‘Truly inspiring precedent’: East London’s first wild swimming pond inches closer as campaign group glides past £500k crowdfunding target

An illustration of the vision for the site. Image: courtesy ELWP

Major plans to build East London’s first community-owned natural swimming pond are bubbling away nicely after organisers surpassed their £500k crowdfunding target.

It’s taken just seven months for the East London Waterworks Park (ELWP) campaign to hit the half a million mark, thanks to donations from more than 4,500 people.

The idea for the project came from local residents, who set about raising enough money to acquire an ex-Thames Water depot on Lea Bridge Road and turn it into what they call a “brownfield rainforest”.

The ambitious plans include wild swimming in the Victorian filter beds, conservation volunteering, a forest school, and a community hub.

With the success of the crowdfunder, that vision is now one step closer to reality, with organisers now setting their sights on purchasing the 5.68-hectare site from the government.

In a thank you message to supporters, ELWP chair and volunteer Abigail Woodman said: “We’ve demonstrated that the community wants East London Waterworks Park to happen.

“We’ve demonstrated we can raise money to transform an industrial site into a brand new park for East London to provide educational, economic, health and environmental benefits for our community.

“And we’ve demonstrated that, together, we can take real steps to tackle the climate crisis, biodiversity collapse, social inequality and social isolation.

“Thank you to everyone involved.”

The project has received backing from local authorities.

Cllr Caroline Woodley, Hackney’s cabinet member for families, parks and leisure, said: “We warmly welcome this vision of sustainability, decarbonisation and nature recovery.

“Bringing back open water and returning this site to nature would offer Hackney and Waltham Forest residents greater access to green and blue infrastructure.

“We know we need community partnership across London to become green and resilient, and this project sets a truly inspiring precedent.”

Shaun Dawson, chief executive of Lee Valley Regional Park Authority, added: “The innovative scheme chimes with our framework strategy for the overall area and would bring a currently closed site into recreational use with a range of benefits for visitors and the area’s biodiversity.”

The crowdfunder remains open, with campaigners working towards a stretch goal of raising £600k by 28 February, at which point they will turn their attention towards buying the land.