Vale Viewpoint Survey Spring 2013

Results

Background

The January 2013 survey of the Vale Viewpoint panel was available for completion both online and via postal surveys. Despite the use of the Council website, there were only 283 responses. This can be compared to the 297 responses achieved with the September 2012 survey. This is a disappointing result.

Research has been conducted into how to incentivise engagement with Vale Viewpoint. As a result of this, a number of possible options have been highlighted. These will be investigated further.

The panel were asked a number of questions in relation to health and wellbeing, carers in the Vale, highways maintenance, waste management and influencing decisions.

Health and Wellbeing in the Vale

Questions one to four sought to gain an understanding of respondents’ experiences of accessing health information.

Respondents were first asked “Have you tried to access any information in the last twelve months to help you make healthy choices or lead a healthier lifestyle?” 60% of respondents answered that they had.

These respondents were then asked what they had tried to access information on. There were two very common responses. Healthy eating (47%) and keeping active and exercising (27%).

Of those respondents that had tried to access health and wellbeing information 88% said they had found it easy or very easy to find. Only 4% had not been able to find the information that they needed.

The survey then asked “If you found the information that you were looking for, where did you find it?” 76% of respondents that found the information that they needed answered that they had found it online. This was by far the most common response and suggests that this is a very effective method of communicating health and wellbeing information to residents.

Questions five to eight sought to gain an understanding of how residents felt we should approach providing health and wellbeing information in the future.

To introduce this the survey stated “We want to support the health and wellbeing of people who live in the Vale of Glamorgan in part by providing people with the information that they need to make healthy choices.” and then asked “Which of the following do you think we should prioritise when trying to do this?”

There were three clear preferences from respondents. 28% felt that information on keeping active and exercising should be a priority, 19% felt that healthy eating should be a priority and 19% felt that how to stop smoking should be a priority.

The next question sought to understand by which methods residents would prefer to access health and wellbeing information in the future.

Respondents were asked“How would you prefer to learn about health and wellbeing topics such as the ones listed above?” and were allowedto select as many options as they would like.

The most common method was online. 63% of respondents selected this method. 47% selected printed leaflets, 39% selected local newspapers and 34% selected face to face from a GP.

It should be noted that even the least popular methods offered – social media and email – were selected by nearly one in five respondents. This suggests a broad range of methods are required to communicate health and wellbeing information effectively in the Vale.

Respondents were then asked “Is there anything specific that you would like to know about any of these topics?” A number of suggestions were given. Respondents wanted to know about keeping active and exercising, healthy eating, mental health concerns and alcohol.

Finally the survey asked“Do you have any suggestions for how we could support residents to live healthy lifestyles?” A large number of valid suggestions were made by respondents. Amongst these responses, making healthy living affordable was a recurrent theme. Some respondents suggested that healthy food should be available at a lower price. 18% of respondents said that activities and facilities which promote a healthy lifestyle should be available at a low cost or at no cost. 10% of respondents suggested that more outdoor activities should be made available, including walking and cycling, as these tend to be less financially demanding. Other suggestions that were made included weight loss groups, quit smoking groups, healthy cooking workshops and easy access to general information.

Carers in the Vale

Questions 9 to 13 sought to gain an understanding of how carers in the Vale access information and how residents would access information about care if they needed to.

Respondents were first asked “Have you tried to access information on how to care for a friend or relative in the past twelve months?”. 26% of respondents to this question answered that they had.

These respondents were then asked where they had accessed this information. 56% of respondents to this question accessed the information online. The next most common responses were ‘by speaking to my doctor’ (13%) and ‘by speaking to a voluntary organisation’ (10%).

Those respondents who had not accessed information about care in the last twelve months were asked how they would do so if they required it. 54% of respondents to this question answered that they would access information using the internet; a figure similar to that for those who had accessed care. 24% said they would speak to their doctor, while 9% said they would speak to another health professional.

In both cases, using a library proved the most unpopular choice for seeking information about care. 3% of respondents who had tried to access information in the past twelve months had used the library, while only 2% of respondents who had not sought information said that the library would be their first port of call.

Overall, 87% of all respondents believed that it would be useful to provide a ‘one stop shop’, a single place where the public could go for information, for issues such as carers’ advice and support.

Respondents were then asked if they had any thoughts as to what this ‘one stop shop’ should provide. A large number of suggestions were made, with many respondents making more than one suggestion. Each different suggestion has been categorised and counted below. The table also shows whether each suggestion was made by a carer (someone who has sought information about caring for a friend or relative in the past twelve months) and non-carers (someone who has not sought information about caring for a friend or relative in the past twelve months). Below are the most popular suggestions.

Suggestion / Carers / Non-Carers / Total
Benefits advice / 11 / 10 / 21
Multi-agency service / 2 / 13 / 15
General help and information / 5 / 10 / 15
Healthcare advice and information / 4 / 10 / 14
Portal website / - / 13 / 13
Financial advice and information / 4 / 8 / 12
Access to respite care/ help for carers / 4 / 8 / 12
Access to useful/correct contact details / 3 / 7 / 10
Signposting / 6 / 4 / 10
Experienced and knowledgeable staff / 2 / 7 / 9
Information about daily care, care homes and retirement homes / 3 / 5 / 8
Housing advice and information / 4 / 2 / 6

Highways Maintenance

Questions 14 to 16 asked residents about The BIG Fill pothole campaign.

52% of respondents had heard of The BIG Fill scheme. Of these respondents, 62% said they had heard about The BIG Fill scheme in the local press, while 22% said they had heard about the scheme on the Vale Council website. No respondents cited bike advertisements as the source of their knowledge.

As The BIG Fill scheme was created in response to feedback about the state of the roads, question 16 sought to understand whether Vale residents believe that the Council should continue to deliver services in response to public feedback. 100% of respondents believe that this should be the case. This strongly suggests that Vale residents appreciate meaningful engagement; when their feedback noticeable informs service provision.

Question 17 focussed on the Council’s treatment of the roads in sub-zero temperatures. Respondents were asked whether they had found the salting of 274 miles of the Vale’s road network in such conditions to be effective over the past twelve months. 76% of respondents believe that the salting of the roads has been effective. 12% of respondents disagreed. A further 12% of respondents said that they do not know. This may suggest that improvements need to be made in how the Council communicates its road maintenance work to residents. However, it is vital to note that not all residents will be road users. Those who are not road users are less likely to be aware of the impact of the Council’s winter maintenance programme. As a result, the 12% of ‘I don’t know’ replies may not necessarily represent a negative response.

Questions 18 to 20 sought to understand how Vale residents access information about roadworks.

Only 23% of respondents had tried to access any information about roadworks in the Vale in the past twelve months. Of those respondents who had tried to access information, 89% felt that the Council should provide more. Of those respondents who had not tried to access information, only 64% believed that the Council should improve its provision of information in relation to roadworks. Overall, 70% of respondents felt that the Council should provide more information about roadworks in the Vale.

In order to gauge how residents would like to access information about roadworks, question 20 asked those who felt that the Council should provide more information how it should be provided. Respondents were asked to select as many responses as they wanted.

The most popular methods of communication proved to be the Council website and local newspapers, with 56% of respondents and 54% of respondents respectively selecting these options. Roadside notices also proved relatively popular, with 38% of respondents choosing this option.

Overall, only 11% of respondents did not suggest that information about roadworks be provided either on our website or in local newspapers. These results suggest that our website and the local newspapers could function as the main channels of communication, but that other methods of communication should complement these.

Question 21 asked respondents to rate how satisfied they are in general with road surfacing, pothole repairs, street lighting maintenance and the gritting of the roads.

86% of respondents were very satisfied or fairly satisfied with street lighting maintenance. 71% of respondents were very satisfied or fairly satisfied with the gritting of the roads. 51% of respondents were very satisfied or fairly satisfied with road surfacing. Only 38% of respondents were very satisfied or fairly satisfied with pothole repairs.

While this suggests that Vale residents have, on the whole, a positive opinion of street lighting maintenance and the gritting of the roads, there appears to be widespread dissatisfaction with the general maintenance of the roads.

Waste Management

Question 22 asked “To what extent do you agree that the zero tolerance approach to littering has had a positive impact on the Vale?”.

57% of respondents either agreed or strongly agreed that the zero tolerance approach has had a positive impact, while only 15% of respondents either disagreed or strongly disagreed. The remaining 28% neither agreed nor disagreed.

The next question focussed on recycling. Panel members were asked “If we were to begin to collect any of the following items which would you find most helpful?”. Respondents were given six options: textiles; household batteries; small electrical items; certain light bulbs; polystyrene and other.

The most popular response was small electrical items, with 31% of respondents to this question choosing this option.

24% of respondents said that they would like to be able to recycle polystyrene, 20% said that they would like to recycle textiles and 19% said that they would like to be able to recycle household batteries.

Recycling certain light bulbs was a very unpopular response, with only 3% of respondents choosing this option.

Question 24 also asked respondents to consider the recycling system offered by the Vale of Glamorgan Council. Respondents were first told that, “It is possible that Welsh Government legislation may force the Council to change back to a separated recycling system (where residents would have to sort their recycling before collection)”. They were then asked whether they would see this as a positive move.

84% of respondents said that they would not see this as a positive move. This suggests that, on the whole, the current co-mingled kerbside recycling system is more popular than the previous separated recycling system. Residents may view this reversal in policy as a regressive step.

Question 25 moved the focus away from recycled waste to black bag waste. Respondents were asked, “Do you feel that the Council should take stronger action against those who place their black bags out on the wrong week?”.

55% of respondents to this question thought that the Council should take stronger action, while 45% thought that the Council should not take stronger action. Respondents were then asked to explain their answer.

The explanations from those respondents who thought that the Council should take stronger action have been categorised below.

Reason / Number of Respondents
Bags damage the local environment (unsightly, odorous). / 16
Bags attract animals and vermin. / 37
Bags split and waste litters the streets. / 22
Action against those who persistently offend. / 10
To encourage more recycling. / 12
Bags are a health and safety hazard. / 7
Council information is easy to access and understand. / 13
It is antisocial. / 3
Bags are not removed by residents when they are not collected. / 16
It is a social responsibility to put bags out on the correct day. / 3

These respondents were mainly concerned with the state of their local environment as well as the health and safety issues caused by abandoned black bags.

The explanations from those respondents who thought that the Council should not take stronger action have been categorised below.

Reason / Number of Respondents
It is not a problem in my area. / 6
The Council should provide more information more frequently. / 18
This would be a bad use of resources. / 8
It is an easy mistake to make. / 35
Reminders should be issued instead of punishments. / 4
The current system can confuse residents, especially the elderly. / 24
The Council should provide wheelie bins. / 1
Each case is individual. / 1
There should be weekly collections / 7
This is not a priority. / 5
Bank holidays, personal holidays and poor weather can cause confusion. / 10
It would be difficult to prove liability. / 3
A punitive approach is too heavy handed. / 5
Only persistent offenders should be punished. / 8
Collections are too early to place bags out on the day. / 2

The main concern for these respondents is that placing bags out on the wrong day is an easy mistake to make – punitive measures should not be taken against those who do not intentionally litter the streets. In addition to this, a large number of respondents commented that the current fortnightly collection system can be highly confusing. There was a desire for the Council to provide more information, in the form of leaflets, timetables and calendars, instead of spending resources to penalise residents.

Influencing Decisions

The results of the September 2012 Vale Viewpoint survey told us that Vale residents have very mixed views about the extent to which they can influence decisions in the Vale. Questions 27 and 28 sought to discover how we can help residents to have their say.

Question 27 asked the respondents what they would most like to influence. They were given 5 options.

  1. “Changing the services on offer in the Vale – telling us which services we need to start providing and which ones we should stop.”
  2. “Changing how we communicate with you – telling us the best ways to tell you the services that are on offer so that more Vale residents become aware of them.”
  3. “Improving services that you use – telling us what is good and bad about services in the Vale that you have recently used.”
  4. “Improving services that you don’t use – telling us what you think of services that you haven’t used.”
  5. “Improving policies – reading through the policies that are being developed by organisations in the Vale and telling us what you think.”

Respondents were asked to select only one option. 33% of respondents chose option 2, making this the most popular option. 31% of respondents chose option 3 and 28% of respondents chose option 1.

Options 4 and 5 proved significantly more unpopular amongst respondents. 8% of respondents chose option 5 and1% of respondents chose option 4.

Amongst all age groups, options 1, 2 and 3 are the most popular.

Question 28 asked which methods respondents would like to use to have their say, in order to inform the development of a new range of communication tools for residents. Respondents were encouraged to select all of the methods that they would like to use.

The most popular was via online questionnaires, with 67% of respondents opting for this method. Written questionnaires also proved a popular method of communication, with 60% of respondents choosing this. 42% of respondents would like to communicate by email and 33% of respondents would like to speak to decision makers face to face.

In every age group, apart from those aged 75 or older, the four most popular methods of communication were via online questionnaires, via written questionnaires, by email and by speaking to decision makers face to face. However, for those respondents aged 75 or older, the most popular method of communication was via written questionnaires (64%). 29% of respondents would like to use public meetings to have their say and 29% of respondents said that they would like to be able to have their say over the phone.