His Worshipful, the Mayor of Barking and Dagenham, Councillor Peter Chand and the Leader of the Council, Cllr Darren Rodwell, planted a small friendship tree in Barking Park.

This special tree was planted to replace a tree that was originally planted by the German branch of the Barking and Dagenham Witten Club and by the Mayor of Witten, Sonja Leidemann for the residents of Barking and Dagenham in 2014.

We have a special bond with Witten as our twinned town. It is an honour to have planted this friendship tree to cement our strong ties and ever-growing friendship.

The tree commemorates 73 years of close friendship with the German city, 41 years of official twinning and 26 years of club co-operation.

Twinning is seen as a coming together of two communities and an expression of unity, where two towns or cities can learn valuable lessons from each other. It is something that the Mayor sees as an important part of the borough’s culture.

His Worshipful the Mayor of Barking and Dagenham, Councillor Peter Chand said: “We have a special bond with Witten as our twinned town. It is an honour to have planted this friendship tree to cement our strong ties and ever-growing friendship.”