Good guys make it a safe bonfire night

More than 200 tonnes of potential bonfire material was seized by St. Helens Council and Community Safety Partners (CSP) in the run-up to bonfire night.

Worried residents throughout the borough helped to ensure a safe November 5, by reporting many street bonfires in the making.

As part of the successful ‘Good Guy’ campaign, the council’s environmental wardens, Helena Homes and re:new also ran community clean up days – helping residents to remove unwanted waste.

Merseyside Police also stepped up patrols in hot-spot areas to reduce anti-social behaviour – while partner agencies worked together to provide an extensive programme of fun activities for young people.

The campaign led to 25 less incidents of rowdy and inconsiderate anti-social behaviour compared with the same period last year. Merseyside Fire and Rescue also reported a quieter bonfire period - attending 84 deliberate small fires between 19 October and 7 November - compared with 106 just two years ago.

Councillor Susan Murphy, Cabinet member for Neighbourhoods, Safer Communities and Youth said, “Overall, this year’s operation has been a great success.

“We received over 100 calls from residents reporting street bonfires to the council's Contact Centre - a great response to the campaign - showing how important it is for our community that we all work together to maintain a clean and safe environment throughout this period.

“The fact that an estimated 15,000 people turned out for the council’s Spark In The Park firework display to enjoy the festivities in a safe, and managed way, was also just as encouraging.

“I’d like to thank residents for supporting the campaign, and also our Community Safety Partners for their combined efforts in making this year’s operation so effective.”

Caption: Community Safety Partners remove hazardous build-up of bonfire materials from near by homes in Haydock.