Stopping the rot
Lee Cole looks at why we need a stronger voice to stop Blackbird Leys being overlooked when it comes to youth provision, housing and parking
Prior to the May 2002 election the IWCA spoke to over a thousand residents as part of our door-to-door survey. The results demonstrated the level of concern about crime and antisocial behaviour, lack of facilities and youth provision, and in some parts of the estate, parking problems.
However, it is only since the election of an IWCA councillor, with the resulting increase in residents coming to us for help and advice, that we have started to uncover the full scale of the housing problems on Blackbird Leys.
While housing association tenants do sometimes have problems getting their landlords to fulfil their obligations, it is with council house dwellers that we most often come across major repair and maintenance issues. In fact the more we have seen of the way in which the council operates in regard to Blackbird Leys tenants, the more the system appears rotten to the core.
It is hard to know when the rot set in, but with Labour in control of Oxford City Council for 22 out of the last 24 years it is difficult for it to evade full responsibility for the current situation.
Unfortunately, the indefensible cutting of the tenants repairs service last year by the Labour council suggests it has no intention of improving this situation.
Apart from the poor state of many properties, the problems tenants face are often compounded by the contemptuous and unhelpful attitude of personnel at the Blackbird Leys housing office and Oxford Building Solutions (OBS).
While the high turnover of staff indicates that there are deeper problems of funding and organisation within the council’s housing department, the way tenants are treated by some officers suggests they and their political masters have come to regard them as second-class citizens.
This situation needs to be turned around. Apart from simply being unacceptable, treating residents in this way is not very efficient either. Most people understand that there is a lack of resources for council housing—mainly due to the New Labour government’s decision to stick with the Tory policy of running it down—but fobbing off anxious tenants with excuses is at best a quick fix and does nothing to reduce the workload in the longer term.
One of the IWCA’s priorities, following the election on 10 June, will be to demand an inquiry into the organisation and working of Oxford Building Solutions in the light of its poor record in the eyes of residents.
Youth facilities
The recent ‘Your Point of View’ survey we conducted on Blackbird Leys showed that lack of youth provision is still a major concern for a lot of people. The absence of adequate facilities is probably also one of the reasons for the increase in complaints about rowdy behaviour by teenagers and younger kids.
While it is the Tory and Lib-Dem-controlled Oxfordshire County Council that is largely responsible for this state of affairs—according to figures for 1999-2000 the county council’s spending per head on youth provision came 132nd out of 136 local authorities—the New Labour government also bears responsibility for this chronic underfunding.
The IWCA believes that all the councillors for this area should be protesting about the shortage of resources for this important service. Unfortunately for everyone on the estate, Cllrs Val Smith, Pat Stannard and Molly Florey haven’t lifted a finger to highlight this issue.
Parking
The shortage of safe and convenient parking spaces is another significant concern for residents on certain parts of the estate. This problem has often been compounded, or even created, by the actions of the council. Because residents’ views are consistently ignored, the council has, in some instances, introduced measures which only a handful have asked for—against the wishes of the vast majority.
As part of our attempts to address the parking issues on the estate, the IWCA carried out an extensive survey of Pegasus Road residents to determine their opinions and wishes on parking. Unfortunately, despite clear views emerging from the survey it has proved impossible to get the Labour councillors on the Area Committee to take the issue seriously.
First we were told the requested improvements would be the responsibility of the county council then, after sending them a report on the situation, we were told it would need to go back to the city council. In the meantime the Labour councillors have been more than happy to let the matter go on the back burner.
As with other issues, more IWCA councillors representing Blackbird Leys are desperately needed in order to push the measures that residents have clearly indicated they want, through the area committee and ultimately the council.
Leys Independent, issue 22, April 2004
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