Today was my first visit to Edmonton. For our Chats Palace project, we interviewed Annie Smol who started in Chats in the 1980s and now runs Face Front Inclusive Theatre in the space above the Edmonton Green Market.
Having heard of violence and crime in this yet another London pocket, I was curious to see the area for myself. In the bright mid-afternoon sunshine it looked surreal more than anything so I could not resist taking a few snaps of high-rise and low-rise housing next to/on the top of the redeveloped shopping centre.. An old Rolls-Royce in the car park put the finishing touches to my flying visit. Till next time, I hope.
© Asya Gefter
According to Hidden London, Edmonton Green is the most deprived ward in Enfield by most measures. It has the highest proportion of council housing of any ward, an ethnically diverse population and high levels of unemployment and crime.
In the mid-1960s the newly formed Enfield council swept away ‘substandard’ Victorian housing and built a shopping centre, tower blocks and various amenities. Over the past decade, in one of the largest mixed-use schemes of its kind, the main facilities at Edmonton Green were redeveloped. The £120 million project involved the construction of new shopping mall, bus station and more.