Sometimes it's the little things!

I don't think I'll forget last week in a hurry! Combination of the ipad malarkey, our new recycling trial (which I'm very excited about and will go into detail about next week if I get chance) and the delights of wheelie bins on streets have all had me talking to Radio Leicester and the Leicester Mercury far more than normal.

These were both big news items and led to important and interesting discussions but they're not the reason I won't forget this week.  My reason is this:

Now if you're thinking, 'not another bin post', then don't worry it's not.  This is, for me, a special bin for what it represents. It represents involvement, community and starting to see a vision through. To explain I need to go back a few months.

I chaired a Westcotes Ward Community meeting in April at the East West Community Centre, I can't have chaired it very well as we finished at 9.40pm rather than the prescribed 9pm but we had a really lively and in-depth discussion about some of the key issues in our area; litter, graffiti, parks and parking.

For those who don't know or haven't had the chance to get along,Ward Meetings are (roughly) every quarter in every ward in the City.  They are held in the ward, chaired by a local Councillor, and are open to everyone living or working locally.  The Police and a variety of other local services are available to present information and answer questions on things affecting the local area. A ward action plan is drawn up by working with residents at these meetings and a budget provided to tackle local problems and/or support local groups. 

We are occasionally accused of Ward meetings being an opportunity for 'the usual suspects' to come along and complain and I know that, when that happens (as it has done occasionally for us), people are put off and don't want to get involved. This is exactly what we do not want to happen with Ward Meetings, so I was really chuffed that we had a number of new people in attendance who were willing to speak up.

At the meeting we agreed to pay out of our ward budget to; put Bollards and cycle racks on Narborough Road (this has been delayed to co-incide with the pavements being re-done in January), put bins along the Great Central Way and buy Community Notice Boards. All important and popular solutions to locally raised problems.

We then agreed to one additional bid. During the discussions around litter one resident attending for the first time had spoken about problems with people waiting at the Bus Stop outside her house and putting their rubbish in her hedge/garden. So following a suggestion from the floor we agreed to pay for a bin next to the bus stop. Following a few technical/administration hitches the bin was put in this week. That bin is pictured above and the resident has already emailed to say how pleased she is.

Being able to come along, have an open discussion about issues that really matter to local residents and being able to fund straight forward practical solutions to them, that's the vision to engage, involve and empower our communities, the bin is a symbol for me of it really starting to happen!

So for other people the big stories of the week may be most important but for me the little things (and what they signify) are what make me want to carry on doing this role.