Fifteen new community safety wardens who will soon be patrolling the streets to help keep Calderdale safe, clean and green have started their training today (Monday 2 October).
Calderdale Council has increased the number of its wardens to provide a more visible presence in local areas, to help people feel safer and keep the borough looking its best. This will build on the service already provided by the Council’s eight existing neighbourhood-based community wardens.
The new recruits will be out and about across Calderdale from Monday 13 November, tackling issues from anti-social behaviour and road safety to littering and dog fouling.
Cllr Susan Press, Calderdale Council’s Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods and Communities, said:
“Community wardens have a valuable role in our communities. They help reduce crime and the fear of crime; they talk to residents, businesses and local groups; feed back any concerns and take action. Boosting their numbers will provide greater reassurance to local people that we’re doing all we can to tackle the issues that matter to them. We will also be able to increase patrols at weekends and during evenings.”
The new community safety wardens will spend the next few weeks training and getting out into local areas with Council, Police and Fire services as part of their induction.
The wardens will not only take enforcement action; they will also work on prevention, education and reassurance as part of a problem-solving approach to communities’ issues. Examples of activities include:
- Issuing fines for offences such as dog fouling and littering.
- Tackling fly-tipping and noise nuisance.
- Working with the Council’s licensing team to carry out checks – for example, in public houses, fast food premises and taxis.
- Tackling community road safety issues.
- Dealing with anti-social behaviour.
- Challenging highway offences like fly-posting, rights of way and over-hanging vegetation.
The Council funds the community warden service and will pay for the new wardens from its existing budget.
Meanwhile, the Council continues to help keep Calderdale safe, clean and green through its day-to-day work in local communities and its targeted weeks of action in specific areas – the latest of which took place in Brighouse last week.