Green Issues

St Georges Community Housing has spent £168,000 on ‘green’ improvements across Basildon’s estates including a community garden for local children to grow their own plants and flowers.

The funding, which has been allocated for environmental and estate improvement works, has been spent on general groundwork in the area including clearing rubbish, pruning trees and installing bollards to protect grassed areas. The Basildon ALMO has also revamped a football pitch and children’s playground to encourage community cohesion and boost tenants’ sense of pride in their local area.

To kick-off the initiative St Georges held a rubbish amnesty to encourage residents to dispose of unwanted items in an environmentally friendly way rather than dumping them on verges and in gardens.

The community garden, in Stagden Cross, has been one of the most successful initiatives with ten local children taking complete responsibility for maintaining the flower beds. St Georges Community Housing supplied the youngsters with watering cans, trowels and kneeling pads while Basildon Council’s Parks Officer Terry Simmons taught them the gardening basics.

Commenting on the work, which followed detailed consultation with tenants on the improvements they would like made, Steve Shynn, interim chief executive said: “The work carried out in Stagden Cross has not only revamped the whole area, giving it a fresh new look, but also developed important social links between tenants who now have attractive communal areas in their community in which to meet and interact. The garden in particular is very popular with the local children who are taking great pride in maintaining it which is fantastic to see.”

Shynn said that the project, the result of the combined efforts of Community Warden Steve Doyle and PCSO Dean Chesterman, was a great example of successful partnership working between St Georges Community Housing and Essex Police.
“The improvements have also strengthened the relationships across the community. Many residents now know our staff by name which encourages them to come forward with their housing needs or simply for help and advice.”