Your Find out what’s been going on in your area • Summer 2016 Neighbourhood Reddish Brinnington Woodley The Heatons Bredbury Compstall Lancashire Hill Town Edgeley Gatley Centre East Adswood Offerton Marple Cheadle Hazel Grove High Heald Lane Green West Bramhall www.stockporthomes.org /StockportHomes @StockportHomes Transforming Lives Your Neighbourhood - Summer 2016 1 Welcome to the latest edition of Your Neighbourhood Since the last edition of Your parking on grass verges and to improve the appearance of the area; Neighbourhood, Stockport Homes has continued to to make our • The upgrade of the communal kitchen at the Brereton Court sheltered housing scheme to communities better places to live. help residents hold a lunch club; and We’re pleased to • The effective use of the new Anti-Social announce the opening of Behaviour ‘Tools and Powers’ to address issues a new food pantry, ‘Pantry from garden conditions and dog fouling to at Number 5’, based on anti-social behaviour and nuisance in our Cuddington Crescent, communities. which is for residents in Bridgehall and Adswood. ‘Pantry at Number 5’ In June, Stockport Homes held a successful and joins the existing food pantries at Lancashire Hill, well attended summer ‘Community Count’ event. Bridgehall and Mottram Street, and for just £2.50 Along with the usual fun activities for families, per week, members receive 10 food items. the Neighbourhood Investment Budget provided £32,000 of funding to a range of community groups The pantries also offer volunteering opportunities to and projects throughout the Borough. Don’t forget anyone who is interested in developing their skills that there are a range of activities for all ages and experience, to find out more about your local taking place over the summer - look out for further pantry, please contact your area team or visit details on the website. www.stockporthomes.org There is still some funding available to community This edition includes updates on a range of groups, if you would like to discuss a bid, please activities recently undertaken with partners to contact your area team. improve the local community, including: Stockport Homes remains committed to working in • Working with ‘Transport for Greater Manchester’ partnership with customers to make improvements to install twenty lockable bike shelters at in our neighbourhoods. The Neighbourhood Lancashire Hill. Investment Budget gives customers the opportunity to suggest improvements to the local • The development of a children’s play area at community and communal areas. If you have any Mottram Street suggestions for improvements, please contact your • The installation of new bollards on area team. Northumberland Road, Brinnington, to deter East Area Pages 4 - 11 West Area Pages 12 - 16 Rebecca Cullen Maria Lindars East Area Housing Manager West Area Housing Manager East Area Housing Office, West Area Housing Office, 1 Berwick Parade, Bridgehall Community Centre, Northumberland Road, Siddington Avenue, Brinnington, Stockport SK5 8LQ Stockport SK3 8NR 0161 474 4372 07624 808 314 0161 474 4371 07624 808 315 [email protected] [email protected] 2 Your Neighbourhood - Summer 2016 Block Support Officers Vijay Chauhan is the new Block Support Officer for the Mottram Street Area. Having worked at Stockport Homes for several years, Vijay has lots of experience, and will be working alongside Beverley Smith in the west area and Lynne Dunleavy in the east. He will be in the area every day, to offer help and support with any issues. KeirPositive Taylor is the Pre-Tenancy Start Officer at Stockport Homes and holds ‘Pre-Tenancy Workshops’ across Stockport. These workshops are useful for people wishing to take up a tenancy. If you are looking to register for accommodation and would like to learn about the rights and responsibilities of running a home, in an informal and relaxed atmosphere, please contact Kier on 0161 474 3772 for more information. Fancy a fresh start? Are you looking for a job? Maybe you have been out of work for a while and need some help or advice. You can join us at our weekly job club, the team can help you with guidance around volunteering, job search and interview preparation. The Job Club is every Friday from 10.00am-3.00pm at First House in Brinnington and everyone is welcome. Over 150 Stockport residents and local community organisations joined the ‘Community Count’ event in June – the popular day included a range of activities for adults and children including football, training and planting along with health advice sessions. During the event, the community groups that had been successful in bidding for funding were presented with their cheques, and we are looking forward to hearing about the differences this will make in the community. Your NeighbourhoodYour Neighbourhood - Summer - Summer 2016 2016 3 East area There is a lack of facilities for young children on the estate. A new play area has been built on the Mottram Street estate which was Residents would like officially opened to see a greater police on 25 June. presence on the estate. The police do regular patrols of the estate and now have use of a private room in the foyer of Millbrook Towers. They are available to discuss any concerns residents may have in confidence. The residents group would like to extend the kitchen area in Ratcliffe Towers for a Millbrook café coffee morning. External funding was secured and, in June, work was completed to extend the kitchen area. Residents New cigarettes disposal bins and visitors have been installed outside are smoking the entrance to all the in the block blocks with new signage and dropping reminding people not cigarette ends to smoke in the block. at the front We have already seen an entrances. improvement. The books in the A new lockable bookcase has been lounge at Mottram provided for Mottram Towers and Towers are not a book club was set up to enable organised or residents to borrow books and donate properly displayed. books for other residents to enjoy. 4 Contact us on: 0161 474 4372 [email protected] You said We did Insufficient spaces in the car Area covered: parks at Mottram Street estate, Lincoln Towers, Millbrook Towers, Mottram Towers and Ratcliffe Towers, Mottram and non-residents taking spaces. Street Estate low rise Neighbourhood Housing Officer: Abbie Cheetham In partnership with the police, a clear up of the car parks has been completed. Anti-Social Behaviour Officer: The abandoned vehicles have been Sara Maw removed and a new registration scheme has been launched - which only allows Block Support Officer: registered vehicles into the car park. Vijay Chauhan This seems to be working really well. A clean up event was arranged on the estate where skips were provided to allow tenants to get rid of their bulky Some residents waste. To deter fly tipping, tenants found to be dumping are dumping items have been recharged for the cost of removal. bulky waste in the communal areas on the Mottram Street estate. Two events have been held that were both well attended, one at Easter and the event in June launched the new play park. We would like to see more events for the children on the estate. The low rise Investments works blocks on the have been completed estate are in need on the low rise blocks, of refurbishment. adding new fascia’s and brand new windows and doors. A tenant on the estate is causing a noise nuisance which is having a An injunction and noise abatement major impact on the community. notice was successfully secured, which resulted in all equipment causing the noise to be confiscated. Contact us on: 0161 474 43714372 [email protected]@stockporthomes.org 5 East area The Offerton estate is Area covered: looking untidy due to litter. Offerton Estate and Victoria Park Estate including Voewood House and Beaver House On 13 April children from the Offerton Youth Group and the Friends Of Offerton, in Neighbourhood Housing Officer: Rob Mitchell partnership with Stockport Homes, took part in an estate litter pick filling 10 bin bags Anti-Social Behaviour Officer: of rubbish from around the Community Diona Millerchip Centre and Cow Lane alone! We are looking forward to doing a monthly community action event with the youth club who are There is a need to raise awareness of keen to improve their environment. Loan Sharking on the Offerton Estate. Some residents are dumping bulky waste in the communal Loan Shark Awareness areas on the Offerton estate. Week took place the week of 1 February on the Offerton estate. On 8 March a clean-up day All partners including took place on the Offerton the Council, the estate in conjunction with Illegal Money Lending local residents. A skip was Team and Police came filled and many residents together to launch ‘Stop disposed of unwanted items. The Loan Shark’ Charter. New recycling bins are required at Hexham Close to make recycling easier. New recycling facilities and access gates, to make bin collection easier, have been installed at Hexham Close flats to assist with the correct disposal and collection of rubbish and to reduce the number of bin bags put out for collection. Residents and visitors to New signage has been fitted to the front Victoria Park are smoking in the of each block displaying that no dogs or blocks and dropping cigarette smoking are allowed in the communal areas. ends at the front entrances. We are seeing an improvement already. Tenants at Victoria Park Residents from Victoria Park have joined together are interested in setting to create a small residents group. The new group up a residents group. has met several times and is being supported by Stockport Homes to increase attendance.