The idea to try to rescue and rewild the Lea Bridge Waterworks on Lea Bridge Road, currently under-utilised as a Thames Water Depot, was first discussed at a Save Lea Marshes meeting in 2019. Save Lea Marshes called a public meeting and published this formative document.
Subsequently, a petition to transform this Metropolitan Open Land (MOL) was launched and, alongside CPRE London, Save Lea Marshes became one of the founding members of East London Waterworks Park (ELWP). ELWP went on to become an independent local charity and crowdfunded over half a million pounds towards buying the land for the community.
In 2022, Labour-run Waltham Forest Council announced their favoured location for future open water swimming provision in the borough would be Low Hall, also protected Metropolitan Open Land. However their election promise to deliver outdoor swimming, such a crucial and popular part of the East London Waterworks Park proposals, was ditched in early 2024.
By this time London Councils had already announced their intention to build a secure facility for children on the same plot of land as East London Waterworks Park. The Leader of Waltham Forest Council at the time was Grace Williams, a councillor who had previously been part of the successful campaign to prevent the Thames Water Depot becoming a development site for two free schools under then Education Secretary Michael Gove. However, Cllr Williams had since joined London Councils as a Director, and defended developing a site whose protection she had previously championed.
Veteran campaigner for the marshes Laurie Elks wrote this excellent open letter to the consortium of developers (Pan London Vehicle) leading the ‘secure children’s home’ project. Laurie actively opposed the demolition of buildings dating from the East London Waterworks Company era when Thames Water established the current depot in the early 1980s. The struggle to preserve our built and natural heritage in this area has been a long one!
ELWP, at that time an organisation with huge momentum and hundreds of volunteers, sprang into action and launched two petitions against the decision to locate the facility on the protected land that they had spent years working to transform. One petition was lodged with Waltham Forest Council and the other addressed to the Department of Education who own the site. The general Action Network petition received over 10,000 signatures. Despite the petition to Waltham Forest Council receiving well over the authorised 3,000 signatures required to trigger a full council debate about the proposals, such a debate was denied. Here’s the speech we would have given at the time, if the debate hadn’t been unlawfully refused.
Subsequently ELWP held a large public meeting and then staged an eighty person gathering outside Waltham Forest Town Hall in July 2024. On 18 July they were granted one three minute speech during the full council meeting. Unfortunately all appeals to the previous Labour administration were ignored. On 7 October 2025, Waltham Forest’s Cabinet met and agreed to a proposal for the ‘Council’s capital delivery team to join the project as development manager to lead the project’s design and build workstream’. Absent from the meeting was the Leader of Waltham Forest Council, Grace Williams, who previously campaigned to successfully save the site from inappropriate development by the Department of Education. Present was SLM’s Celia Coram, who gave a heartfelt speech about the reasons the site was unsuitable for a secure facility, and why it should become a much-needed community owned park.
The planning application for the secure facility, expected since early 2024, has been indefinitely delayed. There has been no update from the developers since October 2025. A new Green majority administration has been elected to Waltham Forest Town Hall, Cllr Grace Williams has been replaced and the composition of the London Councils executive has completely changed. The Thames Water Depot remains open undeveloped land, and the dream for East London Waterworks Park remains alive!