In a move which Sir Humphrey Appleby might have described as “brave”, Redbridge Council has launched a borough-wide consultation on parking – an issue on which nearly everyone has strong feelings one way or another.
The online consultation, which runs until the end of August, has been launched with the goal of making the council’s approach to parking “consistent and fair”, though those who were involved in the Wanstead Parking Wars (a longstanding Wansteadium subject) will remember the case being made against the same rules applying in Wanstead as in other parts of the borough.
Council officers may well suspect that they will end up pleasing no-one – and one question in the consultation appears to recognise the often polar divisions on the subject. Participants are asked to select up to three of the following as priorities:
The full consultation can be found here, along with a list of FAQs.
Meanwhile a newly-released archive of old video has been released by the BFI. Wanstead features in it, thanks to lots of men in top hats, some soldiers, some firemen and nurses. The film was made in 1916 and is titled “the Demonstration of the Churches”; the event was held to honour Wanstead men and women’s contribution to the war effort. The George appears to be in the background. 
A map showing walking times between Tube stations to help people during Thursday’s strike has been shared widely on the internet. But unfortunately for the people of Wanstead, the map only comes out of London as far as Bethnal Green. 