Young people have worked wonders on an outdoor space at The Vibe Youth and Community Centre in Dagenham to transform it into an incredible community garden.

Youngsters from the Flipside and Peer Support Group (PSG) youth clubs came together to create the new garden, which features raised beds to grow produce and a wildflower garden to attract wildlife.

After months of lockdowns, the group decided that they needed a project that was healthy for their bodies and minds.

Thomas Arnold Primary School has been awarded another three awards for its work using the Thrive Approach to support the mental wellbeing of pupils and their families.

Thrive trains teachers and other education professionals to support the emotional and social development of all children.

The school was named a Thrive Ambassador School earlier this year and has since earned praise for its focus on emotional wellbeing and the resulting positive impact on pupils and the wider community.

Barking and Dagenham Council has launched a consultation to get the thoughts of residents as it looks to renew a Public Space Protection Order (PSPO) on Dagenham Heathway. 



PSPOs aim to change behaviours, increase civic pride and ultimately deal with any antisocial behaviour taking place in a particular area. 



The Heathway PSPO currently prohibits the following activities:



•    Drinking alcohol in a public place

As part of its joint work with the police to tackle antisocial behaviour in Barking and Dagenham, the east London council is holding a virtual Q&A session with residents to talk about work they are doing with the police to address the issues.



The council and police often get a number of complaints about antisocial behaviour, ranging from street drinking, begging, drug taking and general rowdy behaviour in particular hotspots around the borough.

Barking and Dagenham Council and the police continued their Day of Action initiative last week as they step up their fight against antisocial behaviour (ASB).



Last Wednesday, council enforcement officers, including officers from Trading Standards, Covid response and Community Safety teams were joined by four Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) to patrol Barking Town Centre and address any issues.

Residents of Barking and Dagenham are being urged to join the council in marking Clean Air Day as they look to reduce air pollution in the borough.



As part of the council’s Air Quality Action Plan, Clean Air Day is just one of the awareness raising days that the council is celebrating by encouraging residents to think about how they pollute the air.



Clean Air Day, which is on Thursday 17 June this year, aims to:



1.    Improve public understanding of air pollution.

An Ilford woman had her day in court (or not) earlier this month (June) after she failed to provide the details of the driver of her car who was seen littering on the streets of Barking and Dagenham.



The incident took place on Monday 25 November 2019 when Barking and Dagenham Council’s Environmental Enforcement Officers witnessed a female driver in a silver Mercedes dispose of a cigarette on the road.



Littering falls under Section 87(1) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and carries a fine of £150.

Barking and Dagenham Council is encouraging residents to keep their eyes peeled for rogue traders as some were identified in the borough recently.



The council was made aware of some traders who were offering cheap, loft insulation to residents in Dagenham and on one occasion were caught looking through a resident’s window.

Following the easing of Covid restrictions and the hospitality sector reopening, Barking and Dagenham Council will be ramping up inspections to improve food hygiene standards in the borough.



Over the next few months, the council’s food safety team will be focussing on premises that currently have poor hygiene ratings of two and below and any newly registered high-risk food businesses.

Barking and Dagenham Council recently conducted a survey to understand where women don’t feel safe in the borough and following on from this, they are now looking to launch a scheme which will provide places of safety for all residents.



The Safe Haven initiative is a project that aims to offer residents and those visiting the east London borough a safe space to approach if they feel they they’re in danger, threatened or harassed, vulnerable or unwell.