Good news from the Olympics at last.

The 2012 event has led to the announcement of a £2 million dredging programme to improve the water quality of the River Lea between Tottenham Lock and Old Ford Lock.

This stretch of the river often looks dank, covered in weed which confirms the lack of craft. Indeed the poor water quality is obvious. Silt and obstructions are now to be cleared

This water, being near the city and Thames, should be the busiest.

The Environment Agency and British Waterways have joined together to take advantage of a European initiative called the Water Framework Directive.

After the flurry of activity at Bow for the Lansbury 150th anniversary it is a further surprise to find English Heritage recognising the historic spot.

It must be the proximity to the Olympic Park.

EH this week listed a tomb and lavatories at Bow.

The grave is in the churchyard and the toilets are at the churchyard entrance where Gladstone stands above. Last Sunday I noticed the disgraceful condition of the closed WC which the Victorian prime minister seems to be pointing out to passers-by.

The listing details even include bollards in Kit Kat Terrace which is named after a former rector.

The the Tomb of Joseph Dawson is classed Grade II for the following principal reasons:

* Special architectural interest as a high-quality Portland stone monument in the neo-classical style featuring his profile in relief and a draped urn;

* Of historical interest as a monument erected by public subscription to a local philanthropist, commemorated by a powerful epitaph recording his virtues;

* Of group value with St Mary’s Church and other listed buildings and structures.

See pages 116-118.

Bow Church is open this week Monday 23 February to Thursday noon to 4pm for visitors to view a small exhibition marking the 150th anniversary of George Lansbury’s birth.

Lansbury was  a local councillor who became the MP and Leader of the Labour Party. He was a member of the church and his funeral was held there in May 1940. It was a huge occasion attended by famous people.

Yesterday I went to a memorial service held in St Mary’s where Fr Ken Leech was the preacher. This was a very enjoyable occasion with student George Lansbury, great great grandson, present along with descendants from America. There was also the daughter of someone who had sung in the funeral choir and a grandson of someone who had worked alongside Lansbury.

Tributes were paid by Bruce Kent and Professor Bob Holman. The Bishop of Stepney read from the diary of his predecessor Cosmo Gordon Lang who visited Bow.

This was a huge history lesson held on the high ground above the River Lea. Indeed we were sitting in a church which was once the focus of a riverside village at the foot of Bow Bridge, the crossing into London.   

The exhibition includes a copy of the Evening Standard for Friday 10 May 1940 -the day Churchill formed the war government just days before the funeral -which previews Lansbury’s funeral.

This is an opportunity to get inside the church which at present is only open on summer Saturdays. In 2011 the church celebrates its 700th anniversary.

Next Saturday 28 February a George Lansbury History Walk starts at Bow Road Underground Station at 2pm.

See pages 116-117.

Plans for the Olympic Park after 2012 are to be revealed at a series of roadshow and workshop events across London starting this month. 

Landscape architects Latz & Partner has been appointed to lead a team to design a section of the proposed Lea River Park from above the Olympic Park to the Thames. 

The plan is for continuous linear parkland called for some unknown reason the ‘Fatwalk’.

The section covered by Latz & Partner’s design covers the first part of the ‘Fatwalk’ – a new riverside cycling and walking route, Three Mills ‘Green’ – a new community park and East India Dock Basin where the Lea Valley Walk used to end before the switch to the Limehouse Basin

We shall have to see if the Lea Valley Walk benefits from all this. 

The full list of venues for the consultations can be found on www.legacynow.co.uk

There were 57 walkers on this morning’s Walk London walk down the Lea Valley Walk from Tottenham Hale.

There was bright sunshine. We made up for the cold by walking quite briskly. I hope we did not go too fast but everyone kept up. In warmer weather there might  be time for longer stops and even a picnic stop.

We all stepped into Tesco at the end. What a pity that the Three Mills cafe was closed. It is open in the week.

It was good to meet people with such different experiences of the Lea Valley. One person had spent four years with the guide book slowly walking the 50 mile route. Another once worked at Sutton House which I mentioned in passing when we stopped at former Matchbox Toy factory.

I guess we could repeat the walk during the next Walk London weekend. It is good to see how the countryside changes and how the Olympic arena grows.

Thanks to everyone who made it such a good day out.

Today I have been checking the route for Saturday’s Walk London walk from Tottenham Hale to Three Mills.

It was a wonderful sunny morning and the forecast suggests we shall enjoy another on Saturday.

The new High Bridge at Spring Hill was due to be craned into place today. We shall find out if that happened. The Olympic arena looks dramatic in its half finished state.

The free walk starts at 11am outside Tottenham Hale Station. We shall reach Three Mills between 1pm and 2pm. The time depends on weather and numbers.

There is a Tesco, toilets and an underground station (Bromley-by-Bow) at the end. 

I am looking forward to meeting old and new walkers.

This morning there is  a reminder of the time when the Lee Valley was ‘London’s greenhouse’.  

The Daily Telegraph has an obituary of Bert Hazell who has died aged 101 and was the oldest living former MP.

A former president of the National Union of Agricultural and Allied Workers, he first joined the union staff in 1937 looking after members working in Lee Valley glasshouses. It was this market gardening which persuaded Jack Cohen to have the Tesco headquarters at Cheshunt.

See page 88.

Tottenham Marshes, Leyton Marshes and the Middlesex Filterbeds are three of the 21 sites in London where sparrows are to be encouraged.

The attempt to restore London’s declining sparrow population is being made by the RSPB.

Working in partnership with six local authorities and organisations, a £170,000 SITA Trust funding will allow the Society to see whether long grass, wildflower meadows or arable flowers provide the food-rich habitats that  sparrows require. 

It is suggested that the new habitats will bring a host of other benefits for urban wildlife by attracting and supporting butterflies, bees, grasshoppers and other garden birds like tits and finches.  

This is good news for the River Lea. Sparrows are seen on the Thames Path near the Oxo Tower.

See pages 102 and 112.

Just back from a briefing for  the Walk London ‘Winter Wanders’ at the end of the month.

On Saturday 31 January I shall be leading the walk from Tottenham Hale Station south along the Lea Valley Walk to Three Mills.

Just after Old Ford we shall divert to see how work on the Olympic stadium is going.

It’s always a pleasant morning stroll and Three Mills is an attractive place to end for lunch. There is even a Tesco and toilets. Bromley-by-Bow Station is nearby.

The walk is free. No booking needed. Meet at 11am.