A WANSTEAD campaigner and her neighbours are celebrating the installation of two CCTV cameras in a remote and "sinister" part of their neighbourhood.

The woman, in her early 40s, began fighting for increased security measures along the isolated walkway between Elm Close and Wigram Road after she was attacked as she walked home from Wanstead tube station in March 2001.

Her attack occurred just yards from River Close, near to where Finnish student Suvi Aronen, 23, was brutally attacked and killed, just a year later.

Sarah, who does not want her identity revealed, told the Guardian: "I never wanted anyone else to go through the terrifying experience I had. I was extremely lucky to get away.

"Some neighbours admitted they were fearful when walking through the area, which ironically was our safest route to public transport and the high street. Unfortunately the dangers were brought home to us again a year later when the student was brutally murdered nearby."

Sarah was pulled to the ground by her attacker as she walked past a bush-lined strip of green running between Elm Close and Wigram Road at 10.40pm one evening. She suffered broken front teeth and bruising after being punched by the man.

Determined to prevent the same thing from happening to anybody else, she embarked on a campaign urging the authorities responsible for the area Redbridge Council and Transport for London to take action.

Her long fight, which included an 80-strong petition, finally paid off when Transport for London funded the two cameras installed by Redbridge Council in Elm Close and on the opposite side of Eastern Avenue. They will also be monitored by the council.

She added: "It's a relief to see the CCTV cameras there. Perhaps nowhere can ever be 100 per cent safe. I always carry a personal alarm which I'd recommend, but this stretch is much safer than it was.

"By day it could be unnerving enough, but by night it was incredibly dark and sinister. Now that a great deal of money has been spent putting in CCTV it is essential there is a rapid response from police. Wanstead needs a higher police presence to make the area a safer place."

Rectory Crescent resident and fellow campaigner, Donna Mizzi said: "We are extremely grateful to Allan Burgess and particularly Michelle Dunn who did an incredible amount of work to get these safety measures in place . We can never thank her enough.

"We would also like to thank the Wanstead and Woodford Guardian for the excellent coverage of our campaign. It was a massive help in drawing attention to the dangers of this site."

"A Transport for London manager realised the gravity of the problems when he visited the site at night and Ken Livingstone, the Mayor of London, wrote to us expressing his concerns over local people's personal safety. He instructed his officers to get work started."