We are a group of local residents who care about our community and environment, and want to do what we can to make our town and beyond a more sustainable and equitable place to live.

In 2019, Ian, our current Chair, was becoming increasingly aware of the scale of the climate & ecological crisis, and wanted to channel the anxiety he was feeling to do something positive.  He felt an instinctive urge to do something at a very local level, to give a sense of control and impact.

He started to develop ideas for what that local action could look like.  At first he thought of doing what Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall did in his War on Plastic series, where a whole street was engaged in an exercise to reduce its plastic consumption & waste.  But this felt too hyper-local, and he gradually came up with the idea of an action group that was focused on Thornton Heath and neighbouring wards.

But he couldn’t do this on his own, and he still remembers hesitating over sending a post out on local Facebook groups to share his outline idea, asking if anyone else felt similarly and was interested in setting something up.  He needn’t have worried, several people responded, and a meeting around Ian’s dining room table that followed led to the creation of Sustainable Thornton Heath.  The rest is history as they say.

Since then we have evolved from running ‘Conversations’ every few weeks on Sunday afternoons at ASKI’s café on Brigstock Road, through running monthly community engagement stalls outside Tesco, to running monthly events in the form of our Eco Living Fest and repair events.  Our Eco Living Fest events attract 15-20 volunteers, up to 100 visitors, and deliver all manner of impact from increased awareness, knowledge and even skills, through fixed cycles, electrical goods and clothes, to changes in lifestyle.  We have also learned that these events are also about community, and all the benefits and joy that this brings.  We currently have around 300 people on our mailing list and over 500 members on our Facebook group page.  We also have a very strong fundraising application success record.

Finally, apart from one person who sadly moved out of the area, we’re also proud to be able to say that everyone that was around that dining room table is still involved.

Our Committee

Marian Hoffman

Marian is our Treasurer. Now retired, she has been an early years teacher and adult basic skills tutor. She moved to Thornton Heath from Battersea in 2018. In Battersea she was an active member of the local Green Party and was a founder member of Transition Town Wandsworth’s community garden. In 2019 she met Ian at The Time Is Now climate lobby outside Parliament and from there became involved in Croydon grassroots politics, beginning with Croydon XR. Then Ian shared with her his vision for Sustainable Thornton Heath and invited her to participate. She is also a member of Croydon Community Energy, involved as an energy advice volunteer. She lived in Mexico, now some time ago, but members of her family still live there.

Ian Morris

Ian is our Chair and has lived in Thornton Heath since 2011. He has worked in the charity & social enterprise sector for approaching 25 years, and has a deep concern and passion for social & environmental issues. He began to give time to voluntary work in Croydon in 2019, and always makes a point of saying how much he has benefited in multiple ways from all the time and energy he has invested since then. This includes many friendships and a significantly deepened sense of community. He enjoys spending time with his family and friends, cooking and eating different cuisines, listening to music, general learning, cycling and spending time in the garden & outdoors amongst many other things.

Gaëtane Jones

Gaëtane has lived in Thornton Heath since 1985. She taught at CALAT in the town before retiring, and has played a leading role in the community for many years now. She continues to serve as one of the committee members of the Thornton Heath Community Action Team (THCAT), taking a lead on topics such as fly-tipping, and is often seen doing community activities such as litter picking in the town! Gaetane has served on the committee of Sustainable Thornton Heath since it began in 2019.

Edyta Kwapinska

Edyta has lived in the area since 2017. She grew-up in an environment where a number of sustainable living practices were habitual, such as growing some of your own food, and preserving excess. Since coming to the UK she has been a passionate supporter of a range of environmental causes, and helped form the first committee of Sustainable Thornton Heath back in 2019. She is always on the look out for more ways to live her life more sustainably.

Catherine Drake Wilkes

Catherine Drake Wilkes has volunteered at our Eco Living Fests since they began – then called Pop-up Sustainable Living Hubs! – and joined the committee as Secretary in 2023. A Thornton Heath resident since 2014, she enjoys the sense of community and connectedness gained through volunteering in local projects. Catherine has been vegan for over 20 years and has become increasingly concerned about environmental issues. Originally from Lancashire, she has worked with children and families in London for the past two decades, and in her spare time enjoys reading, visiting the theatre and cinema, and travelling.