Supporting people

Young people in Hull have received a bad press in the past and today can still be unfairly branded as a 'problem'.
Whether they are meeting up with friends in a local park, on the upper deck of a bus, or in one of our shopping centres on a Saturday afternoon, some members of the public may think they are up to no good.
But I have faith in our children and young people.
They are some of the most creative people in our city and every day they are working in our schools, colleges and youth centres to achieve their goals.
Take, for example, the young people who are members of the Freedom Road music and creative arts group.
They are just a bunch of everyday Hull lads and lasses but thanks to their talent, passion and commitment they have been invited to go to Sydney, Australia, to sing and perform.
Freedom Road is giving young people a positive outlet in which to channel their energies and the group members will be fantastic ambassadors for Hull when they go down under.
(You can read more about this story on pages 16 and 17.)
Meanwhile, I'm very happy to say that we are winning the war against litterbugs.
The feature on pages 12 and 13 tells how the work of Hull Citysafe is helping to ensure there is less litter on the streets, fewer cases of fly-posting and less vehicles being abandoned in our communities.
Many local people are playing their part by taking pride in our city and not dropping litter.
I hope they all keep up the good work to ensure Hull continues to become a cleaner and greener place to live.
As the credit crunch bites, many people's thoughts will be on whether their jobs and businesses can ride out the downturn until the economy improves.
For those who have recently been affected, such as skilled workers made redundant from the caravan industry, help is at hand to get them retrained and back into employment as our feature on pages 10 and 11 shows.
As ever, Hull in print is crammed with news and features and I hope you enjoy reading this month's issue!

Cllr Carl Minns
Leader, Hull City Council