More than 50 local residents planted edible plants on underused land in their neighbourhoods last weekend as part of a community action campaign, reports Marco Marcelline

Residents across the borough participated in a coordinated protest on Sunday (1st February), calling for the right to grow food on underused council-owned public land. 

The action, organised by Waltham Forest Right to Grow, saw a total of 92 edible plants distributed to more than 50 local residents, who worked in small groups to plant on underused land in their neighbourhoods. 

The community action forms part of a growing national Right to Grow movement, which is calling on councils across the country to formally support residents to grow food on public land. 

In March 2025, Southwark became the first London borough to adopt the Right to Grow motion, and local campaigners say the council must listen to the hundreds of residents who support it here in Waltham Forest.

Waltham Forest Right to Grow’s central demands are a “clear and accessible” process for residents to grow food on council-owned public land, a dedicated community food officer role within the council, and a small start-up fund to support new and emerging community gardens.

“People are already growing food, building community, and improving local spaces – often without any formal support,” said a spokesperson for Waltham Forest Right to Grow. 

They continued: “What’s missing is a clear commitment from the council to support this energy and make food growing on public land easier, not harder.” 

Responding to the action on Sunday, council deputy leader Clyde Loakes MBE pointed to “pioneering” work the town hall had done in expanding access to homegrown produce over the years through Community Ward Funding for food growing projects, as well as its collaboration with OrganicLea, Leyton Boundary Community Garden and the Good Shepherd Building in Leytonstone.

Cllr Loakes further stated that the council had already offered the campaign group “first refusal on secure, vacant allotment sites” across the borough for use as community growing spaces, but they were “very disappointingly” turned down.

The Echo understands that five sites were offered, with one in Highams Park, two in Walthamstow, and two in Chingford. Cherrydown Close in Chingford was pushed as a particularly appealing plot because of its 300sqm size, two sheds, water tank, and on-site greenhouse.

Waltham Forest Right to Grow told the Echo that it rejected the sites because they sit “an hour away” by public transport from many of its members, who live in Leyton and Leytonstone where “access to growing space is most limited, and food insecurity is most acute”.

The campaign added: “We did not turn down the opportunity to grow food; we turned down relocating food growing away from these neighbourhoods. For community food growing to work, it needs to be close to people’s homes so it can fit into busy lives. A Right to Grow is about embedding food growing into neighbourhoods, not relocating it out of reach.

“Waltham Forest Right to Grow is not about access to a small number of fenced allotment sites. It is about creating a clear and accessible Right to Grow on council-owned public land, so that residents can grow food locally without relying on one-off arrangements.”

Cllr Loakes has however maintained that the council’s offer remains on the table “at least for the next week”, stating he hopes the group will accept it.

Criticising the group’s strategy, he added: “Identifying random parcels of land that aren’t secure and do not have supplies or infrastructure to successfully maintain food growing, as well as starting the often challenging process of finding out who actually owns them, who may have historic permissions to use them, and whether there is any existing or planned essential infrastructure underlying them will be a difficult, time-consuming process that may not result in success.

“Why go down this difficult and challenging route, when a far easier and straightforward opportunity has been identified and offered? I’ll always try to help resolve and move things forward for the benefit of those who want to grow food – for example, when we intervened to save a resident’s allotment patch and helped Transition Walthamstow negotiate use of land in Mission Grove.”

Waltham Forest Right to Grow said it “remains keen” to work with the council, but that constructive working “requires a willingness to expand access [to food growing sites] rather than contain it”.

Find out more about Waltham Forest Right to Grow here

More information on Waltham Forest Council’s Food Innovation Fund and organisations that received grants to support food growing is available on the council website

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