About Walthamstow Wetlands

Walthamstow Wetlands is a significant urban nature reserve spanning over 200 hectares and featuring 10 reservoirs built in the Victorian era. The Thames Water site was opening to the public in 2017 and still supplies water to 3.5 million households in London. It has evolved into a distinctive wild space and is now designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), internationally renowned for wildfowl such as pochard, shoveler and huge numbers of tufted ducks. Historic buildings and structures on site include the Grade II listed Coppermill Tower (with views across North London) and the Engine House both completed in 1894. Many Victorian features can still be seen around the site including the wheels of old sluice gates that connected the reservoirs.

The Partners

The wildlife and industrial value of Walthamstow Wetlands is truly unique in London and the opening of the site in 2017 has enabled over three million visits, allowing people to access its natural and architectural heritage. The London Borough of Waltham Forest led the project in partnership with Thames Water and London Wildlife Trust. Further key stakeholders included the Greater London Authority, Natural England and The Environment Agency.

The project was made possible due to major investment in the area. Of the £10.6m total, £4.47m was secured from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, £1.8m from Thames Water and £1.8m from the London Borough of Waltham Forest. £750k from the Greater London Authority also supported the 2km cycling and jogging path through the site.

Industrial Heritage

Water: it has always defined our relationship with this corner of Walthamstow. For centuries the River Lea provided transport and powered mills that were vital for local industries. The area was justly famous for its good fishing, but from the mid-19th century, this rural landscape of rivers, marshes and farmland was dramatically transformed by the creation of the reservoirs. London’s rapidly growing population urgently required a greater, more reliable supply of clean water and Walthamstow was chosen as an ideal location for this purpose. Ten reservoirs were created between 1863 and 1904, each one a greater feat of Victorian and Edwardian engineering skill, and have provided millions of Londoners with their drinking water ever since.

In 1894, the Engine House was built and remained in service until the 1980s – known initially as Ferry Lane Pumping Station, and later, the Marine Engine House, it was designed by the East London Waterworks Company’s (ELWC) architect H. Tooley under the watchful eye of Chief Engineer W. B. Bryan. Underneath the building was a network of underground reservoirs, chambers and pipes that linked the reservoirs and reached as far as Stoke Newington. In 1895, the East and West Warwick Reservoirs were completed and named after the Countess of Warwick, heiress of the local Maynard family, who sold the land to ELWC.