The St Luke’s Tenants and Residents Association is run by residents, for residents. We cover the area from Elland Road to Dewsbury Road, and from the M621 to Holbeck cemetery (so places like the Disraelis, Bismarcks, Northcotes, Normantons, Malverns and Bartons). We organise community events, run meetings to enable local people to report issues to the Council, and try to find ways to improve our area.
Meetings are held at St Luke’s Church, Malvern Road, LS11 8BD, and start at 6:30pm, everyone is welcome! Meetings are on the third Thursday of the month, here are the dates for 2019:
- Thursday 17 January
- Thursday 21 February
- Thursday 21 March
- Thursday 18 April
- Thursday 16 May
- Thursday 20 June
- Thursday 18 July
August break for summer - Thursday 19 September (annual general meeting)
- Thursday 17 October
- Thursday 21 November
December break for Xmas
Back in April, we were glad to participate in a huge local litter-pick that started at the Church and worked through our area (pictured).
In August, we were able to make the most of the amazing weather to run our first funday at St Luke’s church, organised by our excellent treasurer, Michelle. Local residents got to meet snakes, learn circus skills, eat samosas, and do origami.
In September, we welcomed a new chair onto our committee, Amanda Walker.
Meanwhile, we’ve kept up our regular meetings. A lot of the issues we are working there on have been problems in this part of town for years: speeding, match-day parking, fly-tipping, off-road motorbikes, anti-social behaviour from drug-users, and on-street sex-work. These problems need continual effort, and we are very grateful to the residents, council officers, police, and councillors who have been tackling them alongside the TARA committee. Through our meetings, residents have fed a lot of information to the Council and police on all these problems, helping us get electronic speed signs, better enforcement of parking rules on matchdays, prosecutions of fly-tippers, and recognition from the police of issues with drugs.
Both through our regular meetings and by sending representatives to the Holbeck Managed Zone Reference Group, we’ve been working alongside many other local people to reduce the impact of on-street sex-work in our area. For problems concerning on-street sex work overspilling from the managed sex-work zone, remember that the police have a dedicated phone number: 07534 309568.
The police always tell us that their work these days is driven by data: if people in Alwoodley are better at reporting crime and anti-social behaviour than us, then it’s Alwoodley that will get the police attention. So do keep reporting! The police assure us that although there may not be immediate action, the intelligence they gather does eventually make a big difference.
We’ve also been chipping away at improving local public spaces. Football posts have been erected on Normanton Green, and we’re working with the local councillors to get more play facilities there. We’ve liaised with the charity Sustrans to consider improving pedestrian/bike options around the Beeston Broncos playing fields, with and Groundwork about improving the grass at the crossroads of Beeston Road and Malvern Road. And we’ve started what will be a slow but eventually worthwhile process to improve pedestrian paths between the Bismarcks and Dewsbury Road.
Our work wouldn’t be possible without St Luke’s Church letting us use its space for free, and otherwise being very supportive: thanks guys!
To join our Facebook group, head to: www.facebook.com/groups/1098937753468157
For minutes of previous meetings, see: tinyurl.com/om9zx8w
This post was written by Alaric Hall.
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A very well run group, working with us Cllrs and other agencies to make a difference.