Highams Park
Coordinates: 51°36′21″N 0°00′54″W / 51.6059°N 0.0151°W
Highams Park is a district in the London Borough of Waltham Forest, England. It is a suburban area adjacent to Epping Forest and situated 8.7 miles (14 km) north-east of Charing Cross.
Traditionally, it was part of Walthamstow parish and municipal borough, though most of it is in either the Chingford (E4) or Woodford Green (IG8) postal districts. It is primarily a residential area, with housing consisting of mainly Victorian and 1930s terraced houses.
Hale End
Hale End shares the postal district of IG8 with Woodford Green, as opposed to the rest of Highams Park, which takes the Chingford postal district, E4. Some consider Hale End to be part of Highams Park as there is no break in the rows of houses between the two areas, whereas others consider it to be a different place as it originated from a different village settlement and has a different postcode district.
Education
Schools
Primary schools
- Handsworth Primary school
- Selwyn Primary school (Previously Infants and Juniors).
- There are also two other primary schools, Oak Hill Primary School (Hale End) and Thorpe Hall School (Walthamstow) which are close to Highams Park.
Secondary schools
- Highams Park School (formerly known as Sidney Burnell School). The school has pupils aged 11–16, and also has a sixth form college for pupils aged 16–18. The school holds dual specialist status as a Technology College and a Sports College.[1]
Special schools
- Joseph Clark School for partially sighted and blind pupils which is a combined primary and secondary school.
Library
- Hale End Library is in Highams Park and is positioned on The Avenue and was refurbished between January and July 2007.
Sports and recreation
There are two main sports grounds in Highams Park, Jubilee Sports Ground (formally Truman's Sports Ground) and Rolls Park. Jubilee is positioned off The Avenue, it is now owned by Waltham Forest Council. It is mainly used for football, with local teams and youth teams training and playing on the field and astro-turf. The ground is not open to the public. Rolls Park is slightly bigger and is open to the public. The field is used mainly for football and cricket. There is also a tennis club and a small gym at the edges of the field. There is also a bar/clubroom owned by West Essex football and cricket clubs.
There is another Tennis club (Whitehalls) situated on Larkshall Road. Highams Park Lake is used for Kayaking by members of The Scout Association.
There are initial plans to build a velodrome in the grounds of Highams Park School. This would be used by the school and also local sports teams, it will be many years before any building work is undertaken.
"The Highams Park" and Highams Park Lake
The park is known officially as "The Highams Park" but is often known locally as "Highams Park Field", "The Field", "The Park" or "The lake". Most of the park is on a hill with a gradual rise to the north end. It is frequented by dog walkers, runners and families. The park has no facilities except an under-8's playground and public notice boards.
Highams Park Lake is to the west of the park, and is owned by the City of London Corporation although the rest of the park is maintained by the London Borough of Waltham Forest. The lake was formed by the landscape gardener Humphry Repton who created it by damming the River Ching. The lake, the adjoining park and the Manor House (now Woodford County High School) were owned by Highams Bensted. The lake itself is about 450m long and about 80m wide at the widest point. At the south end of the lake is a boat house built by Kenneth Robert John Ford and owned by Waltham Forest South Scouts. The north end of the lake is much narrower and shallower, and it often dries out into mud in the summer. The River Ching flows past the lake but does not actually flow into it; a small outflow at the south end of the lake flows into the river.
There is a small island in the lake which is inhabited by nesting swans. Near the top of the lake are some large rocks thought to have been placed there by Humphry Repton to improve the lake's appearance. A public toilet block used to be situated on the east side of the lake although it was demolished many years ago, and only the foundations remain.
Halex and Tesco
The Halex factory was situated on Larkshall Road and was a major local employer from 1897–1971. The factory was established by the British Xylonite Company to produce a variety of goods mostly from plastic. The Halex company had a virtual monopoly on manufacturing table tennis balls. The factory closed in the early 1970s and has since been knocked down and replaced by new smaller factories and industrial buildings. A blue plaque on Jubilee Avenue marks the spot where the building stood; it reads "Plastics Historical Society. On this site, from 1897–1971, stood the Halex factory of the British Xylonite Company."
Some of the land in this area is now owned by supermarket chain Tesco, which was initially refused permission to build a store on the site in June 2007 by then Local Government Secretary Ruth Kelly[2] after a protracted process of planning applications dating back to early 2005.[3] The reasons cited for the refusal involved the size of the proposed store and the building not being in keeping with local Victorian and Edwardian buildings.[2] However, in 2009 a revised planning application was passed despite the efforts of some local residents to stop this from happening.
A recent campaign seeks to honour the men of Highams Park who worked in the Halex Factory and gave their lives in both world wars. The campaigners also wish to see the return of the local war memorial to its original site.[4]
Residents' groups
There are a number of groups in Highams Park for local residents.
The Highams Park Forum was established in 2000 as a group of volunteer residents who meet regularly to discuss matters affecting their area. It works as a "Think Tank", aiming to act as a focus for local community issues, discussing ways of improving the quality of life in Highams Park, seeking answers to Community problems, and steering the implementation of measures which result.
The Highams Park Society was formed in 2006 and sets its goal as "Helping Promote Community Life". The Society has a membership of over 200 people who live in, or have an interest in Highams Park. The Society’s aims are to help preserve the local heritage, help members appreciate their environment, and to inform members about the history of the area.
The Forest Recorded Music Society was founded in 1956 and presents evenings of classical and light classical music played from a CD. Programmes are presented by the members, and each session features three guest speakers, usually professional musicians, talking about their lives and careers. This has on occasion featured well-known musicians such as Valerie Masterson, Felicity Lott and the bass Robert Lloyd.
Railway
Highams Park Station is on the Chingford Line which runs from London Liverpool Street to Chingford Station. The railway line cuts through the area with a level crossing, close to the station, this being the only place actually in Highams Park where vehicles can cross the track. The level crossing itself, until 2002, was controlled by a signalman who worked in the traditional signal box next to the crossing. However, in 2002, despite local opposition, the gates began to be operated from a central office at Liverpool Street Station. The signal box was marked for demolition, but due to the efforts of "The Highams Park Forum" (a group of local residents), and local Member of Parliament (and then leader of the Conservative Party) Iain Duncan Smith, the box was saved with the intention of turning it into a museum or a tea room; however, this never happened and so it has remained empty.
Buses
No bus route starts or ends in Highams Park, although three main bus routes and one school bus route pass through the area. They are:
- 212 – St James Street to Chingford Station
- 275 – St James Street to Barkingside Tesco
- 675 School Bus – St James Street to Barkingside (Woodbridge High School)
- W16 – Leytonstone tube station to Chingford Mount
Notable residents
- Trevor Bailey, Essex and England cricketer.
- Graham Barnfield, pundit and academic, moved to Highams Park in 2001.
- John Berger, socialist artist and writer, lived in Highams Park as a child.
- Blazin' Squad (band): Members of the band Blazin' Squad lived in or near Highams Park and studied at Highams Park School.
- Johnny Dankworth, musician and soloist, born in Highams Park in 1927.
- Sir George Edwards, aircraft designer and industrialist, born in Hale End Road, Highams Park, on 9 July 1908.
- Chris Moncrieff, political journalist
- Tara Moran, actress
- Teddy Sheringham, footballer, born on 2 April 1966 in Highams Park.
- John Smith, filmmaker, born in Highams Park and attended Selwyn Avenue School and George Monoux School.
Nearby places
Geographic location
 |
South Chingford | Chingford Hatch | Woodford Wells | |
| South Chingford |  |
Woodford Green | ||
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 | ||||
| Higham Hill | Walthamstow | South Woodford |
References
- ↑ Highams Park School Website - 'About us' page
- 1 2 Government Says No to Highams Park Tesco Waltham Forest Guardian 18th June 2007
- ↑ "Tesco No Go" Waltham Forest Guardian 11 February 2005
- ↑ The Highams Park War Memorial Project
External links
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