Crackdown on the unruly is working

OLDHAM Council has until next month to convince people it is cracking down on anti-social behaviour.

In October, Home Secretary Alan Johnson named Oldham as one of 62 areas where more than a quarter of residents perceived anti social behaviour to be a problem.

He demanded court action was taken against people breaching ASBOs and victims of anti-social behaviour were given more help.

Oldham Council say significant improvements have been made and the number of anti-social behaviour incidents fell by 27 per cent across the borough in the summer compared with the previous year.

Council chiefs are happy with the March deadline and claim initiatives aimed at young people have played a part in combating bad behaviour.

Councillor John McCann, cabinet member for community services, said: “Oldham Council and its partners are firmly committed to tackling anti-social behaviour. We’ve already seen big progress in boosting the number of activities and in getting youngsters more involved in their community.”

The Passport to Summer scheme which saw the council and its partners, including Greater Manchester Police and Oldham Community Leisure Ltd, hold more than 1,200 events for young people has now become a new annual campaign called Go Oldham.

This week events will run in the school half term, and other school holidays throughout 2010.

Councillor McCann added: “Passport to Summer was a new approach and the results spoke for themselves. We saw reductions in anti-social behaviour across each neighbourhood, significant falls in many areas, and in three wards — Medlock Vale, Waterhead and Chadderton — the problem halved.

“Although we are far from complacent, this is an excellent example of what proactive working with our partners can achieve. We thank all involved for their assistance with this project and we are already excited by the range of activities for the February half-term and beyond.

“What last year’s campaign proved is that the borough’s youngsters are not inherently disruptive.”