The Good Friday Walk of Witness in Clapton, processed from St James, Lower Clapton Road E5, to Clapton Salvation Army centre, stopping off at Clapton Pond – organised by local churches in a show of unity, led by Rev Rosemia Brown, Vicar, St James Church, Lower Clapton Rd, who helped carry the Cross part of the way, along with others, and who is a member of the CPNAG Committee!

A Date for Your Diary!!!!!

Next Monday, 13th March, 2023, 7.30-9pm

CPNAG AGM (Online)

A chance to find out what’s happening, and get involved in, your community.

After a short business meeting, and election of Committee for the next year, there will be a short talk by:

Reverend Rosemia Brown, of St James’ Church (opposite the Pond).

Rosemia is retiring this year, after nearly 50 years being connected to the area. This will be a chance to hear her perspective on:

THROUGH ALL THE CHANGING SCENES OF CLAPTON, 1976-2023.

All Welcome!!!

For access link to this online AGM, please send an e-mail to dave@rindl.co.uk, letting us know your name, and the names of anyone joining you as well.

Do you want to develop your food-growing skills? Would you like to learn about the sustainable food movement?

Local food pioneers Growing Communities are recruiting three trainee growers. The free training will involve learning all aspects of growing vegetables with a particular emphasis on salad leaves. You will work alongside the grower from March to September, learning all aspects of running organic market gardens. Two trainees will be based in Springfield Park on Mondays; the other will work in Clissold Park on Tuesdays.

They are looking for enthusiastic people who are keen to learn how to grow food in a sustainable way, enjoy working outdoors and working with others. This traineeship is open to everyone, regardless of background. Apply here by 9am on 20 February: https://growingcommunities.org/jobs

FANTASTIC NEWS! East London Waterworks Park, which launched its crowdfunding campaign in June 2022, has reached 100% funded on its Crowdfunder! It is inspiring that this local community campaign has managed to raise half a million pounds. And people can still donate if they wish at https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/elwp

Springfield Park User Group organised litter picks on Sunday in Springfield Park and on Clapton Common. Efforts removed a large amount of litter from both. They say: “This all goes to make for a greener environment, in our local green spaces (literally!), reduces pollution from general waste incineration, as well as reducing what ends up in rivers and the sea harming wildlife and polluting food.

The Pond fountain is not working at the moment. It’s been reported to the Council who are now investigating.

A lovely photo of the Engineer’s House and a double rainbow on the edge of the East London Waterworks Park site, at River Lea by the Lea Bridge, taken by the wonderful Jonathan Perugia

The crowdfunder for the East London Waterworks Park is doing brilliantly, but still has a way to go. They need to receive pledges totalling at least £500,000 by 9pm on 28 October or won’t receive anything. Abigail Woodman, chair of the project says,

“We went for an all-or-nothing crowdfunder because data shows that the average pledge is higher and because, well, this project is all about big, bold dreams. We want to make it clear to the landowner that the community is behind the project.”

So, please do continue to share the crowdfunder, speak to people about it and donate if you can: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/elwp

Check out this interesting former shop in Millfields Road, originally run by Stan Ansell and his brother. They used to make furniture from the shop here on the corner of Alfearn and Millfields for many years.

The Jet garage in Lower Clapton road has a planning application on its site for a Lidl store to be built instead.

There’s more information on the Hackney Planning Portal here: https://planningapps.hackney.gov.uk/planning/index.html?fa=getApplication&id=73059

Good Friday Stations of the Cross Walk took place in Clapton, organised by Ben Cotterill, Clapton Salvation Army, and Rosemia Brown, St James church, telling the story of the final hours of Jesus, saying prayers and singing hymns and songs. One station was in Clapton Pond.

Spring is like a perhaps hand
(which comes carefully
out of Nowhere)arranging
a window,into which people look(while
people stare
arranging and changing placing
carefully there a strange
thing and a known thing here)and
changing everything carefully
spring is like a perhaps
Hand in a window
(carefully to
and fro moving New and
Old things,while
people stare carefully
moving a perhaps
fraction of flower here placing
an inch of air there)and
without breaking anything.
e e cummings

The name Clapton comes from the Saxon word Clop’ton meaning ‘farm on the Hill’ and was part of the medieval settlement known as Hackney. Agriculture was central to the village economy and the area prospered. Clapton Square sits directly on an ancient drover’s route known as the Black Path. The path was used to move livestock from Waltham Abbey and beyond to Smithfields Market in the centre of London.

Population in the area increased and in 1792 construction of the Church of St John began on the site adjacent to Clapton Field, which would eventually become Clapton Square; construction of the church was completed in 1797. In 1816 Clapton Square was laid out as a private space for the residents of the houses around the Square. Clapton Square ceased officially to be a private Square in 1923 when its
management was taken over by the local government corporation.

You can read more about Clapton Square’s history in the site’s management plan.

Monday 7th Feb from 7.30-9.00pm

Find out all about CPNAG and what we do and, even, get involved – there are always lots of opportunities to contribute to the community, at all kinds of levels, even during these more restricted times.

Following a short business meeting, and election of Committee for the year, we will have the chance to hear Councillor Caroline Woodley, Cabinet Member for Families, Early Years, Parks & Play will speak about the new Green Infrastructure Strategy and what it will mean for local residents. (THE WHAT?)

“Green infrastructure’ describes the network of parks and green spaces, trees and woodlands, rivers and wetlands, and new green features in the urban environment such as green roofs and walls. This network can be planned, designed and managed to provide a wide range of environmental, social and economic benefits that support more sustainable, livable and resilient neighbourhoods

This will be followed by a Q&A session.

All welcome

Hackney Council’s Licensing Sub-Committee has partially approved the application to vary the premises license at Blondies on Lower Clapton Road with some amendments and additional conditions.

Click here for the full decision and supporting documents

The new Pond Play Area was opened today (3 December 2021) by Cllr Caroline Woodley, (right) Cabinet Member for Green Spaces, and Lea Bridge Ward councillors Margaret Gordon and Ian Rathbone.

As Chair of Clapton Pond Neighbourhood Action Group, Cllr Rathbone said:

It’s taken us some years in campaigning for this moment to happen and I am very pleased we have finally achieved the new playground. Thanks must go to residents involved with CPNAG who persistently campaigned, and to Green Spaces for finally coming through with such a lovely scheme. So now it’s over to children to enjoy this much-needed facility.

Shout out with a couple of specific opportunities to get involved with us at Clapton Pond Neighbourhood Action Group (If these don’t appeal and you just want to find out about getting involved, be in touch as well).

Opportunity 1. A local resident is volunteering their time to collate a large library of old photos of the area into a presentation to share on our website and social media. She has come up with the idea, which we love, of adding an interactive map to this, showing the location of each of the photo subjects. If you have the skills and knowledge to set up an interactive map for the project and would like to join the team, or know someone else who might, we’d love to talk with you.

Opportunity 2. This second one is a longer-term volunteering role. Our website is hosted locally by a great friend of the group. For some years he has managed the back end, whilst a couple of us have kept posts up to date – pretty much. Whilst he will continue to host the website for us, we are looking for someone with the skillset to take over the management of the back end, at least.

If you might like to get involved, either in one of these roles, or just to explore other ways of doing so, please message us using the Contact Us form or facebook. One of us on the Committee will get back to you and let’s have a chat. We’re a friendly bunch!!!!

Looking forward to hearing from anyone to whom this appeals and getting to know more of our fantastic community.