What does ‘clean and pleasant area’ mean to Southall Town – collective statements and emerging ideas
As part of the development of Your Voice, Your Town in Ealing, residents, businesses, faith and community organisations took part in a workshop at The Young Adult Centre, Park View Road in Southall where they shared their thoughts on what ‘clean and pleasant area’ means to them and collaborated to reach a shared understanding of their town priority.
The groups created a series of ‘collective statements’ to help shape how Your Voice, Your Town Southall could help communities take action to create a more ‘clean and pleasant’ Southall. These statements are being used by Southall’s Town Team, to set the criteria for future community-led projects. They are not exhaustive but provide valuable insights about what matters most to local residents and communities.
If you are inspired by the collective statements, you might want to contact the Southall Town Team with your ideas for projects that will help make Southall more clean and pleasant, and find out about the funding available for community-led projects .
To find out more about how to get involved in local action, go to the Southall Town Team
The Big Southall Uplift
Goal
“We want our everyday spaces to reflect the cleaner, greener spaces we visit elsewhere. We want to change community members’ perceptions and behaviours about fly tipping and the lack of bins, from the top down and the grass roots up, to make our parks and green spaces reach their full potential.“
Project ideas
“A clean, safe, and accessible environment is essential.
Enforcement measures, educational initiatives targeting fly-tippers, and an improved system for cleaning and offering affordable bulky waste collection are necessary steps. This will benefit residents, visitors, and business associates alike.“
Southall Living Walls
Goal
“Green open spaces with low volumes of human traffic leads to clean and pleasant areas. Development of many high-rise buildings is taking over the green open spaces.“
Project ideas
“Creating living walls and green roofs helps clean the air and replicate green spaces.
Benefits: Attractive space, Pride of place, Volunteer support, Safer gathering areas
Target Audience: Southall community, Visitors, Business owners, Freeholders, Anyone with lungs“
Together for Southall
Goal
“Some improvements but more education and enforcement to create pride in the great place we live in and others visit. Funds should be distributed fairly across all parks.“
Project ideas
“Bringing people together in public spaces
Bandstand for music and culture
Educational community programmes
‘Keep Britain Tidy’ week with litter picking
Youth Festival with pop-up events
Connecting to create clean, pleasant areas for young people, parents, and everyone.“
Fly-tipping, Enforcement and Education
Goal
“Respect for self and community results in cleaner, more attractive, safer spaces where people want to come together to help each other, fostering a sense of pride“
Project ideas
“Building a culture against fly-tipping, encouraging our communities to take pride in maintaining cleaner environments beyond our green spaces. Together, the residents and communities of Southall can create a brighter, greener future.“
Engage and Educate – A Cleaner Southall Together incorporating Green mobile waste collection
Goal
“We focus on solutions, such as implementing systems to keep our area clean and tidy for all residents.“
Project ideas
“Clear, clean, engage, educate, prevent
Addressing the waste issues immediately through the green mobile waste collection proposal whilst embedding education and prevention in school and local communities region by region in a rollout scheme through neighbourhoods.
SUSTAINABILITY!
For everyone, by everyone“
Other comments in supplementary conversations by organisations and residents in Southall
| Where | What they said in summary |
| Little Angels, March 2025 | Cleanliness is seen as foundational to health, happiness, and community pride. There is a desire for more regular cleaning and maintenance, especially in parks and around schools. Community members are encouraged to take personal responsibility for their immediate surroundings.
There is strong emphasis on keeping Southall, especially parks, footpaths, and roads, clean. Issues mentioned include dog waste, overflowing bins, litter, and general waste in public areas, particularly in Manor House grounds and recreation parks. Cleanliness is linked to community well-being, hygiene, and making the area pleasant for residents and visitors.
Residents highlighted the importance of clean and well-maintained play areas for young children, especially those attending Little Angels Playgroup and Beaconsfield School. Clean environments benefit children’s health and parents who use these spaces regularly.
Locations often mentioned include Manor House grounds, recreation parks, and pavements outside shops. Issues include waste on the ground, full bins, and blocked footpaths. There were also concerns about mosquitoes and bees due to waste.
Residents expressed a shared responsibility for cleanliness. Suggestions included not throwing rubbish on roads, clearing pavements outside homes and shops, and maintaining hygiene inside schools and bathrooms.
The need for clean and pleasant community areas, including parks in Ealing and roadside spaces used by families and schoolchildren, was emphasised. |
| Havelock Services Group, March 2025 | Cleanliness and Maintenance: Residents value clean blocks, regular rubbish collection, and well-maintained communal areas. They want no fly-tipping, no pigeon droppings, and clean, trimmed parks with pruned trees. Clean play areas and stairwells are also important.
Green Spaces and Public Areas: Priorities include maintaining pocket parks, cleaner canals and rivers, and well-maintained green spaces, with more seating options and fewer drug users. Lighting and Safety: Improved lighting in alleyways and communal areas is frequently mentioned to make spaces safer and more welcoming. Social Issues: Rough sleepers are a concern. Some residents try to engage with them but have experienced verbal abuse. More rough sleeping is expected as weather improves. Community Initiatives: Interest in partnerships with local businesses and providing a youth centre (ages 13–18). Activities through “Lets Go Southall” and cricket with Sybil Elgar School are valued. Parking and Transport: Parking is a concern with too many cars and not enough spaces. Residents did not favour using bikes. General Environment: Keeping public highways free from rubbish and maintaining clean paint in stairwells and communal areas makes a significant difference to daily life. |
| Ramgharia Gurdwara, April 2025 | Well-maintained pavements: Walkways leading to the Gurdwara are in good repair, ensuring safe access for all.
Regular cleaning: Oswald Road and St Joseph’s Drive are kept free from litter and fly tipping through ongoing cleaning. Addressing hazards: Concern about old trees and roots damaging pavements and creating trip hazards, particularly for elderly and young people. Community safety: The area is kept free from fly tipping and drug use. Parking issues: Pavement parking affects elderly residents’ movement. Anti-social behaviour: Issues such as urination in alleys and streets require action. Street lighting: Improved lighting is needed on Oswald Road and St Joseph’s Drive. |
| Foodbank St Anselms, April 2025 | Residents are seeking a cleaner, safer, and more supportive environment, with better facilities for families, youth, and vulnerable groups. There is a strong sense of community responsibility but a need for more effective council action and services.
Residents described widespread litter, food waste, and untidiness, especially near Lady Margaret Road and parks. Alcohol consumption and antisocial behaviour make some areas feel unsafe, especially for women after dark. Drug use in parks and play areas is also a major concern.
There is strong desire for more youth programmes to prevent crime and support young people. Playgroups and children’s centres are seen as vital but often too far away or too few. Improved waste collection and cleaner bins were frequently requested.
Homelessness is visible, with lack of support for those with No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF). Suggestions included accommodation, bus passes, and living expenses. Concerns about varied rent levels led to calls for council intervention.
Residents stressed the importance of everyone keeping the area clean, including shopkeepers. Some areas maintain tidiness through community effort. Suggestions included volunteer policing and community-led safety initiatives.
Parks and playgrounds were often described as dirty or unsafe, although Southall Manor Park and Parkside Yards were praised for good maintenance. Pollution and overcrowding are increasing, especially with new high-rise developments.
Requests included more leisure centres, free gyms, and accessible services in multiple languages. |
| Foodbank Dominion Chapel, April 2025 – translated materials used (Arabic, Bengali, Hindi, Konkani, Punjabi, Somali, Urdu) | Cleanliness and Environment
Participants expressed concerns about cleanliness, including lack of lighting near bins, absence of park toilets, and general untidiness. Some linked uncleanliness to community attitudes, though others praised local flowers. There were calls for personal responsibility in keeping the area clean. Participants desired clean parks, tree-lined streets, and pleasant living environments. Safety and Social Issues Drug use and dealing in public spaces were particular concerns. One parent witnessed drug activity in daylight near Shackleton Hall, which distressed their child. Positive Observations There was praise for the cleanliness and beauty of a local school, its road, teachers, and students. |