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The Wanstead Park Liaison Group has identified three ways to improve protection of the park’s iconic bluebells.

“Firstly, the den-building area in Chalet Wood will be moved elsewhere, and the existing location, which has been badly trampled, will be fenced off. Secondly, heavier logs will be brought in to better delineate the paths. Thirdly, permanent signs will be designed to educate visitors, as will small temporary notices to warn the public off the bare patches to allow the plants to recolonise them,” said a spokesperson.

A four-year-old blood cancer survivor from South Woodford was treated like a queen for the day ahead of the Platinum Jubilee.

Stem cell charity DKMS partnered with Kensington Palace Pavilion to host Livia Gross and her family at an afternoon tea fit for royalty. “After a really tough couple of years for Livia, it was great to see her having such a fun time,” said Livia’s mum, Olive. Livia is also the face of a fundraising campaign being run by DKMS in order to cover the costs of registering more stem cell donors.

Visit swvg.co.uk/dkms

Over 100 people took part in a 3km family bike ride around Wanstead Park’s Ornamental Water in June to raise funds for a new natural play area.

“We’ve received over £1,000 in donations so far, and more contributions are welcome to help us buy equipment for the Wanstead Park playground,” said Gill James of the Friends of Wanstead Parklands. Work on the new play area’s woodland trail – which will be located on former scrubland behind the Temple – is now underway.

Visit swvg.co.uk/parkplayarea

Hundreds of families flocked to George Lane on 19 June to enjoy the family-friendly festivities of the Platinum Jubilee Market.

“The northbound carriageway was closed for the event, which gave much more space for the stalls, and for people to mingle. It was such a novelty to be able to walk in the road – which quickly became a blank canvas for chalk art,” said a spokesperson for the South Woodford Society, which organised the day in partnership with Ace Events. Alongside the street food stalls, residents were able to take part in craft activities and games, with live music and a dance class also on offer.

“Local businesses did really well too, and it was amazing to see our whole community celebrating our Queen’s Jubilee and just loving being together. It exceeded all our expectations by a mile!”

Improve Your Smile Dental Practice in Woodford Green raised £1,000 for charity by hosting a Platinum Jubilee event on 27 May.

“There was a real buzz on the practice’s forecourt on Woodford High Road with bunting, balloons and live music from Natural Voices Choir attracting many a passer-by. The choir’s uplifting, contemporary numbers drew in the crowds and it was smiles all round as people enjoyed a hot drink with plenty of delicious cake and lively conversation whilst raising money for worthy causes,” said a spokesperson.

The money raised will be shared between Haven House and The Stroke Association.

This was the practice’s third charity coffee and cake morning held in the month of May and due to its continued success they intend to hold the event again next year.

For more information, call 020 8504 2704

A memorial service for former Church End councillor Maureen Hoskins will take place in June.

Residents are invited to pay their respects at St Mary’s Church, High Road, South Woodford on 18 June. The service will begin at 12 noon.

Maureen was a Liberal Democrat councillor from 1986 to 2006. She was also the last surviving councillor to have served on the Wanstead and Woodford Borough Council, representing Churchfields from 1961 to 1965.

Maureen passed away on 3 December 2021 at the age of 85 following a short illness.

A new shooting range at the South Woodford Scout Hut is just one of many activities members of the 52nd Epping Forest South Scout Group can look forward to, says Stephanie Woodley in the second of two articles

Since the article in the last edition of the Gazette, the Mayor of Redbridge officially opened our new shooting range. It was a great evening and an opportunity to catch up with scouting volunteers (past and present). The mayor demonstrated amazing marksmanship, opening the range by shooting a balloon which unfurled our flag (a surprising touch set up by a couple of our scouts).

Our fundraising bingo evening (to subsidise transport costs for our Brownsea Island camp) was a great success. We raised £600, after fund-matching, this will reduce costs by £1,200. We were incredibly grateful to some non-scouting volunteers who helped run the evening. Brownsea Island is designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest, providing an opportunity for our group to see many birds, deer, and hopefully, red squirrels. We are looking forward to various activities whilst there, learning about the island, trying out meditation, and some brave souls may even try cold-water swimming!

All our sections have a number of exciting activities planned in the coming months, with shooting commencing on a Thursday. Gardening club takes place on Saturdays to keep the area around our hut tidy, improving biodiversity (we have a bug hotel) and providing an opportunity for everyone to plant some seeds (from flowers through to vegetables), which the group are then encouraged to continue growing at home.

Our Beavers’ section is planning an overnight camp in the hut. For many, this will be their first experience of a camp and is a good way to try it out before venturing further afield. The Cubs are working towards their Home Help badge (many parents are very grateful to Akela for planning this!). And the Scouts have been working on their Trangia skills, cooking a meal from scratch and then clearing up afterwards.

We also recently joined the South Woodford Society on their community litter pick and look forward to participating in more of these. Some of our members are very keen to use a litter picker!

Later in the year, we will be holding our annual circus skills day, attending a firework display and participating in the poppy collection and Remembrance parade.

We would love more of the local community to get involved in our activities and welcome any enquiries from individuals who feel they could offer time to complete any of the following tasks: treasurer, updating our website, implementing technology in our hut, providing online administration support, supporting recruitment and training or coordinating fundraising.

The 52nd Epping Forest South Scout Group meets in the Scout Hut behind South Woodford Library. For more information, email Exco.52ndefs@Gmail.com

Redbridge Museum will open a new permanent exhibition later this year exploring 200,000 years of local history. In the second of a series of articles, Museum Officer Nishat Alam looks at some of the items on show

If you’re a resident of Woodford, you are very likely to have come across this statue before. It’s of one of the most well-known figures in British history, Winston Churchill, who served twice as Prime Minister as well as the Member of Parliament for Woodford. The photo was taken by Fred James, who lived in Woodford Wells from 1948 to 1975. It is now held in the collections at Redbridge Museum & Heritage Centre, where a refreshed display about Churchill is currently in the making.

Churchill remains one of Britain’s longest-serving politicians to this day. He started his political career as a Conservative MP in 1901, but was a controversial figure from the start, disagreeing with many government policies and defecting to the Liberal Party in 1904. He re-joined the Conservatives 20 years later, standing successfully as MP for Epping, which at that time covered the areas of Wanstead and Woodford. Churchill served Epping from 1924 to 1945, and when Woodford was made its own constituency, he held the seat until he retired in 1964.

When the Second World War broke out in September 1939, Churchill was appointed First Lord of the Admiralty and in 1940 became Prime Minister, leading the Allied forces to victory. His famous wartime speeches and military skill made him a national hero.

Victory in Europe was declared on 8 May 1945 and Churchill was the guest of honour at Wanstead and Woodford’s official victory celebrations the following year on 1 June 1946. Photographs of the event, held at Redbridge Heritage Centre, show him inspecting a Guard of Honour and addressing the crowd as he opened the gala on Woodford Green.

Churchill was voted out in the 1945 general election. Many voters didn’t think he could match Labour’s promises of post-war reform. But he was back in government in 1951 and remained so until 1955 when he retired as Prime Minister due to ill health. He continued to serve as MP for Woodford and attended local public engagements. In 1959, the statue of Churchill was unveiled on Woodford Green in recognition of his wartime service.

Churchill was well-known for his controversial views, often informed by his imperialist politics. Many of the statements he made about nations that had been colonised by the British are today considered racist, but were not necessarily unique in opinion at the time. Following the Black Lives Matter demonstrations in June 2020, the statue was vandalised in protest of these statements.

Redbridge Museum’s display about Churchill hopes to explore his role as a leader as well as varying public opinion about him.

Redbridge Museum is located on Clements Road, Ilford. Visit swvg.co.uk/rm

To complete a survey on what else should go on display, visit swvg.co.uk/rms

Woodford House Dental Practice will host a Platinum Jubilee charity coffee morning on 27 May (11am to 2.30pm; 162 High Road) to raise funds and awareness for Haven House Children’s Hospice and the Stroke Association.

“Enjoy a free cuppa and live music from Natural Voices Choir, who will be singing uplifting pop, soul, jazz and anthems. A variety of cakes will be on sale, and some fantastic raffle prizes are up for grabs,” said a spokesperson.

The event will also highlight the links between oral health and stroke risk.

RideLondon, an annual cycling event, will pass through Redbridge on 29 May.

Crowd zones will be set up along the route in partnership with local community groups so spectators can view the race and cheer on participants. There will be some road closures in the west of the borough, including Hollybush Hill and Woodford Road. Roads adjoining the event route will have local access only for residents and businesses.

Visit swvg.co.uk/ride22

Residents are invited to take part in Whipps Cross Voices, a community history project about Whipps Cross Hospital.

“We want to capture stories about the hospital from staff and patients, past and present, and preserve them as a historical resource for the future… You may be interested in recording your own memories, working in the archives with our existing collections, or helping us to curate the stories for displays online and at Whipps Cross,” said a spokesperson for Barts Health Archives.

Visit swvg.co.uk/wcvoices