Have pride in your postcode and the area you live

May 1, 2012 - PRLog -- This year people in communities across Britain will get together to celebrate The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee by holding street parties and other events.  Like last year’s Royal wedding, it will be a wonderful opportunity to break out the bunting and, more importantly, to meet neighbours, make new friends and foster some true community spirit.

Today, when many people spend hours staring at a computer screen communicating with people on the other side of the world rather than chatting to their neighbours, it is important to foster a sense of community by making time for each other. When most of us spend our whole lives living and working within 14 miles of where we were born community matters so it is worth considering how we can improve things.

As American writer Robert Brault said: “I nod to a passing stranger and the stranger nods back and two human beings go off feeling a little less anonymous”.

Just a few minutes getting to know your neighbours will make both you and them feel good. Even if you only make the effort at Christmas or when snow needs clearing from your neighbour’s path you will start a conversation which will enhance your community life.

In 2009 a Government survey painted a bleak picture of community life. The Place survey was the first attempt to measure people’s perceptions of where they live. It revealed that a third of us thought our neighbours didn’t have any consideration or respect. The poll of 500,000 people concluded that community spirit was a rare thing.

The good news is that just three years later initiatives all over the country are promoting the value of getting to know your neighbours and encouraging people to love the place they live. One community project in Suffolk, for example, has launched a Pride in Your Postcode scheme where residents are prompted to identify things they want to change. Neigbourhood teams then help people living in the area to work with the police, fire service, council officers and other agencies to make a difference to their communities.
By clamping down on anti-social behaviour and building strong community links residents are making a real difference. Spin-offs have been tea parties and other social events for neighbours who just a few years wouldn’t have even nodded to acknowledge each other.

Keep Britain Tidy is just one organisation which has joined the movement to promote change with its Love Where You Live campaign. This was obviously primarily an anti-litter promotion but, once it had been taken up on Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites, the positive feeling it engendered had a much wider reach in encouraging community spirit. Don’t forget that mighty oaks come from tiny acorns and the global phenomenon of I (heart) New York started with a couple of t-shirts!

Visit : http://www.havebury.com