Joe Holloway of Little Horton is celebrating after being awarded an MBE in the Queen's New Year Honours List.

Native Scot Joe, 80, was commended for his services to the community, and in particular his hard work as a Community Director with award winning regeneration company Bradford Trident.

'When I was first told I thought it was a joke. But now I realise it wasn't and am extremely proud. It's a surprise but I am particularly glad that I have shown achievements can be made in later life!' said Joe.

He continued, 'I also want to thank my colleagues and friends who are involved in Bradford Trident. It has made a great difference to the area in which we live through the hard work all the community has put in.'

Joe was born in Ayrshire in 1925 and at 14 began his 28 years as a coal miner. He met his wife Evelyn whom he married in 1945 and they celebrated their 60th, diamond, wedding anniversary in 2005. They have two children.

Joe left mining in 1967 and trained to be a TV engineer. He worked for 16 years in Bradford at that trade before moving to South Africa in 1983. He worked for a further two years before retiring.

In 1994 Joe and Evelyn returned to Bradford. Joe got involved in local community activity and joined the formative shadow board of Bradford Trident as it was being set up. He was then elected as Community Director for Bradford Trident in 2000 and was re-elected in 2004.

Joe has taken a particular interest in health, crime and environment issues and has been a champion for services to older people. His overall dedication and outstanding work rate have been the significant contributors to him gaining this prestigious honour.

New voice for the area... The Bradford Trident Neighbourhood Parish Council.

Bradford Trident is supporting plans to create a Parish Council to serve our neighbourhoods. Read on to find out what a Parish Council would do and why it would benefit residents.

What is a Parish Council?

A Parish Council is a local council for your own neighbourhood. It is an elected body that covers a distinctive and recognisable area. In this case the proposals are for a new Parish Council to include Little Horton, Marshfield, West Bowling and Parkside.

What will it do?

Parish Councils have two main roles. They provide a strong voice for the community and help to run the neighbourhood. Parish Councils give real powers to communities through democratically elected Parish Councillors who are accountable to local people.

Why do we need one here?

Keeping the improvements going... Things have changed for the better in the area over the last few years. A neighbourhood Parish Council will help to make sure that these improvements are kept up. It could bid for extra funds to spend on new projects.

A voice for the area... It will give local people a greater say in how services are delivered, and be able to negotiate with the big public service organisations - Bradford Council, West Yorkshire Police, the Primary Care Trust - on the neighbourhood's behalf.

Linking with other organisations... The Parish Council will be able to nominate members to the board of Bradford Trident. This will ensure local input continues as Bradford Trident‚s own role develops over time. It will also be able to nominate members onto the governing bodies of local schools.

Delivering local services... A neighbourhood Parish Council can act as an agent for the District Council to deliver a whole range of services in a way that is best suited to the needs of the neighbourhoods. This can include everything from looking after open spaces and community facilities to providing youth services or crime prevention projects.

Planning for the future... A Parish Council can draw up a 'Parish Plan' for the area in consultation with local residents and businesses. This could be a new 10 year plan, setting out more improvements people would like to see. The plan would link in to the wider development plan for the district, and influence future decisions on services. The Parish Council also has the right to be consulted on all planning applications in the area.

Does the church run Parish Councils?

No. Parish Councils are not linked to churches. They are elected by all the residents of the Parish Council area regardless of race or religion.

Why is the Parish Council area on the map bigger than the existing Bradford Trident area?

The Trident area was drawn to meet government rules, which meant that some parts of the area were left out. The boundaries of the proposed new Parish Council fit better with natural boundaries of neighbourhoods. They also match polling districts that are used in elections for Bradford Metropolitan District Council.

Does this mean Bradford Trident is packing up?

No. Bradford Trident will continue once its New Deal for Communities money is spent. Bradford Trident has bought buildings that make an income. A small team will remain to make sure the buildings it owns, like the Mayfield Centre, are kept in good repair and that any spare cash is put to good use for the whole community.

Why have a Parish Council and Bradford Trident?

The board of Bradford Trident has looked at a variety of ways of ensuring local people continue to have a say after New Deal for Communities. It has come to the conclusion that having a Parish Council is the best way forward.

Bradford Trident's accountability to the local community will be ensured by the fact that elected Parish Councillors will be nominated to the board of Bradford Trident. The Parish Council may also decide to work with Bradford Trident to deliver services on its behalf.

How much would it cost?

Parish Councils can a charge called a precept. This is a small extra charge on top of the Council Tax to cover their planned expenditure. Parish Councils in the Bradford District in the budget year 2004-5 had precepts on Band D equivalent properties that varied from no charge to £13 per household. A precept of £13 is 25p per week per household. The precise precept that the new Parish Council would levy would be decided by Parish Councillors once they are elected. Households that qualify for council tax relief will also get relief on any parish precept.

How will a neighbourhood Parish Council be set up?

Elections are held every four years, at the same time as district council elections. The first elections could be in May 2007. At the moment it is planned to have 12 Parish Councillors but this may change following consultations.

Want to know more?

For more information about these proposals, and why Trident is supporting them, you can ring Bradford Trident on 01274 431441. More general information about Parish Councils can be found on the website of the National Association of Local Councils at www.nalc.gov.uk.

Excellent results in key crime and education figures are a cause for celebration in the Bradford Trident New Deal for Communities area.

In just four years the area has reduced its six month crimes per 1,000 population rate to 60 from a peak of 105. Remarkably the figure is now less than the district average of 64.

Over the same period pupils passing 5 or more GCSE's at grades A*-C has rocketed from 24.1% to 48.6% and is now 2.5% ahead of the district average.

"We are delighted at these achievements", said Cllr Ian Greenwood, Chair of Bradford Trident. "We have closed the gap of disadvantage five years ahead of our target date of 2010 in these two areas whilst significant progress is being made in other areas of our work. Without the hard work of all involved this would not have been possible and our thanks go to them. Now we must work just as hard to maintain the benefits these gains are making!".

Partnership working praised in the fight against crime

Jahnzaib Sarwar, one of Bradford Trident‚s Community Directors, and Chair of the Crime and Community Safety Working Group commented, "This is great news for the area. Over the past few years an enormous amount of work has been put into reducing crime and it‚s clear it is paying off. I would like to thank our partners in the police and criminal justice services for their hard work and positive approach to partnership".

Some of the innovative approaches used have included Trident paying for a team of four community police officers who work exclusively in the area. CCTV cameras have been installed and residents have been able to benefit from schemes that have improved locks on doors and windows. A strong network of Community and Business Watches have been developed and Trident has also supported targeted Crimestoppers campaigns.

Chief Superintendent Sarah Brown adds, "These figures are really encouraging and with continued efforts I am sure they will be sustained. Increasingly our success depends on good intelligence and the links made with the community in partnership with Bradford Trident have proved invaluable".

Twice as many pass target

John Player, Head Teacher at Grange Technology College welcomed the improvement in GCSE success rates, "The passing five or more GCSE's is a crucial indicator to academic achievement. I am extremely pleased at the progress made here and across the Bradford Trident area".

Bradford Trident has supported Learning Mentors in all the primary and secondary schools serving the area, has developed a network of Homework Clubs and has introduced a bursary scheme for residents wanting to go to college and university.

Chair of Bradford Trident's Youth Community and Education Working Group and Vice Chair of the Board, Nawaz Khan enthuses, "Only four years ago our results were poor. Now more than twice as many youngsters are making the grade. This is a tribute to the schools, teachers and pupils whom we have had the pleasure of working with. It also shows that the New Deal for Communities initiative has been excellent in delivering on the ground with the community driving it at the forefront. I am confident that we will continue to keep up the hard work and do even better in the forthcoming years".

All figures are taken from data supplied by relevant agencies.