Berwick Upon Tweed Town Welcome Visitor

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed

March 2010

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Contents 1. Executive Summary ...... 3 2. Project background ...... 7 3. Aims and objectives ...... 7 4. Methodology ...... 8 5. Introduction ...... 9 6. Key findings ...... 10 6.1 Visitor characteristics ...... 10 6.1.1 Origin ...... 10 6.1.2 Frequency of visits ...... 11 6.1.3 Type of visit ...... 12 6.1.4 Reasons for visiting ...... 13 6.1.5 Group travel ...... 14 6.1.6 Group size and composition ...... 14 6.2 Planned activities ...... 15 6.3 Travel & Transport ...... 16 6.3.1 Method of transport ...... 16 6.3.2 Car parks ...... 18 6.4 Accommodation ...... 20 6.4.1 Type of accommodation used ...... 20 6.4.2 Experience of accommodation ...... 22 6.5 Attractions visited ...... 23 6.5.1 Events visited ...... 24 6.5.2 Tourist Information Centre ...... 25 6.6 Experience of visit ...... 27 6.6.1 Overall satisfaction ...... 27 6.6.2 Satisfaction with specific aspects and priorities ...... 30 6.6.3 Visitor likes and dislikes ...... 39 6.7 Visitor expenditure ...... 46 6.7.1 Average spend per person per day ...... 47 6.7.2 Average spend per person per trip ...... 49 6.8 Visitor demographics ...... 50 6.8.1 Age and gender ...... 50 6.8.2 Work situation ...... 51 6.8.3 Disability ...... 51 6.8.4 Ethnicity ...... 52 7. Conclusions ...... 53 8. Recommendations ...... 55 9. Appendices ...... 56 9.1 Survey ...... 56 9.2 Verbatim comments ...... 64

Project number: Trism08-5197 Title: Market Town Welcome Surveys Location: ..\..\TRISM08-5197_MTW_Analysis Date: March 2010 Report status: Final version This research has been carried out in compliance with the MRQSA Approved by: Nick How international standard (ISO20:252) Authors: Millie Ostlere & Zak Haeri

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1. Executive Summary

Project background

The Market Town Welcome (MTW) programme was established in 2008 in collaboration with One North East, Northumberland County Council (NCC), Northumberland Tourism (NT) and the Development Trusts in each of the towns mentioned below

This research will provide benchmarks in 2009/2010 against which to measure the performance of the MTW Programme and its initiatives

The research will also add to a suite of research data used to advise a range of planning and policy processes in Northumberland and North East England

Alongside this report, individual reports for Alnwick, Amble, Haltwhistle, Hexham, Morpeth, Seahouses and Wooler are available, as well as an overall comparison report

Aims and objectives

The overarching aim of the MTW research is to ‘Improve visitor satisfaction of Northumberland market towns and raise their profile within the visitor economy’

To target the research objectives, NT commissioned face-to-face quantitative surveys for each of the market towns. Street interviews were conducted over four days in both the spring and summer of 2009. Only people who were visiting the town were included. Those who lived and/or worked in the town, or were there on business were excluded

By achieving 487 completions in Berwick upon Tweed, we can approximate the error margin to be low (+/-4.4%) at a confidence level 95%, which offers robust results

Visitor characteristics

The majority (98%) of respondents to this survey were UK residents, with 2% from overseas. Respondents from the UK were most likely to live in the North East (49%), followed by Scotland (23%).

Three quarters of visitors (75%) said they had visited Berwick upon Tweed before. Out of these respondents, 70% had previously visited at least once in the last 12 months

The greatest proportion (69%) of respondents said their trip was a staying visit compared to 31% who were day visitors. Nearly half of staying visitors (45%) said they were staying outside of Berwick upon Tweed.

The main reason visitors chose Berwick upon Tweed was for general sightseeing

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Travel & Transport

More than three quarters (78%) of those who mainly used a car, van or motorhome to reach Berwick upon Tweed said it was very or fairly easy to travel into Berwick upon Tweed Town Centre. More than half (57%) said it was easy or very easy to park in the town and almost half (41%) said the cost of parking was reasonable or very reasonable. Only 2% of respondents travelled by train

Accommodation

Out of those staying in Berwick upon Tweed, again staying in a rented static caravan was the most likely type of accommodation chosen (27%).

All listed aspects of accommodation were rated as good or very good by approximately three quarters of visitors

Attractions visited

The Ramparts/Walls and Holy Island were most likely to be chosen by respondents as the attractions they had visited or planned to visit as part of their trip. Visitors in the town for the first time were more likely to say they were visiting Berwick Barracks and Holy Island than previous visitors

Out of those that had visited the Tourist Information Centre satisfaction is high, with at least 89% rating ease of finding, quality of service and usefulness of information as good or very good

Experience of visit

The majority of those staying in Berwick upon Tweed (88%) rated their overall enjoyment of the town as high or very high. Consistent with respondents’ positive perceptions of the area, 78% of visitors said they would recommend Berwick upon Tweed to someone else

Excluding those that said they did not know, visitors were most likely to give a high satisfaction rating to aspects of security in Berwick upon Tweed while public transport received the fewest good or very good scores

When asking respondents in an open-ended question what additional facilities or services would have added to their enjoyment of their visit to Berwick upon Tweed, the most frequent, specific response was ‘more shops’ and ‘ease traffic’

Vehicle-related issues were most likely to be cited as the main problems with the shopping experience in Berwick upon Tweed Town Centre, with traffic (57% compared to 38% MTW average), road safety (29% compared to 13% MTW average) and illegal parking (15% compared to 10% MTW average) in the top three. The main problem in the ‘other’ category included reference to a lack of quality shops

Perceptions of Berwick upon Tweed’s shops were mixed, with similar proportions of visitors agreeing and disagreeing there is a wide choice of shops or that shops are of a

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good quality. Respondents were most likely to say they would like to see fewer charity shops and more Chain Stores

Visitors felt Berwick upon Tweed is a good or very good place to visit (91%) and to enjoy themselves (90%). It was rated less highly as a place to shop (59% good or very good), consistent with the findings from other retail-related questions

Visitors were most likely (54%) to say, unprompted, that better shops would make Berwick upon Tweed town centre better, followed by improved parking

Visitor Expenditure

The total daily spend including accommodation of visitors who stayed within Berwick upon Tweed was calculated as £48.87, considerably higher than the corresponding MTW average figure of £38.30. The total daily spend of visitors coming to Berwick upon Tweed for the day only was calculated as £34.66, again considerably higher than the corresponding MTW average figure of £20.69.

Conclusions and recommendations

The data suggests that Berwick upon Tweed is a place where predominantly local people (residents in the North East) like to go, attracting a large proportion of repeat visitors

There is a clear desire for an increased range of shops in Berwick upon Tweed, with respondents feeling the town would benefit from an increase in well known chain stores as well as ‘fewer charity shops’

The typical expectation for a first time visitor from a day out in Berwick upon Tweed is likely to include a trip to Berwick Barracks and/or Holy Island, and general sightseeing of the area

Local arts and leisure facilities (Swan Lesiure Centre, The Maltings Art Centre, The Gymnasium Gallery) are not experienced by the majority of visitors and 60% of visitors had not attended any of the events listed in the survey. Those that had visited the town before cited the markets and Riding the Bounds as events they had attended

For those in a car, van or motorhome, travelling in and around the town, including parking and parking charges, is generally perceived as easy and reasonable by the majority

The data suggests, however, that once in the town, traffic and road safety become an issue for some visitors

There is potential to increase satisfaction with public transport in and around the town which may, in turn, help to reduce any perceived traffic problems by visitors

The majority of visitors to each town rated their overall enjoyment as positive (over 78% very high or high for each). There is room to improve upon this index by turning more ‘high’ ratings, into ‘very high’ ratings, and the balance between these is less favourable for Berwick upon Tweed (16% very high and 62% high)

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Subject/issues Recommendation Berwick attracts a much higher proportion of Ensure marketing strategies maximise this visitors from Scotland (23% v MTW 7%) opportunity Berwick trails in visitor satisfaction across a Work more closely with tourism businesses to range of aspects compared to the MTW raise quality and standards. Signpost to average with fewer ‘very good’ responses in business support. place to visit, town centre cleanliness, shop frontage etc Only 2% of visitors used the train to visit the Opportunity to market the town for short town inspite of excellent rail links stays using train Traffic, road safety and illegal parking are the Use to inform Town Centre developers and main problems cited with shopping in Berwick those responsible for Public Realm. upon Tweed Continue to develop and deliver Berwick’s Public Realm Strategy The cost of parking in Berwick is considered to Use to inform Town Centre planners. Review be less reasonable than the MTW average (very costs to keep in line with other towns reasonable 23% v 7%, reasonable 36% v 35%) Only 29% of visitors feel it’s very easy to travel Use to inform Town Centre developers and into Berwick (compared to MTW 62%) those responsible for Public Ream In addition to this report, there are 7 other Read this report in conjunction with town reports and one comparison report comparison report for further context and to allow for performance benchmarking Develop cross marketing strategies

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2. Project background

The aim of the programme is to help Northumberland’s Market Towns exploit their tourism potential as well as raise their profile within the visitor economy

In order to measure the success of the Market Town Welcome programme, Northumberland Tourism commissioned visitor surveys for each town to replace the previous surveys (dating from 2003 and 2005)

Fieldwork was undertaken in 2009 surveying visitors to all eight towns within the MTW programme. Raw data captured from these surveys was analysed by Qa Research (Qa) and this document provides results of these analyses for the market town of Berwick upon Tweed

3. Aims and objectives

The overarching aim of the MTW programme is to:

‘Improve visitor satisfaction of Northumberland market towns and raise their profile within the visitor economy’

Information gained from the surveys will achieve this aim by meeting the following objectives:

• Computing baseline statistics against which to benchmark the MTW programme to facilitate development of future projects and monitoring

• Revealing visitor profiles

• Measuring visitor satisfaction levels and highlighting areas where expectations are not being met

• Uncovering the motivations driving people to visit

• Determining what activities they engage in and what attractions they visit

• Specifying the ratio of day vs. overnight visitors, the length of stay, and type of accommodation used

• Calculating visitor expenditure patterns to feed into the STEAM1 model

1 The STEAM (Scarborough Tourism Economic Activity Monitor) model quantifies the economic impact of tourism and provides information on overall visitor numbers, spending and jobs created.

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4. Methodology

To target the research objectives, NT commissioned face-to-face quantitative surveys for each of the market towns included in the MTW programme. Questionnaires were developed taking into account previous visitor surveys commissioned by Northumbria Tourist Board in 2003, One North East’s current regional visitor survey and NCC’s Town Centre Performance surveys. The fieldwork was organised and managed by the Northumberland Infonet.

Within each of the towns included in MTW, street interviews were conducted over four days in both the spring and summer of 2009. Interviews in each town were carried out on both weekdays and weekends, situated at four different locations within each town. The locations used are listed at the end of the appended questionnaire.

Respondents were screened through introductory questions on the survey to ensure that anybody who could not be considered a visitor would be removed from the sample. Therefore, only people who were visiting the town were included. Those who lived and/or worked in the town, or were there on business were excluded.

By achieving 487 completions in Berwick upon Tweed, we can approximate the error margin to be low (+/-4.4%) at a confidence level 95%, which offers robust results. One way of understanding why is to note what this error margin at the 95% confidence level implies i.e. were the survey to be repeated 100 times, 95 of those times, the results would be within 4.4% plus or minus, of the results presented in this report.

It should also be noted that the sample data gives an indication of current visitor levels of satisfaction etc. Northumberland Tourism, along with One North East, uses the Arkenford model to segment its current visitors and to target future markets. It was not possible to analyse the data in this survey according to the Arkenford model. To develop a more detailed understanding of the target market (where different from our current market), further segmented research would be required.

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5. Introduction

This document reports on results obtained from surveys conducted in Berwick upon Tweed 2009 (see appendix for questionnaire used). Results from the remaining seven market towns are provided in separate reports. Results from all eight market towns are also compared in one separate comparative report.

Please note when interpreting results throughout this report not all percentages will total 100%. This can be due to computer rounding with figures of .5 or higher being rounded up, and/or multiple response questions. When respondents can provide more than one response to a question, response frequencies may sum higher that 100%.

Furthermore, please note base sizes between results from different questions may vary. This can be due to respondents being routed within the questionnaire to specific questions on the basis of prior responses and/or data collection errors. Throughout this report where base sizes vary, explanatory commentary has been provided.

Raw data captured from the Berwick upon Tweed survey including verbatim responses to three open-ended questions were inputted into SPSS and provided to Qa for analysis, reporting and exporting to Excel. This raw data was analysed, along with the verbatim responses quantified through coding, using Askia software, and cross-tabulated for the following variables:

• Day vs. overnight visitors • UK vs. overseas visitors • Previous vs. first-time visitors • People who visited TIC vs. people who hadn’t visited TIC • Spring vs. summer • Group type (alone, children only, with children, couple with children, adult only) • Main reason for visiting (shopping, tourism, leisure, services, no specific reason)

Cross-tabulations revealing relevant differences between categories that reach statistical significance are commented on within the appropriate section, and their respective proportions provided. Therefore no cross-tabulation commentary indicates no relevant statistically significant differences between the above categories were found.

Tables have been inserted comparing results on specific questions between spring vs. summer, and where appropriate, day vs. overnight visitors. For purpose of example the following table should be interpreted as for example, 13% of respondents interviewed in spring in Berwick upon Tweed had visited the TIC, compared to 34% of visitors in summer. The table also shows that far fewer day visitors (7%) accessed the TIC than overnight visitors (29%). When results for Berwick are combined (i.e. day and overnight, and spring and summer visitors), we find 23% had visited the TIC, and this compares to 24% of the combined results of each of the eight market towns (MTW column).

Q12. Have you been to the TIC? Berwick upon Spring Summer Day O/night Tweed MTW Yes 13% 34% 7% 29% 23% 24% No 87% 66% 93% 71% 77% 76% Base 113 368 146 321 481 3557

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6. Key findings

6.1 Visitor characteristics

6.1.1 Origin

The majority (98%) of respondents to this survey were UK residents, with 2% from overseas. Respondents from the UK were most likely (49%) to live in the North East.

Q2. Where do you live?

North East 49% Scotland 23% Yorkshire & Humberside 17% East Midlands 4% South East 2% North West 2% South West 1% West Midlands 1% East of England 1% Wales 0% Greater London 0%

Source: NT 2009 Base: 462 (visitors from UK excluding 'invalid' - unknown postcodes)

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Q2. Visitors from North East

Northumberland 49%

Durham 16%

Gateshead 9%

Newcastle upon Tyne 8%

North Tyneside 7%

South Tyneside 6%

Sunderland 4%

Darlington 1%

Source: NT 2009 Base: 225(visitors from North East)

6.1.2 Frequency of visits

Three quarters of visitors (75%) said they had visited Berwick upon Tweed before. Out of these respondents, 70% had previously visited at least once in the last 12 months.

Q9b. How many times have you visited Berwick upon Tweed in the last 12 months? (closed)

31% 27% 22% 21%

None Once 2-5 times More than 5 times

Source: NT 2009 Base: 356 (previous visitors to Berwick upon Tweed)

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6.1.3 Type of visit

The greatest proportion (69%) of respondents said their trip was a staying visit compared to 31% who were day visitors.

Nearly half of staying visitors (45%) said they were staying outside of Berwick upon Tweed. Areas specified included Alnwick, Bamburgh, Coldstream, Edinburgh, Seahouses, and Wooler.

Q5a. Where are you staying? (closed)

55% 45%

Berwick upon Tweed Other

Source: NT 2009 Base: 346(all respondents)

Three quarters of visitors staying in Berwick upon Tweed (73%) were spending less than a week on their trip. Whilst 20% were staying exactly 7 nights, a further 6% were staying for longer.

Q5b. How many nights are you spending/will you have spent in total in this location? (open) 44%

29% 26%

1-2 nights 3-6 nights 7 or more nights

Source: NT 2009 Base: 172(staying visitors)

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6.1.4 Reasons for visiting

A full list of respondents’ reasons for visiting Berwick upon Tweed is set out in the chart below.

The main reason visitors chose Berwick upon Tweed, can be summarised as follows:

Main reason visitor chose Berwick upon Tweed Count Percentage Tourism (inc. Tourist Information Centre) 227 47% Shopping (inc. the market) 157 32% Leisure (lunch, coffee, visiting friends) 30 6% Service user (toilets, bank, chemist) 5 1% No specific reason 36 7% Base 485

Q18. Which of the following best describes your main reason for choosing to visit Berwick upon Tweed today? (closed)

41% General sightseeing 28% 26% Shopping/looking around the shops 39% 5% Experience the heritage and culture 11% 4% No specific reason 16% 4% Visiting friends or relatives 3% 4% Just passing through 1% 4% To visit a specific attraction in the town 7% 2% Somewhere for lunch 22% 1% For a specific service 9% 1% To visit a specific event in the town 2% 0% Experience the environment and wildlife 3% 0% To visit the Tourist Information Centre 3% 0% To use the toilets 2% 0% Somewhere for coffee/tea 14% 7% The market 13%

Main reason Other reasons

Source: NT 2009 Base: 453(all respondents)

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6.1.5 Group travel

Overall, 3% of visitors said they were part of an organised group or coach party (17 respondents) – average for all the market towns in this research (3%).

6.1.6 Group size and composition

Based on the age and gender information given by respondents, visitor group type can be broken down as follows:

Q37. Group type

45%

31%

10% 13%

Alone 3 or more adults Adult and Children Couple without (no children) mixed group children

Source: NT 2009 Base: 465(all respondents)

Groups based on information given in the survey, with adults defined as those 18+:

Alone: Adult visiting alone Three or more adults (no children): An adult-only group of visitors Adult and Children mixed group: Any combination of adults and children, visiting together Couple without children: Two adults only, either male or female

Q37. Group type Berwick upon Spring Summer Day O/night Tweed MTW Alone 16% 5% 15% 9% 10% 14% Three or more adults (no children) 10% 16% 18% 11% 13% 13% Adult and Children mixed group 25% 38% 19% 36% 31% 25% Couple without children 49% 40% 49% 44% 45% 48% Base 244 243 148 325 487 3582

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6.2 Planned activities

Visitors in Berwick upon Tweed were most likely to say (94%) they were going to include walking as part of their visit to Northumberland. This is likely to include browsing as well as specific, planned walks.

Q19. Which of the following activities are you likely to do during your visit to Northumberland? (closed multi-response)

Walking 94%

Wildlife watching 6%

Cycling 6%

Golf 5%

Fishing 4%

Horse riding 2%

Watersports 2%

Source: NT 2009 Base: 387(excluding none as not an option)

Q19. Which of the following activities are you likely to do during your visit to Northumberland? Berwick upon Spring Summer Day O/night Tweed MTW Walking 95% 93% 94% 95% 94% 96% Cycling 5% 8% 1% 8% 6% 9% Watersports 3% 1% 0% 2% 2% 2% Golf 3% 8% 5% 5% 5% 4% Fishing 4% 4% 4% 4% 4% 3% Wildlife watching 7% 5% 4% 7% 6% 8% Horse riding 2% 2% 1% 2% 2% 1% Base 189 189 83 291 387 2684

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6.3 Travel & Transport

6.3.1 Method of transport The majority of visitors used a car, van or motorhome to reach Berwick upon Tweed. These respondents were asked their views on parking in and travel into Berwick upon Tweed Town Centre.

Q20. What was the main form of transport you used to reach Berwick upon Tweed today? (closed)

Car/van/motorhome 84%

Walked 6%

Train 2%

Coach tour 2%

Bus/coach service 2%

Motorcycle 2%

Bicycle 1%

Source: NT 2009 Base: 485(all respondents)

Given Berwick upon Tweed’s accessibility by rail (serviced by East Coast Mainline and Cross Country, with easy access from Edinburgh and Newcastle), the figure for trains is perhaps lower than expected. This could represent an opportunity to increase tourism to the town.

Q20. What was the main form of transport you used to reach Berwick upon Tweed today? Berwick upon Spring Summer Tweed MTW Car/van/motorhome 82% 86% 84% 78% Motorcycle 3% 2% 2% 1% Bus/coach service 2% 2% 2% 7% Coach tour 2% 2% 2% 1% Train 3% 1% 2% 2% Bicycle 0% 1% 1% 1% Walked 7% 5% 6% 10% Other 0% 0% 0% 0% Base 244 241 485 3569

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More than three quarters (78%) of those who mainly used a car, van or motorhome to reach Berwick upon Tweed said it was very or fairly easy to travel into Berwick upon Tweed Town Centre.

Q23. How easy/difficult do you feel it is to travel into Berwick upon Tweed Town Centre? (closed)

49%

29%

15% 6% 0%

Very difficult Fairly difficult Neither easy/nor Fairly easy Very easy difficult

Source: NT 2009 Base: 418 (those mainly using car/van/motorhome to travel in )

Q23. How easy/difficult do you feel it is to travel into Berwick upon Tweed Town Centre? Berwick upon Spring Summer Tweed MTW Difficult 5% 9% 7% 4% Neither easy or difficult 12% 19% 15% 5% Easy 83% 73% 78% 91% Base 208 210 418 2868

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6.3.2 Car parks

More than half (57%) of those who mainly used a car, van or motorhome to reach Berwick upon Tweed said it was easy or very easy to park in the town.

Q21. How easy did you find it to park in Berwick upon Tweed? (closed) 39%

28%

18% 12% 3%

Very difficult Quite difficult Neither Quite easy Very easy particularly difficult or easy

Source: NT 2009 Base: 414(those mainly using car/van/motorhome to travel in and excluding 'don't know')

Q21. How easy did you find it to park in Berwick upon Tweed? Berwick upon Spring Summer Tweed MTW Difficult 14% 16% 15% 10% Neither easy or difficult 30% 26% 28% 12% Easy 57% 58% 57% 77% Base 205 209 414 2766

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More than half (65%) said the cost of parking was reasonable or very reasonable.

Q22. How would you rate the cost of parking in Berwick upon Tweed? (closed) 47%

34%

9% 7% 1% 2%

Very Quite About average Reasonable Very Not applicable expensive expensive reasonable (free parking)

Source: NT 2009 Base: 407(those mainly using car/van/motorhome to travel in and excluding 'don't know')

Q22. How would you rate the cost of parking in Berwick upon Tweed? Berwick upon Spring Summer Tweed MTW Expensive 15% 4% 10% 7% Average 43% 51% 47% 23% Reasonable 37% 45% 41% 43% Base 199 208 407 2509

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6.4 Accommodation

6.4.1 Type of accommodation used

Overall, the greatest proportion of staying visitors said they were staying in a rented static caravan (23%). As the chart below shows, all other respondents were using a variety or accommodation from guest houses to camping.

Q6. What sort of accommodation are you staying in? (closed)

Static caravan - rented 23% B&B/Guest House 17% Static caravan - owned 16% Home of friends/relatives 13% Touring caravan 8% Rented self catering accommodation 7% Camping 6% Hotel 3% Second home 1% Holiday centre 1% Pub/Inn 1% Youth Hostel 0% Other 4%

Source: NT 2009 Base: 344 (all respondents)

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Out of those staying in Berwick upon Tweed, again staying in a rented static caravan was the most likely type of accommodation chosen (27%).

Q6. What sort of accommodation are you staying in? (closed)

Static caravan - rented 27% Home of friends/relatives 15% B&B/Guest House 15% Static caravan - owned 13% Touring caravan 9% Camping 6% Hotel 6% Rented self catering accommodation 4% Holiday centre 2% Pub/Inn 2% Second home 0% Youth Hostel 0% Other 2%

Source: NT 2009 Base: 179 (those staying in Berwick upon Tweed)

Q6. What sort of accommodation are you staying in? – those staying in Berwick upon Tweed Berwick upon Spring Summer Tweed MTW Hotel 7% 4% 6% 6% B&B/Guest House 15% 15% 15% 12% Pub/Inn 3% 0% 2% 2% Rented self catering accommodation 1% 8% 4% 9% Touring caravan 11% 8% 9% 7% Static caravan - owned 14% 12% 13% 23% Static caravan - rented 30% 24% 27% 10% Camping 5% 7% 6% 8% Youth Hostel 0% 0% 0% 0% Holiday centre 3% 0% 2% 0% Home of friends/relatives 10% 21% 15% 19% Second home 0% 0% 0% 1% Other 2% 1% 2% 3% Base 104 75 179 1057

Static rented caravan use appears higher for Berwick upon Tweed relative to the market town average. This perhaps reflects the greater availability of this type of accommodation available for rent in Berwick upon Tweed relative to the other market towns.

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6.4.2 Experience of accommodation

All listed aspects of accommodation were rated as good or very good by approximately three quarters of visitors.

Q8. How would you rate your accommodation establishment in terms of the following? (closed)

27% 29% 29%

45% 47% 50%

29% 24% 21%

Quality of service Quality of accommodation Value for money

Very poor Poor Average Good Very good Source: NT 2009 Base: min 56 (excludes those staying elsewhere, don't knows,caravan owners, those staying with friends and relatives and second homes) NB: Options ‘very poor’ and ‘poor’ were <2% for each option

Q8. Accommodation's quality of service Berwick upon Spring Summer Tweed MTW Good 81% 58% 71% 88% Average 19% 42% 29% 11% Poor 0% 0% 0% 1% Base 32 24 56 356

Q8. Quality of accommodation Berwick upon Spring Summer Tweed MTW Good 86% 63% 76% 87% Average 14% 38% 24% 12% Poor 0% 0% 0% 1% Base 35 24 59 370

Q8. Accommodation's value for money Berwick upon Spring Summer Tweed MTW Good 91% 61% 79% 84% Average 9% 39% 21% 14% Poor 0% 0% 0% 2% Base 35 23 58 382

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6.5 Attractions visited

The Ramparts/Walls and Holy Island were most likely to be chosen by respondents as the attractions they had visited or planned to visit as part of their trip.

Visitors in the town for the first time were more likely to say they were visiting Berwick Barracks and Holy Island than previous visitors.

Q11. Which of the following areas have you visited, or do you intend to visit, as part of your trip? (closed)

Ramparts/Walls 57% Holy Island 42% Bamburgh Castle 34% Spittal Promenade/Beach 33% Berwick Barracks 32% The Alnwick Garden 22% Farne Islands 16% Guildhall/Jail 10% St Abbs 9% Northumberland National Park 8% Hadrian's Wall 7% Lowry Trail 5% Paxton House 4% Kielder Forest 3% Woodhorn 1%

Source: NT 2009 Base: 361(all respondents)

Staying visitors were more likely to have visited or be planning to visit the following, compared to day trippers:

Berwick Barracks (36% compared to 21% of those on a day trip) Holy Island (49% compared to 16%) Farne Islands (19% compared to 5%) Bamburgh Castle (36% compared to 25%) St Abbs (10% compared to 3%) The Alnwick Garden (24% compared to 12%)

Although we cannot attribute the extent to which any factor influenced visitors’ attraction choices, further analysis shows that those who had been into the Tourist Information Centre during their time in Berwick upon Tweed were more likely to have visited or planned to visit the following attractions:

The Ramparts/Walls (77% compared to 48% who had not visited the Centre) Berwick Barracks (48% compared to 26%) Bamburgh Castle (48% compared to 29%) St Abbs (14% compared to 6%) Hadrian’s Wall (14% compared to 4%) The Alnwick Garden (35% compared to 16%)

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6.5.1 Events visited

More than half (60%) of respondents said they had not ever attended any of the events specified in the survey list. These were more likely to be first time visitors (90%) than those that had been to Berwick upon Tweed before (50%).

Day trippers were more likely (19%) to have been to Riding the Bounds than staying visitors (7%).

Q29. Have you ever attended any of these events? (closed multi-response)

Farmers Market 11%

Weekly Market 31%

Riding the Bounds 11%

Festivals 1%

Christmas Lights Switch On 1%

Not attended any 60%

Source: NT 2009 Base: 482(all respondents)

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6.5.2 Tourist Information Centre

A quarter of respondents (23%) said they had been into the Tourist Information Centre in Berwick upon Tweed during their visit.

The majority (88%) of visitors from outside the UK said they had visited the Centre, compared to a fifth (22%) of the UK resident respondents.

Q12. Have you been to the TIC? Berwick upon Spring Summer Day O/night Tweed MTW Yes 13% 34% 7% 29% 23% 24% No 87% 66% 93% 71% 77% 76% Base 113 368 146 321 481 3557

Out of those that had visited the Tourist Information Centre satisfaction is high, with at least 89% rating ease of finding, quality of service and usefulness of information as good or very good.

Q13. How would you rate the Tourist Information Centre in terms of: (closed)

24% 31% 31%

60% 55% 56%

15% 14% 10%

Ease of finding Quality of service Usefulness of information received

Very poor Poor Average Good Very good

Source: NT 2009 Min base: 111 (those who had visited TIC, excluding don't knows)

NB: Options ‘very poor’ and ‘poor’ were <1% for each option

Q13. How would you rate the ease of finding the TIC? Berwick upon Spring Summer Day O/night Tweed MTW Good 74% 88% 50% 86% 84% 88% Average 26% 11% 50% 13% 15% 10% Poor 0% 1% 0% 1% 1% 2% Base 31 81 10 93 112 845

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 26

Q13. How would you rate the TIC's quality of service? Berwick upon Spring Summer Day O/night Tweed MTW Good 77% 89% 50% 88% 86% 93% Average 19% 11% 40% 12% 14% 6% Poor 3% 0% 10% 0% 1% 1% Base 31 80 10 92 111 833

Q13. Rate the usefulness of information received from TIC? Berwick upon Spring Summer Day O/night Tweed MTW Good 77% 94% 70% 90% 89% 94% Average 19% 6% 20% 10% 10% 6% Poor 3% 0% 10% 0% 1% 1% Base 31 80 10 92 111 833

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 27

6.6 Experience of visit

6.6.1 Overall satisfaction

The majority (78%) of visitors rated their overall enjoyment of Berwick upon Tweed as high or very high. Staying visitors were more likely to say this (86%) than those on a day trip (67%).

The majority of those staying in Berwick upon Tweed (88%) rated their overall enjoyment of the town as high or very high.

Q14.How would you rate the overall enjoyment of your visit to Berwick upon Tweed? (closed)

62%

22% 16%

0% 0%

Very low Low Average High Very high

Source: NT 2009 Base: 461(all respondents)

Q14. Rate your overall enjoyment of the destination Berwick upon Spring Summer Day O/night Tweed MTW High 74% 83% 67% 83% 78% 85% Average 26% 17% 33% 17% 22% 14% Low 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 1% Base 225 236 140 308 461 3375

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 28

The top factors visitors said they liked most about Berwick upon Tweed are set out below:

Q15. What did you enjoy most about Berwick upon Tweed?

Friendly or welcoming atmosphere 15% Good quality shops ("Good for shopping") 11% History & heritage 10% Attractive traditional town or village 9% Enjoyed festival or parade 8% Relaxing, quiet or peaceful 6% Good access to Hadrians Wall 6% Plenty or good variety of things to see & do 6% Good location for walking 5% "A nice day out" 4% Well situated for exploring surrounding area 4% Attractive scenery or countryside 4%

Source: NT 2009 Base: 463(all respondents)

Consistent with respondents’ positive perceptions of the area, 78% of visitors said they would recommend Berwick upon Tweed to someone else.

Q10a. How likely are you to recommend Berwick upon Tweed to someone else? (closed)

50%

28% 18%

1% 2%

Very unlikely Unlikely Possibly Likely Very likely

Source: NT 2009 Base: 441(all respondents)

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 29

Q10. How likely are you to recommend Berwick upon Tweed to someone else? Berwick upon Spring Summer Day O/night Tweed MTW Likely 78% 80% 72% 81% 79% 86% Possibly 18% 19% 23% 16% 18% 2% Unlikely 5% 2% 5% 3% 3% 12% Base 211 230 133 295 441 3254

The top reasons visitors gave for recommending Berwick upon Tweed to somebody else are set out below:

Q10b. Why do you say that?

Plenty to do and see 16% Good or friendly atmosphere 13% History & Heritage 12% Good for shopping (quality) 10% Attractive coastline or beaches 9% Well situated for exploring the surrounding area 6% General positive comment 6% "A nice day out" 5% Attractive scenery or countryside 5% Good range of shops 5% There is plenty to do 4% Relaxing, quiet or peaceful 4%

Source: NT 2009 Base: 439 (excludingdon't know from Q10a)

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 30

6.6.2 Satisfaction with specific aspects and priorities

Three quarters (77%) of visitors who stated they have a disability (13 respondents) rated the availability of disabled parking spaces as good or very good compared to 8% who rated this option as poor and 15% who rated it as average2.

Q25. Ratings on a scale of 1 to 5, where 5 is very good and 1 is very poor, of Berwick upon Tweed's: (closed)

Safety and security - daytime 9% 90%

The regularity of bus/rail services 22% 75%

Safety/security of parking facilities 25% 73%

The quality of Bus/Rail services 25% 73%

The destinations to and from Berwick 26% 73% served by public transport

Safety and security - nighttime 8% 20% 72%

Availability of disabled parking spaces 7% 21% 72%

Street furniture 8% 31% 62%

Availability of public parking spaces 9% 29% 62%

Cost of parking 7% 37% 56%

Poor or Very Poor (1 or 2) OK (3) Good or Very Good (4 or 5)

Source: NT 2009 Base: min 118(excluding those saying don't know)

NB: Options ‘very poor’ and ‘poor’ were <5% for each option

When asking respondents in an open-ended question what additional facilities or services would have added to their enjoyment of their visit to Berwick upon Tweed, 9% said ‘nothing’. After removing the individuals who responded ‘nothing’, the most frequent response was ‘more shops’ and ‘ease traffic. See verbatim comments in appendix.

2 Small base sizes – these figures are indicative only

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 31

Vehicle-related issues were most likely to be cited as the main problems with the shopping experience in Berwick upon Tweed Town Centre, with traffic (57%), road safety (29%) and illegal parking (15%) in the top three.

Q24. Can you tell me what, if anything, are the main problems with the shopping experience in Berwick upon Tweed Town Centre? (unprompted)

Traffic 57%

Road Safety 29%

Illegal Parking 15%

Quality of Footpaths 3%

Signage & Information 2%

Safety & Security 2%

Street Lighting 0%

Other 23%

Source: NT 2009 Base: 321(all respondents)

The main problem in the ‘other’ category included reference to a lack of quality shops. See verbatim comments in appendix.

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 32

Despite a minority of visitors scoring some specific aspects of Berwick upon Tweed as poor (nearly one in ten gave display maps and boards a rating of 1 or 2, for example), overall impressions of the town are high.

NB: Options ‘very poor’ and ‘poor’ were <3% for each option where a % is not specified

Q34. On a scale of 1 to 5 (where 5 is very good and 1 is very poor) how would you rate the market:

MTW - quality of service from stallholders 27% 71%

Berwick - quality of service from stallholders 36% 62%

MTW - quality of goods on sale 32% 63%

Berwick - quality of goods on sale 47% 48%

MTW - presentation of stalls 30% 66%

Berwick - presentation of stalls 43% 54%

MTW - range of stalls 34% 55%

Berwick - range of stalls 44% 52%

Poor or Very poor (1 or 2) Average (3) Good or Very good (4 or 5)

Source: NT 2009 Base: min 209 (excluding those who said don't know/did not use)

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 33

Q34. On a scale of 1 to 5 (where 5 is very good and 1 is very poor) how would you rate the shops:

MTW - quality of Service 22% 76%

Berwick - quality of Service 32% 64%

MTW - quality of goods on sale 27% 70%

Berwick - quality of goods on sale 37% 59%

MTW - range of shops 7% 36% 57%

Berwick - range of shops 7%36% 57%

Poor or Very poor (1 or 2) Average (3) Good or Very good (4 or 5)

Source: NT 2009 Base: min 209 (excluding those who said don't know/did not use)

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 34

Q34. On a scale of 1 to 5 (where 5 is very good and 1 is very poor) how would you rate the places to eat and drink:

MTW - value for money 23% 75%

Berwick - value for money 37% 62%

MTW - quality of service 15% 84%

Berwick - quality of service 31% 67%

MTW - quality of food 16% 83%

Berwick - quality of food 31% 67%

MTW - range 20% 77%

Berwick - range 34% 64%

Poor or Very poor (1 or 2) Average (3) Good or Very good (4 or 5)

Source: NT 2009 Base: min 209 (excluding those who said don't know/did not use)

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 35

Q34. On a scale of 1 to 5 (where 5 is very good and 1 is very poor) how would you rate the museums and other places to visit:

MTW - value for money 25% 71%

Berwick - value for money 20% 78%

MTW - quality of service 12% 87%

Berwick - quality of service 13% 86%

MTW - level of interest 13% 85%

Berwick - level of interest 9% 90%

MTW - range 16% 81%

Berwick - range 11% 89%

Poor or Very poor (1 or 2) Average (3) Good or Very good (4 or 5)

Source: NT 2009 Base: min 209 (excluding those who said don't know/did not use)

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 36

Q34. On a scale of 1 to 5 (where 5 is very good and 1 is very poor) how would you rate ease of finding way around:

MTW - display maps and info boards 18% 77%

Berwick - display maps and info boards 8% 36% 55%

MTW - pedestrian signs 16% 80%

Berwick - pedestrian signs 6% 30% 64%

MTW - road signs 16% 82%

Berwick - road signs 31% 65%

Poor or Very poor (1 or 2) Average (3) Good or Very good (4 or 5)

Source: NT 2009 Base: min 209 (excluding those who said don't know/did not use)

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 37

Q34. On a scale of 1 to 5 (where 5 is very good and 1 is very poor) how would you rate:

MTW - public toilets cleanliness 11% 31% 58%

Berwick - public toilets cleanliness 14% 45% 41%

MTW - public toilets availability 13% 28% 59%

Berwick - public toilets availability 15% 41% 45%

MTW - cleanliness of streets 14% 84%

Berwick - cleanliness of streets 5% 30% 65%

Poor or Very poor (1 or 2) Average (3) Good or Very good (4 or 5)

Source: NT 2009 Base: min 209 (excluding those who said don't know/did not use)

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 38

Q34. On a scale of 1 to 5 (where 5 is very good and 1 is very poor) how would you rate overall impressions:

MTW - general appearance 7% 92%

Berwick - general appearance 11% 88%

MTW - feeling of welcome 5% 94%

Berwick - feeling of welcome 8% 92%

MTW - general atmosphere 6% 93%

Berwick - general atmosphere 9% 90%

Poor or Very poor (1 or 2) Average (3) Good or Very good (4 or 5)

Source: NT 2009 Base: min 209 (excluding those who said don't know/did not use)

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 39

6.6.3 Visitor likes and dislikes

Perceptions of Berwick upon Tweed’s shops were mixed, with similar proportions of visitors agreeing and disagreeing there is a wide choice of shops or that shops are of a good quality.

Q26. To what extent do you agree/disagree with the following statements? (closed)

32% 29% 29%

24% 24% 22%

10% 10% 10% 9%

Strongly agree Agree Neither agree Disagree Strongly or disagree disagree

On the whole, Berwick upon Tweed offers a wide choice of shops On the whole, the shops in Berwick upon Tweed are of a good quality

Source: NT 2009 Base: 477(all respondents)

Q26. The destination offers a wide variety of shops? Berwick upon Spring Summer Day O/night Tweed MTW Agree 25% 44% 35% 33% 34% 31% Neither agree nor disagree 31% 34% 29% 34% 32% 32% Disagree 45% 22% 36% 33% 33% 37% Base 238 241 146 320 479 339

Q26. The shops at this destination are good quality? Berwick upon Spring Summer Day O/night Tweed MTW Agree 29% 50% 42% 37% 39% 32% Neither agree nor disagree 28% 30% 24% 32% 29% 26% Disagree 43% 50% 33% 32% 31% 41% Base 236 241 144 320 477 3321

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 40

Respondents were most likely to say they would like to see fewer charity shops and more Chain Stores.

Staying visitors were more likely (46%) to want to see an increase in the variety of shops than day trippers (33%). Q28. What improvements would you like to see to the retail offer in Berwick-upon-Tweed? (prompted)

Fewer Charity Shops 43%

More Chain Stores 43%

Increased Variety of Shops 41%

More Shops offering Local Produce 30%

Other 7%

Longer Opening Hours 3%

Source: NT 2009 Base: 299 (excluding 'don't know')

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 41

Amongst those who gave a rating, satisfaction with venues for eating and drinking were high - particularly for coffee shops (86% good or very good rating).

Q30. On a scale of 1 to 5 (where 5 is very good and 1 is very poor) how would you rate the following venues for eating and drinking in Berwick upon Tweed?

76% 74% 72% 73% 86%

21% 24% 25% 24% 5% 13%

Take aways Sandwich shops Pubs and clubs Restaurants/Bistros Coffee shops

Poor or Very poor (1 or 2) OK (3) Good or Very good (4 or 5)

Source: NT 2009 Base: min 205 (excluding those who said don't know)

NB: Options ‘very poor’ and ‘poor’ were <4% for each option unless stated

Q30. How would you rate the following venues for eating and drinking in Berwick upon Tweed? Berwick upon Spring Summer Day O/night Tweed MTW Poor 3% 2% 3% 3% 3% 3% Restaurants/bistros OK 20% 29% 28% 23% 24% 17% Good 78% 68% 69% 74% 73% 80% Poor 2% 1% 2% 1% 2% 2% Sandwich shops OK 26% 22% 35% 20% 24% 21% Good 72% 77% 63% 79% 74% 77% Poor 5% 1% 6% 2% 3% 3% Takeaways OK 15% 26% 22% 21% 21% 18% Good 80% 73% 73% 77% 76% 80% Poor 3% 0% 3% 1% 1% 1% Coffee shops OK 14% 11% 16% 12% 13% 9% Good 83% 89% 81% 88% 86% 90% Poor 1% 4% 3% 2% 3% 2% Pubs and clubs OK 23% 27% 28% 24% 25% 15% Good 75% 69% 69% 73% 72% 83% Min base 99 106 51 146 205 1664

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 42

Although the majority of respondents said they did not know for each option, out of those who gave a rating, Berwick upon Tweed’s Swan Leisure Centre scored the most good or very good ratings out of the listed local arts and leisure facilities (90%).

Q31. On a scale of 1 to 5 (where 5 is very good and 1 is very poor) how would you rate the following arts and leisure facilities in Berwick upon Tweed?

68% 90% 86%

27% 13% 9% 5% Swan Leisure Centre The Maltings Art Centre The Gymnasium Gallery

Poor or Very poor (1 or 2) OK (3) Good or Very good (4 or 5) Source: NT 2009 Base: min 63 (excluding those who said don't know)

NB: Options ‘very poor’ and ‘poor’ were <5% for each option

Responses for ‘don’t know’ may be used as an approximate indicator of usage/awareness of each facility. These percentages are set out below:

Swan Leisure Centre – ‘Don’t know’ = 83% The Maltings Art Centre – ‘Don’t know’ = 68% The Gymnasium Gallery – ‘Don’t know’ = 87%

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 43

Overall, satisfaction with the general state of the Town Centre is mixed, with around half of respondents rating each option as good or very good. Poor ratings are in the minority although around one in ten visitors said they thought shop frontages, the general state of buildings and street furniture is poor.

Q32. On a scale of 1 to 5 (where 5 is very good and 1 is very poor) what do you think of the general state of the Town Centre with regard to:

11% 9% 8% 6% 6% 6%

41% 45% 45% 47% 46% 50%

41% 36% 35% 36% 39% 38%

8% 11% 11% 12% 5% Litter Graffiti/fly General state of Street furniture Overall level of Shop frontage posting buildings cleanliness

Very poor Poor OK Good Very good

Source: NT 2009 Base: 432(all respondents)

NB: Options ‘very poor’ and ‘poor’ were <5% for each option unless stated on chart

Q32. What do you think of the town centre with regard to? Berwick upon Spring Summer Day O/night Tweed MTW Good 52% 63% 53% 59% 58% 80% Litter OK 43% 36% 42% 39% 39% 17% Poor 5% 1% 4% 2% 3% 2% Good 48% 62% 53% 55% 55% 82% Graffiti/posters OK 37% 35% 36% 36% 36% 15% Poor 15% 3% 11% 8% 9% 3% Good 46% 60% 52% 53% 53% 76% Buildings OK 32% 37% 32% 37% 35% 20% Poor 22% 3% 16% 10% 12% 4% Good 43% 58% 49% 51% 51% 73% Street furniture OK 34% 38% 33% 38% 36% 22% Poor 22% 4% 18% 11% 13% 5% Good 50% 64% 54% 57% 57% 82% Cleanliness OK 41% 35% 41% 37% 38% 16% Poor 10% 1% 5% 6% 5% 2% Good 37% 56% 43% 48% 47% 53% Shop frontage OK 40% 42% 42% 41% 41% 37% Poor 23% 2% 15% 11% 12% 10% Min base 214 217 132 289 432 3258

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 44

Q33. On a scale of 1 to 5 (where 5 is very good and 1 is very poor) how do you rate Berwick upon Tweed as:

9% 28% 23%

50%

63% 67%

35%

8% 10% A place to shop A place to visit A place to enjoy yourself

Very poor Poor Average Good Very Good Source: NT 2009 Base: 459(excluding 'don't know')

NB: Options ‘very good’ and ‘good’ were <1% for each option unless stated on chart

Q33. What do you think of the town centre with regard to? Berwick upon Spring Summer Day O/night Tweed MTW Good 53% 66% 58% 60% 60% 53% A place to shop Average 39% 32% 38% 35% 35% 37% Poor 8% 2% 5% 5% 5% 10% Good 87% 96% 88% 93% 91% 92% A place to visit Average 13% 4% 12% 7% 8% 7% Poor 1% 0% 0% 1% 0% 1% Good 85% 94% 86% 91% 90% 90% A place to enjoy yourself Average 14% 6% 13% 9% 10% 8% Poor 1% 0% 1% 1% 1% 1% Base 231 241 144 315 472 3291

Visitors were most likely (54%) to say, unprompted, that better shops would make Berwick upon Tweed town centre better, followed by improved parking.

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 45

Q35. How would you make this town centre better? (unprompted)

Better retail offer 54%

Improved parking 26%

Improved accessibility 7%

Improved leisure 3% facilities

Safety and Security 1%

Other 30%

Source: NT 2009 Base: 349(all respondents)

Responses for ‘other’ were not specified in the survey.

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 46

6.7 Visitor expenditure

Visitor expenditure is split into two components – spend per day (24hr period) and spend per trip. In each, a spend table for the market town is provided before a comparison table providing figures for all MTW towns combined (labelled MTW).

Each spend table provides figures separated by columns into several categories – staying in the market town, staying out of the market town, day visitors as well as a column which averages the spend figures of all these categories (labelled combined). Those visitors staying in the market town is further subdivided in columns by accommodation type – serviced, non-serviced, visiting friends/relatives and second-home, and other. The spend figures for each column are distinguished in rows by type of spend - accommodation, food & drink, shopping, recreation and travel/transport. Subsequent rows provide total spend figures excluding accommodation, and then total spend figures including accommodation.

Please refer to the calculation keys following spend tables for an explanation of what categories refer to and how spend was calculated. All figures are provided in Pounds Sterling.

Editor’s note on spend results In comparing the findings of this report in relation to those within the 2008 Regional Visitor Survey produced by ONE North East*, total spend figures including accommodation and excluding accommodation would appear lower. However, in comparing individual types of spend, the key distinction to note is in the ‘food and drink’ type. The Regional Visitor Survey includes grocery shopping within its calculations. This spend has not been included in the MTW surveys, and could provide an explanation as to why total spend figures appear low. Total spend figures may also have been influenced by lower discretionary spend as a result of the recession.

6.7.1 Average spend per person per day

Itemised Berwick upon Tweed spend per person per day Non- Staying in Staying out Combined Serviced serviced VFR Other Berwick Berwick Day Berwick Accommodation 30.84 22.77 * 57.50 25.36 30.45 * 25.36 Food & drink 13.53 12.57 10.59 22.50 12.66 8.93 7.32 9.69 Shopping 9.11 9.71 8.06 3.33 9.21 9.20 17.46 11.63 Recreation 5.58 1.57 1.00 2.50 2.39 2.31 1.56 2.09 Travel/transport 10.87 4.36 4.04 5.00 5.81 5.27 7.76 6.25 Total exc acc 34.65 28.19 24.30 45.00 29.18 23.72 34.66 29.00 Total inc acc 61.73 50.28 - 102.50 48.87 - - 35.45 Total base 18 42 14 1 75 72 77 229 * Not appropriate for spend calculation

Itemised MTW spend per person per day Non- Staying in Staying out Combined Serviced serviced VFR Other MTW MTW Day MTW Accommodation 34.11 18.05 * 18.05 23.48 25.37 * 23.48 Food & drink 13.58 7.77 7.73 7.89 8.87 6.44 6.21 7.05 Shopping 7.17 5.62 8.64 3.49 6.40 5.92 9.63 7.39 Recreation 3.75 1.45 1.08 4.17 1.91 2.04 1.26 1.70 Travel/transport 6.06 2.11 3.53 4.29 3.24 3.84 4.26 3.81 Total exc acc 25.78 16.91 20.78 22.38 19.45 17.32 20.69 19.19 Total inc acc 58.36 37.11 - 42.27 38.30 - - 23.73 Total base 102 197 107 9 414 566 683 1706 * Not appropriate for spend calculation

Key to itemised spend calculations Serviced Staying visitors in serviced accommodation in Berwick upon Tweed (hotel, B&B/guest house, pub/inn) Non-serviced Staying visitors in non-serviced serviced accommodation in Berwick upon Tweed (rented self-catering accommodation, touring caravan, static caravan rented or owned, camping, youth hostel, holiday centre) VFR Staying visitors with friends/relatives or at second-home in Berwick upon Tweed Other Staying visitors in ‘other’ accommodation in Berwick upon Tweed (see Q6 response option 13 in survey) Staying in Berwick Staying visitors in Berwick upon Tweed. Figure includes Serviced, Non- upon Tweed serviced, VFR and Other Staying in MTW Staying visitors in all MTW destinations. Figure includes Serviced, Non- serviced, VFR and Other Staying out Staying visitors outside of Berwick upon Tweed. Figure for accommodation Berwick upon is for comparative purposes only and has not been included in the total Tweed calculations. These visitors are treated as day visitors and therefore expenditure is not multiplied by nights spent for expenditure per trip. Staying out MTW Staying visitors outside of all MTW destinations Day Day visitors Combined spend of visitors staying in Berwick, staying out of Berwick, and day visitors. Figure for accommodation only includes those staying in Combined Berwick Berwick, excluding day visitors and those staying outside of Berwick. The figure is therefore identical to the accommodation spend reported in Staying in Berwick column. Combined spend of visitors staying in MTW towns, staying out of MTW towns, and day visitors. Figure for accommodation only includes those Combined MTW staying in MTW, excluding day visitors and those staying outside of MTW. The figure is therefore identical to the accommodation spend reported in Staying in MTW column. Food & drink In cafes, pubs, restaurants, hotels etc. Recreation Admissions to attractions, theatre/cinema tickets, leisure activities This total is derived from adding all spend categories (excluding accommodation) together using only individuals providing responses for all categories (food and drink; shopping; recreation; travel and transport). Total exc acc Because base number of respondents for each category differs, totals cannot be derived from adding each sub category together – this would be statistically invalid. This total is derived from adding all spend categories (including accommodation) together using only individuals providing responses for all categories (accommodation; food and drink; shopping; recreation; travel Total inc acc and transport) (see total base). Because base number of respondents for each category differs, totals cannot be derived from adding each sub category together – this would be statistically invalid.

6.7.2 Average spend per person per trip

Itemised Berwick upon Tweed spend per person per trip Staying Non- Staying in out Combined Serviced serviced VFR Other Berwick Berwick Day Berwick Accommodation 82.90 110.01 * 115.00 102.09 127.63 * 102.09 Food & drink 36.68 52.86 40.84 47.50 47.79 8.93 7.32 23.10 Shopping 26.16 45.59 20.07 7.50 37.44 9.20 17.46 23.09 Recreation 19.67 6.28 3.00 7.50 8.59 2.31 1.56 4.42 Travel/transport 31.51 16.46 15.45 10.00 19.76 5.27 7.76 11.06 Total exc acc 101.42 120.45 83.24 90.00 109.71 23.72 34.66 58.85 Total inc acc 178.26 220.89 - 205.00 184.75 - - 81.21 Total base 18 42 14 1 75 72 77 229 * Not appropriate for spend calculation

Itemised MTW spend per person per trip Non- Staying in Staying Combined Serviced serviced VFR Other MTW out MTW Day MTW Accommodation 93.20 105.80 * 84.06 100.84 124.22 * 100.84 Food & drink 42.68 41.79 35.59 20.76 40.23 6.44 6.21 16.59 Shopping 20.34 32.16 62.06 14.27 34.88 5.92 9.63 16.48 Recreation 12.11 11.00 2.95 12.50 9.88 2.04 1.26 4.14 Travel/transport 19.46 9.30 12.35 8.29 11.97 3.84 4.26 6.43 Total exc acc 77.76 99.25 120.35 67.68 98.21 17.32 20.69 44.39 Total inc acc 166.06 222.34 - 154.76 181.74 - - 59.35 Total base 102 197 102 9 409 566 683 1691 * Not appropriate for spend calculation

6.8 Visitor demographics

6.8.1 Age and gender

The following chart shows the gender of the respondent completing the survey.

Q36. Gender

69%

31%

Male Female

Source: NT 2009 Base: 451(all respondents)

The following table is a breakdown by age and gender, based on the respondent’s answers, of all those in the respondents’ immediate party.

Q37. Age/Gender Male Female Total 0-15 8% 11% 19% 16-24 3% 4% 7% 25-34 6% 7% 13% 35-44 8% 9% 17% 45-54 8% 10% 18% 55-64 7% 8% 16% 65-74 4% 5% 8% 75+ 1% 1% 2% Base 45% 55% 722

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 51

6.8.2 Work situation

Q38. Which of the following best describes your current situation?

Employed full time (30 hours or more) 47%

Wholly retired from work 24%

Employed part time (less than 30 hours) 14%

Looking after the home 5%

Self Employed (full or part time) 3%

Permanently sick/ disabled 2%

In full time education 2%

Unemployed 2%

Source: NT 2009 Base: 486(all respondents)

6.8.3 Disability

Q40. Do you consider yourself to have a disability?

95%

Yes No

Source: NT 2009 Base: 483(all respondents)

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 52

6.8.4 Ethnicity

Q39. What is your ethnic origin?

White 99%

Asian or Asian British 1%

Chinese 0%

Black or Black British 0%

Mixed White 0%

Other 0%

Source: NT 2009 Base: 486(all respondents)

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 53

7. Conclusions

The data suggests that Berwick upon Tweed is a place which attracts predominantly local people (residents in the North East. It also receives a large proportion of repeat visitors. Berwick upon Tweed also receives the greatest proportion of Scottish visitors of all market towns (23% compared to 7% average). This disproportion is explicable given the town’s proximity to the Scottish border.

The town’s visitors are largely adult couples (45%), followed by parties with children (31%). Group travel features in line with other market towns in the region (3%).

People from nearby regions tend to be the repeat visitors. Despite an apparent dissatisfaction with the retail offer, repeat visitors still return for shopping in the town.

Although the largest proportion of Berwick upon Tweed’s overnight visitors stay in a static caravan (rented) during their visit, those that stay in the town’s accommodation are highly satisfied with their stay.

The typical expectation for a first time visitor from a day out in Berwick upon Tweed is likely to include a trip to Berwick Barracks and/or Holy Island, and general sightseeing of the area.

Local arts and leisure facilities listed in the questionnaire are not experienced by the majority of visitors and the data does not suggest that first time visitors are coming to Berwick upon Tweed for specific events. Those that have visited the town before are attracted by the markets and Riding the Bounds.

On balance, most people find it easy to travel to and find parking in the market towns, as well as rate the cost of parking as reasonable. Considerable differences between towns only emerge when comparing them on the proportion of visitors finding it ‘very easy’. On this basis, travel to Berwick upon Tweed is relatively problematic (29% very easy compared to 62% average. However, Berwick upon Tweed visitors are also the least likely to rate finding parking in the town as very easy (18% compared to 46% average). Whilst visitors to all market towns on average considered the cost of parking very reasonable (23%) or reasonable (36%), under half of Berwick upon Tweed visitors (7% very reasonable and 35% reasonable) rated it as reasonable.

Traffic is cited as the main problem with the shopping experience in Berwick upon Tweed (57% compared to 38% average).

Very few visitors use public transport. There is opportunity to better promote public transport, which may, in turn, help to reduce any perceived traffic problems by visitors.

On a range of ratings for the town centres in terms of eating/drinking facilities, general condition, Berwick upon Tweed scores consistently below average. This is also reflected in visitor evaluations of the towns as places to visit. Berwick upon Tweed trails considerably in the proportion of visitors rating it very good as a place to visit (28% compared to 50% average and next lowest Haltwhistle 44%) and as a place to enjoy yourself (23% compared to 46% average).

The majority of visitors to each town rated their overall enjoyment as positive (over 78% very high or high for each). Where there is room for improvement on this index is turning more ‘high’

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 54 ratings, into ‘very high’ ratings, and the balance between these is less favourable for Berwick upon Tweed (16% very high and 62% high).

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8. Recommendations

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9. Appendices

9.1 Survey

Q1. Which of the following best describes your visit to Berwick upon Tweed today? Q5b. How many nights are you spending/will you nights have spent in total in this location? ONE RESPONSE ONLY Q6.What sort of accommodation are you staying Leisure trip/ Holiday in? Visiting friends or relatives Hotel -01 Shopping trip (special) B&B/Guest House -02 Shopping trip (household) Pub/Inn -03 Business trip Rented self catering accommodation -04 Work/study here Touring caravan -05 Other (specify) Static caravan –owned -06 Static caravan - rented -07 Q2. Where do you live? Camping -08 Youth hostel -09 Home town Holiday centre -10 Postcode Home of friend/relative -11 Country (if overseas) Second home -12 Other (specify) -13 Q3a. Have you come from there today? Q7a. How much has/ will you and your party be spending on your accommodation for the Yes -1 No -2 duration of your stay at this location (inclusive of breakfast if included in the price of your Q3b. Are you returning there today? accommodation)?

Yes -1 No -2 £...... Q4. Do you: (Researcher read out) Put "0" if spent/expect to spend nothing Don't know /Can't recall/ Refused - Live in Berwick upon Tweed, 1 Close Tweedmouth, or Spittal but interview Q7b. How many people does this amount cover? don’t work here People Live and work in Berwick upon 2 Close Tweed, Tweedmouth, or Spittal interview Q8. On this scale how would you rate your Don’t live in Berwick upon 3 Close accommodation establishment in terms of the Tweed, Tweedmouth, or Spittal interview following? [exclude caravan owners] but work here Don’t live in Berwick upon 4 Close Very Poor -1 Good -4 Tweed, Tweedmouth, or Spittal interview Poor -2 Very Good -5 Tweed but shop here Average -3 Don’t Know -6 Just visiting (not business trips) 5 Go to Q5a Quality of Service -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 Other 6 Close Quality of -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 interview accommodation Value for money -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 “Close interview”: Thank you very much for your time and cooperation Q9a. Have you ever visited Berwick upon Tweed before? Q5a. Where are you staying? Yes -1 Go to Q9b No-2 Go to Q10a Berwick upon Tweed -1 Haggerston -2 Q9b. How many times have you visited Berwick Other -3 upon Tweed in the last 12 months? Specify town: County:

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None -1 Once -2 Q12. Have you been into the Tourist Information 2-5 times -3 Centre in Berwick upon Tweed during your More than 5times -4 visit?

Q10a. How likely are you to recommend Berwick Yes -1 Go to Q13 No -2 Go to Q14 upon Tweed to someone else? (READ LIST)

Q13. How would you rate the Tourist Information Very unlikely -1 Go to 10b Centre against this scale, in terms of: Unlikely -2 Go to 10b

Possibly -3 Go to 10b Very Poor Ave Good Very Don’t Likely -4 Go to 10b Poor Good Know Very likely -5 Go to 10b Ease of Don’t know -6 Go to 11 finding -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 Quality of service- -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 Usefulness Q10b. Why do you say that? of -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 information ...... received ......

...... Q14. How would you rate the overall enjoyment ...... of your visit to Berwick upon Tweed? (READ LIST) ......

...... Very low -1 High -4 Low -2 Very high -5 ...... Average -3 Don’t -6 ...... Know Q15. What did you like most about Berwick upon

Q11. Which of the following areas have you Tweed? visited, or do you intend to visit, as part of your ...... trip? (TICK ALL THAT APPLY) …………………………………………………………… Ramparts/Walls -01 ………………………………………………………….. Berwick Barracks -02 Guildhall/Jail -03 Q16. Are you part of an organised group or Spittal Promenade/Beach -04 coach party? Lowry Trail -05 Holy Island -06 Yes -1 No -2 Farne Isles -07 Bamburgh Castle -08 Northumberland National Park -09 Q17. What, if any, additional facilities or services Paxton House -10 would have added to the enjoyment of your visit St Abbs -11 to Berwick upon Tweed? Scotland -12 …………………………………………………………… Hadrian’s Wall -13 …………………………………………………………… Kielder Forest -14 …………………………………………………………… Woodhorn -15 The Alnwick Garden -16 Q18. Which of the following best describes your main reason for choosing to visit Berwick

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Page 58 upon Tweed today?(CIRCLE ALL RESPONSES) Bus/coach service -3 Go to Q24 Coach Tour -4 Go to Q24 Main Other Train -5 Go to Q24 Reason reasons Bicycle -6 Go to Q24 (One (All Walked -7 Go to Q24 response) responses) Other (specify) -8 Go to Q24 The market -01 -01 Shopping/looking -02 -02 around the shops General sightseeing -03 -03 To visit a specific -04 -04 attraction in the town (specify attraction) To visit a specific -05 -05 Q21. How easy did you find it to park in Berwick event in the town upon Tweed? (READ LIST) (specify event) Somewhere for lunch -06 -06 Very difficult -1 Somewhere for -07 -07 Quite difficult -2 coffee/tea Neither particularly difficult or easy -3 To use the toilets -08 -08 Quite easy -4 For a specific service -09 -09 Very easy -5 (eg bank/post Don’t Know -6 office/chemist) To visit the Tourist -10 -10 Q22. How would you rate the cost of parking in Information Centre Berwick upon Tweed? (READ LIST) Just passing through -11 -11 Visiting friends or -12 -12 Very expensive -1 relatives Quite expensive -2 Experience the -13 -13 About average -3 heritage and culture Reasonable -4 Experience the -14 -14 Very reasonable -5 environment and Not applicable (free parking) -6 wildlife Don’t know -7 Go to pub/clubbing - 15 - 15 No specific reason -16 -16 Q23. How easy/difficult do you feel it is to travel Other (specify) -17 -17 into Berwick upon Tweed Town Centre?

Q19. Which of the following activities are you Very easy 1 Fairly 4 likely to do during your visit to Northumberland? difficult Fairly easy 2 Very 5 Walking -1 difficult Cycling -2 Neither 3 Watersports (specify) -3 easy/nor Golf -4 difficult Fishing -5 Wildlife Watching -6 Q24. Can you tell me what, if anything, are the Horse Riding -7 main problems with the shopping experience in Berwick upon Tweed Town Centre? (UNPROMPTED) Q20. What was the main form of transport you used to reach Berwick upon Tweed today? Traffic 1 Street 5 Lighting Car/van/motorhome -1 Go to Q21 Road 2 Signage & 6 Motorcycle -2 Go to Q24 safety Information

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Road 2 Signage & 6 wide choice of safety Information shops’ Illegal 3 Quality of 7 parking Footpaths ‘On the whole 1 2 3 4 5 6 Safety & 4 Other 8 the shops in Security (please Berwick upon specify) Tweed are of a Q25. On a scale of 1 to 5 (where 5 is very good good quality’ and 1 is very poor) how would you rate the following: Q27. Thinking about today as a whole, how much do you expect that you and your 1 2 3 4 5 d/k immediate party will have spent today and this Street Furniture 1 2 3 4 5 6 evening in total in Berwick upon Tweed on the Availability of 1 2 3 4 5 6 following: public parking spaces Eating & drinking (in £ Cost of parking 1 2 3 4 5 6 cafes, pubs, restaurants, Safety/security 1 2 3 4 5 6 hotels etc.). of parking Put ‘0’ if spent/expect to facilities spend nothing Availability of 1 2 3 4 5 6 disabled parking spaces Don’t know/Can’t -1 The quality of 1 2 3 4 5 6 recall/Refused Bus / Rail Shopping (including £ services souvenirs The regularity 1 2 3 4 5 6 guidebooks, clothes, of bus/ rail sweets, drinks, services food, other purchases). The 1 2 3 4 5 6 destinations to Put "0" if spent/expect to and from spend nothing Berwick upon Tweed served by public Don't know/Can't -1 transport recall/Refused Safety & 1 2 3 4 5 6 Entertainment (including £ Security – admissions to Daytime attractions, Safety & 1 2 3 4 5 6 theatre/cinema tickets, Security – leisure activities) Nighttime Put "0" if spent/expect to Q26. To what extent do you agree/disagree with spend nothing the following statements? Circle the appropriate number, where 1 is strongly agree and 5 is strongly disagree. Don't know/Can't -1 recall/Refused 1 2 3 4 5 d Travel and Transport £ / Costs k How many people do ‘On the whole, 1 2 3 4 5 6 these amounts cover? Berwick upon Tweed offers a

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Q28. What improvements would you like to see following arts and leisure facilities in Berwick to the retail offer in Berwick upon Tweed? (circle upon Tweed: all that apply) 1 2 3 4 5 d/k More 1 Longer 5 Swan Leisure 1 2 3 4 5 6 Chain opening Centre Stores hours The Maltings Arts 1 2 3 4 5 6 More 2 Don’t know 6 Centre shops The Gymnasium 1 2 3 4 5 6 offering Gallery local produce Q32. On a scale of 1 to 5 (where 5 is very good Fewer 3 Other 7 and 1 is very poor) what do you think of the charity general state of the Town Centre with regard to: shops Increased 4 1 2 3 4 5 d/k variety of Litter shops Graffiti/fly Please posting give General examples state of buildings Q29. Have you ever attended any of these Street events? furniture Overall Christmas 1 Weekly 4 level of Lights Market cleanliness Switch On Shop Festivals 2 Farmers 5 frontage (specify) Market Riding the 3 I have not 6 Q33. On a scale of 1 to 5 (where 5 is very good Bounds attended and 1 is very poor) how do you rate Berwick any upon Tweed as:

1 2 3 4 5 d/k A place 1 2 3 4 5 d/k Q30. On a scale of 1 to 5 (where 5 is very good to shop and 1 is very poor) how would you rate the A place 1 2 3 4 5 d/k following venues for eating and drinking in to visit Berwick upon Tweed: A place 1 2 3 4 5 d/k to enjoy 1 2 3 4 5 d/k yourself Resturants/Bistros 1 2 3 4 5 6 Sandwhich shops 1 2 3 4 5 6 Take aways 1 2 3 4 5 6 Coffee shops 1 2 3 4 5 6 Q34. We are interested in your opinion of Pubs and clubs 1 2 3 4 5 6 various aspects of Berwick upon Tweed. On this scale (SHOWCARD 2), how would you rate the following:

Very poor 1 Good 4 Poor 2 Very good 5 Q31. On a scale of 1 to 5 (where 5 is very good Average 3 Don’t 6 and 1 is very poor) how would you rate the know

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Average 3 Don’t 6 maps and know information boards The Market Didn’t use/Not on -7 Cleanliness -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 Range of -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 of streets: stalls Public Toilets: Didn’t use -7 Presentation -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 Availability -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 of stalls Cleanliness -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 Quality of -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 Overall impression of goods on Berwick upon Tweed in sale terms of: Quality of -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 General -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 service from atmosphere stallholders Feeling of -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 Shops Didn’t use -7 welcome Range of -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 General -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 shops (of appearance interest to me as a visitor) Quality of -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 goods on sale Quality of -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 Service Places to eat and drink Didn’t use -7 Range -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 Quality of -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 food Q35. How would you make this town centre Quality of -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 better? (Unprompted) service Value for -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 Improved Improved money Parking Leisure Museums and other Didn’t use -7 Facilities places to visit in the Improved Safety and town Accessibility Security Range -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 Better Other 6 Level of -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 Retail offer interest Quality of -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 service Value for -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 money (where admission charges are Q36. Sex (DO NOT ASK) made) Male 1 Female 2

Ease of finding way Q37. Including yourself, how many people in around: your immediate party are male and female, Road signs -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 and which of these age groups do they fall Pedestrian -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6 into? (WRITE IN NUMBERS) signs

Age Male Female Display -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 -6

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C 25-34 D 35-44 E 45-54 F 55-64 Q40. Do you consider yourself to have a G 65-74 disability? H 75+ Yes 1 No 2 Q38. Which of the following best describes your current situation: I declare that this interview has been carried out strictly in accordance with your specification and has Employed 1 Wholly 6 been conducted within the MRS Code of Conduct full time (30 retired from with a person unknown to me. hrs or more) work Employed 2 In full time 7 Thank you very much for your time and part time education cooperation (less than 30 hrs) Self 3 Permanently 8 employed sick/disabled (full or part time) Unemployed 4 Other 9 Looking 5 Please after the specify other home

Q39. What is your ethnic origin? To be completed by interviewer:

(White) 1 (Mixed) White 9 Q41. Location of Interview: British and Black African Hide 1 Boots, 60- 4 Hill/Bridge 68 (White) Irish 2 (Mixed) White 10 Street Marygate and Asian

(White) Other 3 (Mixed) Other 11 Somerfield, 2 Other 5

2 (Asian or 4 (Black or Black 12 Castlegate Asian British) British)

Pakistani Caribbean WHSmiths, 3 (Asian or 5 (Black or Black 13 69-75 Asian British) British) African Marygate Bangladeshi

(Asian or 6 (Black or Black 14

Asian British) British) Other Q42. Day of Interview: Indian

(Asian or 7 Chinese 15 Wednesday 1 Friday 3 Asian British) Thursday 2 Saturday 4 Other

(Mixed) 8 Other 16 Q43. Time of Interview (24-hour clock) White and Black

Caribbean

Please state other

Northumberland Market Town Visitor Surveys 2009: Berwick upon Tweed, March 2010 Northumberland TourismPage 63 Visitor Survey 2009

Q44.

Interviewer name Interviewers signature Date Checked by supervisor

Time Weather 1100-1300 -1 Wet -1 1301-1500 -2 Cloudy -2 (Completely overcast) 1501-1700 -3 Sunny (or -3 sunny intervals) 1701+ -4

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9.2 Verbatim comments

Q17. What, if any, additional facilities or services would have added to the enjoyment of your visit to this area?

a cinema a lot more things for children to do a nice coffee shop a parking improvement better crossing better eating facilities better eating places better more obvious eating places would be nice better parking better parking better parking especially for disabled people like me better parking nearer to town lower charges for parking better parking safer for bikes better parking where the market is streets seem dirty as well better quality shops and cafes farm shops local produce shops better restaurants better shops better shops & more to do better traffic calming and cafes better weather better weather better weather better weather bigger department stores bigger supermarket tesco or asda bright red hot sunshine would help cant say not looked around cant sayt anthing would impair my visit cleaner public toilets didnt use don't know not been here long enough to find out empty the bins more few more bigger named shops few more shops good nice cafe some are a bit dated happy as it is high street done up open closed shops i haven't seen a decent childrens play park here

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i'm happy as it is improve clearance of dog fouling it's a problem improve traffic it's great as it is but the buildings are a bit tired its handy to the caravan its just the break we needed less traffic on the road make over on town maybe bring it up to date maybe a bit les busy and less traffic would be nice maybe more for children & more toilet facilities more activities and shops more craft shops more eating places and seats better shops more market stalls more museums more places to stub cigarettes more parking more restaurants more retail outlets more seats in town centre more seats young people hanging about no bike racks that are near to more shops more shops more shops more shops more shops more shops more shops more shops more shops more shops more shops more shops more shops as quite a few are closed more shops safer roads more specialised and unusual shops more toilets more traffic crossings nice sunny day nicer tea shops the ones now are drab could be better no cant think of any none its improved since last time/more activities

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not done much yet only arrived yesterday nothing additional at all nothing its adequate nothing its all good nothing maybe a few more shops nothing quite happy open woolworths again pedestrianise pedestrianise road safety not the best roads better shops a bit more up to date & open that sum of the shops were been occupied as there are a few closed there are a lot of druggies at night seems to be lots of drinks about there too many charity shops now to see some new exciting shops too early to say traffic traffic & parking so busy traffic crossing could be better traffic nightmare on main street traffic sometimes bad

Q18a. your MAIN reason for choosing to visit this area today? golf holi

Q18b. any OTHER reason for choosing to visit this area today? always come day trip holiday holiday holiday may day the barrack the gardens the hills the walls the walls the walls

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wedding

Q24. Can you tell me what, if anything, are the main problems with the shopping experience in the town centre? better cycle racks better shops by the market by the market too many cars closed shops congestion haven't encountered any its all fine Ive not shopped lack of good shops lack of good shops lack of public toilets lack of shops lighting at caravan park lots of empty shops last 12mth more shops more shops more shops more shops open a lot closed need bigger type shops none ideal for me & the family not a big enough supermarket not been to the shops not many crossings on roads not much to do pedestrianise the main street poor shops shops are closing shops too small the 2 way traffic on main st

Q28. What Improvements Would You Like To See To The Retail Offer In The Area? Please Give Examples anything local would be nice berwick needs some better quality shops better parking better quality chain stores marks & spencer

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better restaurants better road system no cars boutiques fine no improvement needed fish shop with local caught fish good to see more homemade food home produce shops larger type stores i thought the shops were ok a good variety it's a shame woolies has gone local produce shops farm shops no subways etc m & s many shops are closed these could become coffee shops modern shops more clothing stores more decent eating places more england flags more facilities for children to see and do more parking for disabled nicer coffee shops tea rooms more variety for eating none it suits us as a family not relevant as i would come here anyway not so many cars parked on road pedestrianise it primark river island primark would be good shops selling local produce being on the borders & farming souvenir shops tea room cake shops smaller & unusual shops traffic traffic up to date shops that are open make over on buildings