Staff from Castles & Coasts Housing Association (CCHA) have joined forces with residents and other partner organisations, to help tackle fly tipping and clean up the local area.
Today, 4th March, staff were joined by Councillor Claire Rowntree, Deputy Leader of Sunderland City Council and residents from Caldew Court and Gelt Crescent, to help tidy up the area.
Fly tipping is seen as an escalating issue in Hetton-le-Hole, with hundreds of reports made to Sunderland City Council in 2021, which prompted the Council to make tackling fly tipping a key priority.
CCHA own a number of homes on Caldew Court and Gelt Crescent and has also received a number of complaints from residents, in relation to fly tipping and litter spoiling the local area.
This has led to CCHA organising a community tidy up day, which included a free skip for residents to dispose of any waste and tidying up some of the worst affected greenspaces.
Councillor Claire Rowntree, Deputy Leader of Sunderland City Council and Labour Councillor for Hetton Ward, said: “Fly tipping has plagued communities across the city, over the past 12 months, which is why we’ve made tackling the issue a key priority in our People’s Manifesto, which was itself shaped by the views of thousands of residents who identified fly tipping as a key concern.
“This pledge to tidy up our communities and make Sunderland a cleaner, greener city will be underpinned by an increased CCTV presence across our communities and increasing maximum penalties to catch and deter perpetrators.
“Another key focus for us as a Council will be increasingly working with like minded organisations operating in our communities - such as CCHA - to ensure we’re doing everything within our power to tackle anti-social behaviour and to improve the living conditions of residents across the city.”
Jonathan Proctor, Lettings & Neighbourhoods Manager at CCHA, said: “As a housing association managing over 7,000 homes across the North of England, we work hard to ensure that our communities are clean, green places with outdoor areas that residents can enjoy.
“Fly tipping is a blight on communities, and areas across Hetton-le-Hole have been impacted by this problem in recent years. We are delighted to be working collaboratively with the Local Authority in the area, our residents and like minded community organisations, to help clean up our neighbourhoods and pro-actively address this issue.”