Pride of Place Action Group Page 1

Pride of Place Action Group

Thursday 16th

February @ BCHF

Workshop Notes from participants: residents, BCHF staff, Police, BCC Noise Pollution.

1. Review the aim of POP

a. After some discussion the aim proposed for the POP group was:

AIM: to ensure BCHF residents have access to the information and support to confidently

engage and influence the management and development of their local neighbourhood/

property.

To meet this aim, the following, specific objectives were put forward:

i. to provide a network of residents and partners to develop clean and

green community action projects;

ii. to support the development of resident sub-groups for local areas and

specific groups e.g. people living in flats; Upper Horfield walkabout

group etc.

iii. to provide training opportunities to residents on clean and green

issues.

iv. to identify other groups that BCHF POP members can join to pursue

their aims and objectives e.g. Neighbourhood Partnership

Environmental Sub-Groups.

More objectives will be developed by the group as it progresses.

2. What first attracted you to become a member of POP?

a. Litter

b. To report issues and get a quick turnaround

c. To get support from other residents

d. To understand the wider context of issues

e. To ensure residents are able to give feedback to BCHF staff

f. To enable the police to hear directly from residents about general community

safety issues and concerns

g. To link into activities that may be taking place in Horfield and at BCHF – for

those not based in that area – helps to tackle peripherality/isolation.

h. To show the community does care – gives pride in community and home.

i. To learn about the issues and what can be done.

j. To learn about the services of other agencies – helps to provide a stepping

stone between residents and those other services.

k. To have fun and meet people – it is the first step to other things happening in

the area.

l. To raise confidence about getting things done and what we want to get done.

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3. What TWO things should POP continue to do to keep you involved?

a. Develop positive action

b. Be able to report things and get results

c. Being visible – out and about

d. Walkabouts – giving information to other residents/ getting others involved

and get their views.

e. Keep the area clean – dog mess is still a problem

f. To get issues turned around quickly – including about BCHF services.

g. Bring people together, generate dialogue and participate in facilitated

workshops.

h. To be clear about how and who things will be dealt with.

i. Include views form young people – involve them in the school holidays.

j. Keep it enjoyable, friendly and inclusive.

k. Make sure it is about local issues.

l. Hold agencies responsible for the issues raised by the group – don’t allow

their issues to dominate those of residents.

m. ‘Green’ issues are less relevant in the inner city.

n. Embrace the difference between Horfield and other areas – recognising they

have different issues and problems.

4. What do you enjoy least about POP?

a. Diluting what is going on in Horfield to accommodate other areas.

b. We should restrict issues to the area.

c. There are less litter picks (we want more – Upper Horfield).

d. Repetition – if people could send in their issues before the meeting it would

mean BCHF would have time to look into them and give an update at the

meeting – also help to develop the agenda better.

5. What new things should POP do?

a. Have a fixed agenda

b. Use Street Reps more – contact all before meeting to gather information and

conduct some analysis before the meeting – is this a problem in other areas

etc?

c. Get young people involved – reward their participation.

d. Include more details of local services in sign up pack (these are available

online: www.tinyurl.com/bchflocalguide and tenants should have these in

their Tenants’ Handbook – SJL to publicise in reception in case people have

lost theirs).

e. Produce a Good Neighbour Leaflet/Neighbourhood Code for Residents.

f. Develop a separate way of working for those outside of Upper Horfield

involving local Street Reps more.

g. Develop and publicise 6 monthly meetings for those living in flats – separate

from POP but links to it e.g. Flat Pack!

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6. Problems – what problems would you like to analyse at future POP meetings and

develop solutions for?

PROBLEMS (and actions)

1. Dog Fouling in Upper Horfield

• SJL to invite Michael Prince to a future meeting to talk about enforcement asap.

• POP to develop something to address this problem following above meeting.

2. Rubbish and recycling in flats – big problem since May Gurney took over. Can we

work with waste doctors/RIFE?

• Contact Kelly Longdon to request a meeting when they are in post – maybe do as a

Flat Pack problem solving exercise?

3. New, smaller bins – this will cause problems, especially for families with lots of waste

such as nappies, and could lead to an increase in litter and fly-tipping.

• POP to write to BCC to flag up issues with this project?

4. Neighbourhood Forum meetings – We need to encourage POP members to go to

their local meetings and use POP to support them with their local issues e.g. discuss

them at POP and develop ideas with other residents. This way we can ensure the

issues that concern BCHF residents are properly responded to at forum meetings.

• include this as a standing item on POP agenda

• publicise all forthcoming forum meetings

• Identify local issues raised by POP members and help ensure these are taken up at

forum meeting.

• Link to resident action groups where they exist e.g. Upper Horfield, Manor Farm etc.

5. Bulky items left in front gardens

• Publicise the bulky items collection service when doing walkabouts by posting a

leaflet.

6. Other actions discussed to be agreed and developed at POP meetings:

a. Develop a Neighbourhood Code for all BCHF residents.

b. Develop a system to support BCHF residents better with Neighbourhood

Forum meetings

c. Find out how many places BCHF residents can have on BCC Neighbourhood

Environmental Sub-Group meetings and recruit POP members to attend.

d. Bring back Upper Horfield monthly walkabouts (start after March POP

meeting at 2:30pm) and Big Tidy Up (poss. Tues 24th

April – whole day event)

e. Get a programme of presentations from different service providers to talk at

POP meetings e.g. Avon Fire and Enforcement and develop a fixed agenda.

f. Flat Pack group – BCHF to develop this and get a first meeting by April 2012.

g. Produce Upper Horfield Considerate Parking leaflet for use in home zones.

Date of next BCHF POP meeting: Thursday 15th

March at 12 noon. RSVP.

Upper Horfield Walkabout follows at 2:30pm.

Upper Horfield residents: please see enclosed note from Upper Horfield RAG meeting which

will be useful if you are planning to go to the next Horfield Neighbourhood Forum on

Thursday 8th

March at 7pm. Venue: Horfield Methodist Church, Churchways Avenue where

there will be a special focus on traffic and highways. Find out about your Neighbourhood

Forum Meeting at: http://www.bristolpartnership.org/neighbourhood-partnerships