Salford council has launched a 'day of action' taskforce in the Irlams o' th' Height area to clean up fly-tipping, graffiti and dirty alleyways, with the initiative set to be rolled out to other areas if successful.
The Clarendon area of the city has been blighted by rubbish and unloved streets, with Clarendon Recreation Ground a particular hotspot. Upturned shopping trollies, old furniture, nappies and overgrown weeds have been notable sights over the green space.
Mayor blames austerity for neglect
City mayor Paul Dennett said the spot was due to be spruced up years ago until change in legislation, delays in building and the changing of developers set plans back. He believes years of austerity and underfunded local authorities are the main reasons for the degradation of places like Clarendon Rec.
He said: "We've lost £245m from austerity in cuts and, inevitably, that has an impact on how much the council has been able to spend on its street scene, parks and green spaces. But we're here today with the members of staff who work in both those service areas and we're running this day of action."
"Here in Irlams o' th' Height, we've seen residents engage with the skips that we're putting on, we're going round jet washing bins, we're cleaning street signs. Behind me here we're literally cleaning an alley gateway - and alleyways in Salford have become a real sort of hotspot for fly-tipping and littering."
Broken windows theory and the taskforce
Lead member for neighbourhoods, environment and community safety, Coun Barbara Bentham, described how the Clarendon area fell foul of the broken windows theory. This is where one visible sign of neglect leads to others thinking it's okay to drop litter because the area looks bad anyway.
This is why the council's 'Love where you live' team has been driving forward a taskforce to show locals they are taking action.
Mr Dennett added: "They've done an amazing job strimming and removing all the weeds, removing all the litter and just making the community and the neighbourhoods feel like a special place again. If we can demonstrate and work with the community to show that we take the cleanliness of our streets and our communities seriously, that will then have a positive impact on people's behaviour and their likelihood to drop litter or fly tip."
"So we're hoping for great things here."
Residents react to the clean-up
During torrential rain, the team could be seen literally wiping dirt from the pavements, piling rubbish in skips and chiselling moss off bollards.
Local resident Lindsay Rheade said: "It will encourage people, especially with initiatives like this. You know, the rubbish has been in my backyard for a while, with the intention of going to the tip, but it's getting the time."
"It will get done eventually, but this is like a Christmas gift. We dismantled a chair, so that was in the front garden ready to go, but it's about getting the time to take it away."
"Stuff like this is excellent, it's brilliant."
This wasn't the response locals gave when they spoke to the Manchester Evening News about Clarendon Rec earlier this month. Many around there felt the park, which once boasted a generous play area, astroturf and a basketball court, had been 'left to rot'.
"It's just shocking," Graham Pollitt, 69, told the M.E.N previously. "Everything is derelict around here."
"There's buildings in the middle of the park that have been left to rot, and the burnt out old leisure centre. The state of everything encourages [fly-tipping] and anti-social behaviour."
"When it opened the kids used to play here, but I wouldn't let them run around in here now."
Why action is only happening now
The large park off Liverpool Street is supposed to serve families, but it was largely empty through summer due to its deteriorating sports facilities and general unpleasant environment.
When quizzed about why the council is only taking action to sort public spaces now, Mr Dennett said: "So Clarendon Rec for me is a specific example because Clarendon and the regeneration of Clarendon, which included the area where the leisure centre was, has been tragically subject to arson."
"We're in the process of rebuilding a new one. But also part of that is about the park itself and the regeneration of the park."
"So had it not been for the tragic fire at Grenfell Tower and then what transpired after that around the building safety, fire safety, national crisis, we would have been well on with building those new homes, regenerating the park and regenerating that whole area of Clarendon off Churchill Way."
"So, you know, it's really unfortunate that the time it's taken to refinance and do all of the work for the high rise blocks. It has really derailed us making progress with that regeneration in Clarendon."
"We would have moved on that much sooner had it not been for austerity. You know, the cuts have had a massive impact on this agenda in the city of Salford and it's forced the council to choose where it spends its resources and how it prioritises."
"And unfortunately, that means not everything will be done probably how we would like it to be done and as quick as we'd like it to be done."
Developer Lovell had promised to 'transform' the park as part of a huge housing development in the area. Bosses are in the middle of creating a new neighbourhood called 'Phoenix Quarter', featuring 485 new homes between Churchill Way and Liverpool Street.
As part of its application, they pledged to re-model the park with new play spaces, a skate park, and allotments. As for the 'day of action' team, there is hope they will continue to clean up the streets of Salford over the coming months.
