A COMPETITION has been organised in the hope of capturing the essence of the local landscapes.

Behind the project is The Land of the Fanns Landscape Partnership, which is aimed at engaging the local communities of Havering, Barking & Dagenham, Thurrock, Brentwood and south-west Essex with the natural, geological, archaeological and built heritage of their area.

Making up the partnership are Forestry England, Thames Estuary Partnership, Thames21, Thurrock Council, Brentwood Borough Council, Essex County Council, London Borough of Havering and the London Borough of Barking & Dagenham.

The partnership has been supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund since its inception in 2016 and brings together a number of different partner organisations with a commitment to work towards a shared goal of enabling local people to discover, restore and enjoy what's special about the local landscape.

The Partnership Scheme wants to capture both the stories of the past from this area, and the wishes of local people for the future in two ways: A photography competition and with training in the recording of oral histories.

The Land of the Fanns photography competition has the theme of 'Wish for the Future'.

It is looking for photographs which capture the essence of the area, its diversity, landscapes, heritage and also reflect communities' hopes for the future.

The competition is open to all amateur photographers and there are three prizes of vouchers to be won: 1st prize £80, 2nd prize £50, 3rd prize £20. Photographs from the competition will be used in future Land of the Fanns marketing, social media and its website.

See the Land of the Fanns website for full details of terms and conditions. All entries should be submitted to [email protected] by 30 June 2021.

The Land of the Fanns is also calling for volunteers to join its Oral History team. The team collect the memories of people who live in the area, by talking to them about their lives.

Those who have lived and worked in a place for a long time have fascinating recollections, many dating from a time before technology and transport had changed society. By recording local people talking about their own experiences and their lives in the Land of the Fanns, these memories are captured for posterity and are significant social history of the place.

To train as an oral history recorder, no specialist background is required. All that is necessary is an enthusiasm for talking to people and the ability to listen carefully. Full training will be given in interview techniques and how to use digital recording equipment. This equipment is a very easy to use tape recorder and the interviewers always work in pairs with one person talking to the interviewee and one person recording. The memories captured can be fascinating, unique and very moving.

Anyone interested in learning more about becoming an oral history interviewer should contact Mrs Patricia Plested on 01708 474106 or 07948 533999. Email address - [email protected].

To find out more about the Land of the Fanns and how you can get involved in environmental and heritage projects, please go to www.landofthefanns.org.