Local hero Artan Mahmood, who recently saved a child from an attack by a dog, has had his bravery recognised by being honoured with a Leader’s Recognition Award from Councillor Darren Rodwell, Leader of Barking and Dagenham Council.

The incident for which Mr Mahmood was given the award saw him save his neighbours’ six-year-old son from a vicious dog attack in November, with no regard for his own safety.

The student Mr Mahmood saved, Arjun, is a classmate of one of Mr Mahmood’s own children.

More than three quarters of young people given preferred secondary school place, smashing the London average

More than three in four young people in Barking and Dagenham will attend their first preference secondary school from September this year.

Figures show that out of 3,381 applications, 2,627 (77.67 per cent) of 10 and 11-year-olds have been offered their first preference, smashing the capital’s average of 68.30 per cent. 

The area near a local primary school has been transformed, thanks to the vision of its pupils. 

Students from Thomas Arnold Primary School were unhappy with how some areas around their school looked and wanted to make a change by creating a community garden.     

The children constantly talked about how it was upsetting to see people continuously dropping litter and making their school grounds look messy, so they decided to do something about it.   

A number of people were arrested following an operation by the Safer Neighbourhood Police Team to tackle crime in Barking Town Centre. 

The operation, which took place on Monday 10 and Tuesday 11 February was set up by the police to help reduce crime and anti-social behaviour in the centre of Barking. 

In total, police officers stopped and searched 10 different individuals and arrested people for robbery, grievous bodily harm and a breach of a Court Order. 

Councillors in Barking and Dagenham have agreed the budget for the next financial year – a budget which will continue to protect key services and support the borough’s most vulnerable residents.

The 2020/21 budget was agreed at a full council meeting in the Town Hall last night (Wednesday 26 February) and there will be no cuts to council services.

Councillor Darren Rodwell, Leader of Barking and Dagenham Council, is calling on the government to give local councils a fair funding deal following a tour he has made of the home counties recently.

Cllr Rodwell’s video highlights what the government’s Fair Funding Formula review could mean for Barking & Dagenham compared to places like Hampshire, Surrey and Kent. He concludes, everyone is being short-changed.  

Barking and Dagenham residents could benefit from a warmer home this winter through the council’s Cosy Homes Scheme.

The council is working in partnership with E.ON energy and J&J Crump installers to help eligible residents make their homes warmer and cheaper to heat by offering free energy saving measures including cavity wall, party wall and loft insulation, and in some cases replacement boilers or new heating systems.

Eastbury Community School in Barking recently celebrated NSPCC Number Day for the first time.

The event saw pupils don fancy dress and get involved with lots of fun maths- based games.

Number Day is a maths-inspired fundraising day organised by the children’s charity, the NSPCC. It aims to get children inspired by maths, whilst raising money for worthy causes. In total, pupils managed to raise a massive £300.

Barking and Dagenham Council remembers Titanic survivor and former local resident, Eva Hart, by renewing a commemorative plaque in St. Chad’s Park in Dagenham. 

Eva Hart’s life was marked with a tree, which was planted shortly after her death in 1996 along with a commemorative plaque. Over time, the plaque became damaged from the elements and a member of the British Titanic Society who became concerned about it asked if it could be replaced.

Residents across Barking and Dagenham will now be able to access a range of services including education, jobs and skills and healthy lifestyles opportunities all under one roof – when a new service opens at the Adult College campus in Dagenham.

The Parsloes Healthy Hub will create fantastic opportunities for residents to improve their lives whilst enjoying fun, informative workshops and get free advice from a range of professionals.