Your responses will be treated as confidential

Wrestlingworth and Cockayne Hatley Neighbourhood Plan

A Vision for the Community

  • What do you want to change or improve?
  • What do you want to protect?
  • What new facilities would you like to see?

HOUSEHOLD QUESTIONNAIRE - COCKAYNE HATLEY

We need everyone’s help to help themselvesand the community – and we need it NOW!

This is a request from your Parish Council to get involved and to actively contribute to the production of a Neighbourhood Plan (Plan) for our area covering the next 15-20 years.

Over the next year or so your Parish Council is drafting a Plan for our Parish which, if approved by a voting majority of residents at a referendum, will be incorporated by Central Bedfordshire Council (CBC) as a formal part of its own strategic plans.

An agreed Plan will ensure that both CBC and developers, in considering any future changes, must be guided by the wishes of the local population. It will establish a strategy identifying infrastructure and service requirements, including, if considered necessary, potential development sites and protection for items considered important to the Parish.

Your Parish Council has agreed that this is too good an opportunity to miss: for local people to tell CBC and otherswhether and how areas should improve and change, reflecting your views on housing, employment and community priorities.

HAVE YOUR SAY ON THE FUTURE OF THIS PARISH

The process of drafting the Plan started with the public meetings in each village in November 2014 and continues with this questionnaire which has been circulated to every household in the Parish. It is necessary to collect basic data, and to identify those issues which are important to the majority of our residents. Further consultation will occur as the drafting of the Plan proceeds.

When answering the following questions, please remember the final document needs to have incorporated your views of the Parish and its needs over the next 15-20 years. Given the specific requirements of each village, separate questionnaires have been drafted for Wrestlingworth and Cockayne Hatley to ensure that the views of each community are properly represented.

One copy of the questionnaire has been delivered to each household. Some questions have the provision for up to six different members of the household to supply their views; in the unlikely event that an additional form is required, this can be obtained by contacting Ron Ram on 631706. The rest of the questionnaire asks for your views as a household; please try to take account of the views of all the members of the household, including young people aged 12 years and above.

Thank you for taking the time to participate. By filling in and returning the questionnaire you will help to ensure the final Plan truly reflects residents’ views.

Ron Ram

Chair of the Steering Group

Tel: 01767 631706

March 2015

The data you enter on this questionnaire will only be used to produce averaged, aggregated results. All your comments will be noted but the information you provide will not be used to associate your answers with your household.

Preliminary Background Questions

  1. Information about age and gender of the household – please put the total number of members of the household that relate to each category.

Male / Female
Aged 0 – 5 years / Aged 0 – 5 years
Aged 6 – 9 years / Aged 6 – 9 years
Aged 10 – 15 years / Aged 10 – 15 years
Aged 16 – 19 years / Aged 16 – 19 years
Aged 20 – 39 years / Aged 20 – 39 years
Aged 40 – 59 years / Aged 40 – 59 years
Aged 60 – 69 years / Aged 60 – 69 years
Aged over 70 years / Aged over 70 years
  1. How long have you as a household lived in Cockayne Hatley? ______years ______months
  1. Why do you as a household live in Cockayne Hatley? (Please tick all that apply)

Person / A / B / C / D / E / F
Near to work
Near to a good school
The house suits our needs
We like the community
Our family has always lived in the parish
Near to our family
We wanted to live in the countryside
Sense of a thriving village
We wanted to retire here
Other

If other please specify below:

  1. Would you like to see the village change or improve in the future? If so, please state your top priority below (e.g. relating to community facilities, housing, transport, anything else), please give reasons for your choice.

Please provide answers from as many people in the household as possible, including young people aged 12 years and above. Answers can be provided for up to six people.

Person / Top Priority / Reason
A
B
C
D
E
F
  1. How important is community spirit to you?

Please provide answers from as many people in the household as possible, including young people aged 12 years and above. Answers can be provided for up to six people.

Person / Very Important / Important / No Opinion / Not Important / Definitely Not Important
A
B
C
D
E
F
  1. Do you think there is a sense of community in the village? (Please tick the relevant box)

Please provide answers from as many people in the household as possible, including young people aged 12 years and above. Answers can be provided for up to six people.

Person / Very Strong / Strong / No Opinion / A Little / None
A
B
C
D
E
F

Employment and Economy

  1. How would you describe your current employment status? (Please tick the relevant box)

Please provide answers from as many people in the household as possible, including young people aged 12 years and above. Answers can be provided for up to six people.

Person / A / B / C / D / E / F
Employee in a full time job – more than 30 hours per week
Person in a part-time job – less than 30 hours per week
Self-employed full or part-time
On a Government supported training programme
Full time education
Unemployed and available for work
Permanently sick/disabled
Wholly retired
Looking after the home
  1. Would your household like to see more opportunities for small businesses in the village?

Yes / No / No Opinion

If your answer is ‘yes’ please specify below:

Housing

  1. A Housing Needs Survey undertaken in 2013 identified the need for 4 units of affordable housing in the whole Parish. That comprised 2 x 1 – 2 bed houses (1rent, 1 shared ownership); 1 x 2 bed house (rent) and 1 x 2 – 3 bed house (rent or shared ownership). Doesyourhouseholdthink any should be built in Cockayne Hatley? If so where?
  1. Does your household think there should be housing growth in or around Cockayne Hatley? Please choose one of the following options

No
Yes up to 4 houses
Yes 4 - 8 houses
Yes more than 8 houses

If, ‘yes’, which sites does your household consider suitable for development? Whilst discussions at the public meeting held at St John’s Church in November 2014 centred on the Co-op land derelict barns and the Co-op land opposite, do you have any other suggestions?

  1. How far does your household believe that the Parish Council should try to influence the design and style of new developments?

Strongly Influence
Influence
No Opinion
Do not Influence
Certainly Do Not
Influence

Community Assets

  1. How important does your household think the following facilities are within the parish?

Very Important / Important / No Opinion / Not Important / Not Important at All
The Chequers Wrestlingworth
The Memorial Hall Wrestlingworth
Wrestlingworth VC Lower School
Wrestlingworth Pre-School
Children’s Play Area Wrestlingworth
St John’s Cockayne Hatley
St Peter’s Wrestlingworth
The Amenity Land behind the Chequers
Other (please specify below)

If you feel any of the community assets mentioned in Question 12 could be improved upon, or new ones could be introduced, please make your suggestions below:

The Natural Environment

  1. How important does your household think the following aspects of the environment arewithin the village?

Very Important / Important / No Opinion / Not Important / Not Important at All
Footpaths, bridleways and permissive paths
Open spaces in Village Road
The agricultural environment
The remote peacefulness of Cockayne Hatley
Potton Wood
Other (please specify below)

Transport

  1. Would your household use the bus if a service was provided?

Yes / No / No Opinion
  1. Concerns have been raised about the speed of traffic on Village Road. How far does yourhousehold agree or disagree that steps should be taken to reduce the speed of traffic?

Strongly Agree / Agree / No Opinion / Disagree / Strongly Disagree
  1. Concerns have been raised about road safety at the High Street and Tadlow Road cross roads in Wrestlingworth. How far does your household agree or disagree that steps should be taken to increase road safety at the junction?

Strongly Agree / Agree / No Opinion / Disagree / Strongly Disagree
  1. Are there any other road safety measures that would improve the quality of life in the parish? (please specify below)

Broadband and Mobile Phone Signals

  1. How satisfied is your household with the current broadband and mobile phone signals?

Very Satisfied / Satisfied / No Opinion / Dissatisfied / Very Dissatisfied
  1. Does your household think that we should strive to improve broadband and mobile phone signals?

Yes / No / No Opinion

What Happens Next?

Once completed, please return your questionnaire to Sharon and James Harris’ post box (the one on the gate so that the dogs don’t eat it) by Sunday 15th March

Further information on Neighbourhood Planning is provided in the Appendix to this questionnaire and on the Parish Council website

It is you, the individual residents of Cockayne Hatley who need to tell us what is important, both now and in the future.

PLEASE DO NOT MISS THIS CHANCE TO HAVE YOUR SAY AND HELP US TO SHAPE THE FUTURE OF THE PARISH

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