New £11m fund aims to make city 'greener and safer'

A multimillion-pound cash injection designed to make Leicester "cleaner, greener, and safer" has been unveiled.

The £11m package was announced by city mayor Sir Peter Soulsby who said a "favourable government spending review" had allowed the authority to fund a series of new environmental projects.

As part of the plan, £650,000 will fund 18 new street cleaners while £740,000 has been earmarked for four new street sweeping machines.

Speaking at a Leicester City Council meeting, Soulsby said tidying up the city centre was first on the agenda for the project.

The new project will also target graffiti and chewing gum as part of efforts to clean up Leicester's streets.

The project will set aside £140,000 for a second graffiti removal team, while residents wanting to remove graffiti themselves will be able to collect do-it-yourself packs from council libraries.

A further £300,000 will fund a programme of gully and gutter cleaning while £150,000 will be set aside for four additional community engagement officers whose role will include working with residents to prevent waste from being dumped illegally.

Beyond cleaning the city, the new £11m package includes £200,000 for a new four-person team dedicated to adding more greenery, a £100,000 boost for parks and £1m to accelerate the rollout of new multi-use game areas.

The council has earmarked a further £50,000 to clean algae-covered road signs, while £500,000 will fund officers to support residents dealing with parking schemes, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Five additional parking enforcement officers will also be recruited, and the city's camera car used to catch dangerous and inconsiderate parking will be joined by a second vehicle.

Soulsby said he hoped council colleagues would "welcome" the investment but said the final decision still needed to go through the scrutiny process.

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