20-20 vision of Southampton

IT'S a vision that is to shape the future of Southampton.

Last year, the movers and shakers of the city joined forces to create their blueprint for Southampton over the next two decades.

It was launched to ensure the incredible £1 billion that is pumped into the region every year is spent wisely.

Every area of life in the city was put under the microscope for the project and, after the wide-ranging document was handed to the public for their say, the final version of Southampton 2020 is launched today.

The initiative pulls together various schemes, from West Quay Phase Three to park-and-ride facilities which city leaders hope will boost Southampton's efforts in becoming both the cultural and business capital of the south.

With more than 221,000 residents, including 31,000 students and one of the biggest multi-ethnic community's in the south, the far-reaching document outlines developments over the next 16 years.

The Southampton Partnership is made up of representatives from several organisations, including the City Council, Hampshire police, as well as the voluntary and health sectors.

Group chairman Councillor June Bridle, former leader of Southampton City Council, said: "This has brought together so many groups to work together, which has not really happened before.

"It means that groups like the city council isn't ploughing a lone furrow, with something like the Chamber of Commerce, for instance, going off in a different direction.

"Working collectively can have much more impact on the things that affect people's lives."

One of the major parts of the document focuses on crime following a MORI poll two years ago which showed that crime reduction was the top priority for city residents.

Just 36 per cent of those quizzed felt that Southampton was a safe place to live.

Among schemes mooted in the document are improving responses to anti-social behaviour and setting up a phone line for people to report troublemakers, as well as more high profile policing projects.

Within fours years, project leaders hope the percentage of people who feel safe when out and about in the city nearly doubles.

Health too is put in the spotlight. The 2020 vision for the city is that Sotonians have a longer life expectancy than the average for the south east.

It comes after the document says: "General health in Southampton is poorer than in the south-east as a whole.

"Suicide rates are also higher, cases of alcohol and substance misuse are on the increase and obesity levels are growing in all age groups."

One of the key hopes outlined in the initiative is bridging the gap between the health of people living in deprived areas and the rest of Southampton.

But one of the major issues which was brought up when the draft consultation was put out to members of the public for their views was transport and traffic.

Last year the Daily Echo revealed how the city officially had one of the worst rush hour congestion problems in the country, with the average speed for drivers just 16.7mph.

Cllr Bridle said: "We had massive feedback from the public during the consultation process.

"Some of it was very positive and some of it was very critical, which was equally good as we wanted to see both sides of the argument.

"One of the major things people and businesses talked about was transport.

"It's not just about the city council dealing with it. This initiative is about looking at the role businesses play and people themselves play.

"There needs to be proper approaches to car sharing schemes and creating green travel plans."

The document hopes several schemes will tackle transport problems. It includes a park-and-ride project to have been launched within the next two years at Stoneham, and further sites to the north and east of the city's outskirts.

It also highlights the need to regenerate Southampton Central train station, launch integrated ticketing for different forms of public transport to encourage people to use their cars less and improve the management of roadworks.

The Rev Ian Johnson, team rector of Southampton city centre parish, who is vice-chairman of the group, said: "This has been an exhaustive and exhausting process as it's been the first time ever that a policy document for the city has such a wide consultation and such and wide participation process.

"In ten years time we will be able to see whether the quality of service to the poorest people in Southampton has improve as a result of this.

"I think this has been a fascinating process of getting to know the leading members of a variety of public service deliverers."

Also highlighted in the blueprint are the major development schemes of the Northern Above Bar cultural quarter and the West Quay Phase Three project, to include a venue for concerts and an ice rink, which civic chiefs hope will boost the city's cultural standing in the south.

Planning applications for the scheme, as well as for the redevelopment of the former Tyrrell & Green site building, will be submitted this year.

The document says: "Southampton has a proud past, a heritage that should be celebrated and enjoyed by all.

"But the city also has a very exciting future.

"The city is now poised for more exciting developments including a new cultural quarter in Northern Above Bar and improve facilities at the waterfront.

"These well-designed, high quality landmark features will be pedestrian friendly and traffic free and will further reinforce Southampton as a major centre for culture and tourism."

Southampton 2020 can be seen at www.southampton-partnership.com

KEY MEDIUM-TERM TARGETS FOR THE NEXT FIVE YEARS:

education & SKILLS

Cutting the 2,650 people without a basic skills literary or numeracy qualification by seven per cent

Ensuring 55 per cent of pupils obtain five or more GCSE grades A-C

Ensuring 80 per cent of young people aged up to 22 are equipped to go into higher education or skilled employment

COMMUNITIES

Continued reduction in the numbers of people killed or injured on the city's roads

Vehicle crime reductions

Sustained decreases in the number of domestic fires and arson attacks

BUSINESS & DEVELOPMENTS

Maintaining progress on West Quay Phase Three, Northern Above Bar, Royal Pier

Reducing the number of young people not in education, employment or training by 20 per cent

Establishing a cultural quarter in Northern Above Bar

Introduce park and ride schemes

CITY SERVICES

Ensuring no one waits more than three months for planned hospital treatment

Extending facilities at schools for the whole community to use

Completing a total of 1,050 affordable homes and bringing empty homes back into use

Improving air quality and cutting the number of car journeys

ENVIRONMENT

Improvements to city parks

Completion of the Heat and Power scheme to provide cheap power for residents in the Outer Shirley area

Improving recycling rates

CRIME

Reduce the focus of the city's night-time economy on alcohol

Launching a single phone number for people to report antisocial behaviour incidents

High visibility policing initiatives

HEALTH

Creating more smoke free public areas

Reducing teenage pregnancy rates

Increasing uptake of drug treatment programmes by 50 per cent

Increase the number of elderly people living in their own homes

LEISURE & TOURISM

Heritage Centre up and running

Northern Above Bar cultural quarter completed

Charlotte Place Healthy Living Centre completed

Increasing studio space for working artists

TRANSPORT

Park-and-ride schemes up and running

Widespread integrated ticketing for public transport

Better co-ordination of roadworks

THE 23 MEMBERS WHO FORM SOUTHAMPTON PARTNERSHIP:

BUSINESS SECTOR

Children and Young People's Strategic Partnership

Community and voluntary sector network

Community Safety Partnership

Hampshire Constabulary

Health and Social Care Partnership

Higher education sector

HOUSING PARTNERSHIP

Jobcentre Plus

Partnership4Learning

Social Cohesion Forum

Southampton City Council

Southampton City Primary Care Trust

Southampton Cultural Consortium

Southampton Regeneration Executive

Southampton Sustainability Forum

Southampton Transport Forum