Walthamstow Wetlands walk gets playful bird signs

A walk towards Walthamstow Wetlands now comes with a new kind of local landmark: playful signs made with birds, migration and the Coppermill Lane community in mind.

The signs, installed this spring at Walthamstow Wetlands and on the approach from Coppermill Lane, are part of a public art project by Europa and what if: projects. The work was supported by Waltham Forest Council and St James Big Local, with the launch marked on Wednesday 13 May by people involved in the project.

Rather than treating signs as simple directions for human visitors, the project asks a more unusual question: what might public art look like if birds were part of the intended audience?

Bird signs that change the tone of a local walk

The new signs place birds and their journeys at the centre of the Walthamstow Wetlands and Coppermill Lane area. Some ideas were developed as signs “for birds to read”, while others use humour, menus, calls and bird-facing messages.

The design language also draws on the way birds perceive colour, giving the signs a visual logic linked to the animals that move through the wetlands. For visitors, that means the route into the site now carries a layer of storytelling alongside its practical role as an approach to one of London’s major wetland spaces.

The project points walkers towards the East Atlantic Flyway, the migration route used by many birds travelling between breeding and wintering grounds across Europe and Africa. Species referenced through the work include the Common Ringed Plover, Osprey, Black-tailed Godwit, Common Tern and Red Knot.

Coppermill Lane residents helped shape the work

The signs were co-created over two years through workshops, meetings and collaborative design sessions. Participants included residents, young people, local groups and international contributors.

Those involved included the Lee Valley Regional Park Authority, Coppermill Lane Residents Group, Coppermill Primary School and members of the local community who took part through workshops at The Mill. Guest contributor Chukwuike Ebuzome, from Finima Nature Park in Nigeria, also took part, linking the local project to wider wetland conservation themes.

Gareth Morris, director of what if: projects, said the work was inspired by the landscapes around Coppermill Lane and by collaboration with local people of different backgrounds and ages.

He also said it builds on another Europa partnership, Flowers for Sutherland Road, a shutter-based public art project completed in 2024.

Migration is the story behind the designs

The signs use Walthamstow Wetlands as a local starting point for a much wider ecological story. Migratory birds passing through the Lee Valley connect the area with wetlands far beyond London, including Ramsar-recognised wetlands of international significance.

Design ideas in the project include “south-facing” signage and references to wetland networks across countries. The result is local public art with a global map behind it: a sign on a familiar walk can point to journeys that stretch across continents.

Robert Sollis, co-founder of Europa, said migratory birds enrich the Lee Valley by travelling vast distances to make it their home, and that the project shows how migration can bring “life, connection, and wonder” to the places it touches.

Where visitors can find the new signs

The signs are located at Walthamstow Wetlands and around Coppermill Lane, including the approach to the wetlands shown on the site’s map.

For residents, the change is small but visible: an everyday route now carries artwork shaped by local schoolchildren, neighbours, community groups and wetland partners. For visitors, the signs add a light, curious layer to the arrival experience before the reservoirs and wildlife come fully into view.

The project also gives Coppermill Lane a stronger connection to the ecology of the wetlands beside it. The signs use colour, symbols and humour to ask how communication might work across species and landscapes, while keeping the focus on birds that already help define the area.

Source: Waltham Forest Council