👮ℹ️ PARTIAL CLOSURE ORDER FOR THE LAND AT THE REAR OF DEWSBURY ROAD COMMUNITY HUB, AND NEARBY BRANCHES FUTURE

Making our area safe for residents is my number one priority, putting in long-term solutions to problematic areas of land we have across the ward.

Not rhetoric. Action.

The Leeds Anti-Social Behaviour Team, in partnership with West Yorkshire Police, has successfully secured a Partial Closure Order for the land behind Dewsbury Road Hub.

This land has recently been occupied by individuals who stay intermittently in tents, who have been involved with criminality in the local area.

Significant evidence was gathered to justify the order, including witness statements from Officers, partner agencies, and myself.

Through close collaboration with Housing and the Councils Street Support Team, Officers have also ensured that everyone identified in the area who requires accommodation, has been offered it.

Partner agencies and myself are committed to tackling criminality and antisocial behaviour, and we will not tolerate actions that disrupt the safety and well-being of our community.

The Partial Closure Order, which will last six months, will allow services to be able to remove anyone conducting criminal activity via any tents to be immediately removed, while ensuring anyone who genuinely needs support to find accommodation, receives it

In the meantime, Officers in Housing Leeds and Safer Stronger Communities are obtaining quotes for the installation of a fence to the site, to secure it until a long-term future for it can be found - I have stressed the urgency of this work being carried out.

In addition, it has now been agreed the branches and planter at Dewsbury Road Community Hub and Library will now be removed after my instance that their containing presence is no longer defensible.

Officers from the Greenspace Team are identifying sites for the three benches now, so they can be moved into nearby parks, and I have been direct - I expect these to be removed within weeks, not months.

We'll coordinate the removals of the planters to ensure we can save the soil and plants to be used elsewhere, so this element will take slightly more time to complete.