium 10. Sutherland Road 11. Ferry Lane 12. EMD Cinema 13. Lea Bridge station 14. Montague Road
9 5
A406
Major road links M11, A12, M25 6 mins
1 11
Stansted Airport 33 mins by train Central London 11 mins by tube
A406
WOOD STREET
10 BLACKHORSE LANE Blackhorse Road
WALTHAMSTOW CENTRAL
6
Tottenham Hale
St. James Street
2
12
3
7
Stansted Airport 32 mins by road
Wood Street
Walthamstow Central
Walthamstow Queen’s Road ST. JAMES STREET LEYTONSTONE LEA BRIDGE ROAD
A12 Leyton Midland Road
13
Central London 15 mins by train
Lea Bridge
LEYTON / NORTHERN OLYMPIC PARK AREA
4 Rail line
Housing zone
Leytonstone High Road
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Leyton
Road Walthamstow Wetlands
Leytonstone
8
A12
Canary Wharf 15 mins by road
Eton Manor Olympic Park
London City Airport 19 mins by road
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P r oj ec t s Mandora, Blackhorse Lane Blackhorse Lane is the largest regeneration area in Waltham Forest, located on the borough's western edge and bordered by the Walthamstow Wetlands. MacDonald Egan has been working with architects Pollard Thomas Edwards on the 2.76-ha Mandora site on the Blackhorse Lane industrial area in Walthamstow. The site, which lies between Blackhorse Lane and the High Maynard Reservoir, just north of Walthamstow town centre, was granted planning permission in 2014, and will create a mixeduse, residential-led scheme that will include 484 new homes, 519-bedroom student accommodation, along with community and commercial space. The existing buildings on the current site will be demolished, although a 1930s building, known as Gnome House, has been retained and transformed into a gallery for the community as well as a cafe, aimed at stimulating local creative industries. Work commenced on Gnome House in 2014, and it opened in early May 2015, with almost 1000 people attending the launch. Work on the remainder of the site started in mid-2015. The development will also include a new park for the community and provide links to the Walthamstow Wetlands, which is seeing investment of ÂŁ8 million, to create the largest urban wetland reserve in Europe.
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Connectivity Projects
south grove, Walthamstow A new developer has taken over the scheme to regenerate the South Grove site near St James Street station in Walthamstow. A joint venture between Osprey Equity Partners and Hadley Property Group, backed by LJ Group, bought the option to develop the site from Morrisons. The JV partners, who have developed a number of sites in London and across the UK, will now be devising plans for a scheme for South Grove.
Marlowe Road Countryside aims to begin work on Marlowe Road early in 2016, following a decision on the detailed planning application, which it has submitted to Waltham Forest Council. The project will see the transformation of the estate, with existing properties being replaced with a mixed-tenure development of 436 new homes. The scheme, which has been designed by Stitch Architects, includes 150 affordable homes and flexible retail space around a new plaza and public square. Richard Cherry, chief executive of Countryside’s partnerships division, said: “The focus of the new scheme will be on bringing back traditional tree-lined streets that link well with the surrounding area, with attractive frontages, providing welldefined spaces for the local community to enjoy.” Councillor Khevyn Limbajee, cabinet member for housing at Waltham Forest Council, commented: “The site is conveniently located, just a short walk from the town centre, and next to Wood Street station, in an area that will undoubtedly benefit from our regeneration investment programme. We believe the new proposals offer a dynamic solution that will bring about the creation of a diverse and lively new neighbourhood.”
The previous scheme proposed for the site was granted detailed planning consent for 245 apartments (180 private and 65 affordable) and 108,000sq ft of retail space. The JV partners exchanged contracts for the site in March 2015. They plan to develop South Grove as a £125 million mixed-use, residentialled scheme with commercial units. Councillor Clare Coghill, Waltham Forest Council’s cabinet member for economic growth and high streets, said: “We are pleased to have a new developer on board and the opportunity to revisit the potential of this extremely important site in the heart of Walthamstow. “This is an exciting opportunity to continue our regeneration of the town centre, and we look forward to hearing more about what the new developers have planned for the site.”
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The Wharf The development of 124 one and two-bedroom apartments, beside the River Lea at Essex Wharf, is a joint venture between Mulalley, its sister company Sherrygreen Homes and A2Dominion Housing Association. The site was previously used as a dock, but for decades was home to a mix of storage containers and untidy warehouses. These now give way to an attractive waterside setting. The 124 new apartments are in mixed tenure of private sale, shared ownership and affordable rent. The design, in four pavilions, gives all apartments riverside views. The development features on-site private parking and high quality design and finishes, according to Mulalley. At the edge of Hackney and the Lee Valley Regional Park, the scheme is within a 30-minute commute of the City.
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Connectivity Projects
Circle Housing scheme Circle Housing is working on a £70 million project at Banbury Park in Walthamstow, part of the regeneration of industrial land in the Blackhorse Lane area. The scheme is by HTA Design, with Higgins Construction, and comprises 171 affordable and 180 private homes. The final phases are due to complete by 2017. Banbury Park will include landscaped spaces and a public square. Over 223sq m of retail and commercial space will house a major retail unit, as well as smaller shops, boutique stores and business premises. At Headway Gardens, also in Walthamstow, Circle worked in partnership with nine families in need of larger accommodation. The families devised a proposal to convert 50 derelict garages into 10 high-quality homes. Local builders, Kind & Company, completed the structural work, while residents worked on the internal aspects of the homes, from fitting out kitchens to carpentry. Most had no prior construction experience but attended evening courses at Waltham Forest College to get the necessary building skills.
The Mall Walthamstow Capital & Regional has completed a £3 million refurbishment of The Mall Walthamstow. The company decided to invest in Walthamstow due to its strong transport links and the council’s ongoing investment. The 24,155sq m scheme attracts an average weekly footfall of 180,000 and is home to 58 retailers, including Asda, BHS, Boots, River Island and Waterstone’s. New occupier TK Maxx operates from a 2,415sq m anchor store, while Sports Direct has expanded to take 1,115sq m of space.
The refurbishment has brightened the centre, modernised flooring, replaced brickwork, enhanced lighting and improved connectivity. Four local figures are honoured in typographic panels: the film director Alfred Hitchcock, textile designer, writer and political activist William Morris, photographer David Bailey and aircraft designer Sir George Edwards. Retailers operated throughout the project. The concept was designed by Silver & Co, working alongside ESA Architects and contractor Stanton Construction.
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Walthamstow Central Solum Regeneration is a partnership between Network Rail and Kier Property to regenerate railway stations in the south-east of England. Located behind Walthamstow Central station, the first phase of Solum’s £22 million scheme won the What House? Gold Award for
Best Partnership. It has delivered a 107-room Travelodge Hotel, which opened in spring 2014, a collection of 69 one and two-bedroom apartments called Metro Pads, and a retail and cafe cluster around a new civic space. This first phase has created 150 jobs; half have been filled by local people.
The second phase will deliver up to 80 new homes and several new retail units. Solum undertook extensive consultation before finalising the plans. The intention is to retain the car park with investment of £600,000 to make it safer. This phase is expected to create a further 120 jobs.
The Exchange, Leyton The Exchange is a Bellway scheme featuring one, two and three-bedroom apartments and four-bedroom houses. The developer plans to complete 65 units by July 2016 and a further 76 by January 2017. The homes benefit from excellent transport links into central London, as well as being just nine minutes drive from Stratford International and the HS1 high-speed rail link to Kent, Paris and Brussels. Leyton tube station, on the Central line, is an 18-minute walk away.
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7 B l a c k h o r se L a n e
This time last year, Gnome House on Blackhorse Lane was a derelict and crumbling former factory. But since then it’s been transformed thanks to a partnership between local residents and building developers MacDonald Egan. Now Gnome House has been re-opened as a community space with a cafe, meeting room and a large multi-use space ideal for exhibitions, performances and workshops. Shortly the construction of 8 new flats & the refurbishment of 9000sqft of commercial space will commence with construction completing in 2017.
The Gnome House launch event was on May 2nd and almost 1000 people attended. There was food, drink, music, performances and a bouncy castle.
Launch Event at Gnome House. Photo by Mark Burton
Dance Workshop in Gnome House. Photo by Mark Burton
MacDonald Egan has worked closely with the Gnome House Community Interest Company & Waltham Forest Council to deliver the much needed community space. Chantelle Michaux, a volunteer Director explains, ‘Gnome House has rental rates for both businesses and community groups ensuring the space is accessible for all. Since we’ve opened, Gnome House has hosted dance workshops for local children, a photography exhibition and a spoken-word performance by 160 young people. Already the quality and diversity of the creative activities that have taken place in Gnome House has been extraordinary.’
In the coming months Gnome House will be hosting events during the Stow Festival (a music event) in September and there are plans for a beer festival before the end of the year. But throughout each week there are a growing number of community groups and businesses using the building for meetings, rehearsals and exhibitions. MacDonald Egan believe that the community centre will play a vibrant part in the wider Blackhorse Lane Development and are pleased to be associated with such a popular venue.
Building futures in Waltham Forest Circle Housing is one of the UK’s largest providers of affordable housing with 66,000 homes across the country. Our local partner, Circle Housing Circle 33, provides desirable homes, sustainable communities and trusted services to 2,194 customers in the London Borough of Waltham Forest.
In the years ahead, we will be building another 500 much needed new affordable homes. By acting with a business head and social heart, together we can achieve our mission to enhance life chances by helping people to fulfil their potential and live better, more independent lives.
ÂŁ70m scheme reaches key milestone this summer Work is well underway on a ÂŁ70 million project to build more than 350 new homes, on brownfield land on Billet Road which previously housed a warehouse, industrial works and an electronics factory. Banbury Park is a key part of a wider regeneration initiative by Circle Housing, the 2nd largest provider of affordable homes in London. We appointed Higgins Construction to build the scheme which includes 171 affordable and 180 private homes. The first properties will be ready this Summer, with the final phases completed by 2017. There will be a wide variety of homes to reflect the housing needs of the borough, ranging from one to four bedroom apartments, maisonettes and houses. Over 2,400 sq ft of retail and commercial space will also be created to house a major new retail unit, as well as smaller shops, boutique stores and business premises.
www.circle.org.uk
“We’re committed to developing more high quality, affordable housing and are really excited to be delivering this development in Waltham Forest. Along with our other developments in the area, Banbury Park will help to meet the demand for housing as well as our ambitions of creating a thriving community that people living here can feel proud of.� Iain Taylor, Regional Director of Development for Circle Housing
Our new local developments Self-build communities
Francis House
An enterprising group of residents are celebrating life in their very own self-built community. Nine families living in overcrowded accommodation came up with a proposal to help us convert 50 derelict garages into 10 high quality homes.
Residential development of 13 flats and 17 houses on the corner of Beaconsfield and Longfellow Road, Walthamstow.
While the structural work was completed by local builders Kind & Company, the residents carried out work in their spare time on the internal aspects of the homes - from fitting out the kitchens through to carpentry.
Weale Road Scheme designed for older people, including 44 flats, communal areas, dining facilities, hairdressing salon, guest room and landscaped gardens. Centra, part of Circle Housing will provide care and support for residents to live independently.
Art and Craft Quirky, individual creative business are an asset to any high street, as we find, touring Waltham Forest with the councillor who leads on the local economy Kirsty MacAulay Siobhรกn crozier
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Artisans
The demise of the high street continues to make headlines, with chain stores, charity shops and bookmakers helping to create clone towns, with retail experts taking different positions on the solutions – but what should a local authority do? For Waltham Forest, this is not the question – there is an abundance of unique, independent shops and the high streets exhibit a wealth of successful creative businesses – entrepreneurs are not afraid to try things out. And a member of the council’s cabinet is specifically dedicated to the cause; Councillor Clare Coghill is the lead member for economic growth and high streets, demonstrating the level of priority which Waltham Forest accords to business.
It’s really important that people think: ‘this is the kind of place where I would live’ As we tour several of the borough’s independent and artisan businesses, Coghill is known by traders and residents, they welcome her presence and share their success stories. She is also proactive about hearing their concerns and shares information on what can be done and who to contact, often the response to queries about the council. In any large organisation, it helps to have a guide to the right department – and can-do seems to be Coghill’s middle name – she means business.
other town centres around London but in Waltham Forest, they have really got this right, deserving of the awards and accolades these projects have received. The Better High Streets campaign was created after research on residents’ views made it clear that a thriving high street was a top priority. The campaign has achieved success across the borough, after initial work, which transformed the high street areas in Leytonstone and Walthamstow, was so well received by residents and businesses that the council invested a further £9 million improving shop fronts and the street scene in nine other areas. The schemes included new artwork, signage, planting, feature lighting and landscaping. Coghill thinks the improvement works were successful on two counts, while enhancing appearance, it also showed that the council believes it’s an important initiative. “The changes received a massively positive response from the public, who were thrilled that this was how we’d spent the money and that’s what we were prioritising. Traders also invested in the interior of their buildings. A significant proportion of our business base is concentrated in the high street – either you help them to survive and thrive, or you watch them slowly decline. “It’s really important that people think: ‘Wow, Waltham Forest looks nice, this is the kind of place where I would live’. People start saying: ‘It’s my area now, I’m raising a family here and I want to spend money with you locally,’ – and shops are responding, which is really positive.” The borough’s high count of independent shops and creative businesses hasn’t happened by chance. “We’ve
“High streets are not just places where people have businesses; they’re places where people live as well,” she says. “Visually, the impact that high streets have is tremendous, when you’re going about the borough, whether you’re cycling, on foot, or using public transport. For people living here, the high streets represent their community; if you live in Walthamstow you associate with the market, if you live in Leyton, you now associate with the beautiful, regenerated high street.” Around the borough, Coghill points proudly to Victorian parades of shops in smart livery, all different but working together in visual harmony at key intersections. They really stand out. It is an initiative that has been implemented in
Left, Experimental designer Marlène Huissoud. Above, Cllr Clare Coghill at The Wanstead Tap.
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got quite an entrepreneurial community,” says Coghill. “There is work under way at present, designed to help us understand the people living here; what they’re doing and if they’re self-employed, what might they need to grow their business? People who perhaps want to change careers, see an opportunity and want to take it with both hands. “A good example in Walthamstow Village is a lovely little shop called Froth and Rind, selling really good quality local beer, wine and cheese, they have regular wine-tastings. They’re local people; they know the community, understand their offer and the market for it.” Coghill points to another example as we drive past Forest Wines, an independent selling wines, spirits and craft beers
“Seeing the investment that we’ve put into high streets makes people feel more confident. It’s a risky endeavour, starting a business, but if they understand that the local authority is going to support them, that’s a real boost.” The platform for people to try out their ideas has paid off. All You Read Is Love is just one of the success stories of the pop-up scheme. The Danish duo’s idea – for a bookshop that offers more than just books – worked so well, they actually did two pop-ups before opening their premises on Leytonstone High Road in January 2015. The bookshop, combined with cafe-bar, regularly hosts live music, poetry readings and wine tastings in the evening. It has been a hit with local residents and is already making
The businesses coming forward seem to be stable and still thriving, one and two years in, which is the crucial time. No one wants flashy stuff that is there for six months and then disappears in Forest Road. The shop offers an alternative range to the neighbourhood convenience stores, with the additional service of wine-tastings and free delivery to residents throughout the E17 postcode.
a significant contribution to the local economy and the community, and providing book-loving residents with a haven, while offering interesting opportunities to stay local after dark.
“The businesses coming forward seem to be stable and still thriving, one and two years in, which is the crucial time,” Coghill adds. “No one wants flashy stuff that is there for six months and then disappears.”
Different areas within Waltham Forest offer a diverse range of independent businesses, from dim sum at the Panda restaurant and the cool, family-friendly Red Lion pub in Leytonstone, to the brilliant local bakery Chef ’s Corner on Cann Hall Road. Walthamstow’s Blackhorse Workshop offers wood and metal workshops, while the Arts and Crusts cafe has a studio-gallery and community arts events. At the famous God’s Own Junkyard, the late Chris Bracey’s family now carry on the business at Ravenswood industrial estate, creating neon artworks, as well as props which have appeared in classics such as Ridley Scott's Blade Runner.
For the past few years, the council has helped local people to test their business proposition through a pop-up scheme. Residents are offered vacant high street premises, free of rent and rates for a period of anywhere between two and six weeks, to test out their idea. Coghill says: “This scheme is a great way of supporting local entrepreneurs and businesses who are just starting out, as well as filling shops that for whatever reason, have become vacant. “We want to create thriving high streets people want to visit. Our powers on the high street are sometimes limited – we can’t stop betting shops from opening where they choose – but we’re determined to use the powers we do have to give residents the kind of high streets that we know they want.
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Many of the new businesses have been set up by residents keen to broaden local horizons. It is the way in which residents are providing services they know are needed or wanted in their neighbourhood that keeps things fresh, encourages more independent businesses to start up and ultimately builds the sense of community that is so strongly felt throughout Waltham Forest.
Artisans
Blackhorse Workshop Blackhorse Workshop is a thriving community of makers and menders, set up by creative director, Harriet Warden, it welcomes everyone “from dabblers to professionals”. Makers are able to book space on flexible terms and they can also develop new skills, with a programme of courses and events running regularly. The workshop is in an interim space but since opening in February 2014, it is a firm fixture on Waltham Forest’s contemporary arts and crafts scene. Alongside furniture upscalers, workers in wood and metal, more established creatives are based in studios and workshops. When Invest Waltham Forest visited, we found designer Nick Wood of How About Studio working on Flotsam, an installation commissioned for Selfridges Ultra Lounge to form the entrance to its Project Ocean exhibition, which raised awareness about harmful plastics. Experimental designer Marlène Huissoud sculpts gleaming, jet black pieces in propolis, a biodegradable resin found in beehives, which bees take from tree sap to block open spaces within the hive. Huissoud travels across London from Ealing every day, to the studio she shares with three other designers, two of whom work in textiles and wallpaper. “It’s not near home – but it is the best place in London,” she says.
Top, Harriet Warden at Blackhorse Workshops. Middle left, Nick Wood creating Flotsam, right, Selfridges' installation. Bottom, makers at work.
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Laura Lea Design
Left, Catherine West of Significant Seams. Right and below, Laura Lea and some of the work and activities at the Leytonstone pop-up, Eclectic Collective of Artists and Designers.
Significant Seams
Improving peoples’ lives one stitch at a time is not just a strapline for Significant Stitches – this is sewing, but not as we know it. The Walthamstow headquarters is part shop, part showroom, part community centre with a classroom. All proceeds from activities that run here subsidise the community building and therapeutic programmes undertaken. Workshops such as ‘waiting for baby’ and ‘sew and tell’ are delivered in partnership with organisations and specialists such as midwives, outreach workers and speech and language therapists. This small organisation encourages people to believe in themselves, help themselves, and in the process get to know, trust, and support others better. It is a truly social enterprise as founder, Catherine West, explains: “We overflow with art projects and things people can engage with. We want to build a brand to leverage the craft market and recognise this area as a hub for the crafty, creative industry, and draw investment into the area and into our community.”
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On hearing that Transport for London and Waltham Forest Council had made the space next to Leytonstone tube station available for viable pop-up business concepts, local resident Laura Lea knew that running a temporary design boutique on Roman Road and an exhibition at the Dreamspace Gallery near Old Street, could help her submit a strong application. Acting as an agent for artists to display and sell their work, Lea says she has raised the profile of
Artisans
what she does by working with more established designers, but her determination to help those who are emerging is a driving force: “I’m almost religious about making sure that people get what they deserve and a fair price for their product,” she says.
By attending arts fairs across London to find products, Lea has selected 19 artists whose work was on sale at the pop-up shop for six weeks from 18 July until 31 August, featuring lighting, kitchenware and signage, as well as print designs and original art.
“A lot of my friends weren’t getting a good deal; they were being taken advantage of and weren’t getting proper representation. They were struggling to get out there and sell really amazing products – that inspired me to want to help.”
“This pop-up is based on a philosophy of telling a story, connecting the client with the artist – learning where it has come from and who made it,” Lea says. “I develop relationships with artists and designers and I’m very invested in what they’re doing.”
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The Wanstead Tap
Above, "Parlez-vous français?" These toddlers all say: "Oui!" Below, a huge range of craft beers on sale at the Wanstead Tap.
After testing the water selling local beers at farmers’ markets, Dan Clapton opened The Wanstead Tap in 2014. Initially the dream was to sell beer to like-minded residents but it has blossomed into a busy community enterprise. As Clapton explains: “Part of the unique charm of the Tap is that it doesn't really fit into a box – the Tap is constantly expanding its areas of interest – I sometimes refer to it as the mothership!”
The space under the railway arches on Winchelsea Road offers more than 100 different beers alongside a cafe, but the clue to its success is in the evening events. From music to comedy and a supper club with a Masterchef semi-finalist, events have a broad appeal, an important element of what Clapton wanted to offer. And somehow, a year after getting the keys to his railway arch, Clapton managed to book Rich Hall to perform stand-up for 70 people. “Businesses play a huge role in social cohesion – we host free events that appeal to all members of the community – we host private parties that help fund these events,” he adds. “We are even hosting a parent and new-born baby curry night, so new parents can meet new friends!” When Invest Waltham Forest visited, the Tap was hosting lively toddlers with their mums, being taught French. Aged from newborn to five, those old enough to talk were doing passable renditions of French songs. “At the heart of the Tap is a belief that people deserve a nice place to relax and meet friends, old and new. They can come to enjoy cultural events on their doorstep – something that many people see as a real community asset,” says Clapton. “New arrivals to the borough want and expect high quality local businesses that add value – we are fed up with chicken shops and betting shops that add nothing. Railway arches are affordable and available on easy terms – that helps!”
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Invest Bromley
> Food, fish, ports, chemicals, energy
Investment opportunities in the London Borough of Bromley
ntial Living is redefining the private rental market. By shifting the issue#01_winter 2011 s onto the needs of tenants we make renting as easy and fulfilling possible. We design living spaces with sharers in mind, providing alance of communal areas and privacy. Through developing and aging vibrant, social places to live, we are determined that renters can find a home that is flexible enough to suit their lifestyle.
essentialliving.uk.com
Issue 3 Winter 2014
Bromley North: cafe culture comes to town Quality streets – upping the stakes in retail
The exciting transformation of Newcastle’s west end has begun on the banks of the famous River Tyne. The Rise is the first phase of a £265 million regeneration project which will deliver 1,800
2015
Winter 2014 Issue Five
modern homes, while creating jobs and training opportunities for hundreds of local people. Innovation From incubators to industry leaders The 60 hectare site will feature its own community energy centre and carefully designed, Collaboration Microsoft with Dovetail Games green public spaces to supportflies the development of a truly green and sustainable community. Behind the North East’s largest housing led regeneration is New West Development Regeneration New neighbourhoods, access to Tyne markets Company, a public-private partnership comprising Newcastle City Council and developers Celebration Cultural events and community cohesion Barratt Homes and Keepmoat.
renaissancenewcastle.com
Autumn 2014 Issue Five
ISSUE 3 WINTER 2014
Welcome to the Future of Renting
An exciting new development a stone’s throw from Newcastle City Centre
issue eight: autumn 2013
The regeneration of Enfield Well placed locational advantage / Smarter future knowledge economy / House proud North Circular Road / Up to the challenge Meridian Water
Trading place Opportunities galore for investors and developers
ge
A bright future for Scotswood
Newcastle’s regeneration magazine
Investment opportunities in the London Borough of Bromley
> Where any budget goes much further
medway making history
ENFIELD / The regeneration of Enfield
EY
> Beautiful beaches, stunning landscape > Flexible, industrious workforce
ay 1
QUALITY OF LIFE
cited and proud to be TrAInIng FOr skILLs orkingHOUsIng in association BUsInEss InvEsTmEnT ith BromleyAndCouncil.
For further information log on to www.therise.info
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Inside: Marine and offshore, creative and digital, asset management, decision makers and game changers . . .
24/10/2011 11:53
Changing perceptions: council leader and chief executive
Culture and heritage: William Morris to contemporary art
EALING IN LONDON
Big screen sets The Scene: cinema, restaurants, homes
Issue 1 | Encouraging investment in Waltham Forest
Large for lifestyle
Outer London borough with international connections, magnet for entrepreneurs
Housing zone, educational achievement, skills, connectivity and green space
Bu i l d / I n n o v a t e / Gr o w Ha r r o w
- 14,000+ new homes
- 10,000 new jobs
- 100,000m2 new retail
- 5 new Crossrail stations
invest WALtHAM FORest
Booming for business
TITANIC QUARTE BELFAST
Issue 2
THE CAPITAL OF WEST LONDON
TITANIC QUARTER BELFAST
The regeneration magazine for the London Borough of Ealing/issue 06/spring ‘15
CHALLENGE EALING
ISSUE 2 SPRING 2015
rtnership with the r Hamlets
issue 1
the ealing challenge:
THE LASTING LEGACY
think beyond the box
HISTORIC DEVELOPMENT FOR BELFAST
Beechwood Village Regeneration of the Craylands Estate in Basildon, in partnership with the HCA and Basildon Borough Council
Lough Eske Castle is part of the Solís Group of Hotels
T +353 (0)74 97 25100 F +353 (0)74 97 23762 E sales.lougheske@solishotels.com
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Issue 1 | Encouraging investment in Waltham Forest
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Derby’s regeneration magazine /issue number seven
Easy Rider A brand new rail station will strengthen Waltham Forest’s links with major employment centres, while London Overground puts more stations on the tube map – and for cycling a £30 million Mini-Holland programme will extend travel options even further plans to re-open Lea Bridge station in 2016 reflect the ongoing transformation of Waltham Forest. Initially, two trains an hour will link thousands each day to the Lea Valley line running between transport hubs at Tottenham Hale and Stratford. The frequency of trains will increase to four an hour, following completion of track works elsewhere along the line. The new station will offer
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Paul coleman
commuters faster access to major employment centres, such as Westfield Stratford City, Canary Wharf, and Stansted and London City airports. The joint project between Network Rail and Waltham Forest Council will transform the original station that closed in 1985. Cyclists will enjoy new storage facilities at Lea Bridge and other stations, part of improvements to encourage people to
Connectivity
walk and cycle locally. And Waltham Forest is one of only three London boroughs successful in securing Transport for London (TfL) funding for its Mini-Holland programme.
Integration into the Overground means that the Chingford line stations have been added to the London tube map, and will also link to Crossrail at Liverpool Street from 2018.
The £30 million project is designed to deliver improvements that include segregated cycle lanes along the length of Lea Bridge Road. The council's aim for Mini-Holland is “to make it safer and more enjoyable
Investment in infrastructure offers residents and businesses even greater options to reach London’s employment and leisure hotspots.
The new Lea Bridge station will be one stop from a fast link to liverpool street – with crossrail from 2018 to travel between residential areas and town centres, through improvements to main roads, public spaces and public transport links”. Residents already benefit from a fast commute on the Victoria line to Oxford Circus and Victoria via Blackhorse Lane and Walthamstow Central tube stations, in faster, more frequent, higher capacity trains, boosted by new signalling. The line was closed in August 2015 between Walthamstow Central and Seven Sisters, for works which enable full services on the entire line. Walthamstow Central will see greater capacity, with 36 trains per hour in peak times, instead of 24. The Victoria line provides a vital link to Tottenham Hale, with Stansted Airport just 32 minutes away. The new Lea Bridge station will be one stop from Tottenham Hale, which has a fast link to Liverpool Street – with Crossrail services operating from 2018. Similarly, the Central line links commuters via Leytonstone and Leyton stations to the West End, Stratford and Liverpool Street.
Top, Walthamstow Central sees more trains per hour at peak times. Above, new cycle storage is planned for stations. Below, Stansted Airport is within easy reach.
Commuters also use Blackhorse Road, Walthamstow Queen’s Road, Leyton Midland Road and Leytonstone High Road stations to traverse the city on London Overground’s upgraded Gospel Oak to Barking services. TfL’s takeover last May of the Chingford line to Liverpool Street brings major improvements, as part of the London Overground network. With air-conditioned trains to be delivered in 2018, current rolling stock will be upgraded to minimise reliability problems before the new fleet is in use. Trains and stations are being deep cleaned and modernised, with stations staffed by London Overground teams.
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East Thames is dedicated to delivering affordable housing for local people in east London and Essex. We are proud to be working with Waltham Forest to provide highquality and genuinely affordable new homes in the borough.
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employer case study
Spice Odyssey The award-winning Wanis International Foods brings products and flavours from all over the world to the UK and Europe – a thriving business with its roots firmly in Waltham Forest In 1964 Tulsidas WadhWani (‘Mr Wani’) decided to invest on the basis of a simple fact: people miss the taste of home. Now, 50 years later, Wanis is still family run – but it is an award-winning import company that handles more than 8,000 food products from all over the world, employs 150 people and runs a lively export and distribution business.
Managing director of Wanis, Sanjay Wadhwani.
A visit to Wanis’ huge warehouse, at the intersection of Lea Bridge Road and Orient Way, entails a global tour of taste, sight and smell. Hot pepper sauce sits next to Nigerian ginger, Carib beer and Jamaican callaloo. Pallets are loaded with Nigerian smoked prawns, aloe vera drinks, fufu flour, plantain crisps, coconut water and crayfish stock.
where they serve the needs of Britain’s communities. “But it wouldn’t be right to call all these products ‘exotic’,” explains business development director and son of Mr Wani, Kapil Wadhwani. “An Asian dish is now the national favourite and many specialist foods cross over into the mainstream market. The British are very open to new things.”
These products will find their way to the shelves of Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda and Waitrose, as well as to more specialist shops and restaurants,
Consumers in other parts of Europe tend to be less experimental, Wadhwani explains, yet Wanis exports to minority communities
Jessica Pickard
in Europe, making up 10% of its business, a growing slice of its export trade to more than 20 countries. Holland, Germany, and especially Ireland, are all important elements of its customer base. But the UK, and London in particular, are the company’s largest markets. “It’s important for us that we are near New Spitalfields Market,” he says. “We open at 5am to cater to them.” Being near the M11, the A406 and the M25 is a logistical advantage; the reopening of Lea Bridge station will help staff get to work. The next challenge is to find land nearby to allow Wanis to expand its services. “To keep growing, we want to add new products and markets here and overseas,” adds managing director, Sanjay Wadhwani. “People want new things and growth brings economies of scale. It’s an inherent dynamic of this business.”
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Waltham Forest’s commercial centres are on the up, thanks to major investment by both the public and private sectors, with small businesses benefiting from a combination of improvement grants and fresh ideas
Centres Forward
James Cracknell
Picture caption xxxxx xxxx xxxxx xxx xx xx xxxx xxxx xxx xxxx xxx xxxx xxxx xxxx xxxx xxxx xxx xxx xxx xxxx.
Can we get this any higher res?
Sometimes it's the little things that make a huge difference. For a boutique owner in Leyton High Road, a simple change enabled her dresses to be seen in the shop window after closing time, boosting revenue by 70%. Each evening, steel shutters would block interior views of Penny Philippou's shop, Princess. After replacing these with an internal security system, Philippou says, her shop's range of formal, evening and bridal wear is viewable at all times. “We are practically open 24/7. Before, if you walked past, you'd see blank shops, now you can see what we have
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to offer,” she says. “People call me and say they've seen something in the window on their way home, or they've been on a bus driving past and spotted our shop. If I had to put a figure on it I'd say it's probably increased sales by 70%.” Princess was one of dozens of small businesses in Leyton town centre that benefited from Waltham Forest Council's shop front improvement scheme in 2012, finished in time for the Olympic Games taking place half-a-mile away. The project is an example to follow, and is being replicated
town centres
by other London boroughs recognising the difference that seemingly small changes can make to their local economy. In Leyton it began with businesses being offered an external makeover by the council. They could choose a colour scheme and new specially designed shop fronts that better linked in with the aesthetic of the street. Particular changes tailored to their needs were also requested, such as Philippou’s visible shop window.
Left, the welcoming mural at Blackhorse Road, by Jon Blake and the late Chris Bracey of God's Own Junkyard. Below, Leyton's colourful shop fronts.
The council invested £950,000 in Leyton town centre, giving 43 businesses a new lease of life. The scheme also led to £200,000 of private investment in the area. Its success was obvious and Waltham Forest's High Street Improvement Programme was extended in 2013 to encompass nine other retail centres. In total the council's investment reached £9 million, sprucing up more than 250 shop fronts, as well as several public realm projects. Other town centres to benefit were Blackhorse Road, where a huge artwork welcoming visitors to “the home of people who make and create” now adorns one prominent building. In South Chingford art deco stonework was restored, in Bakers Arms a whole junction was revamped, and in Leytonstone, a stunning tribute to filmaker Alfred Hitchcock – a local boy – was created above a row of shops. If you find Hitchcock’s 1963 film, The Birds, scary you may want to avoid the corner of West Street and Leytonstone High Road. Back in Leyton, the success has spiralled. Across the road from the first row of shops that got their makeover is the
If I had to put a figure on it I’d say it’s probably increased sales by 70%
St James Street
St James Street was in decline until recently but is in the middle of a revamp that looks set to revive its fortunes. It is helped by its strategic position at the western end of Walthamstow High Street, home to Europe's longest market, and by being a designated conservation area. The council's successful bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund will generate £1.4 million, which the the local authority will match fund in order to finance its plans for St James Street. Work on the project will begin in January 2016. The council has been in discussion with local businesses, to promote understanding of what it means to be in a conservation area and how they can tap into the heritage of the place to benefit their trade. The Mini-Holland cycling programme will also soon bring a series of improvements to the street scene, including a bike parking hub near to the market.
Bakers Arms
The largest of the council's nine town centres areas to be upgraded is now transformed, since the Lea Bridge Road junction with Bakers Arms saw investment of £3.3 million. Shop fronts were redesigned, trees planted in a scheme of extensive public realm enhancements and feature lighting was installed at bridges and arches. A new public square has been created. The 2014 Tour de France drew crowds as it passed through.
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former Leyton Municipal Offices (LMO), a Grade II-listed Victorian landmark.
events, new homes, and a pub. Leyton Technical is now one of the most popular watering holes in the borough.
The building struggled to find a purpose after Leyton Borough Council merged into Waltham Forest in 1965. Local property developer Lee Valley Estates bought LMO for £4 million and invested a further £10 million in restoring its historic features and transforming it for modern use.
Chris Shellard, the company's development director, said: “London is scattered with old public buildings. We have to be imaginative to restore them because there are high costs involved, but we were able to look at this scheme and create a mix of business, residential and leisure use.
Lee Valley Estates created a business centre for small firms, a function hall for weddings, community and corporate
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“We always thought Leyton would become a city fringe area after the Olympics and we saw LMO as offering an opportunity to build on that success.”
town centres Opposite top, Blackhorse Road benefited from the council's improvement scheme, and below, the popular Leyton Technical.
Wood Street
Wood Street was a neglected retail centre in Walthamstow. The 2012 Olympics provided the impetus for improvement, funded with a £1.8 million grant from the Outer London Fund. As well as being one of 10 areas in the borough benefiting from the High Street Improvement Programme, an enhanced play area provides a new focal point and encourages families to shop. Large artworks help provide a vibrant atmosphere. The Wood Street Indoor Market has been refurbished and attracts bargain hunters from across the capital. Not only has Wood Street been shortlisted for several awards, but traders have seen increased footfall and turnover. The market is fully let and traders report that it is gaining a reputation as a destination for vintage items. Walthamstow Council is now offering a grant for pubs in the area, to complete the project.
Francis Road
This improved, local neighbourhood centre in Leyton has seen new businesses opening. The upgrade scheme entailed work to shop fronts, including cleaning of upper buildings, new signage and awnings, glazed tiling, along with improvements such as visual display and merchandising.
Highams Park
Highams Park is next on the council’s town centre agenda. A £100,000 grant from the Greater London Authority has been allocated and will create a new “gateway” zone to boost this small retail area. An active group of residents is working with the council to help shape its plans. The Highams Park Planning Group (HPPG) was formally designated as the neighbourhood planning forum by the council last year. Residents will oversee the preparation of a new plan for the Highams Park area and provide a list of community projects that local people want.
The Mall Walthamstow There has been a buzz around Walthamstow town centre ever since Empire opened its new nine-screen cinema here last year. The development was many years in the making, but is now winning awards and sparking other parts of E17 into life. Just a short stroll away is The Mall Walthamstow, part of a chain of shopping centres run by Capital & Regional. Knowing the cinema was due to open in 2014, the firm began a £3 million refurbishment of its 25-year-old mall. Sian Bowen, retail asset manager at Capital & Regional, says: “We decided to invest in Walthamstow because it is strategically wellplaced and because of the council’s commitment to invest in the borough with the new cinema and restaurants. “There were key elements that were essential to maximise the potential of the scheme to ensure a vibrant and exciting new environment, while making reference to local artists. “We want to offer an enhanced customer experience and better retailing environment, increasing awareness of the shopping centre and a renewed vitality in a growing catchment.”
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invest WALTHAM FOREST
Invest Waltham Forest partners, joining together to support Waltham Forest Council
Bilfinger GVA Jason Sibthorpe jason.sibthorpe@gva.co.uk
Newlon Housing Trust Joe Molloson joe.molloson@newlon.org.uk
Wanis International Foods Jag Singh jag@wanis.com
3Fox International Shelley Cook shelley@3foxinternational.com
For more information about these companies, please visit investwalthamforest.com/partners Sitematch London Sophie Gosling sophie@3foxinternational.com
Leisure
Beautiful Games Waltham Forest has invested heavily in its leisure centres in recent years and is introducing initiatives to further benefit the health and lifestyle of its residents
Maria Shahid
In an interview with Esquire magazine in 2013, Waltham Forest’s most famous resident, David Beckham, recounts his earliest childhood memory of growing up in Chingford in the 1980s. He describes kicking a ball around with friends in a playing field close to his home – until it was too dark to see. Waltham Forest’s sporting amenities have certainly taken a turn for the better since then, and its residents now have access to far more than just a playing field if they wish to pursue any sporting activities. The borough, along with five others, played host to the Olympic Games in 2012. Keen
Above, from Chingford to LA Galaxy, via Manchester United, David Beckham began playing on a local field. Residents now have more choice of leisure facilities.
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to build on this sporting legacy in the wake of the Games, Waltham Forest Council committed to improving leisure facilities in the borough by investing £24.5 million. Councillor Ahsan Khan is the council's cabinet member for health and wellbeing, and has been overseeing the significant level of investment in the borough’s leisure facilities and parks. He lists the leisure centres that have been refurbished since the beginning of 2013, including the state-of-the-art Leyton Gym, which opened in January 2013 and Leyton Leisure Centre, that opened the following October, offering a transformed swimming pool with an aqua play area and water flume, as well as group exercise studios, and a sauna and steam room. Khan explains that giving residents a better quality of life is a priority for the council, and that the borough-wide improvements carried out to date are part of a number of initiatives launched to improve people's health. Other leisure facilities to have received a facelift since 2013 are Leytonstone Leisure Centre (formerly Cathall Leisure Centre), which reopened in October 2014 with an improved sports hall and gym, and Walthamstow Leisure
Gym usage across the borough has gone up from 71,193 in April 2012 to 128,664 in April 2015 Centre (formerly Kelmscott Leisure Centre) which includes a state-of-the-art gym, fully refurbished changing rooms, as well as a sports hall and squash courts.
The leisure centre will also feature a four-court sports hall, an outdoor floodlit artificial sports pitch, and a health and wellbeing wet and dry spa.
Meanwhile work at the former Waltham Forest Pool and Track, which closed in October 2014, is ongoing. The new £23 million Waltham Forest Leisure Centre is scheduled to open in autumn 2016 and will consist of sport, health and fitness facilities.
“It promises to be a landmark leisure venue for residents and visitors – rivalling the biggest and best leisure centres in London,” says Khan. “Based on the increased number of visitors that other redeveloped leisure centres have seen, we expect it will see an extra 175,000 visits per year.”
“The existing athletics track has also been refurbished,” says Khan. “The old six-lane pool is being replaced with an eight-lane pool in the new leisure centre.
Waltham Forest Council has been working in partnership with GLL, a charitable social enterprise that runs the local leisure facilities, which was appointed to project manage the multimillion pound investment in 2012.
“There will also be an extreme sports zone complete with climbing wall and skateboard and BMX areas, a two-storey soft play area, two studios and a 132-station gym.”
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The response from the public to the upgrades to date has been massive, according to Khan. “Gym usage across the
Leisure
Left, the new Waltham Forest Leisure Centre is due to open in 2016. Below left, the popular aqua play area at Leyton Leisure Centre. Right, Walthamstow Wetlands in the the Lee Valley Regional Park.
borough has gone up from 71,193 in April 2012 to 128,664 in April 2015. The biggest increase has been in the Leyton Leisure Centre, where attendance has gone up from 15,171 to 41,409 in the same period.” Apart from its leisure centres, Waltham Forest Council has also invested heavily in its parks through its £1.9 million Parks and Play programme. The borough lays claim to having the most green space of any London borough north of the river. In addition, it is well located for access to large open areas such as the 2,476-ha Epping Forest, London’s largest open space, part of which is in the borough. According to the council, the most popular parks are Abbotts Park, Memorial Park, Leyton Jubilee Park, Ridgeway, Lloyd Park, Langthorne Park and Coronation Gardens. Leyton Jubilee Park is the largest, and is named after the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. It features a pirate ship, an outdoor gym, mini and junior 3G football pitches, play areas and a pavilion, as well as a basketball court. The council introduced the ‘Our Parks’ initiative, which allows residents to benefit from 40 hours of free group exercise a week led by fully qualified instructors, by registering at ourparks.org.uk. Waltham Forest is proud to have pioneered, commissioned and piloted the programme, says Khan. It has proved
to be a huge success, demonstrated by the fact that the programme has now been signed up to by other boroughs. “So far 5,000 of the borough’s residents have registered,” Khan adds. “We recorded over 20,000 visits last year”. Classes on offer include Skip Fit, bootcamp and yoga. Meanwhile, Walthamstow Marsh Nature Reserve, Coppermill Fields and Leyton Marsh are all part of the Green Flag award-winning site in the Lea Bridge area. The reserve is one of the few remaining pieces of London’s widespread river valley grasslands. Waltham Forest has also secured funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund for Walthamstow Wetlands, which, when complete, will create the largest urban wetland nature reserve in Europe. The project will transform the 200-ha site into a unique landscape where people can enjoy open skies and waterscapes. The area is expected to create many leisure opportunities for visitors, including anglers and cyclists, as well as those who simply want to discover the wildlife. Waltham Forest's latest footballing star, Harry Kane, is tipped to match Beckham's talent. For residents of any age or level of skill, the council’s efforts to build a legacy for people to live healthier and more active lives, mean that there has never been a better time to try out the wealth of sporting facilities throughout the borough.
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Place Station As one of London’s first housing zones, opportunities abound in Waltham Forest for developers with creative ideas. Smaller sites around Blackhorse Road station are in a location which is seeing rapid change
Huub Nieuwstadt
For more information, contact Jonathan Martin, assistant director, investment and delivery, jonathan. martin@walthamforest.gov.uk Sitematch London is an event enabling public sector landowners to engage with private sector developers, investors and occupiers. For more information, visit sitematchlondon.com
Aerial view of the Blackhorse Road station hub, comprising five sites in Blackhorse Lane growth area, part of the housing zone.
One of Waltham Forest’s key development opportunities is the station hub, a collection of five sites that the council is delivering individually within a comprehensive design and planning framework, to create a mixed-use neighbourhood. The sites are across the road from Blackhorse Road station and historically, were used for industrial and warehousing purposes. Also included are the former Standard Music Venue, the Transport for London-owned car park and business space. The sites are situated within the Blackhorse Lane growth area and form part of the housing zone.
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Approximately 1,140 homes are planned, as well as 6,780sq m of commercial space including creative industries, a linear park, public spaces, 519 rooms of student accommodation, and a neighbourhood centre to include a bar and cafes. The proximity of Blackhorse Road station ensures fast connections to central London via the Victoria line, with Oxford Circus only a 17-minute tube journey away. The station is also connected to the Overground network, with direct links to Barking and Gospel Oak. The PTAL rating of the area is 3-5.
The ongoing regeneration of the area includes public realm improvements, a new school at the Willowfield Humanities College, which was developed by Bouygues UK, and an improved road junction and station. Investment of £8 million in Walthamstow Wetlands will enhance the local green environment further, as it is the largest urban wetland nature reserve in Europe. The Blackhorse Lane area has great potential. It has a unique location right on the edge of the Lee Valley Regional Park, a strong small business base and a skilled workforce.
{ 12,000 HOMES BY 2020 }
{ MINUTES FROM THE CITY }
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INVEST For information on our development opportunities contact: Lucy Shomali Director of Regeneration and Growth
e: lucy.shomali@walthamforest.gov.uk t: 0208 496 6734
SEE OUR PLANS TAKE SHAPE www.walthamforest.gov.uk/invest
Big screen sets The Scene: cinema, restaurants, homes
Swan Group have over 20 years of experience of delivering homes and regeneration in East London and South Essex and a reputation for delivering innovative, sustainable homes and exemplary communities. To discuss partnership opportunities that can make a difference, contact Anna Bolsin, New Business Manager, on 01277314360 or abolsin@swan.org.uk.
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Issue 1 | Encouraging investment in Waltham Forest
Swan is committed to supporting Waltham Forest to deliver its vision for regeneration.
Issue 1 | Encouraging investment in Waltham Forest
INVEST WALTHAM FOREST
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INVEST WALTHAM FOREST
Culture and heritage: William Morris to contemporary art