The Power of Positive Politics

Visitors to the Ingrebourne Hill Country Park¹ don’t realise that it was once an environmental disaster zone. There were major fly-tipping problems, rat infestation, motor-cycle nuisance and horses were tethered and left over the winter months, many of whom starved to death. In the long hot summer of 1976 major fires happened frequently because of the rotting waste producing methane gas. On at least two occasions the flames rose above the height of the houses.

Airfield ward councillors Ray Emmett (1982-2002) and Chris Purnell (1990-2002) led a campaign for a positive environmental solution, with the Labour Administration. There was a wonderful proposition, which resulted in the country park. Nothing less likely could have been imagined. Derelict land ravaged by decades of abuse was given an enormous facelift to the benefit of the entire community.

But there was a cost. The land was used as a dumping site for inert waste from all over London with hundreds of lorry movements each month. Simultaneously there was gravel winning which also meant a great deal of industrial activity. Ingrebourne Hill was engineered using that inert waste and then capped and sculpted into what it is now. The lake which is adjacent was the result of the gravel winning. Years of disruption for the Park’s neighbours have been richly rewarded.

The Ingrebourne Hill Country Park has mountain bike tracks, a short and challenging climb to the top and also, less energetically, gentle walks through to Albyns Farm. A further cost was the political careers of the Labour councillors who promoted that vision, which took just too long for the voters to see through to fruition.

Note

1 Ingrebourne Valley | The London Borough Of Havering

Langtons Gardens, Hornchurch

Langtons Gardens doesn’t have Havering Park’s magnificent redwood trees, or the broad acres of Hornchurch Country Park. Nor does it have a deer park with vistas across Havering that are so good they could be prescribed by your GP. Right in the centre of Hornchurch the gardens are the beating heart of the urban area.

The Georgian house in Langtons Gardens. It’s now a wedding venue

Covid-19 has taught us about the critical importance of parks. Havering is blessed. Langtons Gardens are part of Havering’s historical legacy, which is very easy to take for granted.¹The magnificent gardens are maintained at a very high level, which is essential because they are under constant pressure by thousands of visitors. The garden’s constant improvement has seen a cafe opened and public toilets.

The lake in Langtons Gardens with the Georgian house in the background

Langtons has a wonderful Georgian house and Orangery. These are picture perfect for wedding photos. The gardens include lawns, flowerbeds and a large lake. The pathways are smooth and readily accessible by everyone. There are numerous benches. After Fielders Field was opened there are more extensive walks. In the summer Fielders Field is used for cricket. Young children use the woodland adventure playground.

Langtons Gardens are a delight and a credit to Havering Council.

Note

1 Langtons Gardens, Havering | GoParksLondon

Dagnam Park Invaders

Dagnam Park has hundreds of deer who are destroying the natural habitat.¹The deer are so numerous that they are a visible threat to the environment amongst other challenges. The ecology of Dagnam Park is in constant flux. There are three ‘invaders’ which are now part of the beauty of the park. Purists hate invaders and sometimes they really are hateful.

Harlequin Ladybird

Originally from Asia, the harlequin ladybird first arrived in the UK in 2004, and has rapidly become one of the most common ladybirds in the country, particularly in towns and gardens. It is one of our larger species and is a voracious predator – it is able to out-compete our native species for aphid-prey and will also eat other ladybirds’ eggs and larvae. It can have multiple broods throughout the spring, summer and autumn, which also gives it a competitive edge.²

Spanish Bluebell

…just because it’s blue, bell-shaped and blooming in a wood in early spring it doesn’t mean it’s our native bluebell……a common favourite in gardens across the land – have been escaping into the wild for over 100 years. In fact, one in six broadleaved woodlands surveyed by Plantlife across the UK were found to contain a Spanish Bluebell or a hybrid between the two.³

Yellow Necked Terrapin

Habitat: Prefers still or slow-flowing water. Commonly found in urban parks…They are opportunistic omnivores and predate on invertebrates, fish and amphibians. They often use the banks of water bodies to bask, which can disturb the nests of waterfowl such as Moorhens and thus interfere with breeding.⁴

Conclusion

Dagnam Park, like parks across the whole world, is constantly evolving. Foreign invaders are easily identified, though they might not be easily dealt with. Other changes are driven by invisible factors. They include the climate emergency, pollution, mankind – housing, leisure, agriculture – and seasonal variations all alter the habitat. Foreign invaders are however especially important as the people of Florida have found out with their python problem.⁵

Notes

1 See Havering’s Deer Should be Culled – Politics in Havering

2 Harlequin ladybird | The Wildlife Trusts

3 Plantlife :: What’s the Difference Between Spanish and English Bluebells?

4 This quote is from Northern Ireland but it still holds good for Dagnam Park NIEA-ID-Guide-Trachemys-scripta-spp-Terrapins.pdf (invasivespeciesireland.com)

5 For the problems that Florida, USA has see The Burmese Pythons of Florida | Odeboyz’s Blog (oedeboyz.com)

Havering’s Rainham Riverside Walk

“The medieval marshes of Rainham, Wennington and Aveley are one of the very few ancient landscapes remaining in London.”*

Rainham Riverside is an idiosyncratic gem. If you’re hoping for chocolate box beauty you’ll be disappointed. Approaching the car park you pass through an industrial area. Once beyond that there’s a narrow road with lush vegetation on either side. The last half mile or so prepares you for the small car park and the Thames in front of you. You’ve entered a different world.

Once on the riverside footpath, which is a good, sound surface, you can choose to go east or west. We took the eastwards route towards the RSPB site. Immediately you notice the sweep of the river. It isn’t glorious, it’s a working river. There are hulks from WW2 left in the mud. Their glory days supporting the Allied invasion on D-Day long gone. Numerous hand painted signs and information boards are scattered on fencing adjacent to the path.

One reason we didn’t get to the RSPB was that it was shut. The other reason was it was too far. Younger people could easily walk it. We needed more benches. Not very ambitious is it? A walk based on the distance between benches, but there you are. We did about a mile each way and found it to be most satisfactory.

It’s very popular with cyclists, many of whom have bells, unlike the ones who populate Hornchurch pavements. Small groups of walkers and families enjoyed the day as well. Recommended especially for the wonderful fresh air.

Note

* https://www.walkingclub.org.uk/walk/rainham-to-purfleet-via-rspb-rainham-marshes/ This is the website of the Saturday Walkers Club who do this walk four times a year

Source

For a blog on a walk from the RSPB, Rainham to Grays see https://exploring-urban-wastelands.co.uk/rainham-to-grays/

Havering Park: an Avenue of Redwood Trees

Havering Park still has the second largest plantation of Wellingtonia in England, totalling 100 trees

Havering Park is quite small and undistinguished. It doesn’t have a cafe or a deer park and it definitely doesn’t have stunning views across London. What it does have is a unique avenue of trees: Wellingtonia Avenue.

The Giant Redwood lines Wellingtonia Avenue but because of rapid local changes they go from nowhere to nowhere. They were planted about 140 years ago by the McIntosh family who owned the local mansion. Nowadays they’d be regarded as a foreign invader species but the attraction in the 19^th century was that,

Redwoods grow faster than almost any other tree in the world, obtaining 3 to 10 feet of growth per year. Most of this growth occurs in the first century of a redwood’s life.** (my emphasis)

The great 18^th century gardens took decades to put together before reaching maturity. The McIntosh family didn’t want to wait. They selected the Giant Redwood. The Giant Redwood lives for 3000 years becoming a monster, which means, barring climate change, they could live until about 5020! Havering Park is blessed with a landscape dominated by wonderful trees.

A short walk on a decent surface means that Havering Park provides a unique experience and is worth a visit.

Notes

* https://www.havering.gov.uk/info/20037/parks/723/havering_country_park

** https://www.gardenguides.com/12378880-how-fast-do-redwoods-grow.html

Sources

For a wonderful set of photographs see http://www.redwoodworld.co.uk/picturepages/havering.htm

For a detailed list of Havering’s principal parks see https://www.havering.gov.uk/info/20037/parks

For an overview of the giant redwood see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sequoiadendron_giganteum

For an 18^th century Capability Brown garden see https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/stowe/profiles/capability-found-at-stowe

The Battle for Tylers Common: Major Geoffrey Bing MP, KC*

Introduction

During the 18^th century, wealthy farmers enclosed common land. Poor people had had a traditional right to graze animals and get informal food supplies but they didn’t have documentary evidence of that right. Parliamentary ‘Enclosure’ Acts favoured the wealthy, who used a legal sleight of hand to dispossess them. By about 1850, enclosure was completed with just a few commons remaining. One of these was Tylers Common. The rights of the commoners were defended by the ‘lord of the manor’, the Branfil family.

The Battle for Tylers Common

During the Second World War all available land was utilised. Tylers Common was used for food production by Essex Council from 1943. Unlike the 18^th century, 20^th century commoners had documentary evidence supporting historic rights. No-one anticipated a land grab by Essex Council.

Geoffrey Bing was the local MP and a very senior lawyer. When commoners approached him about the enclosure of Tylers Common he was outraged. He was a formidable opponent of Essex Council and his forensic probing discovered,

…..Essex County Council have…… illegally enclosed this common and let it to one of their members.** (my emphasis)

In the subsequent court case, Essex Council’s refusal to reinstate pre-war common status led to a damning judgment. Councillors were surcharged for wilful behaviour and had to pay costs. Bing, as a lawyer and parliamentarian, trounced Essex Council and Tylers Common remains common land enjoyed by the people of Havering to this day.

Notes

* KC: this is the most senior rank for barristers – nowadays QC

** https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1951/aug/02/tylers-common-upminster

Sources

For Bing’s parliamentary questioning see https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/1951-06-28/debates/6364ef34-abb3-4d77-8d58-238964525ea6/TylersCommonUpminster

and

https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/1951-07-05/debates/cc7314e7-5a6b-4a26-8ad7-cea4a2e0e84a/TylerSCommonUpminster

and

https://www.theyworkforyou.com/debates/?id=1951-08-02a.1619.4&s=speaker%3A16658#g1619.5

For a Romford Recorder article see https://www.romfordrecorder.co.uk/news/heritage/nostalgia-tylers-common-havering-s-largest-open-space-1-2015231

For a more detailed on-line history of Upminster see https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/essex/vol7/pp143-153

For the surcharging of councillors see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surcharge_(sanction)

For historic maps see https://www.francisfrith.com/tylers-common/maps

For a brief history of common land see https://www.acraew.org.uk/history-common-land-and-village-greens

Harold Hill: The Deer Should be Culled

North Havering has herds of deer. They’re picturesque and delightful to look at but as they’re living in an environment without natural predators, they breed rapidly. Bambi is apparently harmless but in actual fact is a health hazard and causes road accidents.

Bambi is lovable but not in an urban environment.* Deer are wild animals who shouldn’t interact with humans. They have ticks living on them. This sounds harmless but it’s recently been established that ‘Tick Borne Encephalitis’ has arrived in Britain. Encephalitis usually makes healthy people feel mildly unwell but occasionally it’s lethal for the vulnerable elderly and very young. Havering’s deer haven’t had injections and as they migrate into urban areas they bring ticks with them, with the possibility of disease.

Parks in north Havering look like battle zones as they’re systematically destroyed by deer. Natural habitats are stripped bare.
bluebells fir wood
The enclosure is deer proof but everywhere else is unprotected from the deer’s appetite. Deer destroy everything in their path. Bluebells ought to be growing in profusion but it’s a wasteland. Trees are killed when their bark is ripped off.

Deer roam into the Harold Hill estate. Obviously they don’t worry about the Highway Code. So far there haven’t been any fatalities but there has been extensive damage to many vehicles.

Havering’s deer need to be culled before they cause serious road accidents or spread disease. This is a political decision, which councillor Osman Dervish should address urgently.

* https://www.lymediseaseaction.org.uk/latest-news/tbe-has-arrived-in-the-uk/