DETERMINED efforts to tackle poverty in one of North Wales’s most deprived wards are still proving ineffective, it has been revealed.
As part of its corporate plan Denbighshire County Council set out to try to reduce the pockets of socio-economic deprivation along the coastal strip, and in Rhyl in particular, and to close the gap with other parts of Wales.
The West Ward of the town has long been one of the most deprived wards in the whole of Wales.
But a report to this Thursday’s meeting of the performance scrutiny committee states that the outcome to date is negative.
“Despite many successful improvement activities a significant number of indicators and performance measures are below target,” says the report. “This hasn’t been helped by the recently worsening position of JSA (Job Seeker’s Allowance) claimants.”
A survey of residents also produced negative findings, with fewer people being satisfied with Rhyl as a place to live and an increase in the number of people believing that the town has got worse.
Working is progressing on a £9m to improve the Foryd Harbour, with a pedestrian bridge, public square and quayside buildings, but many residents have little confidence that the development will bring much improvement to the area.
One of the most encouraging aspects of the corporate plan is a “significant” improvement in educational attainment, the aim being to help children reach their full potential.