Join us for Newham Heritage Month online in June

The rich history and diversity of people who have made the borough their home through hundreds of years of migration is the theme for Newham Heritage Month with an online programme of free and fun activities taking place throughout June.

Newham Heritage Month has brought together Newham Council, the National Lottery Heritage Fund, and the Royal Docks Team, a joint initiative between the Mayor of London and the Mayor of Newham, to celebrate the cultural diversity, history, and creativity of residents of all ages.

The creative Making a Home in Newham programme is being delivered in a different way this year because of the restrictions in place as a result of Covid-19. New activities will be published every day throughout June on a Newham History Month website, including live-streamed tours, workshops and sing-a-longs, to help people discover more about and enjoy where they live.

Deputy Mayor (Community) Councillor Charlene McLean, Cabinet member for community neighbourhoods, said: “Newham Heritage Month is a fantastic opportunity for residents to celebrate the culture, diversity and heritage of those that have moved to the area throughout its long and rich history. People have been arriving to make a home here from as far back as the 12th century to work in milling and farming at Stratford Langthorne Abbey monastery, and at the Grade 1 listed House Mill in Stratford in the 18th century. We are having to deliver our programme in a new and innovative way online, but we still have some wonderful free activities. I’d like to everyone involved for adapting and making it happen.”

Justine Simons OBE, London’s Deputy Mayor for Culture & Creative Industries, said: “Coronavirus is having a huge impact on life in London, but it is great to see new and interesting ways are being found to engage audiences. Newham’s Heritage Month will be a celebration of its rich history and diversity, and shows the borough’s ongoing commitment to bringing culture to the community.”

As a taster of the activities ahead, the Newham Heritage Month website is sharing heart-warming stories of residents about life in wartime and post-war Newham. These include Harry Cumberbatch MBE who arrived from Barbados in 1964. The stories also look back at how VE Day celebrations were reported 75 years ago.

Other organisations involved in Newham Heritage Month include Caramel Rock, an educational charity in Canning Town, who will be sharing African textile design tips. The Shpresa Programme, a Plaistow-based organisation that promotes the contribution of the Albanian-speaking community, will play Albanian folk lullabies.

Other activities to be included in the free online events programme are: 

• A live Zoom discussion with "honorary Bengali" Suresh Singh as he talks about his upbringing in Tower Hamlets and subsequent life in East Ham
• Interviews with those who have made homes on the waterways of Channelsea River in Stratford, capturing a mix of under and above water sounds presented by Surge Cooperative
• A whole family live reminiscence session in English and Cantonese from True Heart Theatre
• A focus on Green Street heritage businesses including international fashion designer Mani Kohli who opened her first shop, Khubsoorat Collection, on nearby Plashet Grove in 1985; and Bhanji Gokaldas' family who opened a jewellery shop on Green Street in 1975, which is now run by the third generation of the family. Both have played an important role to connect with traditions from home.

The daily heritage-focused activities and stories will be available on the website, www.newhamheritagemonth.org, supported through Facebook, Twitter and Instagram social media channels using the hashtag #NewhamHeritageMonth.