Last updated: 6 June 2025
Next review: 6 June 2026
Things you need to know include registering for a doctor, paying your council tax, bin collections, getting around, things to do and more.
Medical services (doctors, dentists, hospitals, more)
Register with a doctor
Waltham Forest has a numerous doctors surgeries and health centres. Enter your post code to compare services they offer.
You have a right to chose a practice that you feel best suits your needs.
Register with a dentist
For regular check ups and other dental work, including emergency appointments, you’ll need to register with a local dentist.
There are dental practices throughout Waltham Forest offering both NHS and private treatments.
Local hospitals
Hospitals provide emergency, outpatient and inpatient care:
Providing emergency, outpatient and inpatient care.
Urgent care
Who to contact if you have a health concern.
Pharmacies
Pharmacies (NHS) help with minor, everyday illnesses such as coughs, colds and headaches, try your local pharmacy first.
Transport and getting around
Cycling
Waltham Forest is a great place to walk or cycle and there’s a lot going on to encourage more people to get around this way.
Buses
Waltham Forest has well connected bus routes making it easy to get around by bus. There’s a central bus station in Walthamstow, next to Walthamstow Central Tube Station, and a network of bus routes covering the whole borough.
Trains
There are four London Underground stations in Waltham Forest and eight train stations, serving every part of the borough and beyond.
Roads
Waltham Forest is well-connected by road to the rest of London and beyond.
Our aim is to reduce car journeys and make walking, cycling and public transport the best and easiest option
- Plans to cut congestion and pollution in the borough
- Road maintenance in your area, local traffic schemes and roadworks happening near you
- Get a parking permits or a Blue Badge
You can do your bit in the colder months by volunteering as a snow angel and help clear snow and ice in the winter, to keep cars moving in your area.
Register to vote and take part in elections
If you want to vote in local and UK general elections, you’ll need to register here in Waltham Forest, even if you were previously registered where you used to live.
Council tax
If you live in Waltham Forest, you must register for Council Tax
There are a number of ways you can choose to pay
- Pay online
- Pay by direct debit
- Pay over the phone 020 8496 3000
- Or pay with cash
Rubbish collections and neighbourhood issues
Household waste
In Waltham Forest, what you do with your everyday household rubbish depends on the kind of property you live in.
Most homes have a green, brown and black wheelie bin, as well as special bags or boxes to store rubbish that can be recycled.
- Find out which bins you should have, what goes in them, how to order or get a bin taken away
- Check your bin collection days
You can also get bulky items that are too big for wheelie bins, like sofas, collected from outside your home
Waste and recycling centres
There are three household waste and recycling centres in the borough
- Gateway Road in Leyton
- Kings Road in Chingford
- South Access Road in Walthamstow
Each site has different rules about what they take, and different opening hours.
Report a problem in your neighbourhood
It’s easy to report problems in Waltham Forest, whether they are
- problems with how your area looks, like graffiti, fly tipping or litter
- services that are broken, like street lights, traffic lights or drains
- problems caused by other people’s behaviour, such as noise nuisances, dangerous dogs or vandalism
If you need help with a problem in your neighbourhood or see something that needs attention
Things to do
Waltham Forest has a diverse community including people from different backgrounds, ethnicities and cultures. Welcoming and friendly, there’s always something going on.