Focus on Heywood: New Heart for Heywood

Heywood’s Phoenix Centre, a Joint Services Centre encompassing Council and Health Services for the town

Almost 10 years ago, New Heart for Heywood was set up in a bid to improve the quality of life of those living and working in the town.

The project is a part of the New Deal for Communities programme, a partnership approach to tackling local issues

In May 2001 New Heart for Heywood was awarded £52 million. Now there is just six months left in the project.

Rochdale Online reporter Laura Wild took a trip to New Heart for Heywood’s offices on Bridge Street to find out about the highs and lows of the past ten years.

The project’s offices are now very scarce with many people’s positions coming to an end. This was always the plan. New Heart for Heywood was to run for ten years. However Chief Executive Vicki Devonport explained that the ten years of funding and investment is for fifty years of change.

Ms Devonport joined New Heart for Heywood six years ago in a bid to change the organisation’s strategic direction.

At the heart of its strategy the organisation’s focus has been on young people, jobs training and learning but it also has covered a whole host of other thematic areas some are very visible from driving through Heywood such as the Phoenix Centre , the brand new Heywood Sports Village, others are the small projects and activities that have had a massive impact on the daily lives of people who live in Heywood.

The New Deal for Communities (NDC) area covers Back O’th Moss, the Town Centre, Pilsworth Road area, Bury Street area, Rochdale Road East and Heady Hill.

The real thing that sets New Heart for Heywood apart from other community improvement initiatives that have existed in the past and will inevitably run in the future is the community’s involvement.

Ms Devonport and her team spent endless hours researching projects and proposals to make sure they would suit the needs of the people in Heywood.

Aside from simply giving a residents a say, New Heart for Heywood is community-led and the board consists of a wide of partners as well as a number of resident directors who were elected over a period of time.

Ms Devonport described working with the community as “priceless.”

The results of one of their own research projects has formed the New Heart for Heywood 2010 calendar, the calendar lists the various action/projects the people of Heywood wanted, these include: “Take the Sports Centre upmarket”, “Improve street lighting” and “Open up the Hindhill Centre, police station and the Court”.

All of the above and many more have been achieved, the calendar now shows a before and after photograph of the improved areas in a bid to say: “you asked – we gave.”

New Heart for Heywood has achieved a whole host of different things for the people of Heywood; the £52million has been spent on Housing and Environment, Education, Reducing Crime, Employment and Training, Health and Community Engagement.

But Ms Devonport has her own top five favourite areas of work and improvement, in no particular order these are the Phoenix Centre, Heywood Sports Village, opening up the old Police Station to provide managed office space, the resident involvement and empowerment and the Community Champions.

Rob Fernandes, Communications and Marketing Officer for New Heart for Heywood agrees with Ms Devonport – however for him number one has to be the Heywood Sports Village.

Speaking about his job within New Heart for Heywood Mr Fernandes said: “It has been the best job and opportunity I have ever had. Working and living in the NDC area changes has been a very valuable experience.”

Ms Devonport described the work as “an emotional roller coaster” she said: “The highs have been very high but the lows have also been very low.

“I have learnt a lot, and I still have a lot to learn.”

Summing up the last ten years Ms Devonport said: “Personally I don’t think we could have done anything differently. We have stuck to our vision, we have listened to the community, we have tried hard to meet partner demands and I believe we have created a more sustainable future for Heywood.

Although New Heart for Heywood is coming to a close Ms Devonport hopes that the long lasting message of partnership which has been formed will remain. In effect they are relying on their partners to take their message forward and they hope that when they are gone the community links between organisations and residents will remain.

Ms Devonport said: “I will miss the every day challenges and all our team members I will be sad to leave. Heywood will always have a special place in my Heart. ”