Write On! 8 is out now (digital version). April is a double header for Write On! – the publication that connects emerging and established writers to each other and the publishing industry. 

An independent assessment from Keep Britain Tidy has shown that significant improvements have been made to the borough’s street cleanliness, despite challenging circumstances.

As part of our efforts to continue to improve our borough’s streets, in June 2020 the street cleansing service changed the way it operates, moving to an area-based approach to keeping the borough clean.

A Barking smoker has been ordered to pay over £700 after he was caught dropping his cigarette on the floor.



During a routine foot patrol, Barking and Dagenham Council enforcement officers witnessed Mr Atrurs Daniluks dispose of his cigarette on the path outside Barking Station.



Officers approached Mr Daniluks and after introducing themselves and showing their IDs, they explained what they had seen and issued him with a Fixed Penalty Notice of £150.

A Dagenham hairdressing business has been ordered to pay almost £1,000 for failing to provide records that showed how it disposed of its waste.



Barking and Dagenham Council enforcement officers made a routine trade waste inspection at Michael Bernhard Ltd hairdressers on Wednesday 19 June 2019 to inspect their Waste Transfer Notes.



However, the owner of the Heathway hairdressers failed to do so, even after officers gave him a seven-day extension.

Barking and Dagenham Council has increased the frequency of enforcement patrols in two Public Space Protection Order (PSPO) areas that were renewed last month, following a consultation with residents.



The two PSPOs that were up for renewal were in Barking Town Centre and Broad Street, Dagenham and two of the main things that came out of consultation were the need for increased enforcement patrols and signage in the PSPO areas.

Barking and Dagenham is simply the best in London on National Offer Day, as 94.44 per cent of parents in the borough have been awarded their first preference primary school.

Figures released by the Pan London Admissions Board show that Barking and Dagenham has once again smashed the London average of 87.38 per cent to give 2,956 pupils their first choice of primary schools.

The total percentage of parents securing an offer from one of their preferred schools in Barking and Dagenham was a massive 99.17 per cent, again beating the capital’s average of 97.85 per cent.

Barking and Dagenham Council has launched a new survey that looks to identify key places where residents, particularly women, don’t feel safe in the borough.



Launched on the council’s consultation portal, One Borough Voice, the survey allows residents to:



•    Drop a pin onto a map to highlight the areas where they don't feel safe in the borough

•    complete an anonymous form on areas where they feel unsafe

On Tuesday 13 April, Sikhs and Hindus around the world celebrated Vaisakhi. Barking and Dagenham Council along with members of the Barking Gurdwara, part of the Singh Sabha London East, observed this holy event with a flag raising at Barking Town Hall with a special video message.

Another business in Barking has been closed down by council enforcement officers after it continuously refused to follow Covid guidance.



Fish Bazaar on Longbridge Road was told to close its doors for two weeks last Thursday, 8 April by council officers.



Despite several warnings around social distancing and the use of face coverings in the store, the business ignored the advice and continued to operate in an unsafe way.

Two landlords of a property in Dagenham have been ordered to pay costs and fines totalling £61,057.05 after they were prosecuted for multiple housing offences.



Mr John Renvoize and Mr Dedar Shah owners of a seven bed property located at 2 Third Avenue, Dagenham were ordered to pay the fines following a court case at (Romford Magistrate Court) on Friday 19 March.