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Barking and Dagenham has a proud tradition of community spirit and civic activism, which has been mobilised rapidly in response to Covid-19. At the core of that support offer is BD CAN, a community network which involves a partnership between the social sector and the council to coordinate practical assistance to residents who need help.

Since lockdown began, it has provided practical support to over 1700 people through nine hubs across the borough run by local community organisations and supported by 400 volunteers who signed up to help.

Two fly tippers from Dagenham have been caught by council enforcement officers and fined £400 for the offence.

Following numerous complaints from residents about rubbish being dumped in the alleyway from Oval Road South, Dagenham to the Mill House Social Club carpark, an investigation was set up by street enforcement and street cleansing officers to catch the perpetrators.

A man who assaulted council officers and the police has pleaded guilty to assault and was given a six weeks prison sentence suspended for 12 months.

Ryan Smith was seen drinking alcohol in London Road car park, Barking last Thursday. After being advised to stop and dispose of his alcohol as it was a public car park, Mr Smith got aggressive, swearing and ultimately spitting at the officers.

Barking and Dagenham Council has seen over 1,100 people take advantage of the good weather during lockdown to sign up for the Green Garden Waste service.

The council service now has over 6,560 subscribers as green-fingered residents enjoy improving their gardens and take advantage of this environmentally friendly way to dispose of garden waste such as flowers and grass cuttings, weeds, leaves, and hedge trimmings. 

Armed Forces Day is on Saturday 27 June and Barking and Dagenham Council will be showing their support for all the men and women who make up the Armed Forces community, including troops that are currently serving, service families, and all our veterans and cadets. 

So many people from Barking and Dagenham have served in the Armed Forces, and they are true heroes to not only the borough, but to the whole of the United Kingdom.

Residents living in an around St Ann’s in Barking can now breathe a sigh of relief as after months of complaints about a property which has blighted their lives for ages, the council has been able to secure a closure order.

The property had been linked to a number of complaints about anti-social behaviour including young people frequenting the address and holding parties all night.

Despite the lockdown, residents of Barking and Dagenham are able to apply for a range of jobs including care work, nursery vacancies, apprenticeships and graduate entry positions with the police and other roles by contacting the council’s job shops. 

 

Residents looking to sign up for work and training can still contact the council’s job shops. Although not open to the public as there are no face-to-face appointments, the service is still supporting local people via email, telephone or Skype. 

Senior councillors in Barking and Dagenham have voiced their frustrations at the government’s inability to provide disadvantaged children in the borough with laptops to help with schoolwork during the lockdown.

In a letter to the Secretary of State for Education, Gavin Williamson MP, Council Leader, Councillor Darren Rodwell and Councillor Evelyn Carpenter, the council’s Cabinet Member for Educational Attainment and School Improvement, wrote:

Throughout the coronavirus pandemic, Barking and Dagenham Council eased parking restrictions for residents as they knew how important it was for people to drop off essential items to friends and family.



This was done by introducing 30-minute free parking for all residents and visitors across the borough, so that they were able to look after their loved ones by dropping off food and medicine.

As part of Barking and Dagenham Council’s commitment to keeping the borough clean and free of litter, the council has invested in 30 new street cleansing barrows.

The new barrows will replace older equipment which has been around for years, and they have been fully kitted out with new equipment to clean effectively, including brooms, litter pickers, scrapers, clapper boards, shovels, and first aid kits.