Highams Park is a suburban district in the London Borough of Waltham Forest,

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, near

Epping Forest Epping Forest is a area of ancient woodland, and other established habitats, which straddles the border between Greater London and Essex. The main body of the forest stretches from Epping in the north, to Chingford on the edge of the London ...

and 8.1 miles (13 km) north-east of

Charing Cross Charing Cross ( ) is a junction in Westminster, London, England, where six routes meet. Clockwise from north these are: the east side of Trafalgar Square leading to St Martin's Place and then Charing Cross Road; the Strand leading to the City; ...

. Traditionally a part of

Walthamstow Walthamstow ( or ) is a large town in East London, east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London and the Historic counties of England, ancient county of Essex. Situated northeast of Chari ...

parish and municipal borough, it is primarily a residential area, with mainly Victorian and 1930s terraced houses.

Hale End

The whole of the Highams Park area was once known as

Hale End Hale End is a locality in East London in the borough of Waltham Forest, very near Woodford Green, two miles from Tottenham and one mile from Walthamstow. It adjoins Highams Park in the E4 postal district. Much of Highams Park until the late 19t ...

, as evidenced by the name of Hale End Library, and the Halex factory. Although postcode areas are not intended to define districts, it might be said that Hale End approximates to the part of Highams Park which shares the postal district of IG8 with

Woodford Green Woodford Green is an area of Woodford in north-east London, England, within the London Borough of Redbridge. It adjoins Buckhurst Hill to the north, Woodford Bridge to the east, South Woodford to the south, and Chingford to the west. Epping F ...

. The rest of Highams Park, which takes the

Chingford Chingford is a town in east London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. The town is approximately north-east of Charing Cross, with Waltham Abbey to the north, Woodford Green and Buckhurst Hill to the east, Walthamstow t ...

postal district, E4. The park from which the area is (partially) named is located within the IG8 postcode area.

Education

Schools

Primary schools

*Handsworth Primary School *Selwyn Primary School (Previously Infants and Juniors). *There are also three other primary schools, Ainslie Wood Primary School (South Chingford), 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 Sydney Burnell School). The school has pupils aged 11–16, and also has a

sixth form In the education systems of England, Northern Ireland, Wales, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and some other Commonwealth countries, sixth form represents the final two years of secondary education, ages 16 to 18. Pupils typically prepare for A-l ...

college for pupils aged 16–18. The school holds dual specialist status as a

Technology College In the United Kingdom, a Technology College is a specialist school that specialises in design and technology, mathematics and science. Beginning in 1994, they were the first specialist schools that were not CTC colleges. In 2008, there were ...

and a

Sports College Sports Colleges are senior secondary schools which promote sports alongside secondary education. United Kingdom Sports Colleges were introduced in 1997 as part of the Specialist Schools Programme in the United Kingdom. The programme enabled seco ...

Special schools

*Joseph Clark School for partially sighted and blind pupils which is a combined primary and secondary school.

Library

*Hale End

Library A library is a collection of materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a physical location or a vir ...

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 AstroTurf is an American subsidiary of SportGroup that produces artificial turf for playing surfaces in sports. The original AstroTurf product was a short-pile synthetic turf invented in 1965 by Monsanto. Since the early 2000s, AstroTurf has m ...

. 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 Kayaking is the use of a kayak for moving over water. It is distinguished from canoeing by the sitting position of the paddler and the number of blades on the paddle. A kayak is a low-to-the-water, canoe-like boat in which the paddler sits fac ...

by members of

The Scout Association The Scout Association is the largest Scouting organisation in the United Kingdom and is the World Organization of the Scout Movement's recognised member for the United Kingdom. Following the origin of Scouting in 1907, the association was form ...

. There are initial plans to build a

velodrome A velodrome is an arena for track cycling. Modern velodromes feature steeply banked oval tracks, consisting of two 180-degree circular bends connected by two straights. The straights transition to the circular turn through a moderate Track tran ...

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 a cafe and a playground. Highams Park Lake is to the west of the park, and is owned by the

City of London Corporation The City of London Corporation, officially and legally the Mayor and Commonalty and Citizens of the City of London, is the municipal governing body of the City of London, the historic centre of London and the location of much of the United King ...

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 Humphry Repton (21 April 1752 – 24 March 1818) was the last great English landscape designer of the eighteenth century, often regarded as the successor to Capability Brown; he also sowed the seeds of the more intricate and eclectic styles of ...

who created it by damming the

River Ching The River Ching is a tributary of the River Lea, flowing from Epping Forest, in southeast England. Course The Ching originates as a small stream from a spring at the foot of a tree in the southern part of Epping Forest, and flows through woodla ...

. The lake, adjoining park and the Manor House (now Woodford County High School) were known as Highams Bensted. The last owner, Sir Thomas Courtenay Warner, built both the

Warner Estate The Warner Estate is an area of housing in Walthamstow and Highams Park, Waltham Forest in East London. The area was developed by Thomas Courtenay Warner and the Warner Company. History Thomas Courtenay Warner inherited his father's estate in ...

and the

Highams Estate The Highams Estate is a housing estate in Waltham Forest in East London, near to Hale End and Woodford Green. The area was developed by Thomas Courtenay Warner, within the grounds of the former Highams Manor House in the 1930s. Extent Th ...

; the latter bounds the park to the North and East. 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 to 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 Table tennis, also known as ping-pong and whiff-whaff, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight ball, also known as the ping-pong ball, back and forth across a table using small solid rackets. It takes place on a hard table div ...

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 Tesco plc () is a British multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Welwyn Garden City, England. In 2011 it was the third-largest retailer in the world measured by gross revenues and the ninth-largest in th ...

, which was initially refused permission to build a store on the site in June 2007 by then Local Government Secretary

Ruth Kelly Ruth Maria Kelly (born 9 May 1968) is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bolton West from 1997 until she stood down in 2010. Previously, she served as the Secretary of State for Transport, ...

''Government Says No to Highams Park Tesco'' Waltham Forest Guardian ''18th June 2007''
/ref> after a protracted process of planning applications dating back to early 2005."Tesco No Go" ''Waltham Forest Guardian'' 11 February 2005
/ref> 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. 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.

Railway

Highams Park station Highams Park is a railway station on the Chingford branch of the Lea Valley lines, located in Highams Park in the London Borough of Waltham Forest, north-east London. It is down the line from London Liverpool Street and is situated between an ...

is on the

London Overground London Overground (also known simply as the Overground) is a Urban rail in the United Kingdom, suburban rail network serving London and its environs. Established in 2007 to take over Silverlink Metro routes, (via archive.org). it now serves a ...

branch which runs from

London Liverpool Street Liverpool Street station, also known as London Liverpool Street, is a central London railway terminus and connected London Underground station in the north-eastern corner of the City of London, in the ward of Bishopsgate Without. It is the t ...

, The line is one of the

Lea Valley lines The Lea Valley lines are two commuter lines and two branches in north-east London, so named because they run along the Lower Lea Valley of the River Lea. They were part of the Great Eastern Railway, now part of the ''Anglia Route'' of Network ...

. The railway line cuts through the area with a

level crossing A level crossing is an intersection where a railway line crosses a road, Trail, path, or (in rare situations) airport runway, at the same level, as opposed to the railway line crossing over or under using an Overpass#Railway, overpass ...

, 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 o
"The Highams Park Forum"
(a group of local residents), and local Member of Parliament (and then leader of the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

)

Iain Duncan Smith Sir George Iain Duncan Smith (born George Ian Duncan Smith; 9 April 1954), often referred to by his initials IDS, is a British politician who served as Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition from 2001 to 2003. He was ...

, the box was saved with the intention of turning it into a museum or a tea room. In 2017 the signal box was reopened as a crêperie calle
LaBoite

Buses

Highams Park is served by London Buses routes

212 Year 212 (Roman numerals, CCXII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Asper and Camilius (or, less frequently, year 965 '' ...

, 275, W16 and school route

675 __NOTOC__ Year 675 (Roman numerals, DCLXXV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 675 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domin ...

Notable residents

Fred Pontin Sir Frederick William Pontin (24 October 1906 – 30 September 2000) was the founder of Pontins holiday camps and one of the two main entrepreneurs in the British holiday camp business in the 30 years after World War II, alongside Billy Butlin. ...

, founder of the holiday parks company Pontins, was born in Highams Park in 1906. He lived on Forest Glade and attended

Sir George Monoux Grammar School ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as ...

. *

Trevor Bailey Trevor Edward Bailey (3 December 1923 – 10 February 2011) was an England Test cricketer, cricket writer and broadcaster. An all-rounder, Bailey was known for his skilful but unspectacular batting. As the BBC reflected in his obituary: "Hi ...

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

and England cricketer. * Graham Barnfield, pundit and academic, moved to Highams Park in 2001. *

John Berger John Peter Berger (; 5 November 1926 – 2 January 2017) was an English art critic, novelist, painter and poet. His novel '' G.'' won the 1972 Booker Prize, and his essay on art criticism ''Ways of Seeing'', written as an accompaniment to the ...

, socialist artist and writer, lived in Highams Park as a child. *

Blazin' Squad Blazin' Squad were an English hip hop group. The group had seven top ten hits, including " Crossroads", a cover version of the Bone Thugs-n-Harmony original. Jon O'Brien of AllMusic called them the "self-proclaimed pioneers of ' chav' cultur ...

(band): Members of the band Blazin' Squad lived in or near Highams Park and studied at Highams Park School. *

Johnny Dankworth Johnny is an English language personal name. It is usually an affectionate diminutive of the masculine given name John, but from the 16th century it has sometimes been a given name in its own right for males and, less commonly, females. Varian ...

, musician and soloist, born in Highams Park in 1927. *

Sir George Edwards Sir George Robert Freeman Edwards (9 July 1908 – 2 March 2003), was a British aircraft designer and industrialist.Gardner, Robert. ''From Bouncing Bombs to Concorde: The Authorised Biography of Aviation Pioneer Sir George Edwards OM,'' Sutton ...

, aircraft designer and industrialist, born in Hale End Road, Highams Park, on 9 July 1908. *

Chris Moncrieff Christopher Wighton Moncrieff CBE (9 September 1931 – 22 November 2019) was a British journalist. He was the political editor of the Press Association from 1980 to 1994. Early life Moncrieff was born in Derby in 1931 to Robert Wighton Moncrie ...

, political journalist. *

Tara Moran Kathleen Tara Moran (born 1 June 1971 in Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire) is an actress. Moran's television debut was in Yorkshire Television's educational history series for schools, '' How We Used to Live''. During the mid-1980s she played Al ...

, actress. *

Teddy Sheringham Edward Paul "Teddy" Sheringham, MBE (born 2 April 1966) is an English football manager and former player. He played as a forward, mostly as a second striker, in a 24-year professional career. Sheringham began his career at Millwall, where ...

, 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. * John Maxwell Hutchinson, English architect,

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

...