Powered by the community, non-profit and apolitical organisation Better Bedfordview has been in operation since 2017.

The head of environment for Better Bedfordview, Carol Payne, shared that after seeing the mess that things were in, a group of them got together at the bowling club and decided to do something about it.

After several meetings, Marina Constas, now chairperson of the NPO, formalised Better Bedfordview.

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They then formed a board of directors and began working together, meeting every Tuesday. Because some people are better at marketing, some at landscaping, some in the legal staff, they were allocated to their areas of interest.

Payne said, “We have employed six guys who didn’t have jobs, and we have created sort of an informal structure. As we have grown, the need is huge. Our team is somewhere around 26 now.”

She said a big component of the NPO is the Youth for Youth Programme, where every year, the youths are trained and upskilled through informal courses.

Payne teaches them about the importance of composting and saving leaves, about invasive species, what they are and how to treat them.

Payne said they have never bought plants because they get a lot of donations of them. “The only thing we have ever bought, and very rarely, is compost. The salt is a big cost for us.”

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She said there are a lot of pavements in the area, and when the grass and weeds grow in them, it looks untidy. She prefers to put salt on the weeds rather than use poison and has seen a reduction in the weeds.

Better Bedfordview’s funding comes from businesses and residents. Payne said with 3000 households, some contribute, but some still have not come on board, citing that they pay rates, so the council should take care of their area. They also run several fundraisers throughout the year.

Payne said Better Bedfordview works closely with the Parks Department because they sometimes clear up a huge amount of foliage, but their bakkie isn’t big enough. The department also helps with pruning street trees.

The NPO maintains a few of the parks, such as Oriel Park. At some point, the grass grew too tall and people were afraid to walk their dogs there, Payne recalled.

The NPO team then cleaned it up. They have also done quite a bit of work at Gillooly’s Farm, where the parkrun also occurs.

Better Bedfordview may also paint the kerbs and replace bad road signs when it can afford it. Payne made it clear that they have not taken over the work of the council, but make arrangements with them where necessary, to implement initiatives.

A legacy of the NPO’s work is that other neighbourhoods have adopted the Better Bedfordview template for their own suburbs. “We would like to see this expand into the informal settlements,” said Payne.