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Safety concerns over West Midlands outdoor spaces due to littering and poor facilities

Concerns over safety, littering and poor facilities are among the reasons why people in the West Midlands are reluctant to use parks and green spaces.

By Gurdip Thandi
Published

West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) has launched a major consultation exercise as part of its bid to become the UK’s first ‘Outdoor Region for Everyone’.

Bosses said the exercise is to find out how people feel about their neighbourhoods and what stops them from using parks, green spaces, canals and towpaths in the region.

Canal Basin. Picture by Coventry LDR Tom Davis. Permission to use.
Canal Basin. Picture by Coventry LDR Tom Davis. Permission to use.

And, in a week, almost 150 people have taken part giving their views on what improvements they want to see and a range of positive, neutral and negative feelings about their areas.

One contributor said what stops them using their outdoor spaces is ‘safety concerns’ and added ‘Addressing issues of vandalism and anti-social behaviour’ would improve the area for them.

Another, who had a ‘negative’ overall feeling about their area said the thing they liked most about the neighbourhood was ‘the very few last trees are still standing’.

Sutton Park in Birmingham. Taken from Google Street View. Permission for use for all LDR partners.
Sutton Park in Birmingham. Taken from Google Street View. Permission for use for all LDR partners.

But they added: “The new developers hate green spaces. Terrible what’s happening with the new developments. Only cement.’

One resident who was ‘mostly negative’ said: “Stop people littering. There is a fantastic crew of volunteers who litter pick, but why do people litter?”

Safety was a common theme and many called for measures such as increasing police presence to enhance areas.

Walsall Arboretum. Photo courtesy of Google Street View. Permission for use by all BBC partners.
Walsall Arboretum. Photo courtesy of Google Street View. Permission for use by all BBC partners.

Others were more positive about their neighbourhoods and put forward suggestions on improving where they live.

One said: “Make canal towpaths wider and all weather so walkers and cyclists could use them.

“Birmingham has more canals than Venice so it is possible to cycle almost anywhere using tow paths.”

Another added: “Join up cycle paths instead of them suddenly ending resulting in unsafe environment with aggressive car drivers.”

WMCA said: “The West Midlands is home to over 11,000 hectares of parks and green spaces and more than 340 miles of canals and towpaths.

“Now, we want to hear from residents about how these outdoor spaces can become part of everyday life for everyone.

“We’re launching a new public engagement to help shape our ambition for the West Midlands as the UK’s First Outdoor Region for Everyone.

“A connected region where being outdoors, feeling safe, and being part of your local community helps make the West Midlands a great place to live, work and visit.

“At the heart of this work is a simple question: Can better access to safe, attractive and connected outdoor spaces improve wellbeing, belonging and quality of life, so that every resident can see and feel the difference when they step outside their front door?

“We are especially keen to hear from people and communities who are not currently using our parks, green spaces, streets and canal towpaths.

“This includes residents facing barriers linked to income, ethnicity, disability, age or where they live.

“We’ll be working alongside community organisations to make it easy for residents to share their experiences and ideas, and to help shape practical actions that reduce inequalities and strengthen connections to nature, place and community.”

People can take part in the survey by visiting https://outdoorregion.commonplace.is/