National award for Coventry scheme

Care 4 Your Area is a partnership project including social landlords Whitefriars and Midland Heart that was originally piloted with around 200 houses in the Paradise area of Foleshill.

It looked to remove potential hazards and obstructions to pedestrians to make life easier for the visually impaired, disabled and parents with pushchairs.

The project has been a success, with fly-tipping reduced by 80 per cent, wheelie bins left on the street down by 98 per cent and inspections of street cleanliness improving significantly.

Care 4 Your Area has proved such a success it has been extended to cover all of the Paradise area and potentially to other areas of the city with a perceived problem.

The project has now been recognised at the 2012 Keep Britain Tidy Network Awards, where it won the Changing Behaviour Award.

Joy Adams, Coventry City Council's Environment and Housing Enforcement Manager, said the award was recognition of the partnership approach of the scheme.

She said: "The project started as the result of complaints and concerns raised by residents.

"Partner agencies work with residents to ensure streets are cleaner and safer by keeping them free of obstructions such as wheelie bins, refuse bags, fly-tipped waste and overhanging hedges, meaning the streets can be cleaned more easily.

"Bins that are left out can help create a bad appearance and often prevents street cleaners from doing their jobs and this project is very much about education and informing people about why it is important to help keep the street where they live litter free."

Phil Barton, Chief Executive of Keep Britain Tidy, added: "Coventry City Council is a worthy winner of what was an exceptionally strong category.

"We were delighted to hear how Coventry's Care 4 Your Area project has led to improvements in resident satisfaction and cleaner streets.

"A key aim of the Keep Britain Tidy Network is for residents, land managers and other organisations to work together to improve the quality of neighbourhoods and this initiative is an excellent example of what can be achieved."

*Pictured: (Left to right) Manny Kawooya, from Coventry City Council's Neighbourhood Action, Elaine Shirley, from Midland Heart Housing Association, Neighbourhood Wardens Tom Carter and Caroline Hawley, Neighbourhood Enforcement Officer Robin Ginters and Environment and Housing Enforcement Manager Joy Adams with the award.