Riverside - Riverside praised for cleaner, greener, safer initiatives

14 December 2009

Social landlord Riverside scooped two awards at Kensington Regeneration’s 10 Years of Success event in Liverpool.

Kensington Regeneration is a community-based partnership set up to run the Liverpool New Deal for Communities initiative. The awards honour the individuals and organisations who have helped create positive change in the area over the lifetime of the programme. The Community Wardens won the award for Homes and Street Champions while the Clean Team won the award for Neighbourhood Management and Development Champion. The Neighbourhood Management Task Group and Riverside’s Assistant Director of Operations Peter Yoh were also highly commended.
Riverside’s Neighbourhood Services Manager Michael Bowles said: “These awards recognise our contribution to making Kensington cleaner, greener and safer. What makes the awards so special is that the nominations came from the general public. It is the people whose lives we are transforming and whose neighbourhoods we are revitalising that have taken the time to put their appreciation to paper.” In the Homes and Street Champion category, the judges were looking for a committed individual or organisation that has supported residents who live in neighbourhoods where significant change is taking place. The judges honoured the wardens after receiving a number of enthusiastic nominations from local people.
According to one nomination, the wardens “make a massive difference to Kensington – not only are they a reassuring presence on the streets, they also look after vulnerable residents and are very popular in the community.” The nominations also highlighted the way the wardens work effectively with the Clean Team on environmental matters and Merseyside Police on community safety issues. In the Neighbourhood Management and Development Champion category, the judges were looking for a dedicated individual or organisation that has made a significant contribution to delivering new facilities or services which meet the needs of local people.
The Clean Team were honoured for providing an invaluable service of clearing up environmental blight throughout Kensington. According to the nominations, the service has “made a major contribution to neighbourhood management and development within Kensington”. The team are “highly regarded by both residents and agencies alike”, not only for cleaning up grotspots, but also for their proactive work in developing and implementing small environmental improvement projects. Examples include the St Sebastian’s Community Garden, Gannock Street Pocket Park and the Holt Road Triangle.

Nominations also singled out Clean Team Manager Michael Bowles for working tirelessly to ensure the team has provided job opportunities for local people and to obtain funding to ensure the service can continue beyond the lifetime of Kensington Regeneration.