The Bilston East Local Neighbourhood Partnership (LNP) is made up of local people, local businesses, service providers and Elected Members. Following on from the success of the Neighbourhood Management pilots elsewhere in the City, Bilston East now benefits from having a dedicated Neighbourhood Management Team. Working alongside them is the Neighbourhood Safety Project, which focuses on reducing crime and anti-social behaviour. Both teams are based at the Bradley Office, Bank Street, Bradley, Bilston and will serve the LNP and work in partnership to improve the quality of life for residents.
Extensive public consultations have been carried out to identify what residents see as issues of concern. From this an action plan has been developed that all service providers including the Police, Primary Care Trust and City Council departments will be responsible for delivering.
If you would like any further information on the action plan or would like to be involved with the partnership please contact the Bilston East LNP office on 551760.
The Partnership area consists of : Ladymoor, Lunt, Old Bradley, Carder Crescent, Bilston Town Centre,Loxdale and Lower Bradley
Chairpersons Report - November 2010
During the last 12 months the partnership has supported the local neighbourhoods with a number of successful projects in areas identified as priority in the Action Plan created as a result of consultation with residents from across Bilston East.
The support of Job Clinics has helped to encourage learning and employment/training as identified in priority 2 and 3 (1 Raise Aspirations; 3 Improve employment support services and job related training to reduce worklessness). The involvement in environmental projects, such as the improvement to Bow Street Methodist Gardens and Bilston in Bloom has impacted on priority 4 (Improvement of green open spaces), this has been possible as a result of partnership work with local resident groups and also agencies, such as Bilston Development and neighbouring LNPs.
The top priority (Anti Social Behaviour) has been Impacted through the work of the partnership by implementing a number of interventions such as Safe, Secured and Reassured with the local PSCOs and Wardens targeting home protection for victims of burglary and neighbouring properties, reporting levels of crime has risen as a result of the Crimestoppers launch in the area and also the PACT is improving continuously.
Work with young people continues to be successful with the U-Project to improve young people’s involvement; working with year 7 children in local schools, the summer activity programme was successful in providing a variety of activities for young people. We held another successful joint Funday with Bilston North this summer.
We have seen the opening of the Academy, followed by news in the governments Comprehensive Spending Review that this will be developed with Building Schools for the Future funding, although that this may be reduced slightly, and also the beginning of the development of the Bilston Leisure centre.
Through the successes Bilston East has also seen its tragedies, in the recent destruction of Wilkinson School as a result of an arson attack, even this has shown the strength of the communities support and partnership working from local fundraising to the announcement that the proceeds from Christmas town centre activities are to be donated, and the support of the local St Martins Church providing a temporary school. In addition to the community centres across Bilston East and neighbouring ward still face uncertainty for their future which the partnership will continue to support and help.
The staffing team have worked extremely hard this year in ensuring work around the priorities is completed and all this in light of extreme cuts to services and an uncertain future, for this I am sure all members of the partnership will thank them. I wish all members, groups and staff alike a successful coming year.
