Far-right groups had threatened to gather in the town but failed to turn up after thousands turned out to oppose them, reports Sebastian Mann, Local Democracy Reporter

Antifascist demonstrators in Walthamstow on Wednesday night (credit Seb Mann/LDRS)

Thousands of people gathered on the streets of Walthamstow in a peaceful show of unity after days of violent riots seen elsewhere around the country.

Residents and anti-racism activists lined Hoe Street last night (Wednesday 7th) to make a stand against a supposedly planned gathering by the far-right.

It came following a week of widespread disorder across the UK, initially in reaction to the killings of three young girls in Southport on 29th July and misinformation over who was responsible for it.

Police believe the national unrest was fuelled by the false rumours that the suspect was a Muslim asylum seeker. More than 400 people have been arrested so far.

In Walthamstow last night, many shops along the typically busy Hoe Street had been shuttered, including McDonald’s, after the Metropolitan Police warned of potential “disruption and disorder” in the area.

The nearby bus station closed at 6pm and police enforced a Section 60 dispersal order, which gave them the power to make people leave the area.

However, there were no sightings no of any far-right antangonists, and the protest remained peaceful.

The event passed without “major incident or disruption,” according to the Met’s deputy assistant commissioner Andy Valentine, although four people were arrested.

The alleged offences included the possession of offensive weapons – a lock-knife and a golf club – being drunk and disorderly, and obstructing a police search.

Dozens of police officers monitored the protest and large riot vans were seen parked along the adjacent Selborne Road. Demonstrators began gathering around 6.30pm, but the event drew to a close at around 9.30pm after no-one from the far-right appeared.

The counter-protesters waved placards reading “refugees welcome,” “stop the far-right,” and “oppose Tommy Robinson,” the pseudonym of anti-Islam campaigner Stephen Yaxley-Lennon.

Participants also repeated chants that “fascists are not welcome here,” that refugees were, and that Walthamstow “will not be divided,” to thunderous applause on each occasion.

Nathan Clarke said he wanted to “show support for the antiracist movement here”. He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “I went to a school here where everyone was welcome, whatever their background.

“That hasn’t changed in Walthamstow but I think it has elsewhere. The country has become a lot less tolerant and a lot more divided.”

He added that he was “proud” of the strong turnout.

Protester waves placard reading: "This is what community looks like" — Protester waves placard reading: “This is what community looks like” (credit Seb Mann/LDRS)

In 2012, an English Defence League protest in Walthamstow was dwarfed by an antifascist march through the town. Many in the crowd saw last night’s event in a similar light.

Fellow protestor Joe Armer, from Tottenham, said: “I’m not normally one for protesting, but I’ve been sickened by what I’ve been seeing across the country.

“It’s wicked, and there’s no place for it in our society.”

Others felt the issue had become muddied by “misinformation and bile”.

One protester, who did not wish to be named, told the LDRS: “They [the far-right] are being told race is the problem, but it’s not – their communities haven’t been invested in and they’re not being looked after.

“When they come here, smash up our communities and say they want us to go back home, we tell them we’re not tolerating that.”

Walthamstow was one of four apparent target areas in London that appeared on a purported list drawn up by the far-right, alongside Harrow, Hounslow and Finchley.

But no such protesters appeared in those neighbourhoods either. Officers made ten arrests in Croydon in connection with antisocial behaviour, but the deputy commissioner said it was “unrelated to any protest”.

In a statement, Clyde Loakes, co-deputy leader of Waltham Forest Council, commended the Met and council officers for “keeping the borough safe”. He added: “Thousands of residents attended a peaceful anti-racism protest last night, showing the true spirit of Waltham Forest.

“We are relieved those that threatened to bring trouble to our borough did not come to a place where they are not welcome, and that the evening passed without any violence or disorder.”

Likewise, London mayor Sadiq Khan thanked both the force and the protesters who took to the streets. He said: “I would like to pay tribute to the outstanding work of our police officers across London last night.

“And to those who came out peacefully to show London stands united against racism and Islamophobia last night – thank you.

“We have seen appalling violence and disorder in towns and cities across the country in recent days, but there was no repeat in our capital overnight.”

The Labour mayor added that Londoners would see an increased police presence in the coming days.

Walthamstow MP Stella Creasy, praised the neighbourhood as the “house of love” on X, but also drew criticism for previously advising people against attending.

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