People at the Heart of our Place

There is a lot to love about Waltham Forest and we have big aspirations for the borough. Our ambition is for all residents to be safe, well, resilient, independent, and connected. This is grounded in our understanding of the challenges the borough and those who live here are facing and provides a clear purpose to guide us to achieve the best support for people and families.

Safe

We want everyone to be safe from harm, abuse, neglect, and exploitation. Being and feeling safe is essential for people to enjoy a good quality of life. This means no one should feel unsafe at home and no one should feel scared or threatened by going out. Everyone should know where to get help if they need it, have confidence it will be provided, and trust that safeguarding is everybody’s business.

Well

We want everyone to enjoy good physical, mental, financial, and social well-being so they can have a good quality of life, fulfilling experiences, and take the opportunities to achieve their aspirations. We must take action on the social determinants of health to reduce health inequalities and ensure everyone has equal access to early learning and opportunities for learning across the life course to excel in developing the knowledge and skills to be successful in their futures.

Resilient

We want people to have the skills, knowledge, capacity, and capability to cope with, manage, and reduce whatever challenges arise in their lives and to take opportunities to restore their health and wellness with help from their communities and social networks. We want people to fully participate in communities in ways that are right for them. For those able to, we want work and volunteering to help build personal independence and resilience.

Independent

We want more people to lead as independent a life as possible, realising their ambitions and living their life in the way they want to. We want people to be able to give something back to those who may be more vulnerable.

Connected

We want people to feel a sense of belonging and community connection, to have strong relationships with their neighbours, and opportunities to contribute to their local community, helping each other out, coming together to solve problems, and trusting one another. We will always take into account support and advice that is available in the family, local networks, and from within the community.