Labour Party Launches City Council Manifesto

Yesterday Labour launched its City Council Manifesto, a document that will act as a blueprint for the way that the City developes over the next few years if Labour is returned to power.

Labour Manifesto 2008
Labour: Investing in a Safer, Stronger Wolverhampton





In our 2007 manifesto, I spoke of the massive investment the City is attracting. Labour’s work has now achieved even more - £4.1 billion will be invested in our City over the next 5 years. Public money will rebuild or refurbish all our secondary schools, achieve Decent Homes in all our Council Housing and provide new leisure facilities.

Private money will deliver new retail space and entertainment venues, new employment sites and new homes for sale and for rent. These are indeed exciting times.

But we must ensure that all our people benefit from these developments. We will invest in training and skills to ensure local people can get the jobs we are anticipating.

I am proud of Labour’s record nationally and locally in creating a vibrant, resilient and friendly city. Use your vote for Labour on May 1st to ensure we can continue to prosper in the future.



Roger Lawrence
Leader of Wolverhampton City Council


Wolverhampton: A Sustainable Community

Labour has:

• Secured the investment needed in Council-owned homes by working with Wolverhampton Homes to achieve a 2 star rating, thereby unlocking over £280 million.

• Introduced city-wide coverage of local neighbourhood partnerships, enabling local people to be more active in service delivery.

• Developed packages of support to assist home owners to invest in their own homes.

• Built the first Eco Homes development within the city.

• Reduced the number of empty homes.

• Brought kerbside recycling to 94% of properties in the City.

We aim to:

• Attract further funding to assist home owners’ investment.

• Continue to build on our local neighbourhood partnerships, working with neighbourhood policing to help reduce crime.

• Deliver more new Eco Homes housing schemes for rent and sale.

• Complete the environmental clean ups of Bowman’s Harbour and the former Courtaulds site.

• Reduce the Council’s Carbon emissions by 25% by 2015.

• Introduce pilot rounds for plastics recycling in 2008/9 and have a city-wide scheme in place by 2012.

• Increase recycling participation rates.













Wolverhampton: A Connected City

Labour has:

• Extended our senior citizen bus pass scheme to give national travel entitlement.

• Secured a partner for the new £190 million transport interchange project.

• Secured late night and early morning rail connections to London.

• Tried, where possible, to carry out vital road works at night to reduce congestion.

We aim to:

• Progress plans for the City Centre Metro expansion.

• Identify ‘quick win’ schemes to reduce congestion at pinch points.

• Promote alternatives to car usage and bid to become a cycling city.

• Continue to improve access to the City and our local areas; Bilston, Tettenhall and Wednesfield.























Wolverhampton: A safer city

Labour has:

• Completed the expansion of Neighbourhood Policing across the City.

• Secured additional funding for neighbourhood safety initiatives.

• Invested in road safety measures such as those on Newhampton Road and around West Park.

• Continued to oversee reducing crime statistics across the West Midlands area, now crime is at its lowest for 18 years.

We aim to:

• Invest £2.5 million in new safer children’s play areas.

• Expand Neighbourhood Safety schemes across the City.

• Start work on Bilston’s new Police Station.

• Improve the health of babies and young children across the City.

• Improve street lighting in locations across the City

























Wolverhampton: A Growing City

Labour has:

• Delivered three Christmas festivals for the City.

• Delivered a joint venture with the Regional Development Agency, Advantage West Midlands, to bring forward development at i54.

• Selected Tesco as preferred partner for a food store and residential development of the Raglan Street site.

• Set up the Urban Regeneration Company, Wolverhampton Development Company, to up the pace of change in the City.

We aim to:

• Ensure that the £4.1 billion investment in the City over the next 5 years provides jobs and opportunities for local people.

• Increase the number of family homes in the City both for sale and for rent.

• Work to maximise the opportunities offered to the City by the government’s recommendation of the City as the location for a small casino premises licence.

• To enable the further expansion of the Science Park and encourage the Council’s Partnership between the University of Wolverhampton and the City College to provide additional training and development opportunities for Wolverhampton people.

• Start work on Bilston’s new Leisure Centre marking the wider development of Bilston Urban Village.
















Wolverhampton: A Learning City

Labour has:

• Secured funding for the rebuilding or major refurbishment of the City’s Secondary Schools.

• Increased the number of schools judged to be good or better in OFSTED inspections.

• Raised participation in post 16 education or work based training to 94%; the 4th best in England.

• Continued to roll out the support to SEN children in mainstream schools offered by outreach from our special schools.

• Delivered 5 new vocational learning diplomas in Engineering, Creative and Media, I.T., Health and Society and Construction.

• Been selected as a Beacon Authority for 14-19 Education.

• Secured exemption from the 16 hour rule to allow people on benefit to take up wider training opportunities.

We aim to:

• Continue to close the gap in terms of educational results towards the targets we have set.

• Continue to introduce hand held computers to even more primary schools and to new groups of learners in secondary schools.

• Build a new library in Wednesfield.

• Secure capital resources for a 15 year programme to rebuild & refurbish half the City’s primary schools.

• Complete the rebuilding of St Luke’s and Stowlawn/Green Park (The Willows) Schools.










Wolverhampton: A Caring City

Labour has:

• Seen over half a million people use the new swimming centre in Wednesfield (three times the number using the old facilities).

• Increased the number of major sports and recreation facilities ‘quality marked’ by 4.

• Improved respite care services for People with Learning Disabilities.

• Relocated community equipment services to a modern ‘fit for purpose’ building at the Science Park.

• Achieved Equality Standard level 3.

• Opened a further six children’s centres across the City.

• Distributed a third of a million pounds from the Youth Opportunities fund to young people’s projects in the City.

We aim to:

• Plan for three additional children’s centres in the west of the City.

• Enable more children in care to remain within our City.

• Invest a further £1 million through the Youth Opportunities fund.

• Invest over £100,000 to improve access to play for disabled children.

• Continue to work with Wolverhampton Youth Council to engage young people in the decision making process.

• Begin work in Low Hill on our 9th Very Sheltered Scheme for Older People.

• Improve people’s ability to contact and engage with the Council by opening a ‘One Stop Shop’.