Life in Lancashire Wave 10
| Purpose | Assessing the priorities for developing Lancashire's economy and how these should be encouraged. Finding how residents find out about economic development activity in the county and the role of Lancashire County Council in those activities. Prioritising the main factors for improving the local area for residents in the county. Gauging the level of concern that panel members have with the current environmental factors in Lancashire and which are the most important to improve. Understanding the number of activities undertaken by panel members to protect the environment. Gaining insight into how residents find out about environmental issues and their future information needs. |
|---|---|
| Subject |
Communications Quality of life Economy and regeneration The environment |
| Commissioned by | Corporate Research and Intelligence Team, Policy Unit |
| Geographic area |
All of Lancashire |
|---|---|
| Method |
Questionnaire - postal |
| Consultation with |
Life in Lancashire panel |
| Date | 07/11/2003 - 05/12/2003 |
| Undertaken by | Corporate Research and Intelligence Team, Policy Unit |
Results
| Number in sample | 2930 |
|---|---|
| Number of responses | 1608 |
| Response rate | 54% |
| Key findings | Encouraging more jobs is the most important economic priority and third most important for life in general. Manufacturing and transport and communications are considered the key economic sectors to grow. Stable jobs for employees, good future prospects for employees and training and development are considered most important to create the right kind of employment opportunities in Lancashire. the most popular ways to improve the economy for business are the opening of new transport links and the opening of new business parks. Lancashire County Council is seen as the most important organisation for improving Lancashire's economy. The protection and improvement of the environment is residents' joint most important general local issue, as important as the reduction of crime. The greatest environmental concern for Lancashire residents is the level of traffic congestion and pollution. The single most important environmental issue is to reduce greenfield building closely followed by reducing vehicle pollution. Three out of four people say they recycle cans, bottles, paper or plastic regularly, and three in five people say the amount recycled has got better in the last five years. |
| Outcomes | Recycling and waste Household waste recycling is the joint responsibility of the 12 district councils, two unitary authorities and Lancashire County Council, who have statutory targets for household waste recycling and are all part of the Lancashire Waste Partnership (LWP). We are currently ahead of the targets set by the Household Waste Strategy, achieving just over 20% last year and we are well on the way to get over 25% for this year. The LWP area has just under 600,000 households. Of these, 500,000 have paper waste collection and 277,000 have green waste collection. Substantial government funding is now being made available in Lancashire for the introduction of a variety of recycling schemes. Doorstep recycling schemes in Lancashire will be extended. By 2005 we aim to have three-stream collection, which is green waste, dry recyclables (paper, cans, bottles etc) and residual waste, in 90% of households. Last year 28% of households in Lancashire had three-stream collections, from 0% in 2001. As well as doorstep collections, all 23 household waste centres across Lancashire have compost and plastic bottle collection facilities. All waste collected for recycling is recycled. There have been some problems with contamination of green waste because of households not sorting their waste properly. These problems should disappear when the countywide Waste Communication Strategy takes effect and people get used to sorting their waste. It is the council's policy to recycle as much as possible. We are currently creating an Environmental Management Strategy to cover our activities. The findings are helping us to set internal targets in areas such as waste reduction and vehicle use. In a step towards this we now use 100% recycled paper wherever it is technologically possible. There is a Joint Lancashire Structure Plan being developed that places severe restrictions on greenfield housing developments. The priorities are to re-use or convert existing buildings and use previously developed land. Targets of the present draft plan are that over 70% of new dwellings in Lancashire will be built on brownfield sites between 2001 and 2016; and 75% of new housing will be located in principal urban areas and main towns. The economy Over the next three years Lancashire County Council will invest eight million pounds to support the development of wealth and jobs in the county. Lancashire County Development Ltd (LCDL) is the wholly owned development arm of the County Council. It is tasked with delivering economic benefits for Lancashire businesses and people both directly and through partnership working. It does this by: * using the company's property and resources to add value to economic regeneration projects across the county; * supporting Lancashire County Council's flagship economic and social initiatives; * working with partners to provide services to Lancashire people and businesses; * supporting disadvantaged people by providing training and other services to help people get jobs and keep them; and * providing consultancy and training services to local businesses. The County Council will be considering how these services can be developed over the next three years, using your views to help target our efforts. We are particularly keen to encourage business growth across Lancashire by providing more business premises and financial help. |
Project document(s)
Report(s)
Marked up questionnaire(s)
Contact information
For more information about this research contact:
Melissa Sherliker
01772 535019
Email: haveyoursay@lancashire.gov.uk
Related information
Life in Lancashire members' website:
http://www.lancashire.gov.uk/corporate/lil/