Last week saw hard-working Redbridge volunteers honoured for their community work at the Mayor’s Community Awards. Robin Cottle caught up with winner Gordon Bullock to find out more about his story.

Redbridge Lakes scooped the group award for Making a Greener Redbridge.

Set up by director Gordon Bullock, it is the perfect place for fishing junkets in the borough and aims to create an accessible place for anglers of all ages and abilities.

Mr Bullock, who launched Redbridge Lakes in 2008 after years of preparation work, said: “I’m delighted to win and I hope it spurs us on to greater things.

“I’ve put a huge amount of work in, the development was five or six years in the making before we opened.

“A lot of time and effort has gone into it.”

The 60-year-old builder says he has always been a keen angler and it was always his dream to have a fishing lake in his back garden.

Which is effectively what he has as Mr Bullock lives on the organisation’s site in Roding Lane North, Woodford Green.

Throughout the construction of the venue Redbridge Lakes’ main goal has been the preservation of the surrounding environment.

“This is my dream come true, and this is what spurred me on to start the project,” he said.

“We’ve steadily grown over the last six years, although we are busier in the summer months.

“We put on fishing classes for kids on summer holidays when the weather is usually much better.

“The winter can be a bit quieter, especially with the weather we’ve been having recently, but we still get bird watchers coming down and there’s a nice café so we do OK.”