More than 3,000 people came together to celebrate community, culture, and creativity, at this year’s Hidden River Festival — a vibrant showcase of partnership at the heart of Woodberry Down.
Held in Spring Park, facing the Redmond Community centre, alongside the river, the festival was co-funded by us and the other Woodberry Down regeneration partners, Berkeley Homes, and the London Borough of Hackney.
The day was brought to life with support from Manor House Development Trust, Public Voice, Woodberry Down Community Organisation (WDCO), Arsenal in the Community, local partners, and resident volunteers.
Festival highlights included, the Bobby Dazzler, provided by Hackney Showrooms and featuring performances from local artists including Hackney Community Orchestra and the vibrant youth led Caterpillar parade, which was reminiscent of St Patrick’s day.
Friends of Woodberry Down entertained residents with karaoke throughout the day. Their top raffle prize of a signed Leandro Trossard Arsenal shirt elevating the excitement among residents on the day.
The festival also saw the launch of the redesigned Woodberry Down Pavilion, designed and built by eight young residents with support from RC/YYC Limited.
Billy Sheehy of the Woodberry Down Community Organisation (WDCO), an advocate for careers in the built environment, presented awards to the young designers.
WDCO’s Jackie Myer’s stated “we are proud of all of the young people involved in redesigning and creating the Woodberry Down Pavilion. They did a fantastic job, and it was great to see their hard work and creativity recognised as part of the festival”.
The Pavilion hosted the Woodberry Down Disco which marked the beginning of the estate’s culture programme, which will run from the pavilion until the 5 October.
Young Arsenal supporters received arsenal merchandise on the day, thanks to the dedicated sporting focus of Arsenal in the Communities partnership with Phil Cooke from WDCO.
The Zen Project ran drop-in wellbeing activities throughout the day from their zen bus, and aromatherapy station, offering a moment of calm in the busy day’s activities. Lots of festival goers took advantage and many people came along to more than one bus session.
Simon Donovan at London Development Trust said "Manor House Development Trust was really pleased with the success of the 14th Hidden River Festival. It has been a delight to see the festival evolve and change hand in hand with the local Woodberry Down community.”
“As a day to celebrate the incredible diversity, vibrancy, and talents of local people, it demonstrated what long-term commitment to community organising and partnerships can achieve”
WDCO’s Adrian Essex said:
“The Hidden River Festival is always a fantastic opportunity to bring the Woodberry Down community together and celebrate the diversity, creativity, and talent of local community. It was wonderful to see so many people of all ages taking part and enjoying the activities throughout the day”.
“Events like this are an important part of community life at Woodberry Down, and WDCO is pleased to continue collaborating with residents and partners to support a festival that has become such a valued part of the estate.”
As regeneration continues across Woodberry Down, the Hidden River Festival stands as a powerful example of what’s possible when residents, partners and organisations come together placing creativity, connection, and community at the heart of an evolving neighbourhood.