The area has a traditionally strong local identity. An active community group, Burnley Wood Community Action Group, publishes a free newspaper, the "Burnley Wood Argus", for the area, and Burnley Wood Park, a new community park financed by Elevate, has been built in the centre of the early twenty first century housing clearance area around Morley Street. Previously high crime levels, especially antisocial behaviour by young people, now appear to be in decline: there were 114 crimes per 1,000 inhabitants in the year to December 2007 (Lancashire average 89.4), a fall of 19.2% on the previous twelve months. The area to the west of St. Stephen's church has now been extensively redeveloped with a mix of larger family dwellings and for the first time in its history now allows the church to be viewed in full from Kirkgate rather than behind the previous row of terraces which were recently demolished.