Waltham Forest Council has started refurbishment work on the West Pavilion at Leyton Sports Ground, a small section of the historic Cricket Pavilion building that once served as the umpire's office.

The work is funded through what the council describes as a "small allocation" of UK Shared Prosperity Fund money. Planning permission and listed building consent have both been secured, and the scheme was shaped by community input gathered during consultations in 2023.

Once finished, the space is intended to work initially as a rest area for sports ground users during halftime breaks, with the possibility of it later serving as flexible meeting space for council services.

That is a considerably narrower ambition than where the project started. Plans for the pavilion have been in development since 2018, when the council aimed to open a food hall by 2021 containing a restaurant, café, training kitchen and a market for local produce.

A 2019 bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund for £1.5m was rejected, and the food hall plans were dropped by early 2021. A later application to the Greater London Authority's £12.85m civic partnership programme was also unsuccessful.

Further detail on the project is published on the Waltham Forest Council website.