Forest Lane Park Restoration Project

Open Call: Socially Engaged Artists for Public Artwork at Forest Lane Park, Newham

London Borough of Newham and The National Lottery Heritage Fund

Closing date: Sun, 21 Sep 2025

Job Summary

London Borough of Newham invites expressions of interest (EOI) from socially engaged artists to present design proposals for a new, co-created permanent artwork installation in Forest Lane Park, Newham, London.

Job Description

About the Forest Lane Park Restoration Project

Newham Council has been awarded funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund to work with the local community to design a series of improvements to Forest Lane Park, a major initiative aimed at revitalising one of the borough's most historically rich green spaces.

The centrepiece of the project will be the creation of a new, permanent artwork that responds to the legacy of local activist, midwife and founding member of the Hibiscus Caribbean Elderly Association (HCEA), Lucel Tate. Drawing on themes of care, heritage, memory and renewal, the artwork will reflect on the park's many layered histories, including the children's workhouse that once stood in the park. The selected artist will be commissioned to continue building upon the extensive engagement done with the local community so far, in particular Afro-Caribbean communities, and co-create the new art piece, ensuring the park's uncovered histories and Lucel Tate's legacy are shared with future generations to come.

Location Details

Forest Lane Park is located in the London Borough of Newham and is approximately two hectares. The installation will be located within the project boundary in a prominent location of the park.

Budget

£500 each to three shortlisted EOI submissions, total including artist fee, workshops, fabrication and travel expenses. A maximum budget of £37,500 will be available to deliver the project with the commissioned artist.

Please see our full Artist's Brief for more detailed information about this opportunity.

Job Requirements

Selection Process

Applicants at this stage will be selected based on the following criteria:

• Response to the project vision and brief
• How the proposed artwork may communicate with the public
• Demonstrated technical and practical ability to deliver high quality, robust public artwork to timescales and budget
• Past experience working collaboratively in community settings

We actively encourage expressions of interest from artists from Afro-Caribbean communities, in recognition of the cultural context of this commission. As this project is rooted in Newham, local artists who live or work in the borough will be prioritised for shortlisting.

Eligibility

• You are an artist and have the right to work in the UK
• You are over 18 years old
• You hold valid Public Liability Insurance for your activities, with a minimum coverage of £10 million.

This is a contracted commission and the appointed artist will be responsible for their own tax and National Insurance.

Job Responsibilities

Requirements

By submitting your EOI application you agree:

• To complete your activities and artwork within the project's budget and timeframes
• To collaborate with Arkwood Landscape Architects and the project team
• To maintain ongoing relationship established thus far with community members, and participate in co-design workshops and collaborative design
• To attend production meetings and site visits when reasonably required
• To supply, in advance, copy and images for marketing purposes as and when required.

The intellectual property of all produced artwork will remain with the artist, while the physical ownership will be transferred to Newham Council on completion of the final artwork.

Please note that your EOI application will be processed and stored by Newham Council and Arkwood Ltd in accordance with GDPR regulations.

How to Apply

Please submit:

● A brief artist bio (max. 250 words) with your full name, address, email address and phone number

● A concept summary (max. 500 words) with your suggested approach, proposed installation location within the park, likely materials at this stage, and what interests you about this opportunity. Please note that specific designs are not required at this stage.

● A document with images and brief descriptions of relevant past projects (min. three up to six total) of a similar size, preferably showing co-production in community settings.

Please provide the above requirements in PDF or Word document format. Please do not send web links.

All the above requirements must be submitted by no later than Sunday 21 September 2025 by 23:59 (11:59pm GMT). Please email your EOI submission to forestlanepark@arkwoodltd.co.uk with the subject email line: ‘Forest Lane Park: Artwork Installation EOI’.

Any enquiries about this opportunity should be sent to: forestlanepark@arkwoodltd.co.uk

• Contact name: Arkwood Ltd
• Contact email: forestlanepark@arkwoodltd.co.uk