Citizens' Panel Newsletter

Issue 9: Summer 2010

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In this Newsletter:

• Tameside in Bloom
• General Crime
• Anti-Social Behaviour
• Criminal Justice
• Fire Service
• You & Your Community
• Helping Out

‘Welcome!’

This is the latest Citizens’ Panel update where we tell you the results from our Summer 2010 survey. Thanks so much to all of you who took the time to fill in the questionnaires and send them back to us. The results are really helping us to make informed decisions when planning and developing services across the Council.

Tameside is officially the blooming best!

Tameside’s highly impressive record of achievement in Britain in Bloom has blossomed into national success. Building on our five year legacy of being awarded best large city in the North West, Tameside has now been named the national champion in the city category at the 2010 awards.

This should come as no surprise when looking at the results from our recent Citizens’ Panel survey. The overwhelming majority of you (93%) have heard of Tameside in Bloom, and an amazing 98% of you think the floral displays improve the appearance of the borough. Seven in ten (71%) of you also agree the displays make you feel more positive about where you live.

We want to improve these results each year by maintaining the high quality of our displays and by being as innovative as possible to introduce floral displays in heavily built up areas. We also want to continue to support local communities to enhance their own areas and to enter the North West in Bloom competition in their own right.

If you want to find out more about Tameside in Bloom please visit www.tameside.gov.uk/inbloom or contact Jessica Brooks on 0161 303 8547.

Feeling Safe in Tameside

The Summer 2010 Citizens’ Panel results show the majority of you feel safe when out and about in Tameside.

Positively, 97% of you feel safe in your local neighbourhood and 95% of you in your local town centre when out during the day. After dark, two-thirds (65%) of you feel safe when out in your local neighbourhood, and two-in-five (41%) when out in your local town centre. Measures such as Operation Snowstorm are helping us to tackle crime in our local town centres to make you feel even safer.

We are also pleased to report that significantly fewer of you feel the crime rate has risen in Tameside over the past two years - 12% less than in 2009!

Your answers are crucial in helping to improve feelings of safety in Tameside and will help direct initiatives by the police and partner organisations to further reduce crime.

Anti-Social Behaviour tackled!

Perceptions of anti-social behaviour in the borough have seen a massive drop compared to Summer 2009. The percentages of you who feel the following types of anti-social behaviour are a problem in your local area have fallen significantly:

• People not treating each other with respect and consideration – down 30%
• People using or dealing drugs – down 19%
• Teenagers hanging around on the street – down 15%
• Vandalism, graffiti and other deliberate damage to property or vehicles – down 14%
• People being drunk or rowdy in public places – down 13%

As a result of your views, a number of new measures aimed at improving safety in our communities have been introduced in recent months. The Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership has developed a new Anti-Social Behaviour Charter in partnership with local residents, the police and victim support groups. The charter includes action to tackle anti-social behaviour and details of the support available. Measures such as alley-gating, new Home Watch groups and graffiti removal are also continuing.

Is Justice Served?

Your responses to the Summer Citizens’ Panel show improvements in what you think about the fairness and effectiveness of the Criminal Justice System since 2009.

The proportion of Panel members who agree the Criminal Justice System is effective has risen by 6% this year, whilst half of you (48%) agree the system is fair, up from 43% in 2009.

Respondents to the Summer 2010 survey thought the Criminal Justice System was most fair in ‘treating those who have been accused of a crime as innocent until proven guilty’ (71%) and ‘not discriminating against particular groups or individuals’ (63%).

Are You Fire Aware?

Your responses are helping the Fire Service to reduce fire risks in the home and raise awareness of its life saving campaigns.

Over 70% of you are aware of the Fire Service’s safety messages, whilst three-quarters (76%) know about the free Home Fire Risk Assessment scheme offered by Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue service. Over nine out of ten (92%) of you have a working fire alarm in your home, in line with the figure from 2009.
Home Fire Risk Assessments are available free to all Tameside residents. Trained personnel will provide advice specific to your property and needs, and will fit smoke detectors free of charge. For more information, telephone 0800 555 815 or e-mail e40amberwatch@manchesterfire.gov.uk.

Tameside’s Communities Working Together

The results of the latest Citizens’ Panel survey show that Tameside’s communities remain strong. In total, 59% of you agree that your neighbourhood is one where people from different backgrounds get on well together.

In June this year, Tameside’s Culture and Community Cohesion Partnership invited individuals and community groups from across the borough to come together to bid for a total of £50,000 worth of funds in a Participatory Budgeting event. Successful bidders used the funds to deliver projects which demonstrate innovation and good practice in the area of culture and community cohesion. This is just one example of the activity taking place in Tameside to increase the numbers of residents who feel they get on well together. Keep a look out for similar events in the future!

Helping out in all seasons

Back in Winter 2009, we asked you how much unpaid help you had given over the last twelve months. To find out whether the time of year affects the numbers of you who volunteer, we also included a question about helping out in the Summer 2010 Citizens’ Panel survey.

In total, 42% of you who responded to the most recent survey have given unpaid help in the last 12 months. This is in line with the Winter 2009 figure. Of those of you who have given unpaid help in the last year, 51% have done so at least once a week and a further 27% at least once a month.

Your input has supported the development of a new Volunteering Strategy for Tameside which sets out our vision to increase the level of volunteering in the borough. To find out more about the opportunities available for you to help out contact Tameside Volunteer Centre on 0161 339 2345 or visit www.tamesidevb.org.uk