Council promise to tackle student areas

Leeds City Council has promised to tackle the problems of Leeds ‘Student Neighbourhood’.
Earlier this year in July, local residents attended a full council meeting at the Civic Hall to discuss the ‘crime and grime’ of Hyde Park. Residents said they were concerned about the hidden deprivation and social cohesion in the inner city community.
Hyde Park is one of the most densely populated areas in Leeds, made up of students and long-term residents. It was Hyde Park’s long term residents who urged the council to stop ignoring the ‘hidden deprivation’ that exists.  One local resident believes the ‘high student population  masks a hidden layer of poverty among the areas permanent population’.
After the July meeting, Councillor Peter Gruen reported short and long-term solutions, the council will be using to solve the problems prevalent in Hyde Park.  In the Short-term they aim to improve security awareness, out-of-hours dog warden patrols, an annual summer ‘deep clean’ to clear bin yards, clear back alleys, remove graffiti, spray weeds and tidy green spaces.
In the long-term, the council will investigate ways of charging landlords for waste collection during the annual ‘change-over’ period. When thousands of students leave the area streets are often clogged with dumped rubbish. The council will look at changing the landlord accreditation scheme and statutory licensing to improve standards of security for student homes. Gruen also said “People who live in an area know what’s best for it, so the new management board will have people from the community who can work with us to make sure this produces long-term change for Hyde Park. A new ‘Neighbourhood Board’ will be created to get the plan rolling. It will involve local councillors, residents, students and managers from the council and other public services.
However as Paul Gold said, it is not the students who should be blamed for the condition of Hyde Park. “I sympathise with long term residents, as this area has undoubtedly suffered neglect. However, I feel most students are also victims of circumstance, with little say over where they live. The important thing for all parties to remember is that we are all residents.”
Yet not all local residents have the same idea about students as Gruen and Gold. Local resident Terrence, claims Hyde Park in no more than a “Ghetto”.  He said, “the student population are the cause of so many problems. Noise… boisterous late night behaviour… parties that go on all night…Litter and abandoned bins. Yards full of bags of rotting food.” He further added how “student tenanted properties are scruffy, have unkempt gardens and overgrown hedges; they are in a general state of neglect.” Yet Terrence showed his concerns were also for the safety of student’s property when they go for a night out, “Ah, 7 bedrooms 7 laptops, no alarm set. Won’t be back till 4am. Queue burglars and associated noise at 4am and more crime statistics.”
Local resident Sarah sees an accessible solution to issues surrounding Hyde Park; “Hyde Park needs to have TLC all year round and for the council and university to ensure that the transient student community pull their weight too.”
It seems Leeds Council needs to ensure it works with students, as much as local residents in order to bring out the best of Hyde Park