With the first of four events taking place during Antisocial Behaviour (ASB) Awareness Week (18-24 July), the Operation Respect Community Days consist of four key activities taking place throughout the borough and a social media campaign that aims to highlight services available to residents across Allerdale.

The events have been organised so that members of the public have the chance to engage with representatives of all the agencies involved and to highlight issues within their areas such as housing, homelessness, crime prevention, fire safety, how to budget, and how to create a cleaner, greener Allerdale. There will also be a focus on Food and Fuel hardship at all of the Community Days being led by our local housing partners.

The events are being coordinated by the Allerdale Local Focus Hub, a partnership between various organisations such as Cumbria Police, Cumbria Fire & Rescue Service, Cumbria County Council, and local housing associations, Riverside, Home Group, Westfield and Castles and Coasts. 

The Operation Respect Community Clear Up days are being held in Hillside, Maryport, Salterbeck, Workington, Greenacres, Wigton and Westfield, Workington are an opportunity for members of the public to engage with representatives from all agencies involved in Operation Respect. The events are being held at the following times and locations:

• Hillside, Maryport between 10am and 3pm on 21 July 2022 – led by Castles and Coasts Housing Association 
• The Oval Community Centre, Salterbeck between 10am and 3pm on 9 August 2022 – led by Riverside
• Greenacres, Wigton between 10am and 3pm on 25 August 2022 – led by Home Group
• Windsor Road, Workington between 10am and 3pm on 15 September 2022 – led by Westfield Housing

Representatives from housing associations will be on hand at each of the events to provide advice and guidance surrounding housing, homelessness and financial advice. In addition to this, those who attend the events will have the opportunity to discuss how they can access financial support and budgeting advice. The housing associations will also be providing a skip at each of the events to enable their tenants to get rid of bulky items they are struggling to dispose of. 

At each event, representatives from Allerdale Waste Services and Tivoli will also be on hand to help residents dispose of household waste and bulky items.

Allerdale Borough Council takes a proactive and zero-tolerance approach to managing fly-tipping issues and will fine anyone caught fly-tipping. So far, in 2022, the Council have responded to 691 cases. 

Councillor Alan Pitcher, Allerdale Borough Council Executive Member with responsibility for Allerdale Local Focus Hub, said: “These events are a real opportunity for residents to speak with people that can assist them with any issues in their community that they are experiencing.

“The Operation Respect community days organised by the Allerdale Local Focus Hub are a fantastic opportunity for residents to engage with representatives from all of the agencies involved in Operation Respect and for them to dispose of any items they may have struggled to dispose of on their own. There will be activities for all ages, and I’d like to encourage those living in the areas where the events are planned to take part in creating a cleaner, greener Allerdale. 

“We understand why fly-tipping angers our residents and it’s something that Allerdale Borough Council and partners are committed to tackling – we are certainly on the side of the law-abiding citizen who disposes of their waste responsibly. As part of our 10-year Council Strategy, we pledged to create a ‘cleaner, greener Allerdale’, so we are delighted to support the Hub’s initiative and offer our help in tackling this problem.”

Emma Thompson, Allerdale Borough Council’s Senior Manager for Community Safety and Resilience said: “Operation Respect is a brilliant way for our Allerdale Local Focus Hub partners to support our residents on key issues relating to the communities we live and work in. 

“This year we have received overwhelming support from our partner agencies, and we hope to meet lots of members of our community on the days we have planned. We have some great opportunities for young people to get involved too.

“We would like to thank those who have supported Operation Respect over the last 18 months, supporting our local communities to become more resilient and better places to live.”