Residents
and Visitors survey – Total Respondents 1,025
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Town Centre Based Questions –
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How often do you visit Maidstone Town Centre during the day?
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21% visit daily, 48% respondents visit weekly, 19% monthly, 6% at
least every three months, 5% less than four times a year, 1% don’t visit
Maidstone Town Centre.
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Frequency of visits tends to reduce as age increases.
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How often do you visit Maidstone Town Centre during the night?
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2% daily, 13% visit weekly, 27% of respondents visit
monthly, 17% At least every three months, 26% Less than four times a year,
15% I don’t visit Maidstone Town Centre.
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39% of over 75’s year olds and disabled people don’t visit
during this time.
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How safe do you feel walking around Maidstone Town Centre during
daylight hours?
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73% of respondents said they felt safe or very safe.
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85% of respondents from BME backgrounds felt safe, higher than
average.
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Respondents with a disability and those in the 25 to 34 years
age group had the highest proportion of people reporting they feel unsafe at
12% and 11% respectively.
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How safe do you feel walking alone in Maidstone Town Centre after
dark?
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About a quarter of respondents (26%) said they felt safe or very
safe and a third of respondents (33%) said they felt unsafe or very unsafe.
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49% of respondents with a disability feel unsafe compared to
30% without a disability.
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42% of recent victims of crime feel unsafe compared to 31% of
respondents who are not recent victims of crime.
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Problems in Maidstone Town Centre: Drug dealing and taking
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59% of respondents thought this was a very big or a fairly big
problem and 18% said they didn’t know.
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Recent victims had the greatest proportion of respondents that
felt it is a very big problem at 30% and the 18 to 24 years group did not
have anyone who said this was a very big problem.
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Respondents with a disability and those in the 64 to 74 years
group had the highest proportion of people responding ‘Don’t know’ at 25%
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Problems in Maidstone Town Centre: Vandalism, graffiti and other
deliberate damage to property and vehicles.
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52% of respondents thought this was a very big or a fairly big
problem and 11% said they didn’t know.
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The over 75’s group had the greatest proportion of respondents saying
this is a very big problem at 37% and the 18 to 24 years group had the
greatest proportion saying that it is not a problem at
all at 25%.
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Respondents with a disability were more than twice as likely,
than non-disabled respondents, to say this is a very big problem at 27%
compared to 10%.
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Problems in Maidstone Town Centre: Muggings and pickpocketing
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33% of respondents said this issue is a very big or a fairly big
problem and 28% said they didn’t know.
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Respondents with a disability have the greatest proportion of
people saying this issue is a very big problem at 13%. This group also had
the greatest proportion of people saying this issue is a fairly big problem
at 42%.
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Problems in Maidstone Town Centre: Shoplifting
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54% of respondents said shoplifting was a very big or a fairly big
problem and 23% said they didn’t know.
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Respondents with a disability had the greatest proportion of
people responding that this is a very big problem (34%) followed by the over 75
years group (27%).
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Respondents from BME groups had the greatest proportion of
people responding Don’t know at 28%.
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Problems in Maidstone Town Centre: People being drunk and rowdy
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70% of respondents said that people being drunk and rowdy are a
very big or a fairly big problem and 10% they didn’t know.
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The 45 to 54 years group had the greatest proportion of people
saying this issue is a very big problem at 36%.
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Problems in Maidstone Town Centre: Sexual assaults
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18% of respondents said this was a very big or a fairly big
problem and 42% said they didn’t know.
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Respondents with a disability had the greatest proportion of
people saying this is a very big problem at 6%, followed by the 45 to 54 year
old group with 5%.
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Problems in Maidstone Town Centre: Violent attacks
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37% of respondents said this was a very big or a fairly big
problem and 29% said they didn’t know.
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Respondents from BME groups and those 75 years and over had the
greatest proportion of respondents who thought violent attacks are a very big
problem at 16% each.
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Local Area Based Questions
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How safe do you feel walking around your local area during daylight
hours?
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86% of respondents said they feel safe or very safe.
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Respondents from BME backgrounds had the lowest levels of
feeling safe at 69%.
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Respondents in the 18 to 24 years group had the highest
proportion of respondents feeling unsafe at 19%.
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How safe do you feel walking alone in your local area after dark?
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46% of respondents said they feel safe or very safe.
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Respondents in the 18 to 24 years group had the highest levels
of feeling unsafe at 68%.
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Respondents with a disability at had the second highest levels
of feeling unsafe at 49% however this group also had the highest proportion
of respondents who said they were never alone in this situation.
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Problems in Residents local areas: Drug dealing and taking
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24% of resident respondents said this was a very big or fairly big
problem in their area and 17% said they didn’t know.
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Respondents from BME groups have the greatest proportion of
saying this is a very big problem at 15%.
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The over 75’s have the lowest proportion of respondents saying
this is a very big problem and the greatest proportion responding Don’t know
at 36%.
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Problems in Residents local areas: Vandalism, graffiti and other
deliberate damage to property and vehicles
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24% of respondents said this is a very big or fairly big problem
and 5% said they didn’t know.
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Recent victims had the greatest proportion of respondents that
think this is a very big problem at 17% followed by the over 75’s group at
15%.
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Problems Residents local areas: Muggings and pickpocketing
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6% of respondents said this is a very big or fairly big problem and
21% said they didn’t know.
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The over 75’s had the greatest proportion responding that this
is a very big problem at 5%. This group also had the greatest proportion of
people responding Don’t know at 40%.
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Problems in Residents local areas: Shoplifting
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13% of respondents said this is a very big or fairly big problem
and 29% said they didn’t know.
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Recent victims of crime and those in the 35 to 44 years had the
greatest proportion of respondents thinking this is a very big problem.
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None of the respondents in the 18 to 24 years or disability
groups said this is a very big problem.
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Residents local areas: People being drunk and rowdy
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28% of respondents said this is a very big or a fairly big problem
and 5% said they didn’t know.
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The 25 to 34 year olds have the greatest proportion of
respondents that said this is a very big problem at 15%.
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Problems in Residents local areas: Sexual assaults
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Under 1% said that this was a very big problem, 4% said this is a
fairly big problem and 36% said they didn’t know.
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BME groups have the greatest proportion of respondents saying
this is a very big problem at 3% and the greatest proportion of people saying
this is a fairly big problem at 8%.
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Problems in Residents local areas: Violent attacks
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9% of respondents said this is a very big or fairly big problem
and 28% said they didn’t know.
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BME groups and those in the 18 to 24 years group had the
greatest proportion of responses that said this is a very big problem with 5%
each.
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Feelings of Safety and CCTV
Perceptions
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What makes people feel safe?
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The top three responses were Well lit streets 26%, Visible police
presence 25% and CCTV 17%.
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Visible police presence was the top answer for respondents aged
18 to 24 years, those aged 35 to 64 years, recent victims of crime and men.
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BME respondents and the over 75 years and over group had the
highest proportions of people selecting CCTV at 22% and 23% respectively.
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CCTV awareness in Town Centre
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83% of respondents are aware of CCTV operating in the Town Centre.
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Women had the lowest level of awareness of CCTV in the Town
Centre at 77% and men have the highest level at 90%.
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Respondents over the age of 75 had the highest levels of people
that were not sure and the 18 to 24 years group had the highest levels of
respondent that said they were not aware of CCTV operating in the Town
Centre.
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CCTV awareness in local area
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59% of respondents are not aware of CCTV operating in their local
area.
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Almost 50% of 18 to 24 year olds said they were aware of CCTV
operating in their local area.
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Recent victims had the second greatest proportion of
respondents who thought there was CCTV operating in their local area at 37%.
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Extent of agreement with the statement: CCTV reduces crime
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68% of respondents agree with this statement.
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The age group 75 years and over had the highest level of
agreement with this statement at 95%.
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The 25 to 34 year old group had the lowest level at 59%.
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Extent of agreement with the statement: CCTV helps the police to
investigate crime and catch victims
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90% of respondents agree with this statement.
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The 75 years and over age group had the highest level of
agreement at 100%.
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Respondents from BME groups had the lowest level of agreement
at 72%.
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Extent of agreement with the statement: CCTV deters people from
committing crime
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55% of respondents agree with this statement.
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Recent victims of crime had the lowest level of agreement with
this statement at 42%.
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Respondents with a disability had the highest level of
agreement at 74%.
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Recent victims and the 18 to 24 year old groups had the highest
levels of disagreeing with this statement both at 40%.
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Extent of agreement with the statement: CCTV makes me feel safer
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65% of respondents agree with this statement.
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Recent victims and the 18 to 24 years groups had the lowest
levels of agreement with this statement at 55% and 54% respectively.
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The 25 to 34 years and 55 to 64 years had the highest levels of
disagreement with this statement at 14%.
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Extent of agreement with the statement: CCTV improves public safety
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68% of respondents agree with this statement.
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Recent victims had the lowest level of agreement at 55%.
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The 75 years and over group has the highest level of agreement
at 92% and it appears that agreement tends to increase in line with age.
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Respondents in the 25 to 34 years and the recent victims groups
have the highest levels of disagreement with this statement at 15% and 13%
respectively.
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Extent of agreement with the statement: CCTV reduces reoffending
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28% of respondents agree and 28% disagree with this statement.
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Respondents with a disability have the highest level of
agreement at 44% and the 18 to 24 year old group has the lowest at 21%.
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Extent of agreement with the statement: CCTV is an invasion of
privacy
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65% of respondents disagree and 10% agree with this statement.
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The 75 years and over group have the highest level of
disagreement at 88%.
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The 45 to 54 year olds and recent victims have the lowest level
of agreement with this statement at 6%.
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64% of 18 to 24 year olds neither agree nor disagree.
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Rank the areas based on where you think it is most important to have
CCTV?
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Town Centre streets is the highest ranked answer – this occurred
across all groupings.
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Three other locations also scored highly: Local parades of
shops, car parks and parks, playgrounds and green spaces.
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Parks was the second ranked answer for 18 to 24 year olds and
over 75 year olds.
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Respondents with a disability and those aged 35 to 44 years put
car parks second and all remaining groups selected local parades of shops as
second.
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