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The UK’s oldest competitive music and drama festival will be taking place locally in February 2023. Applications are now open for performers of all ages. Sheena Bronson reports

The Stratford and East London Music Festival (SELMF) offers the opportunity to perform and compete in one of the many instrumental, singing, speech and drama classes. The event was founded in 1882 by John Spencer Curwen, making it the UK’s oldest competitive music and drama festival.

With over 70 singing classes alone, there’s sure to be one that appeals – including classical, musical theatre, jazz, a class to perform a song that you have written yourself, popular music and recitals. There are also more than 50 speech and drama classes to choose from for individuals, duets and groups in classes for poetry, acting, storytelling, news reporting and humorous verse.

There are hundreds of classes to compete in, broken down into nine categories: choral singing, orchestra and bands, concerto, instrumental, piano, recorders, solo and ensemble singing and speech and drama.

On the final night of the festival, we hold the Young Musician of the Year competition, which showcases the best young musicians (pianists, vocalists and instrumentalists) aged 11 to 17 who have performed during the event.

Back in 1882, the entry fee for the first festival was 2s 6d (12p) for solo performers, 5s 0d (25p) for quartets and 10s 0d (50p) for choirs. Originally, it was only open to those who lived in Stratford, Leyton, Wanstead, Walthamstow, Woodford, Plaistow, Forest Gate, Canning Town, Victoria Docks and Leytonstone. Now, musicians and actors come to the festival from the local area and beyond to perform and compete in a friendly and supportive environment. As well as enjoying the excitement of competing at the festival, all entrants receive feedback and tips from professional adjudicators, as well as a certificate. Winning entrants often receive a cup and some a cash prize. The best young pianist can win £500.

SELMF is a charitable organisation and exists because of our brilliant team of dedicated volunteers. We would appreciate any additional help you may be able to offer, either with your time or with donations to help towards our running costs. Becoming a Friend of the Festival for just £10 gives you free entry to all the competitions, plus a free programme. Or if you fancy donating a silver trophy for aspiring performers, we would love to hear from you.

The Stratford and East London Music Festival 2023 will take place during February half-term at St Mary’s Church in South Woodford (choirs, orchestras and bands) and at Redbridge Music Service in Hainault (all other music, speech and drama classes). For more information, visit swvg.co.uk/selmf

The South Woodford Neighbourhood Forum will be producing a Design Code for the local area in the coming months, with workshops and a consultation planned for January.

“We had a fantastic response to our recent survey. Plus, we held walking tours and two focus groups, one with a local secondary school to better understand young people’s needs and another exploring open spaces and nature. To delve deeper, we’ve also been holding one-on-one interviews with residents,” said a spokesperson.

Visit sowodesigncode.org

A local resident has published a vegetarian cookbook with recipes spanning four seasons and 20 countries.

“The recipes will boost your cooking confidence and prove that plant-focused food is delicious and satisfying! All fuelled into existence with ingredients from our wonderful local shops: Harveys, Simple ‘n’ Natural and the International Supermarket,” said Snaresbrook resident Red Willow, who works as a holistic health coach. A Year of Veggie Adventures is published by Upfront Publishing (£30).

Visit swvg.co.uk/ayova 

Liz Calvert is one of many residents who will be living in the shadow of the blocks of flats proposed for Snaresbrook Station car park. The Real Snaresbrook campaign believes the community deserves better

In August, a scattering of residents from The Rise and Hollybush Close (cul-de-sacs off Hollybush Hill) were advised by a flyer that Snaresbrook Station car park was being sold by TfL and that a company called Pocket Living had plans to build affordable homes there. For a few of us, our gardens abut the car park; for the remainder, they are in close proximity. 

On discussion, we all came to the same conclusion: we aren’t anti-affordable living – how could you be? – but the plans astounded us. The proposals are for two adjoining blocks of flats of five and six storeys. They will tower over our streets: these buildings will be seen from Hollybush Hill and from the High Street. Our concerns are as follows:

• The ”pretty pedestrian walkway” as described in the plans will also accommodate the route for goods and emergency vehicles to access the engineering depot and the railway line, creating a dangerous mixed-use zone.
• The car park is prone to flooding and this has never, to our knowledge, been resolved. How will it cope with 74 new dwellings using the drainage system?
• Pocket Living do not accommodate for car ownership (they will supply bicycle storage). Pocket Living has advised that Redbridge Council will not supply their residents with parking permits, so where will those cars go? The streets around Hollybush Hill are for permit holders only, and the car park will have room for only a few.
• The trees – covered by Tree Protection Orders – and the flower beds will all incur damage or be lost completely.
• Our main concern is for the emergency services and their ability to access the flats. The turn at the station is tight and the road is regularly blocked.

So, we have organised ourselves. We have a residents’ WhatsApp group, we are in discussion with local councillors and we have knocked door to door and spoken to other residents – not one was in favour of this. We also have a petition and one of our members has created a website. 

To sum up, we don’t want our privacy invaded; elderly and disabled neighbours are fretting already about the noise and the impact. The possible new residents deserve much more than these boxes; they need safety too. Lower blocks, two or three storeys, or a row of terraced houses would be better, but we were advised those won’t make the company enough profit. We sincerely hope these existing plans are shelved.

For more information on the development proposal, visit wnstd.com/pocketliving

For information on the Real Snaresbrook campaign, visit realsnaresbrook.org

Three services of Remembrance will take place across Wanstead and South Woodford this November.

The first will happen on Armistice Day at the Snaresbrook Garden of Remembrance, off Snaresbrook Road, opposite Eagle Pond (arrive by 10.55am).

This will be followed by a service on 12 November at the Woodford War Memorial, outside St Mary’s Church in South Woodford (arrive by 8.40am).

A final gathering will take place at the Wanstead War Memorial on the High Street on 13 November (arrive by 12.15pm).

A campaign has been launched to raise £4,000 for the installation of a table tennis table in Elmhurst Gardens.

“If this crowdfunder is successful, the table will be situated near the existing children’s play area. It will be open to all, including wheelchair users who enjoy the park but currently have no accessible equipment, and to older children who have outgrown the playground,” said a spokesperson for the Elmhurst Playground Association.

The campaign runs until 30 November.

Visit swvg.co.uk/tabletennis 

Residents will be treated to a trio of festive events this year: an outdoor show, the lights switch-on and a Christmas market. Elaine Atkins of the South Woodford Society reports 

There’ll be plenty of festive cheer in South Woodford this November and December, with not one, not two, but three wonderful community events for all to enjoy.

We’ll have our annual switch-on ceremony and the Christmas market, of course, but before all that, Vision RCL will be treating us to a special touring show, bringing Santa to South Woodford. This new Christmas event will take place outside South Woodford Library on 23 November from 4pm to 6pm. Details were still being finalised at the time of writing, so visit the website for more information.

Then – following the resounding success last year – the South Woodford Society is planning to repeat its ‘Switching On of Festive Lights’ on 2 December between 3.30pm and 5.30pm. As last year, the switching on will be followed by a jolly singalong of Christmas songs, accompanied by a brass ensemble and buoyed by community voices of all ages singing with all their heart! We’ll be holding the switch-on event at the central seating area in George Lane, by the roundabout. There will be warming ‘after school’ food available and mulled wine to keep out the cold. As well as local dignitaries, we’ll also have panto people mingling to add to the magic! 

The monthly George Lane market will go ahead on 18 December as a Christmas Market (11am to 4pm). It will be a family friendly event with Christmas fayre, activities and entertainment. The South Woodford Society will be fully supporting market organiser Ace Events, but we will have less direct involvement, partly because of restricted funding, but also because it’s been a really busy year for the Society, with exciting projects that have swallowed up our wonderful volunteers!

We’ve been re-greening South Woodford; as well as the community orchard, we’ve adopted Eastwood Green (by the George Lane roundabout) and Bell Green (opposite the Railway Bell), and an enthusiastic team has also adopted The Grove (the planted area behind Waitrose on Eastwood Road). This is all as well as the amazing efforts of the South Woodford Gardeners who continue to maintain our flower beds on the bridge over the A406, outside Regency Court on the High Road, and in the central planted area in George Lane.

The Neighbourhood Plan team has been focused on developing a Design Code for South Woodford – a fascinating national project that has welcomed essential input from our community. And we’ve continued to support our businesses through the South Woodford Business Forum and have been grateful for sponsorship that has helped us to fund our social events. We’re committed to encouraging people to ‘shop local’ and continue to promote our monthly market – on the third Sunday of every month – which helps towards our aim of making South Woodford a ‘come to’ destination. 

The South Woodford Society continues to grow, with lots of new members. We’re all about making South Woodford a better place to live, work, learn and visit, and this year’s Christmas events will be a celebration for all! I do hope you can join us.

The Christmas show will take place outside South Woodford Library on 23 November from 4pm to 6pm.

The Christmas lights switch-on event will take place on George Lane on 2 December from 3.30pm to 5.30pm.

The Christmas market will take place on George Lane on 18 December from 11am to 4pm.

Local volunteer bakers will be making Christmas cakes this December to raise money for Haven House Children’s Hospice.

It follows the success of last year’s appeal, which saw 42 cakes sold in exchange for a donation to the Woodford Green charity, raising £1,210.

“Thanks to all who support this cause by baking or buying cakes. If you would like to take part, please get in touch, and I will match the bakers with willing cake purchasers,” said organiser Sarah-Jane Mendonça.

Email havenhousechristmascakes@gmail.com 

South Woodford resident Michelle Vanlint pays tribute to Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, reflecting on her 12-hour queue to see the late monarch lying in state and marking the end of an era

I am sure we will all remember where we were when we heard the news of the Queen’s death and how we felt. I didn’t expect to be so sad and emotional.

Only a few days later, we found ourselves in Edinburgh, dropping our younger son off at university when we discovered Her Late Majesty was being driven from Balmoral to Holyrood Palace. My husband, son and I joined the incredible number of people lining the road. As the convoy drove along the Royal Mile, the crowds of people cheered as she passed by. We were due to drive back to London the next morning, but as the procession, which included the Queen’s children, was going to pass by again, I felt compelled to delay our departure. The solemnity of the occasion was felt by everyone, and the crowd fell silent as the horse-led procession passed by.

Back in London, the news was full of interviews with people waiting in the queue to see the Queen lying in state. Queen Elizabeth II had kept her promise and devoted her life to serving us, so joining the queue to pay my respects was the least I could do. I arrived at Southwark Park on Friday afternoon and joined the queue immediately. The sun was shining and the queue was moving, albeit slowly. The atmosphere was cheery as people struck up conversations. It took another three hours until we made it to City Hall, where we were given our wristbands. It was then a slow stop-and-start all the way along the South Bank, but seeing all the famous London landmarks flooded in a sea of purple was worthy compensation. It started to get cold and some of my new ‘friends’ did a pizza run to keep us going. The approach to Westminster was rather like the beginning, a long, snaking queue; we were so near yet still had several hours to go. Eventually, we got through security and then heard the queue was going to be closed for cleaning. We couldn’t possibly wait outside the hall for another hour, so we made a dash, and myself and my ‘friends’ made it inside just before the doors closed. It was 3am, 12 hours after I joined the queue.

As we made our way into the hall, there was a loud drum which signified the changing of the guard; this was an unexpected bonus. The very formal ceremony took about 10 minutes with the guards moving in a very mechanical way. The hall was then silent again and we were able to pass by the coffin. I felt honoured and privileged to have been able to witness such an historical event. Women seemed to be in the majority in the queue. Was this perhaps because the Queen was such an outstanding role model for us?

As I was fortunate to have been at both Westminster and Edinburgh, it was evident so many people from around the world were brought together with the utmost respect for the Queen; it wasn’t just the British. It was a surreal experience, one I will never forget.

For more information on the life of Queen Elizabeth II, visit swvg.co.uk/queen

The Woodford Greeners has launched a crowdfunding campaign to restore a small section of land in Ray Park and turn it into a community garden.

“If we get enough pledges, we will install a standpipe and irrigation hoses, so we have a regular water supply. The area will include a medicinal garden as well as a patch for bee-friendly colourful perennial flowers. We will also erect a pergola-style gazebo to provide an area for workshops,” said a spokesperson.

The group is seeking to raise £6,200.

Visit swvg.co.uk/ray

Councillor Rosa Gomez (Churchfields Ward, Labour) was a shortlisted finalist in the Local Government Information Unit’s national Resilience and Recovery awards, held in Bath in October.

A lifelong campaigner for human rights and a former immigration detention adviser, Rosa was subjected to an attempt on her life in Colombia in 2010. Although suffering life-changing injuries, her experience inspired her to work to empower communities.

She was first elected in 2018 and re-elected in May with an increased majority.