The fund is a new initiative by Government to improve towns and cities by tackling quality of life in terms of public space. Public space can be anything from the high street to the park, car park to playground. It is focused on space in which members of the public can access freely. In tackling the need to improve public space it is worth looking at public space as a kit of parts. By improving public space, the government wants partners to look at all aspects, including buildings, infrastructure, landscape and the use of public space. The diagram opposite provides some idea of the many elements that our Liveability work will try to tackle.
The fund is designed as a pilot, whereby 27 local authorities have been invited to submit proposals to tackle the condition of public open space. Money is invested into town centres, parks and open space on a periodic basis in an attempt to keep them looking good.
The Government are concerned that the condition of public space is not as good as it could be and that more could be done to improve standards. The Liveability Fund has several key elements:
The drive by the Government is not particularly technical and reflects popular public opinion, for example the following table would seem logical to most people.
| Qualities of the 'worst' streets | Qualities of the 'best' streets |
|---|---|
| Dirty and poorly maintained | Clean and well maintained |
| Dominated by traffic/traffic management | Pedestrian and traffic in harmony |
| A sense of insecurity | Well lit and safe |
| Dereliction, decay and lack of activity | Good attractions and associated activity |
| Superficial and cheap 'improvements' | Sensitive alteration & quality landscaping |
| Inaccessible (pedestrian & vehicular) | Accessible (pedestrian & vehicular) |
| Uncomfortable to use | Comfortable to use |
| Inhuman, ugly and unremarkable | Human, attractive and distinctive |
The funding has been provided in two ways, revenue funding to help change the approach we take as statutory agencies in managing and maintaining public space, together with capital fund to improve key public spaces in the pilot area.
The local authority and its public sector partners have to improve the management and maintenance of public open space, using the revenue funding available to put in place better systems. We cannot employ more staff on the streets; it has to fund smarter ways of working.
This smarter working may include new systems, improved procedures, more local accountability and more efficient ways of working. We have agreed milestones with the Government that must be achieved if we are to receive the capital funding aimed at improving public space. Our objectives are:
The Borough Council submitted our pilot bid on the basis that we want to engage the local community in our work on the ground. Set out below is a brief description of the projects that will be undertaken over the next two years.
These are a nationally developed toolkit (framework) for local communities to audit their neighbourhood in terms of environmental quality. The toolkit has been designed by Encams (the Tidy Britain Group).
We have proposed this local audit to ensure we do not treat the Glossopdale environment as one area, and that we work with local people to identify what is important to them. We aim to launch the audits in April, seeking groups of interested residents to sign-up with a nominated champion or key individual who will be given a day's training with the toolkit. When the audit is complete, Encams will produce a local environmental report that can be used to help take forward improvements on the ground and create the kind of quality environments we all want to see.
We have set-aside funding for a neighbourhood audit in each sub-area of Glossop, namely: Old Glossop, Tintwistle, Charlesworth, Padfield, Dinting, Hadfield, Gamesley, Simmondley, Whitfield and Howard Town (central Glossop). Clearly there will be a role for local resident associations to take an active part, together with schools, youth groups and other voluntary or community organisations within the area.
ENCAMS (Environmental Campaigns) is an environmental charity that runs the Keep Britain Tidy Campaign. Encams aims to achieve litter free and sustainable environments. For further information visit www.encams.org. (External website**)
The Council is keen to introduce and test some new ways of working, whereby we create focused teams to tackle areas within the town, operating mini-pilots.
Each of these teams will tackle a broad, rather than narrow range of duties, with a view to managing a complete area, rather than just deliver key functions. It should be stressed that this is very much a pilot and needs to demonstrate an improved service and cost effectiveness, before we consider any further proposals.
Work is underway to scope how our working practices might be changed, and establishing whether the change will be beneficial and cost effective - there is no point instigating new approaches if it costs more to deliver and does not deliver beneficial change.
Regardless of how efficient the Borough Council is in collecting litter, we would like to see a reduction in the amount of litter dropped on the streets and reductions in anti social activities such as fly tipping and graffiti. To achieve this we are planning a range of measures that include:
Ultimately, we wish to educate and encourage people to improve their protection of their environment. However, those that do not choose to prevent litter and waste will face penalties with the introduction of litter fines.
In rising to the Government's challenge, we are keen to ensure that we maintain and manage public space to the highest standards. To do this we want to make sure that the community can report any problems and concerns quickly and see the problem resolved promptly. We have already made progress with the Clean Team hit squad and work through handling environmental services calls through our new dedicated call centre. To enhance this we plan to introduce further improvements:
In addition to the changes to our service delivery, we have followed government advice and plan better for the future. To fully understand and coordinate public space we will complete a number of projects:
To help support the management plans, we aim to establish local friends of groups that can plan an active role in managing their local park in the future. Indeed the development of the master plan and management plans will involve detailed and active involvement of the community to ensure we have a shared vision of the future. We hope to use the national guidance from CABE and CABE Space in the development of these plans.
The Mersey Basin Campaign is a 25-year government backed partnership that brings together local authorities, businesses, voluntary organisations and government agencies to deliver water quality improvements and waterside regeneration throughout the Mersey Basin river system. You can find further information at www.merseybasin.org.uk. (External website**)
CABE Space aims to bring excellence to the design, management and maintenance of parks and public space in our towns and cities. CABE Space works with local authorities and other bodies responsible for public space to help them provide a better service. For more information about their work see www.cabe.org.uk. (External website**)
We are at an early stage of discussion with Groundwork with a view to them establishing a sustainable scheme to develop a local ranger programme, some of the benefits of volunteering might include:
Groundwork's purpose is "to build sustainable communities through joint environmental action". Groundwork achieve this by getting residents, businesses and other local organisations involved in practical projects that improve the quality of life, bring about regeneration and lay the foundations for sustainable development. For those who wish to know a little more about Groundwork, see their national website www.groundwork.org.uk. (External website**)
If we are successful in delivering these projects and meet the milestones agreed with the Government, we will unlock funding for physical projects that will help tackle the natural and built environment.
The proposed physical projects may include:
Town Centre - Public Realm work
Closely linked to the Townscape Heritage Initiative (THI) submission for funding to improve the built heritage of the town, and the strong findings arising from the Glossop Health Check undertaken by the Glossop Town Partnership. Potential investment might include:
Town Centre: Safe and Accessible environment
Flood Protection/Alleviation
Manor Park
Harehills & Glossop Brook environment
Howard Town and Wren Nest Mills
A57 Corridor Improvement Scheme
To ensure the programme of work draws together a broad range of partners and related closely to the wish of the community, as reflected in the market town health check, we are proposing to establish a Glossop Vision Partnership Board.
There will be a huge variety of ways in which the community of Glossop can get involved:
Finally - there are lots of elements that are being developed and drawn together, some things are easier to implement than other, please bear with us, not everything can happen at once.
**Please note: High Peak Borough Council is not responsible for the content of any external websites.