TEAM GREEN’S BIG MARGATE CLEAN

A new team of young people has been winning praise from residents for their work to clean up Margate, ready for the opening of Turner Contemporary.

Team Green, a group of 18-25 year old Future Jobs Fund workers have been working hard around Margate repairing, painting and tidying key sites. This is all part of the targeted programme of work to help prepare the town for the opening of Turner Contemporary on 16 April.
The work undertaken by the team has been vast and includes a complete overhaul of the Marine Shelter on the seafront, maintenance and garden work at the Winter Gardens and re-painting the toilets opposite the station. The team has also carried out a general tidy-up of a number of prominent open spaces such as Station Approach, the Market Street car park and the land behind Dreamland.

It’s not gone unnoticed, with comments from residents including “I like the way things are changing round here” and “Margate’s looking a lot cleaner now”. Local businessman Halis Koksal, who owns the Beano Café comments: “It’s great what’s been done by the lads so far. Lots of our customers have noticed the changes and have been commenting on what they see. We keep a little book to record all of the comments and then pass them back on to the team. It’s important to give credit where it’s due and it’s great to start seeing some real positive changes in the town.”

Not only taken on to improve the visual appearance of the town, Team Green has also provided skilled employment opportunities for a number of local young people. Chris Yates, 25 from Margate, and Adam Brooks, 24 from Margate, have both been working as part of Team Green for five months.

Chris said: “I’m really proud of the work we’ve done, especially the Marine Shelter, it’s made a big difference. Being part of Team Green has been a really good experience and it’s been great to get extra skills and training. I’ve completed two training courses, which will be great for the future”. Adam said: “It’s been good to put all the effort into the work we’ve done. It makes you feel better putting something back into the community and noticing the changes we’ve made. The painting we’ve done has really made a difference around the town”.

Neil Martin manages Team Green on site along with his brother Steve. Neil said: “It’s been really good working alongside the lads, they’ve been smashing and have put so much effort into everything they’ve done. It’s been a real mix of work from general tidy and clean ups to much more technical work. This started back in November so we’ve been out in all weathers. It’s great not only to see the difference the work is making, but getting good feedback and positive comments from the people who live and work here is fantastic”.

Director of the Margate Renewal Partnership, Derek Harding, said: “With the opening of Turner Contemporary likely to attract a significant amount of visitors, it’s vital Margate is prepared and looking its best. The work Team Green is doing is all part of a massive effort behind the scenes to ensure the town is ready for national and international attention. A huge amount of regeneration work has already taken place in the town, but we know there are still some key sites that need tackling. The team has been able to focus on those sites and has done a great job bringing them back to their former glory.”