Redbridge Council wins national Community Engagement award for inspiring social action

Redbridge Council beat competition from around the country to win a top national award for its community engagement work, from leading environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy.

The much-coveted Community Engagement award was won by the borough’s Neighbourhood Engagement and Education team at the charity’s recent Network Awards ceremony.

Out of around a hundred entries the environmental charity receives each year, just three local authorities are shortlisted in each of the 8 award categories, providing tough competition.

Every year the high-profile environmental awards celebrate activities that empower people to improve their local environment, and this year Redbridge’s Neighbourhood Engagement and Education team took centre stage for inspiring social action among residents.

The award win gave recognition to the Team’s efforts in delivering community based eco-projects that support local people to live more sustainably; take pride in their neighbourhood and help make the borough a cleaner and greener place to live.

Among some of the successful social action projects the team have delivered and supported are:

• Waste reduction and recycling campaigns, including the introduction of a doorstep clothing collection service to find homes for clothes people no longer use.
• Play Streets - A green scheme enabling local people to close off their road to traffic for a few hours a month so that neighbours, children, and families can socialise and play out together on the street safely.
• Redbridge Climate Forums - Sessions that bring together local people passionate about climate change work. The forums provide a regular opportunity for groups and individuals to network, share ideas and promote their eco-projects and green work in the borough, as well as identify opportunities to work together with the council.
• Community Planting Days - Over the last few years the team have been running planting days that have attracted hundreds of local people to get involved in sprucing up their neighbourhoods with flowers and plants to make the area more attractive and boost local biodiversity.
• Food Waste reduction – The team regularly engage in campaigns and workshops to support local people with reducing food waste in the borough.
• Practical money saving advice at cost of living support events for local people.
• Partnership work with schools to support and raise awareness of green issues local school children can get involved with.
• Tree Pit Adoption – A green scheme encouraging local people to adopt trees on their street and plant wildflower seeds at the soil base of the tree, known as the tree pit, to help local wildlife thrive and make neighbourhoods attractive and colourful.

Cabinet Member for Environment and Sustainability, Cllr Jo Blackman said: “The council’s engagement with residents and community groups is critical to making our borough safer, cleaner and greener. The national award is testament to the quality of our work across the borough with our local communities. Congratulations to our officers on this well deserved award.”

To find out more about how to get involved go to: https://www.redbridge.gov.uk/our-streets/

The Keep Britain Tidy Network Conference and Awards is dedicated to recognising and promoting excellence in local environmental initiatives and brings together more than 150 influential decision-makers from local authorities across England.

Keep Britain Tidy Chief Executive Allison Ogden-Newton OBE said: “Our Network Awards celebrate the most innovative campaigns and solutions developed by local authorities to tackle issues like litter, fly-tipping and dog fouling, often with the communities they serve. Our hope is that these fantastic initiatives will inspire others across the country to do the same.”

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Notes to editors

Keep Britain Tidy is a leading environmental charity, setting the standard for the management of parks and beaches, and inspiring people to be litter-free, to waste less and live more sustainably. They run campaigns and programmes including the Great British Spring Clean, Eco-Schools, Love Parks Week, Eco-Schools, the Green Flag Award for parks and green spaces and the Blue Flag/ Seaside Awards for beaches. To find out more about Keep Britain Tidy visit: www.keepbritaintidy.org.