Residents create mural to brighten up Beeston binyard

 

Local residents have created a huge mural to improve the look of a South Leeds neighbourhood.

Leeds Fed mural
Local graffiti artist Jake Gardiner (centre) with local resident Algiment Szlauzys and Gohar Khan from South Leeds Community Alliance.

 

The colourful 5 metre by 1.2 metre artwork was made to brighten up an unsightly bin store in Trentham Row, Beeston.

It was arranged by Leeds Federated Housing Association (Leeds Fed) after local people expressed an interest in tidying up the area. Leeds-based graffiti artist, Jake Gardiner, who runs community art workshops, was on hand to oversee the funky streetscape design.

The mural was painted at a community event with other fun activities for families run by Leeds Fed to launch its Local Offer for Beeston and Holbeck – a plan of what Leeds Fed will to improve the neighbourhood.

The Local Offer was developed after Leeds Fed visited 200 residents in Beeston and Holbeck over 12 months to talk to them about their homes, their communities and their hopes and concerns for the future. As part of these conversations concerns about rubbish and litter in the area were raised.

Catherine Nelson, Neighbourhood Initiatives Co-ordinator at Leeds Fed, said:

“We want to inspire and empower residents to get involved and work with us to improve local neighbourhoods across the city. Over the next five years, Leeds Fed plans to invest £2million in local communities through its Social Investment programme to bring real improvements.”

“The bin stores were brought to our attention by people living in the area who wanted to make the area look better. The mural looks fantastic and is a great example of what we can achieve by working together with residents in local communities.”

Local Offers will also soon be launched for Hunslet, East Leeds – including Cross Green, Lincoln Green and Halton Moor, Hyde Park and Woodhouse, Armley and Bramley.

They have been developed as part of Leeds Fed’s aspiration to ‘Build Futures Together’.