AVDC Community Centre Consultation

November 2013

1. Background Following a comprehensive review of our community centres in Aylesbury, a programme of consultation with hirers, users and local residents was conducted. The consultation sought people's views on the centres we own and manage including: Alfred Rose, Bedgrove Park, Prebendal Farm, Southcourt, and Hawkslade in Stoke Mandeville.

This consultation does not cover any other community centres in Aylesbury that we own but are managed by other organisations, nor Elmhurst which was identified in the review as surplus to requirements.

Community centres cost the council almost half a million pounds a year to run. Outside of Aylesbury, particularly the rural areas, villages tend to own and manage their own facilities without additional support from AVDC.

This consultation aimed to find out how important the centres are to local people; to get a fuller picture as to how local people use them, what they want from them and how they could be run differently in the future. 2. Methodology The consultation was conducted online (a paper version was available to those without internet access), from mid November to mid December 2013.

It was promoted widely to hirers, users and local residents alike via the council’s news magazine, Aylesbury Vale Times, distributed in mid November 2013. The consultation was posted on the councils Facebook and Twitter pages, and promoted in local media such as the Bucks Herald and Aylesbury Town Matters.

In addition, both hirers and users were invited to participate through the community centres themselves. 3. Summary of results Overall, nearly 200 responses were received, divided into three types of respondent. The response levels of each were:

Hirers 47 responses Users 134 responses, and Local residents 16 responses.

The findings are reported by type of respondent as questions were tailored their individual needs.

3.1 Hirers findings Centre hired % response Southcourt 34 Bedgrove 23 Alfred Rose 15 Prebendal 13 Hawkslade 11 Elmhurst 2 N/A centre not mentioned 2

 54% of those who responded currently hired weekly; 21% two or three times a week; 8% fortnightly and 18% monthly. 75% said they preferred to hire weekly.  Of those expressing a preference, 21% said they would make use of an additional room; 21% a larger space and 4% a smaller space.  82% used the kitchens at the centres; 73% used storage - half of which was over 3sqm; 26% outdoor space, and 11% Wifi.  89% say they are able to book days and times they want. Of those who can’t, say it’s difficult to get a regular booking at preferred times, due to the centre already being booked.  24% also book at other venues regularly; 15% occasionally.  Currently bookings are available for morning, afternoon or evening slots. 40% said they would prefer a shorter two hour booking slot; 30% a three hour slot.  Looking at what are the key factors when choosing a venue for hire, the Table 1 shows that location, size and availability of rooms, and parking on-site are the most important factors.

Table 1. Can you let us know what factors are most important to you when choosing a venue for hire? (5 = very important ; 1 = least important)

Wi fi available Secure outdoor area Storage Use of kitchen Parking on site Room availability to suit Size of room Location

0 1 2 3 4 5 6

 On considering possible future charges, we asked if it would be fair to charge organisations that block book our facilities term-time only a retainer fee over the school holiday periods? 16% agreed this was fair; 29% were unsure and 55% disagreed.  11% agreed it was fair to charge for kitchen use inc. hot water supply; 14% fair to charge for Wifi; 12% fair to charge for 1-3sqm storage and 15% for over 3sqm storage.

The next table shows the satisfaction with the centres themselves:

Table 2. Thinking about your most recent bookings, how do you rate the community centre you use for? 45 Very poor Poor 40 Fair Good 35 Very good 30 25 20 15 10 5

centre

hall/room

booking

Internal decoration

Cleanlinessof main

opening/closingthe

Furniture/equipment

Timekeepingof staff

Cleanlinessof kitchen Helpfulnessof staff when Cleanlinessof toilet areas Finally, hirers were asked if they would be interested in getting involved in setting up a community management association to run the facility. 30% said ‘yes probably’ or ‘yes possibly’; 36% ‘definitely not’ and a further 34% not sure. Details have been passed to colleagues to follow up with any interested parties. 3.2 Users findings The community centres used by respondents were: Centre No. of respondents Hawkslade 41 Alfred Rose 35 Prebendal Farm 30 Bedgrove Park 18 Southcourt 7 N/A centre not listed 8

Activities that respondents joined in at the centres included:

Activity No. of mentions Martial arts 18 Dance, eg salsa 15 Over 50’s activities 15 Card clubs, eg Bridge 12 Pre-school, nursery 12 Exercise, eg Yoga 7

 Looking at what are the key factors when taking part in activities, the Table 3 shows that parking on-site and location and are the most important factors.

Table 3. Q. Can you let us know what factors are most important to you when taking part in activities in community centres? ( 5 = very important and 1 = least important). Range of activities on offer

Wi fi available

Use of kitchen

Parking on site

Location

0 1 2 3 4 5

Table 4. Thinking about your most recent visit, how do you rate the community Very poor Poor 90 centre you use for? 80 Fair Good 70 Very good 60 50 40 30 20 10

areas

hall/room

Internal decoration

Helpfulnessof staff

Cleanlinessof toilet

Cleanlinessof main

Furniture/equipment Cleanlinessof kitchen

 37% said they were interested in hiring a centre in the future for a private event; 25% weren’t interested and 38% were unsure.  Users were asked if they would be interested in helping set up a group or activity at a centre, 23% said ‘yes’ (probably or possibly); 52% ‘no’ and a further 26% ‘not sure’.  Other things people said they’d like to see happen at their community centre included: Health services (three mentions); Sport or gymnastics, Police & local council drop-in sessions, and more youth coaching (all two mentions each). Other things mentioned once included table tennis, drama, dance, jumble sales, coffee mornings, youth activities, information centre, church services, toastmasters club and integration of ethnic groups. 3.3 Local residents responses  Between one and four residents living near each centre responded to give their views, 79% of which said they have used the centres themselves ‘occasionally’.  Almost half no longer visit the centres, but use other venues to attend activities, such as social clubs and bingo.

 Finally, residents were asked what they would like to see take place at their local centre. Adult learning, exercise classes, social nights and career advice were mentioned (though it should be noted that the first two were mentioned as examples). 3.4 Verbatim comments left by local residents about the centres included: a. Community centres need to be central focus for the community, providing a range of health, learning and entertaining activities. b. I feel our local community centre is under-used & should provide more family oriented events, coffee mornings, exercise classes at low rates. c. I think community centres are a much needed asset in the community. I feel this bring neighbourhoods d. I use them frequently to meet other mums in the area and have a safe environment for my children to play in, it would be a real shame if these activities were to stop. e. If you close these community centres you are taking away the chance for people to get together locally. f. Please re-open the Walton court centre. My neighbours miss the social side, and child friendly atmosphere g. It’s a false economy to close such facilities as people become isolated, less fit, gain weight and rely on the state further. We should have more of these facilities and diverse activities to keep the population active for longer. 4. Next stage In response to hirers comments, we are introducing a two-hour booking slot in the near future.

Findings are being used in the discussions with colleagues and partner organisations in considering future use and running of the centres.