Success of fly-tipping project sees Crewe's alleyways flourish

A project dedicated to rejuvenating the alleyways of Crewe has provided some of the town’s communities with a huge boost.

Two years ago, many of the alleyways in Crewe were in a poor state of repair and the communities living in these areas were not able to enjoy the immediate locality of their homes.

Now, following on from the introduction of the Cleaner Crewe project, alleyways have gone from being filled with fly-tipped rubbish to being places where residents are preparing to host street parties to celebrate the forthcoming Queen’s Platinum Jubilee

The Cleaner Crewe project started in 2020. It is a collaboration between Cheshire East Council, Crewe Town Council and Cheshire East Council’s wholly-owned environmental services company, Ansa. It has now grown to forge further partnerships with Cheshire College South & West and Men in Sheds.

The partnership with Cheshire College South & West has resulted in a group of art students working with the local communities to produce a mural of the Queen, which will be proudly on display in Chambers Street, one of the streets which has benefited from the project.

Councillor Mick Warren chair of Cheshire East Council’s environment and communities committee, said: “Seeing the transformation of these alleyways and the civic pride that has been engendered in these communities is truly life-affirming. This is only the beginning as well, with lots more streets and alleyways still to benefit from the project. These are exciting times for Crewe and its residents.”

Denise Randle, a resident in Walthall Street, said: “The alley regeneration project has been welcomed by Walthall Street and Westminster Street residents. Our alley was filthy and dangerous underfoot. We met our neighbours, they came out to chat and showed gratitude for the clean-up. Children were able to come out to play, this was lovely to see during the summer. Plants were added in containers, and residents looked after them.  We saw a reduction in fly-tipping and dog fouling.”   

Dhesi, principal and chief executive officer of Cheshire College South & West, said: “This has been a great project for our college to be involved in, especially as many of our students live in and around the streets that Cleaner Crewe has positively impacted on. It’s a great opportunity for our students to engage with their local communities and we are very proud to support this work.”

The Cleaner Crewe project has reduced the incidences of fly-tipping in the project area by 56 per cent and in Crewe overall by 53 per cent. There is also a plan to instal CCTV cameras in Chambers Street, Myrtle Street and Lord Street, which is expected to help continue that trend. 

It is already having a transformative effect on the behaviour of local residents in the area where it has been rolled out, with people more inclined to challenge and to report incidents of fly-tipping that still occur.