This year, we are celebrating Community Gateway’s 20th birthday by giving back to our communities through 20 community projects.
Our latest project focused on improving communal spaces around Alder Road, Maple Grove, Rowan Avenue and Poplar Grove in North Ribbleton, following reports from tenants about fly-tipping and anti-social behaviour (ASB) in the area.
We received reports from tenants about fly-tipping and anti-social behaviour (ASB) around Alder Road, Maple Grove, Rowan Avenue and Poplar Grove in North Ribbleton.
During a community walkabout, our Tenancy Management and Engagement teams identified a number of issues affecting the area.
On Maple Grove, the existing gates to the communal green space were noisy and difficult to use, meaning they were often left open. This made the space easily accessible to the public and vulnerable to fly-tipping.
Over on Poplar Grove, wooden fencing around the communal green space had been damaged, leaving the area unsecure and open to fly-tipping and misuse.
In November last year, we teamed up with the neighbourhood police team for a day of action. Together, we removed six bags of litter and filled two vans with fly-tip. We also had the opportunity to speak to tenants about the issues they experience and how we could improve the area.
Acting on this feedback, teams from across CGA returned to the area in April to make further improvements. New metal gates were installed on Maple Grove and Poplar Grove, while teams also cleared fly-tip and litter from the communal spaces, removing a further nine bags of litter on the day.
The new gates on Maple Grove are secured with a code, provided to tenants in the area who would like to use the space. This approach helps create a greater sense of ownership within the community, while reducing ASB and fly-tipping.
As part of the improvement works, we also partnered with Green Space Transformations (GST), an external garden and grounds maintenance service, to tackle the overgrown communal areas and improve the look and feel of the neighbourhood.
The project was supported through our Community Fund, which provides funding for projects that make a positive impact in our communities. Green Space Transformations successfully secured funding with the aim of helping communities reclaim and improve overgrown green spaces.
The team at GST did a fantastic job transforming the communal area, helping to create spaces that tenants feel proud of and can enjoy.
This project is just one of the ways we are working together with external partners and local people to create cleaner, greener and safer neighbourhoods where communities can thrive.
Following the improvements, we have already received lovely feedback from tenants in the community:
"The area used to be so run down and unsafe, but this is a great step towards improvement. My boys are straight out there now playing football."
"Obviously people are listening to tenants because you can see the work being done."
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