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BCP Council’s Plan September 2019
Table of Contents
1. Methodology ............................................................................................................................ 1
Council plan survey ....................................................................................................................... 1
Stakeholder Events ....................................................................................................................... 1
Dorset Chamber of Commerce and Industry Business Breakfast .................................................. 1
Youth Forum ................................................................................................................................. 1
Staff Engagement ......................................................................................................................... 1
DOTs Disability ............................................................................................................................. 1
Go Forum ...................................................................................................................................... 1
2. Communications ...................................................................................................................... 2
3. Council Plan engagement summary ...................................................................................... 2
Survey analysis ........................................................................................................................... 2
Importance of priorities .............................................................................................................. 2
Youth Forum ................................................................................................................................ 3
Stakeholder events ..................................................................................................................... 3
Go Forum ..................................................................................................................................... 3
Staff Panel ................................................................................................................................... 3
Written responses ....................................................................................................................... 4
DOTs Disability ............................................................................................................................ 4
Conclusion .................................................................................................................................. 5
4. Council Plan survey responses .............................................................................................. 6
Importance of priorities .................................................................................................................. 6
Comments ..................................................................................................................................... 7
Comments about the Plan ......................................................................................................... 7
What is missing?........................................................................................................................ 9
Comments about the content / wording ...................................................................................... 9
Partnership working ................................................................................................................. 11
Comments relating to the Priorities .......................................................................................... 12
Other comments ...................................................................................................................... 24
Respondent Profile ...................................................................................................................... 25
Equalities Questions ................................................................................................................ 25
Respondents’ postcode ........................................................................................................... 26
Organisations .......................................................................................................................... 27
5. Staff Panel survey .................................................................................................................. 28
Sustainable Environment ............................................................................................................ 28
Dynamic Region .......................................................................................................................... 29
Connected Communities ............................................................................................................. 30
Brighter Futures .......................................................................................................................... 30
Fulfilled Lives .............................................................................................................................. 31
Final comments ........................................................................................................................... 31
6. Stakeholder engagement events .......................................................................................... 33
Sustainable Environment ............................................................................................................ 33
Dynamic Region .......................................................................................................................... 35
Connected Communities ............................................................................................................. 36
Brighter Futures .......................................................................................................................... 38
Fulfilled lives ............................................................................................................................... 39
7. Young People’s engagement ................................................................................................ 41
Vision ....................................................................................................................................... 41
Sustainable Environment ......................................................................................................... 41
Dynamic Region ...................................................................................................................... 42
Connected communities .......................................................................................................... 42
Fulfilled lives ............................................................................................................................ 43
Is there anything missing? ....................................................................................................... 44
8. Written responses ................................................................................................................. 45
9. DOTs Disability feedback ...................................................................................................... 49
Background ................................................................................................................................. 49
Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 49
Feedback .................................................................................................................................... 49
1
1. Methodology
The Council Plan engagement ran from 5 August to 6 September 2019.
Council plan survey
The engagement forms (draft council plan and questionnaire) were published at
www.bcpcouncil.gov.uk/councilplan and available in all BCP libraries. In addition, roadshows were
held in:
– Christchurch (Saxon Square) Tuesday 3 September
– Poole (Dolphin Centre) Wednesday 4 September
– Bournemouth (Castlepoint) Thursday 5 September
Stakeholder Events
The Community Voluntary Sector, Town and Parish Councils and Residents’ Associations (that the
council know about and were able to contact) were invited to two stakeholder events held the week
commencing Monday 2 September.
Dorset Chamber of Commerce and Industry Business Breakfast
BCP Council’s Economic Development Manager attended the DCCI Business Breakfast to promote
the council plan engagement and encourage the business community to complete the survey.
Youth Forum
A youth forum event was held on Thursday 5 September and 19 young people aged 12-18 gave
their views on the plan.
Staff Engagement
An online form was emailed to 227 members of the Staff Engagement Panel on 18 July 2019, with a
follow up email sent on 24 July 2019 to new members of the panel.
DOTs Disability
BCP Council asked DOTs Disability to run a discussion group about the draft council plan. The
report was compiled, based on discussions with a small number of local disabled people who were
a pan “protected characteristic group”.
Go Forum
An Easy Read version of the questionnaire was produced and disseminated. 14 respondents
completed the easy read version of the questionnaire and members of the Go Forum completed the
questionnaire as an organisation. There full response can be seen later in the report.
2
2. Communications
The Council Plan survey was featured in all external enewsletters from 7-29 August, which
encouraged click-through to the www.bcpcouncil.govuk/councilplan webpage. During this period, it
was included in eight enewsletters, which were sent to over 56,800 recipients.
From 7 August - 4 September, the council plan survey was featured in five consecutive staff
enewsletters
The survey was published on the BCP Council Facebook page on 8, 12 and 14 August and 2 and 5
September. The plan survey was also pinned to the top of our Corporate Twitter account for the
duration of the survey. The average reach per posting (how many people saw the post), on
Facebook was 6600 and on Twitter was 38000.
A press release was sent to our media distribution group on 14 August, which encouraged residents
to take part online or visit their local library.
3. Council Plan engagement summary
The results from all of the methods of engagement are summarised below. The analysis will help to
make improvements to the high-level plan document and priorities. There is also a lot of information
which can inform the next stage of the process which includes writing a delivery plan.
Survey analysis
2,176 respondents took part in the survey. This includes 14 Easy Read surveys.
96% are residents and 4% responded on behalf of an organisation (25 of these work for BCP
Council).
Importance of priorities
Respondents were asked to rate the importance of each priority from 1 to 5 (where 1 = very low
priority and 5 is very high priority). Overall, respondents are supportive of the priorities, with each
receiving a 4 or 5 from over three quarters of respondents.
The table below shows the percentage of residents and organisations that feel each priority is a
high priority (scoring 4 or 5).
Residents Organisations
Sustainable Environment 82% 90%
Dynamic Region 81% 80%
Connected Communities 77% 82%
Brighter Futures 83% 91%
Fulfilled Lives 83% 82%
1,267 respondents wrote a comment or suggestion about the BCP Council Plan. The majority of
people are supportive of the overall priorities and actions. In the comments, many people
suggested the actions or improvements that they would like to see (which have been related to the
3
priorities) or explained why they felt that priority is important. 580 respondents commented about
the Plan, including wanting to see more details and in particular how the plan would be
implemented/actioned and financed, as well as compliments about the plan.
Youth Forum
BCP Council’s Youth Participation Workers shared the questionnaire with young people over the
summer. A youth forum event was also held in Poole which 19 young people aged 12-18 attended.
The Chief Executive, Insight Manager and Youth Development Worker - Participation held a
workshop on the draft Council Plan. We asked young people if the plan resonated with them, what it
means to them and what the council should do under each of the priorities. The feedback will help
make changes to the draft Council Plan and to inform the delivery plan which will sit under it.
The overall feedback for the corporate plan was generally positive. The majority of young people
when asked to rate it out of 10 gave it a 7. The things that were important to the group that should
be addressed by the Council included: cleaner streets, safer streets (particularly Poole Bus Station),
homelessness, involvement of young people in council decision making, transparency of the
council, improve the bus network, affordable housing and for schools to care more about their
students. Protecting the environment was also seen as an important.
When asked about the vision, the young people particularly didn’t like the word ‘vibrant’ but didn’t
suggest an alternative. Some also struggled to define sustainability and dynamic. There were a
couple of comments about Brighter Futures and Fulfilled Lives meaning the same thing.
Stakeholder events
Two stakeholder events were held for the Community Voluntary Sector, Town and Parish Councils,
Area Forums and Residents’ Association representatives. 31 people attended an evening event in
Christchurch and 33 people attended an afternoon event in Poole.
It is quite difficult to summarise the stakeholder events feedback as the comments were varied all of
which will be useful in helping to shape the delivery plan. However, one of the main challenges with
all the priorities was the funding available to deliver the actions, not only for the Council but partner
organisations as well. There was also a strong message that BCP Council needs to make a
commitment to work and engage with partners (the community voluntary sector, partner
organisations, Town and Parish Councils and residents’ associations) in delivering its aspirations.
Go Forum
An Easy Read version of the questionnaire was produced and disseminated. 14 respondents
completed the easy read version of the questionnaire and members of the Go Forum completed the
questionnaire as an organisation. Their full response can be seen in the full Engagement report.
Every member rated each of the priorities as a 4 or a 5, apart from one member who rated Brighter
Futures as a 3.
Staff Panel
The Staff Panel were asked three open questions for each of the five priorities (What opportunities
do you think that this priority presents?, What challenges, if any, do you think could get in the way of
4
achieving this priority? What ideas do you have for overcoming these? and How will we know we’ve
been successful?), plus an opportunity for a final comment about the Council Plan overall.
Results are difficult to summarise as they varied widely. Comments were broadly positive with
many seeing the opportunity to improve the lives of the area’s residents and some seeing an
opportunity to rethink the way in which the Council delivers services. Actions relating to transport
and housing received the most comments. Lack of finance and resources was seen as the main
barrier to delivering the priorities.
Written responses
The Chief Executive of Dorset Chamber of Commerce and Industry provided his views of the draft
Plan and his main observation is that there is little emphasis on supporting economic and business
growth and a heavy focus on the digital economy and sustainability.
Christchurch Town Council provided a detailed response about each of the specific priorities overall,
they said that funding was important to be considered in light of what was affordable.
The Highcliffe and Walkford Parish Council (HWPC) states that it gives wholehearted support to the
sentiments expressed by BCP and believes there is little that anyone could object to in terms of
desired outcomes. However, it states the document shouldn’t be called a plan and that it is a set of
principles.
Dorset Local Nature Partnership (DLNP) support the inclusion of Sustainable Environment as a
specific priority within the Council’s plan and associated actions.
Dorset Wildlife Trust note that they are pleased that health and wellbeing and environmental
sustainability both come through very strongly as values and act as golden threads through the
plan.
Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service welcome the draft Council Plan. Their only
suggestion is regarding the middle section around Vibrant Communities. This section has the
smallest writing but importantly is about individual impact “with outstanding quality of life where
everyone pays an active role”. They advised that this section is reconsidered to underline the
importance that each person plays. Change cannot be brought about by the staff and teams alone
and perhaps the public we serve should be included into each of the priorities to show there is a
place for them to be engaged and make an impact in their community.
DOTs Disability
BCP Council asked DOTs Disability to run a discussion group about the draft council plan. They
compiled a report, based on discussions with a small number of local disabled people who were a
pan “protected characteristic group”. Much of the feedback from this group will help inform and
improve the next steps of the Council Plan process. Some specific feedback on the high-level plan
included some of the phrases used in the document were considered to be “buzz words” and not
meaningful to the people who viewed it.
DOTs note that the introduction to the plan mentions BCP Councils’ commitments to equality and
diversity which is very welcome, as are specific references to older people and carers within the
document. It is noted that the plan does not mention disabled people, people from the LGBT
communities etc. Whilst DOTs recognised the challenges of referencing all communities within such
5
a document, the group recommended that there is significant value in referencing the term
“protected characteristic groups,” in this and all related high-level strategic documents. DOTs
recommend this because these are the groups of people most likely to be excluded from the
aspirational outcomes sited in the plan. Their view is that it is key to the success of the BCP Council
Plan that the legal obligations of “anticipatory Reasonable Adjustment” are embedded at a strategic
level, in order to leverage high quality engagement, participation and co-production throughout the
development and the delivery phases.
Conclusion
Overall BCP Council’s Plan has been well received and the priorities are also endorsed by
respondents. Improvements have been suggested along with issues that respondents felt were
missing. These were:
• Housing
• Affordable housing
• Transport
• Travel plan
• Clean streets
• Protecting wildlife
• Culture
• Arts, Heritage, Creativity
• Leisure
• Diversity and protected characteristics
• Disability
• The local economy
• Economic growth
• Tourism
• Developing and attracting business
• Further education / Higher education
• Mental Health
• Health Care
• Care for elderly / older people
• Social and community adult care
• Safety
• The police
• Integrated system for entry so a person as a contact in BCP who can signpost to all areas
• Integrated Transport Policy
• Transparency
• Generating income
• Partnership working
• Involvement in decision making
• Lack of collaboration / partnership
Based on feedback it is recommended that BCP Council considers the following:
• Acknowledge that the high-level document is not a plan and should be called either a high-
level strategy or vision.
• Look to reword some of the jargon to make the document easier to understand.
• Acknowledge that to achieve its strategy/vision BCP Council will work with its partner
organisations and the community voluntary sector. This should be reflected in the high-level
plan to show the Council’s commitment to support volunteering and an active relationship
with the voluntary and community sector.
• Look at the issues that have been suggested by respondents as missing or needing more
emphasis. Consider whether they are issues that should be included in the high-level plan or
should and will be included within the delivery plan.
6
4. Council Plan survey responses
2,176 respondents took part in the survey. This includes 14 Easy Read surveys.
96% are residents and 4% responded on behalf of an organisation (25 of these work for BCP
Council).
Importance of priorities
Respondents were asked to rate the importance of each priority from 1 to 5 (where 1 = very low
priority and 5 is very high priority). Overall, respondents are supportive of the priorities, with each
receiving a 4 or 5 from over three quarters of respondents.
The table below shows the percentage of residents and organisations that feel each priority is a
high priority (scoring 4 or 5).
Residents Organisations
Sustainable Environment 82% 90%
Dynamic Region 81% 80%
Connected Communities 77% 82%
Brighter Futures 83% 91%
Fulfilled Lives 83% 82%
Figure 1: Importance of priorities (residents)
3%
2%
2%
2%
2%
3%
4%
4%
3%
3%
11%
14%
16%
12%
12%
24%
32%
31%
26%
28%
58%
49%
46%
57%
55%
Sustainable Environment
Dynamic Region
Connected Communities
Brighter Futures
Fulfilled Lives
1 2 3 4 5
7
Figure 2: Importance of priorities (organisations)
(Figures of less than 2% not labelled)
Comments
Respondents were asked ‘Do you have any comments or suggestions about the BCP Plan?’
1,267 respondents wrote a comment or suggestion about the BCP Council Plan. Generally,
respondents are supportive of the overall priorities and actions. In the comments, many people
suggested the actions or improvements that they would like to see (which have been related to the
priorities) or explained why they felt a particular priority is important. Some made comments or
suggestions about the Plan more generally.
The numbers of respondents making comments relating to each theme are indicated, but it must be
noted that many respondents referred to more than one theme, and many of the themes overlap, so
the numbers will not add up to 1,267.
Comments about the Plan
580 respondents commented about the Plan, including wanting to see more detail, in particular how
the Plan would be implemented/actioned and financed, as well as compliments about the Plan.
144 respondents would like to see more detail, in particular how the Council will achieve the actions.
The plan looks and sounds great, but I would be far more impressed if there was a hint
under each item that suggests what actions the Council will take to achieve these goals
The plan was very high level with no detailed plans, timescales or actions. How is the
deliverability of this plan to be measured and by when. Seemed very apple pie and
motherhood statements and all a bit too glib.
2%
9%
18%
17%
7%
16%
28%
34%
33%
31%
31%
62%
46%
49%
60%
51%
Sustainable Environment
Dynamic Region
Connected Communities
Brighter Futures
Fulfilled Lives
1 2 3 4 5
8
The statements are all great, but there is no 'how’ I look forward to seeing how these
goals will be achieved
The summary plan on a page is very good and the priorities come through loud and
clear. Clearly the detail - and challenge to make it happen - is to follow.
What is not clear in here is how this is to be achieved.
Very noble aspirations but the plan is full of current buzz words without any detail as to
how these targets could be achieved.
The plan is far too high a level as it is a series of headlines. It needs more detail.
It all sounds great but because it does not provided detail on how these actions will be
achieved
Following on from this, 39 respondents felt that the Plan is not a plan as there are no details as to
how it will be achieved. Other words used to describe it are: a set of objectives, priorities,
ambitions, aims, aspirations, goals or a wish list.
In my opinion a plan should include what those generic high level objectives would mean
in real terms to the people of BCP and an indication of how/when they are going to be
achieved.
I felt it unfortunate that the document was released as a 'PLAN' as it was more like high
level strategic objectives …
The so-called Plan is, in fact, more like a mission statement - areas of aspiration. There
is no detail as to how these aspirations will be realised. Until this detail is provided -
specific time-bounded and costed actions - a plan does not exist. I would suggest that a
long-term, or strategic plan is formulated, based on inputs from operational areas.
Respondents also wanted to see more details of how the plan would be financed or costed (137
comments). Some also wondered how the actions would be prioritised.
How is any of this to be financed?
Great ideas, but it would be interesting to see how the council plans to budget to achieve
all this.
Great plan but not sure where the finances are coming for you to deliver it.
I am sure virtually everyone would want ALL these things but in the real world thanks to
years of "austerity" where will the funding come from?
I wholeheartedly agree with the BCP Council Plan, but is the budget how much will this
cost?
It looks ambitious and no one suggestion stands out as the most important so allocating
the limited funds available will be tricky.
The devil will be in the detail, how to implement it and how to get the resources to
implement it.
9
Would appreciate further detail - timescales, cost and implementation of key areas for
action. When and how is this plan to be achieved? The range of actions is wide
ranging and all are relevant but I doubt they will be achievable under current financial
constraints. I wait to see...
92 respondents included a positive statement about the plan in their comment.
I think the plan looks great and that you have highlighted all the important issues.
An excellent future plan for the region.
It looks well thought out, covering many issues.
Refreshing to see a collaborative approach to doing what’s right for the local community.
It’s a clear and positive plan.
Looks very comprehensive and, if successfully implemented, will make our area a really
lovely place to live and work in.
Congratulations for the presentation (wheel) of the plan and the easy read version of it.
What is missing?
As well as comments about lack of information about funding and actions to deliver the Plan,
respondents highlight that there is no mention of housing, transport, travel plan, affordable housing,
clean streets, the police, health care, care for the elderly / older people or ‘aged’, social and
community adult care, culture, diversity, disability, the local economy, economic growth, tourism,
developing and attracting business, procurement, transparency, protecting wildlife, the behaviours
of the Council and how we can generate more income.
All of these strategies need to underpin a plan to close the gap between the have and
the have not's in our area.
There was also a comment that the plan focuses externally, what about internally? i.e what the
council will do itself do support the priorities e.g. reduce our carbon footprint.
Traffic congestion, public transport, buses, issues relating to planning and development,
car parks, roads, mental health and were also commented on by respondents and are
not specifically mentioned in the draft plan, so these could be incorporated so that the
plan uses words that the public used and recognise.
Comments about the content / wording
Some people commented about the wording of the plan, including comments about the use of
jargon or buzz words (8 people used the word jargon and 7 used buzz words). Some respondents
highlighted specific words they were not sure about being used, and some suggested some
rewording. From the comments it appears that having ‘innovative digital economy’ at the start of the
10
dynamic region confuses what the priority is about and some respondents suggest that this should
include other economic sectors.
For the public at large I feel that the scope and complexity of the subject matter that the
plan addresses is beyond our capacity to provide too much other than superficial
observations.
At the roadshows, some people couldn’t immediately understand the priorities ‘Dynamic Region’,
‘Connected Communities’ or ‘Fulfilled lives’ and this came through to a certain extent from the
survey.
"Dynamic region" what does this mean?
I think the headline for dynamic region is a bit liner, focusing on digital business, I think
you need to open that up a bit more at the top level, so it is inclusive of long-standing
business. This is a tourist area and I feel this is really underrepresented in this poster.
Sustainable was also questioned by respondents.
what is sustainable?
My initial comments relate to what some words and statements might mean e.g.
"Sustainability" features strongly - what does it mean?
There is also an issue about definitions of terms - sustainability is mentioned a lot, but it
means different things in different contexts and to different people - do we mean financial
sustainability, environmental sustainability, organisational sustainability.......
"Tackle the climate change emergency” is meaningless (and useless) objective in the
context of BCP Council's powers and responsibilities. A much more sensible objective
would be to prepare for and, where possible, mitigate the effects of climate change on
our community.
A few people highlighted words that they did not like, with some giving alternative suggestions.
Dynamic Region - what is a digital infrastructure?
I am concerned, however, when I see words like 'promote, ensure, enable'.
I don't like 'We are a modern, accessible & accountable council' etc. It's too soon to
know whether you are or not.
'We aim to be' seems more in keeping with the aspiration, worthy though it is.
Similarly, 'Vibrant communities... where everyone plays an active role': this one, in
marketing jargon is usually called 'an offer', and as such I commend it. But it reads as a
fact, even though it's logically and literally impossible to achieve - 'everyone can play an
active role' avoids the unnecessary hyperbole.
Lots of good things here - like the language around "Fulfilled lives" and "adding years to
life and life to years" But… the bit in the centre of the circle looks like an after-thought:
extra words that don't add to the overall.
When you next present it PLEASE try to avoid buzzwords - they mean nothing and make
your message obscure rather than clear. For example what does being "aspirational" to
children mean?....Please also include an explanation of what is meant exactly by the
11
buzz words. I realise that for eye catching and "punchy" presentation brevity is essential
but please turn this from a marketing document into a sales presentation
We are surprised that neither FE nor HE is mentioned in the priorities section and we
suggest that the council could add “working in partnership with further and higher
education partners to develop our communities and our economy” to the Dynamic
Region section and that “supporting choices and opportunities for further and higher
education” should be included in the Brighter Futures section.
"Prevent rough sleeping" could perhaps be written as "help rough sleepers"
Some respondents commented about the actions.
The 'actions' for your key initiatives seem more like goals. An action to me is something
which leads to the goal. For example, 'promote happy, active, healthy lifestyles (goal) by
removing economic barriers to leisure centres for certain communities or age groups
(action). Seeing this level of detail helps people really understand the impact of all the
various services, help, and goodwill the council actually provides.
Far too many priorities identified under the ''actions'' list. These bullet points are not
actions they are sound bites/aspirations.
Partnership working
26 people commented that working with partners, or the role the community and voluntary sector
could play in achieving the plan, was missing.
As many of the stated aims/themes involve working with other organisations to achieve
them there should be mention of working in partnership.
Both Fulfilled Lives and Connected Communities could be enhanced by acknowledging
the important role that voluntary groups and volunteering have. By strengthening the
voluntary and community sector, many of BCP aims could be achieved.
How does the voluntary and community sector fit into your plan? (or health?) They are
really important in so many ways, but you haven’t even hinted at them. You have given
the impression you are going to do it all by yourself which seems unlikely given current
financial circumstances. It is interesting to note that on your main diagram there is little
mention of working in partnership with anyone (except perhaps business) - it gives the
impression you are in charge and we the population are going to be ‘done to’. Surely that
isn’t what you are aiming for?
Partner with the Third Sector, faith communities.
here is also a missing component around collaboration and working with the rest of
Dorset's health & social care system and beyond. Without strong and effective
partnerships, it won't be possible to achieve transformation of any kind. The objectives
are ambitious and not obtainable in isolation.
I am also keen that the council works with others who can help - charities, NHS,
churches etc.
12
(More important): this can't be the "Council's" plan - as with reducing resources, BCP
Council cannot deliver all of this on their own. I lead a local Christian charity, so I want to
play my part. So, it would be great if it was a set of priorities for the whole city region,
and on the sheet we recognise that it needs everyone pulling together to deliver it.
67 people commented about the questionnaire. Many commented that all the priorities are
important, others wanted to be able to prioritise the actions and to have the opportunity to have their
say on this. Some people felt the 1 to 5 scale used to rank the priorities was too simplistic. A few
people commented about the inclusion of the personal questions at the end of the questionnaire.
It's difficult to grade whole sections from 1-5, when the subsections are so diverse.
However, I applaud the overall intentions.
Impossible to answer any of these because I agree with some of the points in each
section and disagree with others.
This is such a massive wide mix of objectives that have been lumped together. Each
individual objective needs individual rating to deliver a viable plan. No detailed plan can
be developed from this massive lumping.
Any responsible organisation should aim to achieve ALL the previous aspirations, so the
questions are irrelevant and a waste of time!
Your survey rating scale (1-5) is far too simplistic for such detailed and specific
objectives. These priorities are of course all very important and you will I suggest get the
answers you want.
Comments relating to the Priorities
Sustainable Environment
186 comments related to Sustainable Environment. Many of these related to the climate emergency
and protecting the environment, but other topics were included. Some people commented that they
were pleased that the climate emergency was a priority, with many suggesting ways to help with the
climate emergency or actions the Council could take; for example increase the electric vehicle
charging infrastructure in the area, reducing congestion (this is covered in the Traffic section),
sustainable travel methods (public transport, cycle routes) and consistent recycling across BCP.
There were also comments about how the Council could lead and encourage others to help
preserve the environment.
It is good to see sustainability at the top and centre of this plan and it should underpin
everything that the Council does. We have declared a Climate Emergency and we
should act as we would for any other emergency - now and with purpose.
I gave most a high priority because they are all so important to a community and we
have to be especially aware of climate emergency.
Tackling the climate change emergency has to take top spot and so much else comes
with that: Transport, Town planning, Environmental protection, Jobs, Community etc.
13
Environment and sustainability is priority. More cycling network, restriction on wasteful
car usage will solve more of the problems in other headings.
What I'd like to see from BCP is bold action on climate change. Why can't we be the first
council in the UK to provide sufficient digital infrastructure so that people work from
home by default not by exception? It would alleviate pressure on local roads and
significantly reduce the carbon footprint of the area.
Encourage or challenge everyone toward zero carbon - support projects such as eco
bricking where they can be used to make a structure and get communities involved.
More venues with drinking water to encourage reusable plastic. Competitions for
companies to reduce emissions.
I hope that the Sustainable Environment priorities will lead to investment in high quality
cycling infrastructure
I can't emphasise enough how much the environment needs to come first and underpin
every decision. We can't survive without a habitable planet. You need to be incredibly
radical about this. Ditch the greenwash approach which has been prevalent for the last
decade. We have a climate emergency, which means we need to stop using fossil fuels
NOW. We also need to start planning for what BCP needs to look like in 100 years time.
In the sustainability section there is a reference to the Climate Change emergency, but
no reference to encourage and support local businesses and households to become
carbon neutral.
Protecting our environment and green spaces should be a top priority. The introduction
of food waste bins to Poole should be done ASAP, and the reduction of plastic in our
supermarkets should be encouraged.
I think it needs to include more on the aspiration to be carbon neutral in the future and
more encouragement on recycling and reusing. Whilst on this theme I think
encouragement for businesses and supermarkets to reduce packaging and encourage
collection of food in personal containers. Also that a corporate officer be nominated as a
waste champion whose remit would be to identify and reduce all waste in all areas.
I believe the Council needs to ensure more waste is recycled and help to decrease the
amount of plastics that supermarkets put on their products. Also more needs to be done
maintaining the trees around the area, I understand the restraints there have been on
budgets in recent years but in some places there is a need.
Food waste bins would be a good idea
Acknowledging the climate and environment crisis and responding to this with leadership
by example across the Council community is fundamental. Community Energy Usage,
Housing, Transport - are 3 big areas where the Council can have a big influence on
helping us all in our conurbation to change our energy use to renewable, sustainable
sources, housing can be built to near zero CO2 impact, transport can be improved with
joined-up thinking to remove lots of avoidable car journeys from our roads - reducing
pollution, CO2 and improving the health outcomes for many.
A few people felt the climate emergency shouldn’t be something that BCP needs to tackle, as it is a
national priority, or the word ‘emergency’ is being used to scare people. Some people explained that
is why they had scored it lower than the other priorities.
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I've scored the environment lower only because I believe that this plan only works fully
with international and national efforts. Local efforts are great but are futile for the bigger
scale i.e. Why should we give towards it when others aren't bothered. It's a team effort!
I believe tackling the climate change emergency is for national and international
governments to fund and manage not local government. Obviously, local actions can be
taken to play a part in the bigger picture but local government should concentrate on
using its scarce resources to tackle local issues.
Traffic and Roads
Many people commented about transport/roads/road network (104 respondents) and how traffic (57
people) is affecting the area. These are overlapping topics and relate to both the Sustainable
Environment and Dynamic Region priorities. This topic is frequently mentioned with public transport
and cycle ways (as a solution) and this is covered in its own section.
With regards to the environment, priority must be given to reducing traffic pollution and
congestion.
BCP frequently gets traffic gridlocked, even with minor reasons. Better traffic
management systems needed, including better police forensic speedier procedures and
Park and ride facilities
Developing an active travel network is essential. You have done virtually nothing in the
past towards this. If all you did was to solve the traffic generated by the school run every
day, this would be a success.
We desperately need a BCP wide, modern, low cost people moving solution before the
road network becomes totally gridlocked. The current road situation is bad for the local
economy and bad for the environment. Use the current main road network for trams,
light railway or some other similar solution which will incentivise more people to leave
their cars at home.
Please tackle traffic in the area, especially around schools, different school times?
difficult as people work but the best travel times are when the schools are on holiday.
I think that a key part of the of the sustainability must be more effective transport
solutions and with the creation of the new council across the three districts this is an
ideal opportunity to tackle that. I would advocate looking into using the existing network
rail lines as the basis for tram systems as a starting point
Sort out public transport/road network. The traffic and lack of main roads into the towns
strangles business
As a matter of urgency Poole needs an improved road link to the A31 and beyond.
Bournemouth has the Wessex Way and Poole needs something similar. Plans for a dual
carriageway road link from Tower Park to Ferndown were drawn up several years ago
but then rejected. WHY?
A Traffic volume is seriously high in the BCP area. Ideas for improvement in traffic
management and public transport, including rail facilities, should be given serious
consideration.
Deal with traffic congestion to improve flow and encourage use of public transport.
15
fully integrated and comprehensive public transport network needs to be further
developed as, at the moment, although good is still too fragmented. This would also help
the congestion problems we have in the area..
To create an eco-friendly transport network requires a massive move from diesel buses
to electric or natural gas and with respect you need to resolve the chronic traffic flows in
the region otherwise any eco-friendly moves are wasted.
Planning (as a cause due to large developments and potential solution) is also mentioned in relation
to traffic. Planning is also covered in the planning comments section below.
Where is there mention of providing proper infrastructure to support the large amount of
development being proposed in the local area? We need roads to relieve the over used
existing road structure that has been very badly neglected by the councils locally for too
long. What is the reason for not making developers pay for new roads to relieve the
gridlock we already have?
Your biggest priority should be improving transport infrastructure across the three towns.
Constantly allowing new housing without increasing road capacity will lead to gridlock,
more so than now.
The top priority of this council should be to improve the road network especially
Ringwood Road through Longham. If you are going to build 3000+ new houses then the
developers should pay for the infra structure to handle the 6000 + cars.
My main concern is the road network. With house numbers increasing and already busy
roads (4th busiest in the UK recently reported) major investment and radical initiatives
are needed to tackle this in hotspot areas
Buses/public transport
Improving public transport is another area that relates to both the Sustainable Environment and
Dynamic Region priorities. 67 people commented on this, including more services, more frequently
and helping people to travel across BCP more easily and moving to electric buses.
The routes of the Yellow Busses need to be monitored as they change quite frequently,
often leaving residents without a (convenient) service. This does not help keeping an
independent life and a cleaner environment - HAVING to use my car when before I used
public transport!
Public transport must be more frequent and affordable with more bus lanes.
Combine More Buses and Yellow Buses so that people can travel from Christchurch to
Poole cheaply and easily.
I hope that the buses within BCP area will soon be going fully electric - This should
improve the air quality (and possibly save money due to simpler maintenance)
Public transport is the most pressing issue in the conurbation. Trains need to be more
frequent between Poole and Southampton. Bus timetables need to be ripped up and
started again, using an on-demand live system that brings the bus to the customer. Bus
sizes need to be reduced and buses need to run every 15 minutes, particularly in the
outlying areas, that More Bus cover.
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Those of us that live on the fringes of BCP area (e.g. Highcliffe) seem to suffer from
worse public transport. We need more services linking us to the core of BCP (ego Yellow
Buses 1A)…
Cycling/cycle ways
Cycle ways were mentioned by 46 respondents, with a mix of people wanting more of them as a
more sustainable way of travelling…
Healthy lives come from trying to persuade people to get out and enjoy what is on their
doorstep. A dedicated cycle track linking the whole conurbation will be imperative.
Cycle lane along the beach. Cheap. Effective. Simple. Allow use 12 months of the year.
Encourage cycling, not driving.
provide more cycle routes that are off road (not just painted lines on the road that stop
halfway) to meaningful places (I'm very impressed by the new ones recently built - keep
going!)
cycle network for children: from home to school, to library, to leisure centre = positive
effect on environment, futures and fulfilled lives.
A cycle \ pedestrian route around the Upton/Hamworthy side of the Harbour (at the
water’s edge) must be the base of any future planning. Without this I dread to think what
might happen. Good luck!
…and those commenting on some of the cycle ways that don’t work.
Stop wasting money on cycle paths that no cyclist uses which are reducing the size of
junctions and the width of the roads. Repair the roads instead.
All this sustainable stuff doesn't wash when roads are heavily congested and the
council's answer is to put in a cycle path for an occasional cyclist
Stop putting in ten-yard cycle lanes as this does not encourage safety and actively keep
cyclist off paths where there are already alternative cycle routes for example Wallisdown
Road.
Dynamic Region
228 comments related to Dynamic Region. Respondents commented about this priority generally,
supporting this as a priority and the importance of creating jobs and growing businesses. Other
topics mentioned including housing, the high street/town centres, parking, planning, tourism and
businesses are summarised in their own sections below. Traffic and roads was another common
topic with 94 comments related to the Dynamic Region. This was covered under the Traffic and
Roads section in the Sustainable Environment Section.
I feel that everything we would like to do hinges on having a vibrant economy - this must
be the top priority.
I believe there is too much focus on a digital economy and not enough on alternative
opportunities for work. We do need to keep up with progression but we are no longer
self-sufficient in areas such as food production, manufacturing, science and research to
name a few. Not everyone is equipped to work in an office.
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Also be good to see the plan talk about attracting and retaining talent particularly
focused on innovation and digital - under Dynamic Region.
What about the economy, economic development and jobs, your aspirations don't
include generating jobs and a vibrant growing business economy.
There is no mention of job creation through our manufacturing and engineering
expertise. Supporting job creation in the IT sector is worthy, but BCP must do more to
support other job creators which in turn support the local economy. Businesses should
be given a high priority and more of an incentive to redevelop old sites that damage our
environment into energy efficient and environmentally friendly centres of excellence.
importance of connected policies leaning to growth and inward investment missing,
selling the resort as an attractive destination lacking, is potentially an inward looking plan
not an outward looking mission to achieve growth. Town Centre regeneration, BCP
should seek to test its high street regeneration model by inviting input from e.g. national
regeneration experts in public sector
Strategy for increase the GVA of the area by promoting/assisting the right type of
companies. High tech, not supermarkets! Have a strategy for retaining University
graduates. Acquire >25% of the High Street freeholds as part of a cohesive strategy to
reduce rental values. . . as a way of attracting small independent traders
add “working in partnership with further and higher education partners to develop our
communities and our economy” to the Dynamic Region section
High Street/Town Centre
93 people commented about the High Street /Town Centre, mainly relating to their decline and how
they can be improved, with some suggesting to look at various other towns or cities for ideas to
redevelop the town centres…
Resolving the decaying town centre shopping areas especially in Bournemouth and
Poole must be a priority, even [Christchurch] is struggling.
The town centre is dying on its feet because of this and looks run down, scruffy and sad
as do some other areas like Winton.
Shame the town centre has so many empty stores not sure how you’re going to turn that
around.
To try and invigorate the high street when shops are closing due the internet and high
council taxes is unachievable.
Too many coffee shops. Needs more retail shops.
there are far too many charity shops in the high streets, probably because the
businesses can't afford the rent the council charges.
Regeneration of the high Street is vital, the current outbreak of empty shopping units
creates a terrible impression for residents and visitors alike. Consider reducing tax to
encourage new businesses.
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We need to have a look at other places who have good town centres. This probably
includes good bus links and cheap parking in shopping areas to get people to visit
Bournemouth. People these days won't do anywhere where the parking is too expensive
I would like to see a thriving town centre with leisure facilities, interesting shops, well
landscaped areas...There should be plenty of events to attract holiday makers and the
return of amenities like an ice rink, swimming pool etc.
…and others mentioning the high cost of parking and business rates (parking is also covered in a
section below).
I think you need to consider lowering parking charges and business rates in
Bournemouth. I don’t have a business but I am horrified when I go into the town centre to
see the endless empty shops, so reducing rates would surely help as empty shops result
in No rents! The parking charges also deter people from the centre and this also applies
to theatre patrons. Surely you need to look at the bigger picture and encourage people
into Bournemouth and stop using parking as a cash cow!!
if you are serious about attracting footfall to your town centres, particularly Bournemouth,
have a serious review of the extortionate parking charges and the effect they have.
the council should look at the car parking charges as these high charges are a deterrent
to shoppers and if they are too high the loser is the high streets, also look at reducing
high street shops business rates to help those shops who are struggling.
Some of the comments also relate to homelessness and community safety/policing and PSPOs,
again because of their impact on the towns. These are covered in the Connected Communities
section.
Do not remove the PSPO [Poole] as its improved the high street
Parking
Comments about parking (62 comments) relate to reducing charges to encourage use of the town
centres and increasing charges to discourage car use, improvements to parking for the elderly /
disabled, introducing more electric vehicle charging and ensuring parking is built for new
homes/developments.
To regenerate the town centre is easy, reduce the parking charges for Bournemouth
residents. Yes it's that easy bring out a yearly pass and stop ripping everybody off.
Charge more for parking in town, but buses will be cheaper to encourage less traffic.
Just listen to what the residents want such as parking meters that take cash as well as
card
Increase the electric vehicle charging infrastructure in the area. At least one charging
hub and how about chargers in every council car park. Encourage electric vehicle use by
offering free/reduced parking.
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Tourism
32 respondents mentioned tourism, with most commenting that there is no mention of tourism in the
plan.
I thought it was really good. Could perhaps be more explicit in Dynamic Region about
supporting and promoting tourism and generating employment. It is implied but seems a
bit odd for such a tourist area not to actually use the word tourism.
Nothing really on tourism given it is such a vital part of the local employment market and
importance of it in delivering spend into the local communities
The plan is also totally silent on the main economic activity of the Council area,
TOURISM. Why is this?
Concentrate on the fundamental economic growth, year-round tourism and good
transport, and the rest will look after themselves
Hopefully we will not lose sight of the fact that we are quite highly dependent on tourism
and facilities for our welcome guests must be kept in excellent condition…
Invest and develop BCP as high quality seaside and leisure resort to attract visitors and
money into the region
Tourism is a key driver for the area and it's imperative the streets are safe, residents and
visitors feel safe.
Planning / Development
Development, or planning, was raised by 82 respondents, including protecting the green belt,
overdevelopment (and its impact on local services/infrastructure), housing (this overlaps with the
housing/affordable housing section below) and comments about planning policies.
I would like to have seen more emphasis on protecting the green belt
How does sustainability underpinning planning policy marry up with our challenging
housing targets? The Poole Local Plan has two urban extensions (UEs) which we got
through Examination on the proviso that housing is urgently required and UEs were
necessary evils to deliver this but the two sites are inherently unsustainable.
BCP need to be aware of overdevelopment and overpopulation in the BCP areas This
puts pressure on Hospitals, GP surgeries, Police, transport, elderly services, education
and people’s general wellbeing. Whilst the BCP plan is admirable, where is the funding
coming from for so many improvements and projects Bournemouth particularly is rapidly
in danger of becoming overdeveloped.
Housing including affordable should be built only on brown sites and only on green field
when all brown sites are used.
Please could the Council be more proactive in seeking out derelict or empty properties
and space already being wasted in towns rather than take away our countryside.
there should be a commitment to build council houses and not rely on "developers" to
provide social housing as they always try to avoid this as it is not "economically viable"
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Where is there mention of providing proper infrastructure to support the large amount of
development being proposed in the local area? We need roads to relieve the over used
existing road structure that has been very badly neglected by the councils locally for too
long. What is the reason for not making developers pay for new roads to relieve the
gridlock we already have?
A key factor particularly for Bournemouth centre - Lansdowne and town Centre is
stronger planning controls and vision. Lansdowne area, in particular, is a mess of mixed
up styles and building heights and generally poor quality recent design which looks a
mess.
Taking residents opinions into account when making Planning decisions
Stop building blocks of flats and start catering for families.
Where are the new houses going to be built? Is infrastructure and extra facilities going to
be put in place before housing developments?
Developers want to build high end of the market homes as they are more profitable,
Affordable housing needs the infrastructure to go with them. You don't appear to insist
on this.
Housing
Housing was raised by 79 respondents, with many saying that it should be the biggest priority or
feature in the plan. Housing overlaps with the planning section.
I am disappointed to see a lack of commitment to housing generally. This is not about
tackling rough sleeping (which does need addressing) but about understanding that
quality and affordable housing prevents ill health, both physical and mental and builds
communities. Getting housing right would automatically solve some of the other issues
that have been highlighted as priorities in the plan. Investing in housing can therefore
reduce expenditure in other areas. There is a real opportunity for BCP to be a leading
council in this area
Objectives are far too wide. You should have put housing into a category of its own
Private rented properties in this town are often atrocious and yet asking for top level
rents? Surely someone controls these prices? There needs to be a minimum standard to
demand high prices: double glazed, central heated, no damp, and minimum room sizes.
Ensure that new homes built are not sold as second homes!
Housing: Could a factor be inserted regarding generating electricity through Solar
Panels? I have seen a few developments where Solar panels are part of the roof
structure. Could developers be encouraged to follow this suggestion, reducing in part the
need for fossil fuels?
I feel that young couples stand very little chance of buying a home of their own
Stop building expensive housing nobody can afford and build more starter homes and
not on green belt land.
most young people won't stay here so council funds would be put to better use on other
facilities such as housing because it's almost impossible to live here.
21
29 people commented on the need for more affordable housing in the area.
The most pressing issues in my opinion are to ensure enough genuinely affordable
housing / social housing
Council needs to build housing. Even working families struggle with high rents and this
needs to be recognised. Housing people in the private sector is not viable in today's
market. Has to be more social housing.
With 4000+ on council waiting list, I feel social housing should be a priority for the
council, too many families in poor overpriced bnbs, and too many families living in
overcrowded conditions.
Affordable Housing is needed for families, couples and the new generation of buyers
(myself being in this bracket, I'm finding it difficult to find affordable homes) Do we really
need any more Uni accommodation blocks?
Connected Communities
131 comments related to Connected Communities, 74 of these were related to wanting more police
presence, reducing anti-social behaviour and drug problems (all often mentioned with
homelessness which is covered under Fulfilled Lives).
More needs to be done to tackle safety in our neighbourhoods and deal with antisocial
behaviour
A drive to reduce crime, including minor crime, should also be a priority.
Higher Police presence around the towns stamping out antisocial behaviour before it
gets worse
Putting more police on the street and tackling low level crime would help each of the
sections in your plan.
I am keen to see what plans there are for Boscombe. I am concerned that the area goes
from bad to worse with lots of rough sleepers and blatant drug use in Boscombe Chine
Gardens. I want to see a nice environment to live in, clean streets, trees, flowers, and a
sense of community….
Maybe I missed it, but nothing about erasing the drunks and drug problems that seem to
be invading our community and the fact that it is on the rise
Other comments under Connected Communities relate to working with partners and the community
sector (covered in Partnership section).
People across BCP volunteer to make their communities better, and often deliver your
actions, so we’d like to suggest a couple of actions under ‘connected communities’. Your
actions don’t necessarily need to be about funding. It can be through acknowledgement,
partnership working and support ‘in kind’ etc. We’d like to suggest something along the
lines of: - Empower a thriving voluntary and community sector. - Enable volunteering so
22
people can contribute and improve their wellbeing. We feel these actions will better
reflect BCP Council’s commitment to support volunteering, and your local voluntary and
community sector.
Partner with the Third Sector, faith communities.
A few people mentioned equalities.
I would like to congratulate BCP Council on their consideration and support of LGBT
people, as reflected by this survey, which explicitly identifies and respects the existence
and welfare of trans-people.
Underpinning all of this should be considerations regarding equality
Brighter Futures
Comments about Brighter Futures (49 comments) relate to spending more on education/schools
and having more of a focus on children and young people.
There must also be a strong focus on our children (11-18 particularly can get left
behind)…teenagers and young people in particular (e.g. to age 25) can feel left out and
forgotten about.
Investment in affordable opportunities/activities for our youth - because they are our
future - bring back youth clubs, encourage social/sports 'free' activities,
apprenticeship/part time work opportunities.
The BCP area has a particular strength in Higher Education which should be noted in
this section. The Higher Education offering…supports the local economy and brings
benefits to residents. Many students come from the local area, supporting local
employability and we and our students and staff work in the community, including with
local schools. Many of our graduates also remain in the area, working for local
businesses, and we work with local businesses on research and innovation projects.
Further education is also an important contributor to the local community, employability
and the economy.
“supporting choices and opportunities for further and higher education” should be
included in the Brighter Futures section.
In addition, students were mentioned by 22 respondents. 16 people felt that Bournemouth focuses
too much on students / student accommodation.
Fulfilled Lives
148 comments relate to Fulfilled Lives. Around a third of people commenting mentioned
homelessness (53 comments) and 32 respondents commented about hospitals/health care. Other
comments that supported this as a priority, were about adult social care, increasing support for
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mental health services, making BCP accessible or providing activities for older people and the role
of partners and the voluntary sector in helping to achieve this priority.
The conurbation faces huge challenges with adult social care…
I just don't know if you will achieve anything with Social Care without a radical review of
current services.
Have facilities that make region accessible for all - changing places toilets - business
signed up to Safe Places scheme - that Poole bus station and other busy public spaces
are safe and welcoming. Jobs for everyone should mean reasonable adjustments so
people with disabilities do not miss out
The routes of the Yellow busses need to be monitored as they change quite frequently,
often leaving residents without a (convenient) service. This does not help keeping an
independent life…
Get the elderly more active, connected and moving. Don't let the elderly be a burden on
the health service.
Healthy lives come from trying to persuade people to get out and enjoy what is on their
doorstep. A dedicated cycle track linking the whole conurbation Will be imperative, so
will the overhead metro line which was proposed some time ago.
I am pleased that you have included support people to live safe and independent lives to
promote happy, active and healthy lifestyles, develop age-friendly communities, value
and support carers, enable people to live well through quality social care, reduce
loneliness and isolation and ensure our communities feel safe.
Affordable housing and care for the elder would have to be my top issues, alongside
improvements in the support of mental health needs.
Mental health care needs more funding.
We have a relatively low % spend on mental health in this area. It would make a huge
difference to the lives of the most vulnerable people in the community if this was
increased.
We need more job opportunities for people with disabilities
Homelessness
53 respondents mentioned homelessness/rough sleeping, with most supportive of the action to
helping homeless people. Some asked for more information on how this would be tackled, as the
wording of the action ‘tackle homelessness and prevent rough sleeping’ can sound negative.
Homelessness is a particular problem.
…how SPECIFICALLY is the homelessness and obvious drug/ASB going to be tackled.
A HIGH Priority if we are to retain the BCP area are a prime tourist and English School
destination and create the liveable environment for a ‘digital’ economy you set out in The
plan.
Give genuine homeless a place to stay
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Also, I hope "prevent rough sleeping" doesn't mean playing bagpipe music all night at
the bus interchange or installing bars on benches to prevent people from lying down.
The plan should work with the homeless to get them off the street.
Tackling homelessness would make a huge difference to the area. Would help if we
could identify genuine homeless from the increasing numbers of people begging to
support addiction. Homeless people need support.
Homeless people need a shelter where they can stay, instead of the streets, where they
are offered food and clothing.
It all seems very positive but it's difficult to have a reasoned personal opinion on the plan
when there is no detail about HOW the aims will be accomplished. For example tackling
homelessness and rough sleeping could be good or bad (good if it means providing
more shelters and help for the homeless, bad if the current legal measures are
continued)
Hospitals / health care
Comments about hospitals or health (32 comments), mainly relating to the lack of mention of health
in the plan, the impact of housing development on health services and plans to close Poole A&E
It is difficult to identify the public health agenda within the specific priorities.
I don’t approve of the closure of Poole hospital A & E. There is no way that Bournemouth
has free capacity and this will definitely put lives at risk.
How are you linking with the NHS? No mention of health.
There does not appear to be a reference to healthcare and this is important to our
community too.
Other comments
Questions asked about when services would be harmonised, including planning (and whether
neighbourhood notifications would continue), recycling (would food recycling be offered), services
for people with disabilities are inconsistent across the areas. Communication would be helpful for
residents in these areas.
How do you contact the council? Do you still go to Christchurch Offices? Can you use hubs? Some
email addresses on the website are Bournemouth and not working.
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Respondent Profile
Equalities Questions
Group Category % Frequency
Age
Under 24 years 1 26
25 - 34 years 5 91
35 - 44 years 9 183
45 - 54 years 17 326
55 - 64 years 24 461
65+ years 44 868
Gender Male 53.5 1039
Female 46.5 904
Trans Yes 0.5 9
No 99.5 1843
Sexual Orientation Heterosexual 94 1592
All other sexual orientations 6 109
Ethnicity
White British 94 1732
White Other 4 82
BME 2 37
Religion
No religion 40 704
Christian 55 980
Other religion 5 85
Disability
No 74 1432
Limited a little 19 133
Limited a lot 7 368
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Respondents’ postcode
27
Organisations
90 respondents were representing an organisation, the list of organisations is shown below. 25
respondents who said they responded on behalf of an organisation work for BCP council.
Ansbury Guidance BH11 Area Support Group & Day Coach Tours BME community Engagement Bournemouth and Poole Council for Voluntary Service Bournemouth Natural Science Society Bournemouth University Branksome Park & Canford Cliffs Residents Association Charity as part of BCP Voluntary Section Christchurch Men's Shed CIO Chrysalis, transgender support charity Citizens Advice BCP DCCI and Ferndown Chamber for Business Dorset Blind Association Dorset Chamber of Commerce Dorset Council Dorset Healthcare Faithworks Wessex Highcliffe & Walkford Parish Council Highcliffe School Hurting to Healing IEC Limited International Care Network (ICN) NHS Dorset CCG People First Forum PKIC Pokesdown Community Forum Pokesdown Community Forum/Working Group Boscombe & Pokesdown Neighbourhood Plan Poole Agenda 21 Poole Children in Care Council Poole Flag Trust Poole Kids in Care Poole Young Carers Poole Youth Forum Poole-Bournemouth Volleyball Association Public Health Dorset Read Easy Poole Reidsteel (John Reid and Sons Ltd) SafeWise SWL Security Ltd Talbot & Branksome Woods Residents Association Talbot Village Residents Association/Neighbourhood Watch The Arts Development Company The Society for Poole The Town Centre Detached Youth Project Wisdom (Zhihui) Foundation Yellow Buses Young Carers Youth Forum
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5. Staff Panel survey
An online questionnaire was sent out to our Staff Panel. The survey received 64 responses which
were spread across all directorates. Growth and Infrastructure was the most strongly represented
directorate with 10 respondents.
Panel members were shown the Council Plan and for each of the five priorities, they were asked
three questions:
What opportunities do you think that this priority presents?
What challenges, if any, do you think could get in the way of achieving this priority? What
ideas do you have for overcoming these?
How will we know we’ve been successful?
There was a wide range of answers for these questions from the very broad (e.g. ‘we need some
targets’) to some very specific responses relating to a small part of a single service (e.g. a better
bus service from Winton). Where possible, responses have been categorised into broad themes
and some comments covered more than one theme.
Not all respondents answered every question, with some just answering those in which they have a
particular interest or greater knowledge.
Sustainable Environment
Opportunities
There were 60 responses to this question and more than half of them (31) related to Action c)
develop an eco-friendly and active transport network. These comments highlighted a range of
benefits that might arise from this action, such as:
• improved physical and mental health & wellbeing and
• economic benefits arising from making it easier for people to move around the area
Comments also suggested for how this action might be achieved such as:
• better public transport (including buses, trams and trains)
• improved cycling facilities
• park & ride
• making it easier for mobility scooters to get around.
Action f) Maximise access to our high quality parks and open spaces was mentioned by 15
respondents, many of whom mentioned the link between this aim and improvements to health and
wellbeing, as well as bringing communities together.
Fourteen respondents referred to Action a) Sustainability underpins our planning policies. These
comments varied from climate adaption, ensuring that building developments have the infrastructure
in place to support them and insisting on eco-friendly elements to new builds.
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Of the other actions that sit under this priority, natural environment was referred to by 12
respondents, resource management by 10 respondents and climate change by 6 respondents.
The key benefit to this priority, mentioned by 15 respondents, was health and quality of life. Making
the area more attractive to tourists and boosting the economy were each mentioned by 5
respondents while 6 respondents mentioned the opportunity for BCP Council to address its own
working practices including agile working and electric fleet vehicles.
Challenges
There were 58 responses to this question. Costs / finance / investment was considered to be the
main barrier to achieving this priority, mentioned by 23 respondents. Changing culture and attitudes
was also a key barrier, mentioned by 20 respondents. Education and promotion of initiatives was
the most commonly suggested solution, mentioned by 12 respondents.
Success
There were 56 responses to this question. As transport was the most common opportunity
mentioned, the most common measure of success are also to do with transport, with 24
respondents mentioning greater uptake of alternative transport and/or less traffic as the main
indicator of success. Improved air / water quality (12 respondents), landfill / recycling volumes (11
respondents) and increased demand to visit / live / work in the area (7 respondents were the next
most common suggestions.
Dynamic Region
Opportunities
There were 58 responses to this question. Revitalising our high streets was the most commonly
mentioned action under this priority (31 respondents); investing in homes was mentioned 21 times
and creating a digital infrastructure was mentioned 16 times.
In relation to high streets, respondents saw an opportunity to make safe, vibrant spaces with a more
varied retail offer. Building more affordable family homes and more social / council houses were
key opportunities under the housing theme.
Challenges
There were 54 responses to this question. There were few clear themes to the challenges
mentioned. Financial challenges were mentioned most often (12 respondents) and gaining public /
stakeholder support for any changes was mentioned by 8 respondents.
Success
There were 52 responses to this question. Suggested measures of success include more jobs and
businesses in the area (13 respondents), fewer empty shop units / more diverse retail offer (13
respondents), high street footfall (7 respondents) and happier / healthier residents (8 respondents).
Measure relating to housing were split between the number of new homes built (6 respondents), the
quality of homes built e.g. family houses rather than flats (6 respondents) and a reduction in families
on the housing waiting list (4 respondents).
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Connected Communities
Opportunities
There were 49 responses to this question. When considering the opportunities arising from this
priority, respondents’ comments were more holistic rather than relating to specific actions. The key
opportunities identified were better engagement / involvement with our communities (11
respondents), creating a sense of belonging or pride (9 respondents), making better use of
community resources and spaces (8 respondents), improving wellbeing (8 respondents) and
improving social cohesion / reducing crime and ASB (6 respondents).
Challenges
There were 46 responses to this question. Again, the identified challenges were varied with few
clear themes. Lack of police was mentioned by 9 respondents, costs / resources by 7 respondents,
residents’ ability or desire to be involved and tackling prejudice / perceptions by 5 respondents
each. There were many other challenges identified but these were too varied to group into themes.
Success
There were 43 responses to this question. Twelve respondents identified lower crime / ASB as a
measure of success. Seven respondents suggested using data from residents’ surveys and seven
suggested that happier, healthier residents would indicate success. Five suggested more
community involvement in decision making.
Brighter Futures
Opportunities
There were 50 responses to this question. Twelve respondents referred specifically to support for
parents; other responses were more general and few related to specific actions.
Nine respondents mentioned the opportunity to protect and/or expand facilities for children and
young people, such as children’s centres and youth clubs.
Seven respondents mentioned the opportunity to work with children and young people now to help
them grow into engaged, well adjusted adults.
Six respondents said that this priority would create better opportunities and outcomes for young
people.
Challenges
There were 45 responses to this question. Of these, 27 respondents mentioned cost as a barrier to
achieving these aims. There were no other strong themes emerging from this question although
economic / social exclusion, resistance to intervention, lack of control over academy schools and
limited resources for SEND or CAMHS were each mentioned by 4 respondents.
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Success
There were 41 responses to this question. Eighteen suggested that better school results / OFSTED
ratings would be a good measure of success. Eleven suggested fewer children in care or needing
support and ten suggested improved mental health / quality of life.
Other suggested themes include fewer young people committing or falling victim to crime, fewer
NEETs, better access to services / facilities / events, more young people wanting to stay in the area
and regular satisfaction surveys among parents and young people.
Fulfilled Lives
Opportunities
There were 48 responses to this question. Eleven of these related specifically to homelessness and
nine related to happy, active and healthy lifestyles.
Ten respondents saw an opportunity to improve lives. Other responses were varied including
reducing pressure on services, rethinking how we deliver services, tackling drug & alcohol
dependency, reducing crime and ASB and providing volunteering opportunities.
A number of the comments made in this section overlap with aspects of other priorities – investing in
the homes our communities need (Dynamic Region) will have a positive impact on homelessness as
well as enabling people to live safe and independent lives, developing an eco-friendly and active
transport network and maximising access to parks and open spaces (Sustainable Environment) will
promote happy, active and healthy lifestyles.
Challenges
There were 47 responses to this question; 21 of these identified cost / financial investment as a
barrier to achieving this priority. Other identified barriers include resistance to change, the cost and
suitability of housing, changing perceptions, drug & alcohol addiction and providing appropriate care
for elderly residents.
Suggested solutions include rethinking the way we deliver services (including identifying and filling
gaps), working more closely with other agencies and improving access to services (including putting
together individualised ‘packages’ of support).
Success
There were 41 responses to this question. The key measures of success that were identified were
fewer homeless people (19 responses), better physical and mental health (13 responses), improved
happiness / wellbeing (11 responses) and reduced demand on services (8 responses).
Final comments
Respondents were asked if they had any final comments or suggestions about the BCP Council
Plan; 43 respondents made a comment. Some of these were quite general while others addressed
more specific topics. Where appropriate these have been identified as positive, negative or neutral.
There were 17 generally positive comments, 9 were negative and 9 were neutral.
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Some examples of positive comments:
The BCP plan shows we are ambitious for our communities and businesses to grow and
also to encourage development and investment opportunities within the area which can
only be of benefit to us all
I think the intentions behind the plan are great, and the increased emphasis on the
environment, supporting the community as a whole and promoting integration are great
The Council Plan is a good summary document of what BCP stands for and the values
we wish to encourage. Together the values embrace all areas of life and the desire to be
an outstanding council
I think it was set out well and had clear points. It made BCP seem like an organisation I
would like to be involved in if we can implement and achieve these things as a team as
one council together
Some examples of negative comments:
The plan needs external eyes as it appears that someone sat in an office by alone and
wrote a wish list. It lacks personality and passion.
It is broad and very buzzword-y. To the average resident this is another list of well
written ideas, but acting on them is where we fall short. We need to be target and
deadline driven, sharing exactly how we are or want to tackle issues.
Some examples of neutral comments:
I like that it is on a page. I would like to see it saying more about employment - as having
a job is really key to people's wellbeing and is often the way out of a troubled life.
Perhaps also more about partnership - BCP can't do this on our own and should not
always be the lead body in making things happen. A sense check as to what is
achievable by the council given budgetary constraints might be useful; not to say that the
aspirations are wrong just perhaps how they are worded so that the expectation as to
who / how they are delivered is clear.
Lots of good intentions but need to be worked out in practicalities
Some common observations about the plan include that the ‘actions’ are too broad and are more
like ambitions or aspirations, that there is too much jargon and use of buzzwords, that there is
insufficient detail about how actions will be delivered and that delivery of the plan will be dependent
on finances.
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6. Stakeholder engagement events
Two stakeholder events were held for the Community Voluntary Sector, Town and Parish Councils,
Area Forums and Residents’ Association representative. 31 people attended an evening event in
Christchurch and 33 people attended an afternoon event in Poole.
The event started with a presentation from the Leader of the Council and the Chief Executive who
outlined how the Council Plan draft had developed and talked through each of the priorities.
We then asked each table to discuss four questions about each of the priorities this information will
help make any required changes to the draft Plan but also will support the development of the
delivery plan.
1.) What opportunities do you think this priority presents?
2.) What challenges, if any do you think could get in the way of achieving this priority?
3.) What ideas do you have for overcoming the challenges?
4.) Is there anything you feel is missing?
There was an array of responses to each of the questions and some recurring themes have been
summarised below.
It is quite difficult to summarise the stakeholder events feedback as the comments were varied all of
which will be useful in helping to shape the delivery plan. However, one of the main challenges with
all the priorities was the funding available to deliver the actions not only for the Council but partner
organisations as well. There was also a strong message that BCP Council needs to make a
commitment to work and engage with the community voluntary sector, partner organisations, Town
and Parish Councils and residents’ associations in delivering its aspirations.
Sustainable Environment
Opportunities
The main opportunities mentioned for this priority were around sustainable forms of transport and
transport infrastructure. This included an increase of electronic bikes and electronic cars and use of
buses. An opportunity to build new sustainable transport infrastructure including well considered
cycle routes with link places, more charging points for electric cars, the creation of a sustainable,
cleaner and more efficient transport system to encourage a reduction of car use to help reduce
traffic congestion.
An opportunity for new housing and other developments to consider being cycling friendly and
include zero carbon, solar and electronic vehicle charging provision.
One person said that there was an opportunity to provide more disability parking and scooter
parking. Another suggested there was an opportunity to reduce car parking charges particularly for
electronic vehicles.
Challenges
One of the main challenges for this priority that was mentioned was the funding or lack of it and what money does the council have available after delivering its statutory services. Another challenge highlighted by a few participants was the ability to motivate people to change the way they travel. A few comments were made about recycling and waste collection, one charity mentioned without a shop they are not entitled to a tip permit to get rid of unusable donations.
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Ideas for overcoming the challenges
Many of the suggestions were about transport and information including:
• Launching a transport information hub
• Car sharing opportunities to work with big employers re parking & parking spaces.
• Company transport plans
• Waterbus from Poole quay to Mudeford quay, stopping at Bournemouth and Boscombe
piers
• Create a green emissions zone and promote electric vehicles, hydrogen buses and taxis
• Create off-road cycle network to facilitate cycle community & travel (where possible cycle
paths shouldn’t be on roads)
• Create a requirement for minimum electric vehicle charging points in all car parks and a car
parks and minimum 25% in private car parks
• Electric buses, trams, electric cars
• Active practical learning and engagement (e.g. Safewise, wiseability)
A better service from west to east. Not based on going through 2 hubs at Poole and Bournemouth.
Some suggestions were around recycling with one participant suggesting BCP Council could
recycle a lot more things. Another suggested that we allow charities to have free tip permits to get
rid of unusable donations whether they run a shop or not.
One suggestion was to help protect open spaces the council should build gypsy & traveller transit
sites and permanent sites.
Another view was that climate change wasn’t an emergency and that it’s a minority view.
One suggestion was that the wording needed to be more ambitious i.e. instead of cleaner, cleanest.
Anything missing?
The list of issues that participants felt was missing were quite varied so rather than summarising
them the list is included below.
• Change building regs
• Validation check from stakeholders about sustainable environment
• Emissions
• Public transport legislation
• Protect and enhance our outstanding built environment
• Heritage Assets – conservation areas
• The role of the volunteers in maintaining heritage assets e.g. BNES promotion publicity
maintenance of assets
• How will BCP collaborate and link with all other sectors?
• Sustainability in terms of food – encourage self-sustainability through growing own produce
supporting local growers / farmers. Raise awareness of meat consumption and impact on
environment
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Dynamic Region
Opportunities
One of the main themes that was seen as an opportunity for this priority was about modernising
businesses in the area including encouraging flexible working and modernising culture, opportunity
to work differently with all businesses, expertise from businesses is shared.
Another theme was about improving the digital infrastructure and to link up with Bournemouth
University that already has a good reputation for digital technology/excellence.
Others mentioned more investment in roads and connectivity including better connections to and
from the airport.
Challenges
One of the challenges that was mentioned associated with the action revitalise our highstreets was
local businesses taxes and the lack of variety of shops / businesses; too many coffee shops,
generic brands, why are they all being approved?
Another recognised challenge was that some older people are unable to cope with digitalisation-
make sure they have some access to the information they need
There were a few comments about the provision of homes, a challenge being house prices and
young people not being able to get on the property ladder.
Traffic congestion was also seen as a challenge for achieving a dynamic region, “BCP & Dorset as
a whole will not achieve a dynamic economy without better road and rail links to the rest of the
country. Congestion in BCP a major issue effecting the economy.” And another person said that the
green agenda conflicted with the dynamic region priorities/ objectives.
Ideas for overcoming the challenges
Many of the ideas for overcoming challenges were to do with revitalising the highstreets,
suggestions include:
Cheaper car parking
Don’t give planning to any more ‘Castlepoints’ if you want to revitalise the high streets. Also
consider other uses – not just shops
A variety of shops / services or a mixture under one roof? To make use of available retail space (not
sure what at the moment…)
Changing points in car parks at challenged retail area
Empty shops – affordable flats (reduce retail area) (homes, high street)
Compulsory purchase empty hotels if landlords do not do them up
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Anything missing?
The list of issues that participants felt were missing were quite varied so rather than summarising
them the list is included below.
• Keeping university knowledge and expertise within area
• Where is VCSE1 in local economy plans? E.g. LEP, Industrial strategy,
NB local VCSE employ 4.5% of workforce, 1.25% GDP contribute 10%
• Improving modernising public transport, not everybody wants to and can cycle. Train and
bus services are absolutely shocking
• Learning and teaching digital inclusion for all ages
• High street revamp, local businesses = cheap rates.
Connected Communities
Opportunities The main opportunity that was seen by participants for Connected Communities priority was the
strengthening of communities and an opportunity to create a sense of belonging. Another
opportunity is increased engagement opportunities with the community and working together with
community groups.
One participant said that there is an opportunity to make the BCP conurbation more LGBT friendly
by proactively making it safer and more accepting of people who are diverse.
Challenges
A few people commented on the challenges of community and connecting with people who are not
online and others mentioned that one of the challenges was older people connecting with digital
infrastructure.
Others commented on the challenge of bringing different communities together and making
everyone feel a part of BCP.
A couple of participants mentioned lack of resource of other services. One person mentioned lack of
police on the street could be a challenge. Another mentioned the impact of immigration policies on
diversity and ability to staff health services and suggested using the councils influence to lobby for
open immigration policies.
Ideas for overcoming the challenges
Some of the ideas for overcoming the challenges were about working together with the community
voluntary sector and Town and Parish Councils.
• The Council should support the creation of a ‘hub’ where homeless/rough sleepers can
spend time and get advice and help from a variety of agencies
• Betters signposting to services whether provided by the Council or voluntary sector – wealth
of services available – How do we maintain a list of services?
• Link up with faith communities and charities already providing activities to tackle loneliness
and isolation
1 voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) sector
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• Approach ‘sourcing’ volunteers differently. – ‘Compulsory’ volunteering instead of
incarceration/penalty for offenders. ‘Compulsory’ volunteering for those recovering or
recuperating from conditions or illnesses. ‘Compulsory’ volunteering for those in higher
education. ‘Compulsory’ volunteering through CSR – with structure to how this is
undertaken and what tasks are undertaken (share expertise rather than just painting walls).
• Town councils and parish councils could be more involved.
• Poole/Christchurch /Bournemouth conversations - join together and support local
community activity to support local people and address loneliness, exclusion etc.
• Secured lottery funding to address loneliness and isolation
• Housing – repurposing buildings
• Neighbourhood watch – can work here, but needs more support – also with loneliness and
isolation
• Develop volunteers – more opportunities for them to feel valued e.g. include them in
consultations before options
• Promote elected representative councils including co-operate with existing bodies – civic
other parishes
• Overcoming the loss of identity by creating parish or town councils for Southbourne, Winton,
Poole Town, Lilliput etc.
Anything missing?
The list of issues that participants felt were missing were quite varied so rather than summarising
them the list is included below.
• Hidden disabilities
• Utilise voluntary charitable sectors more
• Voluntary sector awards
• Religion spirituality
• We need to stop saying the Council area in not very ethnically diverse because it is. BCP
has got 12% of the population being BAME and 3 areas of Boscombe has got 30%. Saying
that it is not very diverse re-enforces the exclusion of people from different ethnic groups.
• Mental health and drugs issues
• Community fridge – leftover food available free to community members
• No mention of involvement of multi-religious communities within the area and their
associated leaders.
• Define communities – there are not just geographical
• How is the Council going to work to bring all the agencies together? Health, Police,
Education, Voluntary sector. Also, so we can hold each other to account.
• How are you going to bring communities together? What do you mean by communities?
The voluntary sector is missing here and does a really good job here.
• Please empower volunteer led society and museum organisations to be able to access the
tourist office in Bournemouth. (privatised – can only put leaflets in for £150 a year). I was
told you don’t have more than 1,000 people to an event – no but we do have over 6,000/yr.
• Encourage residents to take social action e.g. volunteer and set up run local VCSE.
Suggest (1) empower a thriving voluntary and community sector. (2) enable volunteering so
people can contribute and improve their well-being.
• Supporting a thriving voluntary sector (business sector mentioned in dynamic region)
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• Town History
• Co-ordination of Charities / help groups to deliver best etc (be joined up)
Brighter Futures
Opportunities
The opportunities recognised for Brighter Future priorities are quite varied. A few participants
mentioned the opportunity to re-evaluate the services for NEETS children and build a better register
of young people requiring support. Others said there was an opportunity to work with parents and
others in the community to support young people. One person mentioned the opportunity for quicker
decisions to be made and not batted about.
Challenges
The main challenge highlighted was a general lack of funding and lack of funding around specific
services such a child mental health needs, school funding and youth services.
One participant said that insecure housing was a challenge for achieving this priority “Children’s
futures can be lighted by being in B+B or insecure accommodation. No stability at home or in
school equals inability to focus on learning. Lack of housing.”
Ideas for overcoming the challenges
Some of the ideas for overcoming the challenges were about working together with other
organisations and re visit how the local authority can engage with the education sector.
• Look at Rhode Island and introduction of Clifton Strengths across county to engage &
empower the whole community.
• Re-visit how the authority can engage and lead school sector (especially transport plans)
against background of academy schools
• Improve mental health services speed of interventions.
• Housing insecurity needs to be addressed by providing affordable rented housing through
the council
• Support/funding for existing good services
• More mentors. E.g. for young teenagers/boys
• Collaborative working amongst schools / DWP/ leaving care services / BCP Council to
identify these young people and find suitable provision
Anything missing?
The list of issues that participants felt were missing were quite varied so rather than summarising
them the list is included below.
• Brighter futures and fulfilled lives should be as one heading.
• To improve all your bullets. Set long term targets for all organisations involved. Joined up
thinking. Link with dynamic regions employers. Aspirations – encouraging young people to
think about the good jobs here for them
• More input and higher profile for both volunteers and voluntary organisation. Promotion of
volunteer groups and volunteering opportunities
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• What’s the ‘cut off’ for a young person? It is important that for example over 25’s who are
still ‘young’/early on in their working life are not missed out and offered the same
opportunities for brighter futures.
• No reference of the voluntary sector, which should be complementing local authority
commitments not replacing or substituting for statutory requirements.
• Need to raise aspiration for children not in care as well
• Highcliffe and other Christchurch schools cannot recruit maths & science teachers- how do
we help?
• Lack of homeless hostels
• Encourage and sponsor the third sector
Fulfilled lives
Opportunities
One of the opportunities for this priority was that it could tackle isolation and loneliness which
appears as an action for Connected Communities. On participant said that there is “the opportunity
through community engagement to drive policy and have a pro-active approach. this will only
happen with true community engagement, and full inclusion.”
Challenges
Funding again came up as one of the main challenges for this priority and achieving the aspirations.
Specific challenges for this priority included the social care and health ticking time bomb, working
poor families whose priority is heating their home and putting food on the table, have lifestyle
choices beyond their means. A couple of participants raised challenges about homelessness
specifically getting homeless people to connect with St Mungos and residents have “uninformed
prejudices based on myths and legends rather than being evidence based.” Another challenge was
that one participant felt there needed to be a long-term commitment to the agreed strategy as it will
take longer than 3-5 years to deliver.
Ideas for overcoming the challenges
Again, some of the ideas for overcoming the challenges were about working together with the
community voluntary sector.
• Encourage diversity and equality. Educate and early intervention
• Revisit exclusion zone for rough sleepers to allow them to get to St Mungos
• Often voluntary sector organisations picking up and supporting these families – support
them! This does not mean just funding – expertise – voluntary time – working together –
resources – publicity etc
• Utilise the skills in the communities and share your skills and resources with communities –
relinquish control – respect communities and their skills and knowledge
• Must have a connected and cohesive approach, including social media and local leisure
centres and sport governing bodies
• The council should support the creating of a ‘hub’ where homeless/rough sleepers can
spend time and get advice and help from a variety of agencies
• Putting together a BCP group to look at all aspects of ‘dementia friendly’ across BCP
• Realistic expectations – engagement – cutting barriers to isolation – getting basics right
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• Encourage volunteering
• Housing problems
Anything missing?
• What about early help for adults?
• Are young carers included? Will the Council support ‘Poole Young Carers Organisation?
No mention of catering for Anti-Social Behaviour
• The one thread is working together with communities accepting a diverse approach to
solving a problem. There is not one ‘Council’ way.
• For many, volunteering helps the ‘happy healthy lifestyle’. Encourage volunteering and
charities who can provide support to Council Officers. Note though – many charities rely on
Council funding to provide such services.
• Hoping ‘quality social care’ includes for blind and partially sighted, hearing impaired, drug
and alcohol abuse and mental health.
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7. Young People’s engagement
BCP Council’s Youth participation workers shared the questionnaire with young people over the
summer. A youth forum event was also held in Poole which 19 young people aged 12-18 attended.
The Chief Executive, Insight Manger and Youth Development Worker - Participation presented and
held a workshop on the draft Council Plan. We asked young people if the Plan resonated with them,
what it means to them and what the council should do under each of the priorities. The feedback will
help make changes to the draft Council Plan and to help inform the delivery plan which will sit under
it.
The overall feedback for the Council Plan was generally positive. The majority of young people
when asked to rate it out of 10 gave it a 7. The things that were important to the group that should
be addressed by the Council included: cleaner streets, safer streets (particularly Poole Bus Station),
Homelessness, involvement of young people in council decision making, transparency of the
council, improve the bus network, affordable housing and for schools to care more about their
students. Protecting the environment was also seen as an important.
When asked about the vision the young people particularly didn’t like the word vibrant but didn’t
suggest an alternative. Some also struggled to define sustainability and dynamic. There were a
couple of comments about Brighter Futures and Fulfilled Lives meaning the same thing.
During the workshop the young people were asked to undertake a series of exercises and the
comments are recorded below.
Vision
What should the overall vision say?
• Local Government should be responsible for funding private ventures e.g. transport, H2
buses and cars
• Happy, Clean, Better – a place for everyone
• Happier, safer and cleaner communities
• Stable, Happy and healthy, community
What do each of the priorities mean to you and what do you think the council should be doing to
achieve this priority?
Sustainable Environment
• Community litter picks
• Refillable water bottle stations
• Notice boards in well visited areas
• Hydrogen buses
• Functioning community
• Role models
• To us it means cutting waste and reducing exploitation of natural resources
• Should not affect people’s day to day lives
• More electric charging points
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• Make it easier for people to walk, cycle and get the bus e.g. more cycle lanes and litter clean
pavements
• Ensure the beach is preserved without damaging the environment
• Look after the environment to sustain it for the future
• Prepare an environment for the future
• Safer to raise a family in the BCP Council area
• Approachable places to go
• Funding for schools, parks and youth centres
• Special watch at Poole Bus Station – most crimes happen in BCP
• BCP to help people with getting jobs
• Cleaner streets
• Safer places – more Police Officers
• Transport – more cycle lanes and greener transport
Dynamic Region
• Varied, modern and future proof the economy
• Support for high streets
• Revitalising town centres (Poole along the line of what has happened in Bournemouth)
• Make more things for us to do that doesn’t cost as much money
• More places for young people to go
• More events
• Discount on housing for young people who return after university
• 11 for jobs
• Shapes of the building
• I don’t know what this means
• Innovate place
• Youth club
• Silent disco
• Bingo nights
• More events for all ages
Connected communities
• More connected
• Beryl Bikes – not just an app so more people can use it
• More size range for beryl bikes / double bikes
• Available to everyone
• Ensure that all three towns feel they are being treated fairly and equally
• Create a sense of independence for different areas. For example, allocate money for local
people to spend on projects they believe in.
Commmunications
• Public Relation Events
• Safety -more lighting, police presence
• More major events
• Group chat for neighbours
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• Beach hut per postcode
• Get to know neighbours
• Appoint a youth event organiser (11-18)
• Approachable youth centres
• Youth events (Upton House), Poole Park, Canford Heath Field
• Increase use of clubs (in and out of school) – do this by creating clubs more friendly to kids
(11-18)
• Create child ambassadors to help the council with the youth community
• Brighter Futures
• Schools – subjects to cover more important things
• Schools – More funding and life skills, CVS, working, lessons on finance and cooking and
law
• Out of school activities – cadets, Poole youth forum, Police cadets, Scouts, Signets
• Work experience – more work for those under 16
• More job opportunities for young adults
• Jobs that can have a career involved
• More involvement for youth members in council decisions for the future
• Look after the environment
• Schools should teach about taxes and house buying
• Ban plastic / alternatives
• Reusable items
• Focussing on the futures for everyone
• Providing opportunities for all ages
• Strengthen future for all ages
• Too much pressure on schools on grades causing mental health problems
• Dyslexic friendly schools
• More youth services
• More groups
• Youth clubs
• Becky (Youth participation worker)
• Youth Parliament
•
• Schools put too much pressure on students to have good grades it causes mental health
problems e.g. leads to suicides.
•
Fulfilled lives
• More affordable free culture
• Ensuring everyone whatever age or ability can do things such as sport
• Provide services for the young people who are the future of today
• I want to be able to move back here when I’m retired
• We want to feel like we will matter when we are classed as senior citizens
• Work experience for all schools
• Schools to make learning more of what you want to do than forced to do
• Elderly meeting
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Is there anything missing?
• Involvement in decision making
• More transparency from local government
• Safety
• Homelessness
• Create a new segment specifically for young people
• More activities, more parks and more services
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8. Written responses
Partner organisations were asked to participate in the Council Plan engagement either by
completing a questionnaire or sending in a written response.
Dorset Chamber of Commerce
The Chief Executive of Dorset Chamber of Commerce provided his views of the draft Plan and his
main observation is that there is little emphasis on supporting economic and business growth and a
heavy focus on the digital economy and sustainability.
His detailed comments can be seen below.
Sustainable Environment
• In the bullet points there is no reference to the business/ commercial environment who have
a huge role to play in this.
• There is no mention of affordable housing which we know is a critical issue for the area and
impacting on business growth as skilled workers can’t afford to buy a home here.
Dynamic Region
• This section doesn’t refer to economic growth which is vital (refers to a “sustainable, vibrant
and inclusive economy”).
• “Supporting our businesses to operate more creatively”. I don’t believe this language will
resonate with businesses and is restrictive. We should be providing support to help
businesses start, grow and prosper.
• There is no mention of supporting our key sectors or high GVA businesses.
• There is no mention of skills at all – in a rapidly changing world where investment in skills is
critical.
• The wording within the circle states “Supporting an innovative digital economy in a great
place to live, learn, work and visit.” This statement seems to imply the focus is on the digital
economy (and how do we define a digital economy?) and limited. Surely this should be
something like “Supporting a vibrant and growing economy in a great place to live, work and
visit.”?
• It’s good to see infrastructure referenced but should this also be “sustainable infrastructure
to support economic growth”?
Christchurch Town Council
Christchurch Town Council held an extraordinary meeting to discuss BCP Council draft Council
Plan.
Members of the Council shared their overall opinions of the Plan and were noted as follows:
• ‘Where it was economically viable to do so’ could be added to each action point.
• Affordability should be struck, so as not to be included as a statement as an ‘opt out’.
• Funding was important to be considered in light of what was affordable.
• Large sums of Government funding were available to carry projects forward before the
budget. Work on good policies with the right improvements was required to go forward, for
example electric buses could develop an environmentally friendly transport network.
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• A Member felt that questions on economy were leading.
Members then debated each priority of the BCP Draft Council Plan and made the following
responses:
Sustainable Environment
This Council strongly supports the development of an eco-friendly transport network for the entire
conurbation. We feel it will go towards tackling climate change whilst preserving our outstanding
natural environment thereby promoting sustainable resource management. This should also include
those areas that were not previously served by public transport.
Dynamic Region
This Council strongly applauds the principles of “Dynamic Region”:
a) for new housing development with renewable energy efficient solutions;
b) this Council promotes sufficient high-quality affordable housing; and
c) whilst developing a secure digital infrastructure BCP Council should take into consideration those
residents who do not have access to digital infrastructure.
Collective Communities
This Council endorses and applauds the BCP Plan as the principle of a “Collective Community”
encapsulates the work that the Town Council has been doing so far.
Brighter Future and Fulfilled Lives
This Council believes that these two discrete elements should be synthesised into one objective and
plan aim due to the degree of overlap between each objective. As currently stated, the two
objectives seemingly try to capture the delivery of social services to the community as a whole,
whereas this should be essentially one neat, concise and inclusive mandate fit for both the older
and younger generations of our society.
Highcliffe and Walkford Parish Council
The Highcliffe and Walkford Parish Council (HWPC) states that it
“is pleased to be able to give its wholehearted support to the sentiments expressed by
BCP and believes there is little that anyone could object to in terms of desired
outcomes.”. However, the Council go on to note that the document should not be called
a plan and “that it is a set of principles designed to bind together diverse views and
priorities in the different groups and parties that make up the administration”.
The response goes on to suggest how this document should then be turned into a delivery plan
including associated costs.
“How much money will be given to support the digital economy? How much will be
devoted to protecting the Environment? These and many other costings need to be
developed and published in advance and BCP must then hold itself accountable at
the year end for the out-turn.”
In terms of what HWPC sees as the strategic priorities, they are as follows (not in order of priority or
preference)
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• Promoting, improving and reducing the cost of public transport across the BCP area and
looking at all options that contribute to a sustainable environment.
• Ensuring that planning policies are relevant and sustainable and reflect the needs of the
areas.
• Promoting safer and more connected and caring communities especially parts of the area
with a large proportion of elderly and isolated residents.
• Protecting the natural environment and tackling climate change issues and awareness at a
local level.
• Promoting and supporting our high streets in particular and the wider business community in
general to ensure the local economy prospers.
• Investing in our young people to ensure they are equipped with the skills they need to take
advantage of the opportunities open to them.
Dorset Local Nature Partnership (DLNP)
DLNP state that they welcome the opportunity to comment on the BCP Council’s Plan consultation.
They support the inclusion of Sustainable Environment as a specific priority within the council’s plan
and associated actions. They also “wish to note that the area’s environment is a cross cutting issue
which can support the other four priorities – for example by supporting a vibrant environmental and
clean growth economy, as well as reducing isolation, engaging and connecting people of all ages to
their environments and delivering healthy and active lives through access to greenspace and
nature-based wellbeing opportunities.“
Dorset Wildlife Trust
The Director of Conservation at the Dorset Wildlife Trust attended one of the stakeholder events
and provided a written response to the engagement.
“Cllr Slade explained that health and wellbeing and environmental sustainability both came through
very strongly as values to act as ‘golden threads’ through the plan and you will not be surprised to
hear that Dorset Wildlife Trust strongly endorses that approach. Both are very strongly linked, and
our work in the BCP area such as The Great Heath Living Landscape programme has
demonstrated many methods by which people and communities can engage with the natural
environment and improve health and wellbeing at the same time.”
“We strongly support efforts to tackle the climate emergency and were heartened to hear your
words on sustainable transport and digital communications – so often in the past the unique and
special natural environment which lies within and around the BCP area has been seen as a
‘constraint’ to aspirations for major road building, for example, which has set wildlife organisations at
conflict with some councillors and been a barrier to positive collaborative working. DWT looks
forward to working with the new BCP Council, both to take forward this plan, and more specifically
on spatial planning and a future single Local Plan for the area. A clear understanding of the current
value of wildlife sites and species in the Council area, and of the potential for enhancements to
ensure ‘net gain’ for the natural environment will be essential to ensuring positive discussions about
locations for development and integral green infrastructure. We can help with this work and would
welcome further early discussions as the Local Plan work commences.”
“DWT is pleased to see specific mention of parks and open spaces within the plan. Whilst these
areas have many functions, we would suggest that there are a number of ways in which they can be
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enhanced for wildlife, whilst still providing more formal functions such as gardens and sports and
recreational facilities. In many cases these can save money through less intensive site
management. An example would be through less frequent mowing of some areas of open space, to
allow low-growing flowering plants to provide nectar for pollinators. Research led by Bristol
University found that city greenspaces on average support far fewer pollinators than gardens, and
that some simple enhancements could provide major benefits”
Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service
On behalf of Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service we welcome the draft council plan. Our
Service Vision is ‘passionate about changing and saving lives’
To achieve this, we have five priorities:
•Help you to make safer and healthier choices – we want you to be more aware about the risks you
face and support you and your business to be safer. We are committed to improving the wellbeing
of you and your family.
•Protect you and the environment from harm – we will work with you to improve your safety and
reduce the effect that day-to-day hazards and risks can have on you and your environment.
•Be there when you need us – we will continue to provide a professional and prompt response when
an emergency happens.
•Make every penny count – we will continue to be a well-respected and trusted Service, offering
excellent value for money.
•Supporting and developing our people – making sure our staff are at the centre of everything we
do, are well led and have the right knowledge and skills, is crucial to the success of our Service.
All of which are underpinned by a RESPECT framework of values which is an acronym for the way
we want our staff to work.
My only comment is regarding the middle section around Vibrant Communities. This section has the
smallest writing but importantly is about individual impact “with outstanding quality of life where
everyone pays an active role”. My advice is that this section is reconsidered to underline the
importance that each person plays. Change cannot be brought about by the staff and teams alone
and perhaps the public we serve should eb included into each of the priorities to show there is a
place for them to be engaged and make an impact in their community.
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9. DOTs Disability feedback
Background
DOTs Disability has been asked to consult with local disabled people around report on the BCP
Council Plan 2019. DOTs Disability consulted 6 disabled people in a focus group as well as MT
McManus, DOTs Disability Equality Consultant.
Introduction
• This is a “short turn-round” report. Its purpose is to provide initial feedback on the BCP plan,
within the context of the initial consultation.
• The report was compiled, based on discussions with a small number of local disabled
people who were a pan “protected characteristic group”. Notwithstanding these limitations,
there are several issues that have emerged that are key to achieving the aspirations of the
BCP plan and would have positive implications for the accessibility and inclusivity of
engagement generally.
Feedback
The plan is a very high-level strategic document. Its aim is to frame the delivery plan which follows
it. It can be difficult without lead-in time, resources and allied activities which support the strategic
understanding to undertake meaningful engagement at this level. However, the questions raised
within the consultation are important because they will highlight the broad priorities of the
population. We advise that some of the phrases used in the document were “buzz words” and/or not
meaningful to the people who viewed it.
Posing the question “what does “connected communities” mean?”. We recommend: The
development of ongoing strategic and operational Reference Groups (taken from community
representatives across the protected characteristic groups) which is supported to further develop
the skills, knowledge and confidence to support co-production over the four year period. Such an
initiative would both demonstrate commitment and result in accessible and inclusive design. Initially
the Reference Group would participate in detailed strategic consultation on each of the themed
areas.
The inclusion of an auxiliary document, providing both context and some concrete examples for
people to reference, would help understanding and quality of responses to high level strategic
documents.
Without the above there is a substantial risk that an inclusive delivery plan will not be developed and
unintended barriers to work, health, leisure and inclusion will be embedded within the development
and delivery and evaluation structures. We recommend that you consider the extent to which this
work can be co-produced. The benefits of co-production, specifically within the context of the EINA
process, in relation to high quality outputs and outcomes are well documented, especially in terms
of health, wellbeing and community infrastructure. There is potential here for trailblazing a path and
modelling good practice already in existence.
The “info graphic” style of the document, whilst conveying a holistic approach, which is positive for
some people; presents access challenges for people with visual impairments where the colour and
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tonal contrast is poor and specifically for those using screen readers. Many screen readers will
struggle with this format. In addition people with limited literacy, community language users and
those with specific learning difficulties such as Dyslexia, are in many circumstances, going to benefit
from a liner structure. We recommend that in all consultation documents conform to the RNIB See
it Right standards and where “info graphics” are employed, the information is also made available in
a linear format. This reflects good practice in terms of anticipatory reasonable adjustment. It should
be noted that the sole provision of Easy Read is unlikely to constitute a Reasonable Adjustment for
disabled people across all of the impairment groups.
The introduction to the plan mentions BCPs commitments to equality and diversity which are very
welcome, as are specific references to older people and carers within the document. It is noted that
the plan does not mention disabled people, people from the LGBT communities etc. Whilst we
recognise the challenges of referencing all communities within such a document, we strongly
advise that there is significant value in referencing the term “protected characteristic groups,” in this
and all related high level strategic documents. We recommend this because these are the groups
of people most likely to be excluded from the aspirational outcomes sited in the plan. It is key to the
success of the BCP Plan is that the legal obligations of “anticipatory Reasonable Adjustment” are
embedded at a strategic level, in order to leverage high quality engagement, participation and co-
production throughout the development and the delivery phases.
The aspirations of this plan have the potential opportunity to improve the lives of older and disabled
people and those with long term health conditions from across all of the protected characteristic
groups, living, working and visiting BCP. The consultation document contains positive statements
about health, wealth and wellbeing which generally engendered a positive response from those
viewing it, although there was an acknowledgement that to an extent it is obvious that such things
are important for a community and are things which people generally aspire to. People wanted to
talk about specific issues and problems that the plan could help address. We recommend an
ongoing consultation processes which enables people to draw on personal experiences, which can
then be used to provide a link back to how, for example, to deliver a service in a way which works
best for the communities. This could enhance two-way communication throughout this process.
There is an acknowledgement that it will be the work following on from this initial consultation which
will have the potential to improve disabled peoples lives. If there is a commitment from the council to
understand the barriers and solutions across protected characteristic groups and the
intersectionality of experience, then there is a possibility for BCP to develop a reputation as a centre
of excellence and good practice. We recommend a “training refresh” in order to ensure the skills,
knowledge and confidence necessary for inclusive design and delivery are in place throughout the
organisation and that the understanding of Social Model of Disability2, remains embedded as a
values base, thus minimising the risk of the development of “auto-disabling” services, projects and
environments.
2 The poverty, disadvantage and social exclusion experienced by many disabled people is not the inevitable result of their impairments or medical conditions, but rather stems from attitudinal and environmental barriers. This is known as ‘the social model of disability’, and provides a basis for the successful implementation of the duty to promote disability equality. (Disability Equality Duty, Code of Practice, Dec 2006)