Geography Field Trip - Stratford

The Year 11 Geography trip to Stratford Olympic Park was a great experience for us to understand the case study of urban regeneration and redevelopment in this area of East London.

First, we carried out a questionnaire targeting local people close to Stratford train station, to find out their opinions on whether Stratford had changed for the better, which was enlightening as it helped us to get many perspectives on the development of the Stratford area. There were mixed responses to the questionnaire, with some people being more helpful than others, and we found that most were unwilling to spare time. Next, our class went to the first study site, an older area of Stratford with 1960s style mid-rise and high-rise apartments which had experienced no regeneration (ironically called New Stratford), to conduct a range of survey techniques such as a service tally, crime survey and environmental quality survey. It was concluded that this area was less environmentally friendly, had quite a few lower tier services and the crime rate was higher, as there was more graffiti and signs of crime. I also found it helpful to ask a local shopkeeper about the area, and he had a good perspective of the crime rate, and how the area around Stratford had changed.

The second site along our transect from east to west across Stratford was East Village. This area of legacy housing and apartments built as the Athletes’ Village for the Olympic Games had significant improvements, with many more restaurants and less litter and graffiti. There was even some wildlife to observe in a communal pond area, which our group took photos of. The theme of green space and wildlife continued at the third site we visited inside the Olympic Park itself, and we took a field sketch to show the leisure space and walkways available along the River Lee which had been cleaned up as a result of the regeneration in the area, so that it was really attractive and well kept. As we exited the park, travelling towards Hackney Wick, we saw the Media Centre which now offers jobs and employment in the ‘knowledge economy’, and also a new ‘village’ being built within the Park called Sweetwater which will provide a further 800 homes to accommodate the growth in new residents.

Finally, we visited Hackney Wick itself, just outside the Park, which has become part of a burgeoning art and culture district. There was a lot of graffiti but also many pop-up small businesses in this area, although it was difficult to tell which graffiti was supposed to be artistic, and which graffiti was vandalism. Overall, we concluded that the Stratford area had been improved through urban regeneration, and our experiences will support us in writing effective answers in our GCSE Geography exams next summer using this case study information and human fieldwork enquiry skills.

Henry Baines 11P