Seaside trips, coffee mornings and a collective voice for residents: What Sheffield's tenant associations do
Members say their TARA amplifies voices of local residents, helping them put pressure on the council to “get things done” on their estate
A tenants and residents association went on a “lovely” seaside trip this summer, made affordable thanks to council local ward funding.
Brindley and Mundella tenants and residents association in Norton Lees is one of more than 40 TARAs in Sheffield.
TARAs are community groups each run by a committee of local volunteers, and can vary in sizes from 100 to 3,000 members, and membership is made up of council tenants living within the TARA boundary, who each pay 10p per week with their rent.
Around 20 members of the community went on a day trip to Bridlington, on the east Yorkshire coast in early August, with £720 in funding from the South local area committee.
One member, Hazel said the trip was “very enjoyable”.
Another resident, Gillian, said: “It was really good, the weather was nice and everybody seemed to have a really nice time.
“It was lovely to get away. I love the sea."
She said the group wandered around, saw an auction going on with fundraising stalls, and even saw a van selling Christmas decorations in August.
“I don’t know what that was!” she said.
Every Wednesday Brindley and Mundella TARA meet for a coffee morning and organise activities like bingo and a raffle. They are now looking ahead to their Christmas do.
Gillian said: “You can come here and have a natter, a good gossip and find out what's going on.
“It’s really good because it brings a community together. It leads you on to meeting other people.”
Glyn, the “gaffer”, said Brindley and Mundella TARA is the smallest association in Sheffield.
He said they try to be inclusive, but it’s hard to get people along to the Wednesday coffee mornings, which reflects a wider trend in Sheffield of a decline in active TARAs, and a struggle to engage residents with a collective tenant voice.
“It’s very hard to get people down,” Glyn said, “but we’re keeping going.”
He said the TARA amplifies the voices of local residents and helps them get the council to address their concerns and “get things done,” like recently helping a resident to get their bin emptied.
He said: “When we get involved, they listen.”
He is hoping for a similar result with the TARA’s current campaign, to get funding for a playground at ‘Top Field’, a small grass area off Warminster Road, for children from Mundella Primary School to enjoy.