Christmas Update

There has been a lot going on on the West Marsh over the last couple of months. We have supported a variety of initiatives through the Fair Share Youth Fund and the Councillors ward funding including young people's initiatives at John Whitgift Academy and Christmas parties for the elderly at the MAAG Hall.
After meetings with the Executive of West Marsh Forward we have now arrived at a better picture of all the things going on in the Ward but we still need to complete the process and decide what should be in the West Marsh Community Plan for the long term.
Here is the latest draft of the Community Plan

	[02/11/2011
West Marsh Community Plan Draft for Discussion
			John Mooney West Marsh Community Development Worker

Context:

The West Marsh Ward is one of the 15 wards of North East Lincolnshire a Unitary Authority which is made up of the Towns of Grimsby, Immingham and Cleethorpes and the villages which make up the Wolds Parishes.

Whilst the most recent total population estimate for the Ward is nearly 8000 people the following research is based on what Government Departments refer to as the Lower Super Output Areas (LSOAs) contained in the Ward and this means the most deprived areas of the West Marsh.

“The population of the LSOAs that are almost equivalent to the West Marsh study

area was just over 3,000, according to the 2006 mid-year estimate. Almost twothirds

(64 per cent) were of working age and 23 per cent were less than 16 years old.

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The area has a relatively small older population (13 per cent of the population,

compared to 20 per cent in North East Lincolnshire and 19 per cent in England).

According to the 2001 Census, a relatively small proportion of households are

couples, with or without children (46 per cent, compared to 57 per cent in the district

and 57 per cent across England). 17 per cent of households are lone parent

families, compared to 12 per cent in the district and 10 per cent in England.

The area falls within the most deprived decile of lower super output areas in

England. The area is placed in the lowest decile in relation to, education skills and

training, crime and the living environment on the Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD).

It is in the second lowest decile in terms of income, employment and health. In

February 2008, 15.7 per cent of the working age population were in receipt of JSA or

IB/SDA, compared to 11.1 per cent of people of working age in North Lincolnshire and 9.0 per cent in England.

The neighbourhood, like the wider district, is ethnically homogenous. According to

the 2001 Census, 98 per cent of the population of the neighbourhood and the district

were White British or Irish, one per cent were White Other and one per cent were

Mixed Heritage. The study team did come across anecdotal evidence that migrant

workers from the EU accession states had arrived into Grimsby in recent years, with

some people settling in West Marsh, although the scale of new immigration isunclear.

Terraced housing is the dominant built form in the neighbourhood. Many of these

properties have no garden or curtilage at the front, the front door opening straight

onto the street. A relatively large proportion of the housing stock is privately rented

(20 per cent, double the district and national average), while the proportion in the

owner occupied sector (64 per cent) is below the proportion in North East

Lincolnshire (72 per cent) and England (69 per cent).”

(Source: Centre for Regional Economic and Social Research Six Neighbourhoods: Contexts, Contrasts and Histories September 2010)

This then, along with the graph below (fig. 1), is the Needs Picture of the Ward what the plan will attempt to do is show where the assets of the ward are and the activities the community is involved in which have and will make a lasting positive contribution to the West Marsh.

This plan then will give an overview of where the residents and workers in the West Marsh are effectively working together to deal with the problems they face and to clearly show those community initiatives as the bedrock of any plan to change the community for the better.

This means that when any of the main statutory bodies responsible for service delivery in the Ward are looking to intervene with the problems on the Ward they will be expected by the community to consider the detail of this plan to help find the best way they can help the community by using the assets in the community as their starting point.

 

Fig.1

Housing and Environment

What do we want our Ward to look like?

The obvious answer to that question is that the community wants to see a well maintained residential area to match the main business

Housing Issues

The Ward divides into two main areas which are divided by the River Freshney. In all parts of the Ward however there is a negative effect caused by:

1.  Short term tenancies and a lack of proper responsibility shown by some landlords.
2. Void housing which is targeted by criminals.
3. Lowest property values in the UK.
4. Transient population causing social cohesion problems.
5. Problem Families who cause difficulties for other residents.

Community Response:

The West Marsh Forward alongside other established Community Groups in the Ward are, along with their Ward Councillors and Community Development worker, looking at the potential for community ownership of currently void housing in order to reduce the problems and to generate community income. The better upkeep of housing in the area should also see an increase in the desirability of the West Marsh as a place to live.

With regard to problem families members of the West Marsh Forward are intending to work alongside the Multi Agency Locality Teams to see how the community can support the work being delivered by professionals using the Common Assessment Framework process as a way of highlighting need.

The staff and volunteers in the local Community Centres are also keen that professional agencies use, support and help to develop the community assets which are already there which include:

1. Access to positive activities for young people.
2. Access to positive activities for older people.
3. Access to cultural and leisure activities for the whole community.
4. Community based training space.

 

 

Parks and Open Spaces

This area of community concern has a variety of positive initiatives already underway, there are however some real ongoing problems in terms of the effective partnership working between community groups and service providers. This has led to protracted arguments between community group members and various authorities about the solutions to the following long term problems:

1. Lack of thorough maintenance of the main local park.
2. A perceived lack of fairness in the amount of physical and human resource deployed in the main park compared with other parks in North East Lincolnshire.
3. Lack of maintenance of the River Freshney and Riparian land as it runs through the Ward.
4. The waste land in the Ward and particularly on the site of the old Macaulay Street tip.

Community Response:

The community has several groups which are involved in the upkeep and positive use of the amenity space in the area including:

1. Friends of the Freshney whose main concern has been the upkeep and development of the main park and dealing with the authorities responsible for keeping the River Freshney in good heart. Also working with other partners to raise and gain funding for the development of the park.
2. Two Allotment groups.
3. The formation of a new partnership with residents of all the wards that the River Freshney runs through.
4. A gardening group based at the West Marsh Community Centre who are involved with the local In Bloom initiative.
5. The West Marsh Community Centre Community Garden.
6. Sports groups using the park and WMCC engaging with local young people, giving rise to positive activities and a greater connection to place.

Street Scene

There are a number of issues around the general street scene on the West Marsh which residents have been unhappy with for a long time, these include:

1. Fly Tipping.
2. Dog Fouling.
3. Poor maintenance of Paths, Roads, Kerbs and Street Lighting.
4. Parking and traffic management problems.

Community Response:

The issues around the street scene are seen locally as the responsibility of the local authority through their agents to sort out as the necessary permissions for taking community action are very difficult to get. So active community members from the West Marsh Forward and local community groups, along with their elected representatives, have been very vocal about the need to solve these issues and continue to pursue them.

Crime and Anti-Social Behaviour

How do we want our neighbours and visitors to be?

The whole basis of the Community Plan is to establish a way of living on the Ward which values all of our community members whilst insisting on mutual respect and care for others within the community. This means all community members understand their rights and responsibilities as members of this community.

Anti-Social Behaviour

These are the ASB and Hate Crime figures for the West Marsh Ward over August, September and October 2011

Hate Crime/Incidents	4	4	2
ASB	61	28	42

This gives a strong indication that there is a real problem for the community in dealing with these issues. It is also worth noting that anecdotally it is often stated that residents do not report all incidents because they “… don’t think it’s worth it” on further investigation this has to do with a perception of police response times and follow up of incidents. This means that there may well be a good deal more unreported incidents which the police statistics don’t reflect.

The anti-social behaviour issues for the community include:

1. Behaviour linked to substance abuse.
2. Children beyond the care and control of their parents.
3. Bad neighbours.

Community Response:

As previously stated there is a lot of activity in the community via the community centres and the amenity space in the ward area which provides positive activity for young people this includes:

1. Sporting activities on the park and at community centres.
2. Dance and Art activities at community centres.
3. The formation of a new angling group part of whose remit is to engage young people in the responsible use of the river and to be involved in its upkeep.
4. Provision of training space for young parents.

It should also be noted that the West Marsh Forward works alongside the Police and Community Pride to set priorities in targeting the outbreaks of anti-social behaviour when they occur.

Crime

These are the reported crime figures for the West Marsh Ward for August, September and October 2011

West Marsh (AA4) with Top Town Area removed
	August	September	October
Burglary - Dwelling	17	10	7
Burglary - Other	13	5	4
Criminal Damage	43	35	28
Drug Offences	4	4	5
Fraud and Forgery	2	1	9
Robbery	0	2	2
Sexual Offences	3	0	1
Theft & Handling	51	51	41
Theft from Motor Vehicle	7	4	7
Theft of Motor Vehicle	2	1	3
Violence Against the Person	20	31	18
Other crime	5	1	4
All Offences	167	145	129

It should be noted that the crime figures shown here are only for the residential and industrial area of the Ward and if we add the figures for the town centre the totals are as follows

West Marsh (AA4)
	August	September	October
Burglary - Dwelling	17	10	7
Burglary - Other	14	7	8
Criminal Damage	60	50	35
Drug Offences	5	4	6
Fraud and Forgery	4	1	13
Robbery	1	2	2
Sexual Offences	3	1	3
Theft & Handling	115	107	112
Theft from Motor Vehicle	9	7	8
Theft of Motor Vehicle	2	1	3
Violence Against the Person	25	45	28
Other crime	14	4	10
All Offences	269	239	235

As the latter figures are the ones quoted to Central Government then anyone looking at the West Marsh crime figures is given a false impression as to what it is like to live on the West Marsh Ward.

That being said the adjusted figures still show a high level of criminal activity in the area, with the West Marsh suffering from some of the highest levels of criminal behaviour in North East Lincolnshire. This has led to high levels of apathy in some areas as to what can be done.

Community Response:

There are a number of developments on the ward which will help with short and long term issues which include:

1. WMCC directly involved with Community Payback Scheme using offenders to undertake work at the Community Centre and in the wider area.
2. Friends of the Freshney have engaged effectively with a number of volunteers to engage young people in positive activity on the main park.
3. WMCC continue to support youth led groups around sport dance and art.
4. Community Development workers are working alongside the local Youth Work team to look at opportunities for future engagement of young people in the West Marsh.
5. West Marsh Forward work in partnership with the local policing team to increase effective use of police time and to discuss the development of positive initiatives on the ward.
6. Ward Councillors are currently looking at an innovative scheme to use a void building to provide a community response and advice centre around crime.

Health Inequality

How will we work towards a healthier community whose residents enjoy a long, happy and healthy life?

At the present moment the Community Development worker and one of the Ward Councillors are directly involved with the development of an Asset Based Approach alongside the GP Commissioning body, the Local Authority and the LSP for the West Marsh to become an area for development focussing on community based initiatives and the need for a safe, strong, connected and well educated community. This is because the evidence supporting those initiatives which impact most effectively on health inequalities are those which look at an area like the West Marsh as a place where positive things can happen if the community are brought in to the process. This marks the beginning of a new phase in partnership work which will provide an effective way of working on the West Marsh and a blueprint for other areas of North East Lincolnshire.

Community Response:

For a long time now all four of the Community Centres have provided social and advice services for the elderly and infirm in the Ward. The community centres have also been used as focal points for community education in a wide range of areas including health and well-being. As has been previously mentioned the community groups in the area have supported initiatives which involve young people in positive activities. In terms of direct work with health issues community involvement includes:

1. Older Peoples Collaborative
2. Cancer Collaborative
3. Youth Group Working on Anti-Smoking and Anti-Binge drinking campaign.
4. Luncheon Groups.
5. Sports and Leisure Activities
6. Social Events

As well as the organised groups we should also say that there is a great deal of informal support through friends and neighbours.

Education

If the educational attainment of our children is the single most important factor in their future success and prosperity how do we help ensure that as many as possible do well?

There is a real recognition in the community that there is a transitional problem for many of the children on the West Marsh in that their progress at primary School, for a significant proportion, is not followed through in their Secondary School career. It is recognised that amongst a significant number of families with children there is a culture of disregarding the benefits of education and a low level of aspiration and expectation that children should do well.

It is also understood in the community that there is a real difficulty for schools to establish a real sense of engagement with a proportion of families and as a result children from those families present a real and continuing management problem for teaching staff within the schools.

Community Response:

1. All of the Youth based initiatives being undertaken by the Community Centres and community groups within the Ward and in conjunction with LA Youth initiatives in youth centres.
2. Training opportunities provided by Community Centres in cooperation with schools, colleges, LA, health providers and the wider vol/com groups.
3. Local residents taking school governor roles to influence and add to teaching and engagement strategies.
4. The Forward group is directing a proportion of ward funding and other local funding pots to support ongoing and new initiatives for young people.  This is seen as especially important when the initiative is taken by young people themselves.

There is a gap in this process in terms of direct community engagement with schools and other places of learning outside of governorship.

Employment

What sort of opportunities for work and earning capacity do we want for the people who live on the West Marsh?

The current economic position has hit the West Marsh hard and there are many people facing reduced hours and redundancy. There is hope in that there are big plans locally to become a centre for the Renewable Energy Industry and there are still vacancies locally which require skill levels that many local people don’t possess. This issue therefore links to the previous one in many ways and only by resolving the education issue is the long term employment problem going to be addressed.

 Community Response:

1. Training opportunities being offered through Community Centres and the wider partnership.
2. Sporting and social activities embedding a sense of belonging and community cohesion. This also builds the essential soft skills that employers look for in trainees and apprentices.
3. Supporting wider partnership strategies to supply the unemployed with meaningful training and work experience.
4. Increasing the number of volunteer opportunities to help bolster the work experience process and increase people’s sense of being a stakeholder in their community.

In light of the above the Forward and others in the Community need to look at the community initiatives which are having the biggest impact on the issues outlined above so that we are aware of what we would invest in using the Communities First Funding.

The Forward then needs to address what it feels the gaps are in local provision and look at how it might help fill those gaps.

So as a forward member,  a resident or someone who has the best interests of the West Marsh at heart list those things which you think are worth supporting that currently happen and when you have done that list the things that need, in your opinion, to be done in order to make progress.

I would like to take this opportunity to encourage all community members to contribute.

West Marsh Forward Meeting

At the meeting on Wednesday the 19th October it was agreed that I should draft a Community Plan for the West Marsh in order to align ourselves with the Community First Funding the details for which can be found here http://www.cdf.org.uk/web/guest/neighbourhood-matched-fund.
Councillor Billard and I will work on the plan based on the contributions from members at the meeting and we will also present a first draft of the Neighbourhood Plan which is specifically about planning issues in the area and will give the community quite a lot of clout about the direction of planning and housing on the West Marsh.
As I mentioned at the meeting I am on leave next week and so I will get the first draft out w/c 31st October.

River Freshney Update

River Freshney Update:

Since our meeting on the 29^th September things have been developing in the background. A walk took place to look at the route a documentary filming crew of young people would take when the initial engagement of communities takes place in each ward the river runs through.

Contact has been made with other stakeholders including initial attempts at engaging land owners whose property includes the riparian land along the river.

It has been established that there are various sites where, with the necessary permissions, enhancements to the environment could be made.

This could include the placement of bird and bat boxes (Friends of the Freshney have already made some progress with this initiative on the Duke of York Gardens) and an initial wildlife survey to inform future initiatives. Other suggestions for urban areas would be welcome at this stage.

The anglers group have just about got their constitution sorted and are waiting for bank accounts and other administrative issues to be finalised before their inaugural meeting.

Following the meeting below is a draft description of the main aims of the consortium of groups:

1.    To encourage and enhance the natural environment over the length of the River Freshney from source to mouth.

2.    To actively encourage, through efficient partnership working, improvements in habitat, safety, flow, recreational activities and environmental and historical education.

3.    To produce a document (Filmed and Written) to evaluate:

(a)  How people in North East Lincolnshire perceive and engage with the river.

(b)  The areas of the river which should be celebrated and more widely publicised.

(c)  The potential for ecological and amenity development.

(d)  The barriers to positive development on the river.

(e)  The level of responsibility to be taken by the Authorities (Local and National) and ways the community can hold them to account.

(f)    Initiatives already underway and how cooperation can enhance them.

(g)  The potential role of community members in positive development.

Ward Areas.

From that the desired outcomes for each ward could be stated as follows:

1.    Historical Education

2.    Environmental improvement and education

3.    Ecological education around species and habitat

4.    The positive social outcomes of community input to the river project

I will take time here to thank Pete Allen from Green Futures who encapsulated most of the above from our wide ranging discussion on the day.

All of the above starts to align us with the requirements of the WREN Biodiversity fund and the Heritage Lottery Fund. There is still a long way to go but we are starting to pull a lot of small items together which will eventually make a pretty impressive whole project for a substantial bid.

If people have ideas in the meantime that they want to throw in to the mix please let me know.

John Mooney

Latest Report to Fair Share

Activities undertaken: Community Development West Marsh

1. Children and Young People. Thanks to the agreed changes in approach to the fundingdistribution The Fair Share Youth Funding now has only £904.00 left and there are twopotential projects from schools ‘out clubs’ which are looking to apply for this money via their pupils. We now also have access to   Councillors Ward Funding in £250.00 lots and although this has no age limits on it, it means that one of the local young people’s football teams has successfully secured some funding for entrance fees to leagues and other competitions.

The Fair Share fund has enabled a local basketball team to buy a strip and ensure everyone who is interested can take part on the same terms. It has also been possible this quarter to support an individual young man in attending a drama summer school and we have also supported another young man to take part as a steward in a major youth sports event in Sheffield.

JM and Councillor Billard are also currently supporting the members of the Parent’s Views Committee at the Macaulay Children’s Centre to put together a kid’s Olympics next summer.

JO continues to support the Art group which has been involved in a community education

process around alcohol and smoking and the Dance Group which remains strong. JO and PH continue to engage local young people in looking at developments and one of the buildings

under the scrutiny of WMF is being looked at as a possible dedicated youth centre.

2. People with Disabilities and Long Term Illness. The Health Inequalities Group continues to meet and Councillor Billard and I are regular attendees. The progress to action is slower than we would like but the suggestions from partners seem to point to supporting community initiatives on the ground, like the Older People’s collaborative and the successful engagement of young people in a peer education role. This will also represent a pilot for Community Based Budgeting where resources allow from the Local Authority and GP consortia.

It is also apparent that Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) as a model for

progressing this is now the accepted way forward and we are looking at securing some funding

via the Local Authority to provide training to embed this in the community.

3. Older People. Two groups have been supported to get Ward Councillor Funding for their on-going costs one to do some maintenance work to their centre and the other to ensure their Christmas lunch goes well.
4. West Marsh Forward JM has now gained agreement from the group to look at how they will progress at the end of the funding via Fair Share. There has been a meeting called by the Chair to look at how the group can progress to being a Community Development Charity and therefore be in a position to apply for funding to employ its own Community Development worker. The aim being to have a draft funding bid reflecting community needs and plans by the end of December to be put to potential funders in the New Year. This will also mean a Ward Plan to coincide with the Locality Bill becoming law which will include housing, environmental and planning issues along with community use of local assets. There are now three buildings in the area under consideration for community management which will be discussed in detail at the next meeting. It was also suggested that in order to facilitate more community involvement there could be some meetings which are held to suit those with specific issues and ideas and that these would be focussed around areas like transport and crime and disorder. The committee also considered holding some of the WMF meetings during the day in order to be as inclusive as possible of all members of the community.

5. Friends of the Freshney There have been some major developments around the Freshney during the last quarter there was input from 30 volunteers to clear the banks of weeds over several days. This resulted in the Council increasing their input and a huge and welcome difference was made which was appreciated by the residents. As always on the West Marsh this led to a difference of opinion about approach to the care and maintenance of the river with FoF members being very clear that there should be continued pressure put on the authorities with responsibility to carry out the work they are responsible for. A meeting was held on the 29^th September with people from all the wards that the river runs through to look at what the community could positively contribute.The outcome of the meeting was that FoF would continue to apply pressure to the Council and the Environment Agency and the other groups would look at where the community could usefully get involved. This led to the Anglers Group (newly formed)who will negotiate with the council for the management responsibility of fishing rights along the stretch of river the council is responsible for in the West Marsh.

The group from Laceby will look at talking to Land Owners along the rural stretch of the river

to see if they would like to be involved.

Youth Service would use some funding they have to involve young people in a film project along the river to celebrate the good parts and raise awareness of the bad parts.

The group from Freshney Ward would look at the River Walk and Green Futures would be involved in the planning of external funding applications for maintenance and improvement.

6. Ward Councillors. JM and Councillor Billard have been working alongside those interested in getting involved in the River Freshney project and have supported a new Anglers Group in forming their constitution and Councillor Billard is helping with negotiations with the Council around fishing rights. As mentioned the Councillors have now initiated a £5000 fund to be applied for in £250 lots by local community groups and brought to the WMF funding group for a decision. The Councillors also hold another £10,000 which will be dealt with on a negotiated basis and taking in to account an eventual Ward plan.

7. Town Centre and Businesses. KE has put a lot of work in to developing an online tool for community use which should provide a good platform for local and Town Centre businesses to communicate with the local community and also offer a useful advertising platform for smaller businesses which rely on local community support.
8. Wider Community Development. JM, JO and PH are now involved in fortnightly meetings with the NELSP Neighbourhood Coordinators and the Council Head of Service of the Safer and Stronger Communities Partnership and are also involved with the Community Development Networking days held once a quarter. This helps to keep plans in the Ward area on the wider agenda and is essential in knowing who is providing support from partner agencies so that cooperative work is at the centre of plans in the West Marsh.

The Health Inequalities meeting has taken place and although progress is slow it is still intended to reach an agreed strategy around a project on the West Marsh which will address the serious inequalities for the health of residents.
As soon as there is a definite outline to the project I will let people know.

The River Freshney meeting on the 29th of September took place and although the turnout was not as large as expected there were some really positive suggestions about how we might look at tackling problems right along the Freshney. We are looking to start with a film documenting the current condition of the river and asking the residents along its course about their interests in helping develop and protect the river.
We also discussed the potential of a group which would represent all the wards along the course of the river which would be a more effective process when considering large funding bids.
I am in the process of editing the discussions which took place and will put a version here when its ready.

Since I last posted there has been a lot of discussion about the West Marsh at the Forward meetings and in Community venues about the issues regarding the long term future of Community Development on the West Marsh. It has become apparent that there are a number of areas which require action the first being getting West Marsh Forward to the point where it can effectively apply for funding to employ its own Community Development Worker. At the last meeting the Executive agreed to meet with me to see if the current constitution was fit for purpose and to look at what changes might be needed in order to be in the best position to apply for charity status if funding became available which would put them over the limit for registration.
This will take place on the 6th of October.
My hope is that we can then start to concentrate on getting more involvement at the meetings as at the last meeting some residents from Elsenham road attended and this did give another dimension to the process of the meeting and gave rise to a series of concerns which need urgent attention which had not been quite so clear at previous meetings.
This means that we need a plan arising from the meeting on the 6th as to what we can do about long term solutions to problems as well as attending to the urgent problems that occur and are causing problems for residents right now.