Community survey reveals Northgate views (From The Advertiser Series)

Community survey reveals Northgate views

12:37pm Tuesday 9th October 2012 in News By Vicki Henderson, Darlington reporter

A COMMUNITY survey that asked people living in the Northgate area of Darlington for their views on life in their local area is to be presented to the public.

Marketing experts called at more than 1,700 homes in Northgate to ask residents what improvements they want to see and to tap into community spirit.

The results of the survey, commissioned by the Northgate Community Partnership, will be revealed tonight at the Baptist Church Hall, in Corporation Road, at 6.30pm.

The survey found that the level of satisfaction with life in general in Northgate is above average and that people think the community facilities in the area are good.

However, a number of people responded negatively when discussing environmental factors, such as littering and dog fouling.

The presentation, led by Patrick Masheder, of Real Results Marketing, will look at how the Northgate Community Partnership can use the information from the survey to make changes to benefit the ward and its residents.

Mr Masheder said: “We had a positive reaction to the survey, not just in terms of the number of responses we got, but also in terms of what they said.

“It has galvanised residents into taking action and beginning to talk about what they would like to see happen in their local area. Everyone who we spoke to had a long list of things they were concerned about, such as wheelie bins or blocked gutters, and this gave them the chance to air those concerns.”

Mr Masheder said the most interesting aspect of the survey was the number of people who said they were prepared to volunteer to help the local community, with 46 per cent of respondents offering to give up their time.

He said: “We had people who offered specific skills, such as a chef who said he could teach people about food hygiene, but we also had people who want to get involved in on-going projects and see them through.”

The meeting is open to everyone in the Northgate area. The partnership is keen to hear from anyone who missed the survey but has ideas for improving their community and those who did take part but have more to contribute.