Heather House Survey Report 2019

Methodology

Resident

The survey was distributed to all 3556 households in the Park Wood ward and 28 were returned as the address was incomplete; investigations revealed that either these properties were yet to be built or the sample included the flats-block as a separate address to the flats within it. This was a one off mailing with no reminders.

The survey was open between 11th February and 24th March 2019. A total of 320 responses were received. The overall results are therefore accurate to within ±4.4% at a 90% confidence level, with no weighting applied to the data. This means that we can be 90% certain that the results are between ±4.4% of the calculated response, so the ‘true’ response could be 4.4% above or below the figures reported (i.e. a 50% agreement rate could in reality lie within the range of 45.6% to 54.4%).

 

Stakeholder

The survey was distributed to the eight regular hirers/users that run a club or group out of Heather House. The survey was open between 11th March and 22nd March.

Please note not every respondent answered every question, therefore the total number of respondents refers to the number of respondents for the question being discussed and not to the survey overall.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Attendance at Heather House

Respondents were asked whether they, or a member of their household, attend a club or group that currently uses Heather House on a regular basis.

The majority of respondents replied ‘No’.

From analysing the data, it was found that respondents who have lived in their current home for more than 15 years are significantly more likely to attend a club or group at Heather House (12.7% of respondents), than those who have lived in their current home for 1 to 4 years (2.7% of respondents).

There were no significant differences between the responses when a household has either, children living at home; someone with a long-standing illness, disability or infirmity; someone claiming unemployment benefits; or someone who acts as a carer.

Additionally, respondents who have mortgage or are renting from a private landlord are less likely to attend a club at Heather House (97.9% and 100.0% of respondents respectively), than respondents who owned their property outright (85.7%).

The 22 respondents who said they currently attend a club at Heather House were asked which clubs they attend. 19 people provided a response: 63.2% (12) of the residents who regularly visit Heather House are members of SEMARA (South East Maidstone Active Retirement Association); 10.5% (2) are members of the Short Mat Bowls Club; 10.5% (2) are members of the Boxing Club; 5.3% (1) attend the Bingo; 5.3% (1) attend property meetings; 5.3% (1) use the facility as a Mosque; and 5.3% (1) attend private party events which are held at the House.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last visit to Heather House

Respondents were then asked when they or a household member last visited Heather House and there were six response options: ‘In the last week’; ‘In the last two weeks’; ‘In the last month’; ‘In the last three months’; ‘More than 3 months ago’ and ‘Never used or visited’.  For the chart, the first four answer options have been combined due to low numbers.  The most common response was ‘more than three months ago’, followed by ‘never used or visited’.

The data shows that respondents who have lived in their current home for less than a year were most likely to have never visited Heather House, in comparison with all other groups. 85.7% of respondents who have lived in their current home for less than a year have never visited Heather House; whereas, only 27.7% of respondents who have lived in their home for more than 15 years have never visited Heather House.

Respondents who have lived in their home for 10-15 years were most likely to have last visited Heather House more than three months ago, with 58.7% responding this way. Further analysis found that respondents who have been in their current home for more than 15 years were most likely to have visited Heather House more recently, with 19.8% visiting in the last three months.

Moreover, the data shows that respondents who live closer to the facility (less than 350 metres away) were more likely to have visited in the last three months (9.0%) and more than three months ago (51.3%), than respondents who live 700 metres away (1.0% and 29.4% respectively).

Respondents who live the furthest away were most likely to have never visited Heather House (65.7%) in comparison with those who live 351-700 metres (32.8%) and less than 350 metres away (29.5%).

There were no significant differences between the responses when a household has either, children living at home; someone with a long-standing illness, disability or infirmity; someone claiming unemployment benefits; or someone who acts as a carer.

The survey asked respondents what the event was they last attended at Heather House. 178 people provided a valid response for this question. It should be noted that some respondents provided more than one answer. The responses are as follows:

·      68.0% (121) of the respondents attended a private function,74.4% of which were parties (including birthday parties, wedding receptions and New Year’s Eve celebrations); 9.1% were business functions (including Morrisons meetings, Golding Homes meetings and Residents’ meetings); 9.1% were events for retirement groups (including SEMARA); and 1.7% were charity events (including an Alzheimer’s fundraiser).

·      16.3% (29) of the respondents said the reason for their last visit to Heather House was to vote.

·      10.1% (18) of the respondents attended sports activities held at the House (including short mat bowls, boxing, kurling and dance lessons).

·      6.7% (12) attended fetes, markets and car boot sales.

·      2.8% (5) of the respondents have never visited, had no reason to visit, or were completely unaware of the facility.

·      Finally, 1.1% (2) of the respondents have only visited Heather House to use the toilet facilities.

 

Why have residents never visited Heather House?

Additionally, respondents were asked why they have never visited Heather House. 53 people provided a valid response[1] for this question. Again, some respondents provided more than one answer. The responses from the survey were coded and categorised. The responses are as follows:

·      41.5% (22) of the respondents were not aware of Heather House;

·      22.6% (12) had no reason to visit;

·      18.9% (10) of the respondents were not aware of the clubs and activities held at Heather House;

·      13.2% (7) were new to the area;

·      3.8% (2) thought it had an unsuitable location;

·      1.9% (1) thought the area was run down and uninviting;

·      1.9% (1) felt they were unwelcomed when they have visited in the past;

·      and 1.9% (1) of the respondents said they had no time to visit Heather House.

 

Privately Hiring Heather House

The survey asked households if they were aware that Heather House could be privately hired for events, such as birthday parties; retirement celebrations; workshops and training events.

As seen in the chart, the majority of respondents replied ‘Yes’.

99% of the respondents who are unaware that Heather House can be hired, also do not currently attend a club or group there. However, only 10% of respondents who replied ‘Yes’ currently attend a club or group at Heather House.

Respondents who have lived in their current home for less than a year are significantly less likely (23.8%) to know that Heather House can be privately hired; in comparison with residents who have lived there for 5-9 years (56.5%) and more than 15 years (81.6%).

Respondents who live further away (more than 700 metres) from Heather House are less likely to be aware that they can hire the facility (41.9%). To highlight this difference, 73.9% of respondents who live 351-700 metres and 84.0% of respondents who live < 350 metres away from Heather House are aware that they can hire Heather House.

Interestingly, respondents who are carers are more likely to be aware that they can privately hire Heather House (77.3%) in comparison with non-carers (62.8%). However, there were no significant differences between the responses when a household has, children living at home; someone with a long-standing illness, disability or infirmity; someone claiming unemployment benefits; or someone who acts as a carer.

 

Would residents consider privately hire Heather House?

Households were then asked whether they would consider hiring Heather House for a private event.

The more common response by only 4% was ‘Yes’.

The data shows that residents who rent their home from a housing association are most likely to consider hiring Heather House for a private event (65.3%); in comparison, residents who are have a mortgage or are renting from a private landlord are less likely to hire Heather House (48.9% and 27.3% respectively).

There were no significant differences between the ‘Yes’ and ‘No’ responses when a household has children living at home; someone with a long-standing illness, disability or infirmity; someone claiming unemployment benefits; or someone who acts as a carer.

Moreover, respondents who have visited Heather House in the last three months are the most likely to hire Heather House for an event (80.0%), in comparison with respondents who have never visited Heather House (28.1%).

Respondents who live less than 350 metres and 351-700 metres away from Heather House are more likely to consider hiring Heather House (59.2% and 56.5% respectively) than respondents who live more than 700 metres away (41.4%). This is not surprising considering awareness of hiring Heather House decreases as the distance of the household from the facility increases.

Heather House Facilities

Households were asked whether there were any specific facilities that would make them consider hiring Heather House for a private event. 192 people provided valid responses for this question. The responses from the survey were coded and categorised. The responses are as follows:

·      41.7% (80) of the respondents replied ‘No’, that there are not any facilities that would make them consider privately hiring Heather House.

·      16.1% (31) of the respondents reported that they would hire Heather House if there are facilities for birthday parties; 4 residents replied that they would like the option of hiring a bouncy castle for a child’s birthday party.

·      10.4% (20) of the respondents stated that ‘Heather House and its facilities should be improved and updated’. Responses for this category included: ‘Heather House looks run down from outside’; ‘the whole place needs changing, it’s horrible’; ‘the looks of the building is the main reason I do not use Heather House’; ‘cleaner, more modern facilities are needed’; ‘modernisation and abundant facilities are required’; and ‘Heather House needs updating and improving, the area looks a mess’.

·      10.4% (20) of the respondents replied that they would use Heather House if there were a clean, modern kitchen and a licensed bar to hire.

·      8.9% (17) of the respondents would like a spacious hall with plenty of chairs and tables for events.

·      7.8% (15) of the respondents said ‘a more convenient location’ would make them consider hiring Heather House.

·      6.8% (13) of the respondents would like plenty of car parking spaces outside of the venue.

·      3.6% (7) of the respondents reported that they would like more sports facilities at Heather House, including sports equipment; gym equipment; mirrors; a sound system; and a stage.

·      2.6% (5) of the respondents said they would like cleaner and updated toilet facilities.

·      2.1% (4) of the respondents said they would be more likely to hire Heather House if the overall cost was more affordable.

·      2.1% (4) of the respondents reported they would like more green space outside of the venue.

·      2.1% (4) of the respondents would like more disabled facilities at Heather House, including wheelchair access.

·      1.0% (2) of the respondents replied that they would be more likely to hire Heather House if it had more marketing and advertisement.

·      1.0% (2) of the respondents said that the facility needs improved security.

 

 

Heather House Clubs

 

Residents were asked whether they were aware of the following clubs at Heather House: short mat bowls; kurling; and roller dance. For all three clubs, the most common answer was ‘No’, that the respondents were not aware of the club being held at Heather House. Respondents were least aware of roller dance, followed by kurling and then short mat bowls.

Short mat bowls

The data shows that respondents who do not have household member who attends a club at Heather House were more likely to be unaware of short mat bowls (79.5% of these respondents) than residents who do have a household member attend a club (21.1% of these respondents). Moreover, respondents who have never visited Heather House were more likely to be unaware of the short mat bowls club (92.1%) than those who have visited in the last three months (33.3%).

Respondents who have lived in their homes for more than 15 years were most likely to have knowledge about the short mat bowls club held at Heather House (43.8%). Furthermore, 36.2% respondents who own their house outright and 32.3% of respondents who rent their home from a housing association were aware of the short mat bowls club, in comparison with 7.4% of respondents who have a mortgage and 0.0% of respondents who are renting from a private landlord.

Interestingly, respondents who have a long-standing illness, disability or infirmity were more likely to know about the club (34.7%) than residents who do not have a disability (18.7%). Moreover, 28.4% of respondents who do not have children living at home are aware of the short mat bowls club, in comparison with 14.2% of respondents with children at home.

Households where someone is aged 65 years or over are most likely to know about the club (41.0%) compared to the overall result.

Households less than 350 metres away from the facility are more likely to know about the short mat bowls club (37.7%) than respondents who live more than 700 metres away (10.9%).

 

Kurling

The data shows that respondents who do not have a household member attend a club at Heather House are more likely to be unaware of the kurling club (91.0%) than those that do (26.7%). Moreover, respondents who have never visited Heather House were more likely to respond that they were unaware of the kurling club (97.6%) than those who have visited in the last three months (56.7%).

Respondents who have lived in their homes for more than 15 years were more likely to be aware of club (24.7%) than respondents who have lived in their homes for 5-9 years (6.6%), 1-4 years (2.7%) and for less than a year (0.0%).

There were no significant differences between the responses when a household has someone with a long-standing illness, disability or infirmity; someone claiming unemployment benefits; or someone who acts as a carer. However, 14.70% of respondents who live without children at home are aware of the kurling club, in comparison with 6.50% of respondents who do live with children.

Households containing residents aged 65 years and over have a greater proportion responding that they are aware of the club (23.1%) compared to the overall result.

Finally, respondents who live more than 700 metres away from the facility are less likely to be aware of the kurling club (3.9%) than the respondents who live 351-700 metres and less than 350 metres away (13.0% and 21.1% respectively).

 

Roller dance club

The data shows that respondents who do not have household member attend a club at Heather House are significantly more likely to be unaware of the roller dance club (91.7%) than those that do (58.3%). It was also found that respondents who have never visited Heather House were more likely to respond that they were unaware of the roller dance club (96.8%) than those who have visited in the last three months (77.8%).

As the Roller Dancing club held at Heather House is one to one tuition, this is not surprising.

There were no significant differences between the awareness responses when a household has children living at home; someone with a long-standing illness, disability or infirmity; someone claiming unemployment benefits; or someone who acts as a carer.

 

What other activities would residents attend?

Householders were then asked what other activities they would attend, if they were available at Heather House. 141 people provided valid responses for this question. The results from the survey are as follows:

·      37.6% (53) of the respondents replied that they would attend keep fit/fitness classes at Heather House, which would include yoga, aerobics, pilates and zumba.

·      15.6% (22) of the respondents replied that they would attend dance classes, including modern; line; salsa and ballroom dancing.

·      15.6% (22) of the respondents replied that they would not attend any activities held at Heather House.

·      13.5% (19) of the respondents replied that they would like children’s activities and clubs to be available at Heather House, including activities that are inclusive to children with learning disabilities.

·      7.8% (11) of the respondents reported that they would attend sport clubs at Heather House; responses included netball, badminton, archery, roller hockey, volleyball and football.

·      7.1% (10) of the respondents said they would attend arts, crafts and cooking activities at the House.

·      6.4% (9) of the respondents replied that they would like more baby, toddler and parents’ groups to be available.

·      6.4% (9) of the respondents reported that they would like more markets and fairs to be held at Heather House – including antique, boot and craft fairs.

·      5.7% (8) of the respondents would like more martial arts clubs to be available, such as karate, tai chi, taekwondo, kung fu and judo.

·      5.0% (7) of the respondents replied that they would like more groups available for OAPs, including exercise classes; U3A Active Retirement; and SEMARA.

·      5.0% (7) of the respondents reported that they would like more bingo, bridge and quiz nights.

·      5.0% (7) of the respondents replied that they would attend educational classes and workshops at Heather House; responses included language classes, first aid courses and dog training.

 

Importance of Heather House to the Community

Residents were asked how important or unimportant Heather House is to them, with five response options: ‘Very important’; ‘Important’; ‘Neither Important nor Unimportant’; ‘Unimportant’ and ‘Not important at all’. The chart shows the top two and bottom two responses combined. Before this, the most common response was ‘Neither Important nor unimportant’ at 33%; followed by ‘Not important at all’ at 25%; and ‘Very Important’ at 13.8%.

The commentary below focuses on the combined results.

Households where a member attends a club at Heather House were significantly more likely to find Heather House ‘Very important and important’ (90.5%) than those who do not have a member in their household (31.8%). Furthermore, respondents who have used Heather House within the last three months are more likely to find Heather House ‘Very important’ (62.9%), in comparison with respondents who have visited more than three months ago (13.1%) and who have never visited (2.3%).

Respondents who do not have a household member attending a club at Heather House were significantly more likely to respond that Heather House is ‘Neither important nor unimportant’ (35.3%) and ‘unimportant and not at all important’ (32.9%), than those with household members who visit the facility regularly (both 4.8%). Similarly, respondents who have lived in their home for less than a year and for 5-9 years were more likely to find Heather House ‘Not important at all’ (40.0% and 32.3% respectively) than those who have lived in their home for more than 15 years (17.2%).

The data shows that respondents who have lived in their home for more than 15 years were significantly more likely than all other respondents to find Heather House ‘Very important and Important’ (51.5%). It was found that respondents who are over the age of 65 were more likely to find Heather House ‘Very important’ (20.5%) than households with working age people (11.7%) and households with children aged 4 years and under (10.8%).

Interestingly, respondents who are claiming unemployment benefits are more likely to find Heather House ‘Important’ (40.0% of respondents) than those who are not (20.4% of respondents). Moreover, respondents who are renting from a housing association are more likely to find Heather House ‘Important’ (32.0%) than those who are buying a mortgage (17.2%).

Respondents who currently have mortgage are more likely to find Heather House ‘Neither important nor unimportant’ (41.9%) than those who own their house outright (22.4%).

The data shows that respondents who live less than 350 metres and 351-700 metres away from Heather House are more likely to find it ‘Important’ (28.6% and 25.6%) than those who further away (12.7%). Respondents who live more than 350 metres away from the facility are more likely to find it ‘Not important at all’ (34.3%) in comparison with respondents who live less than 350 metres away (15.6%). However, there are no significant differences between the ‘Neither important nor unimportant’ responses from areas closer to and further from Heather House.

Why is Heather House ‘Not Important at all’?

Respondents who stated that Heather House is ‘Unimportant’ or ‘Not Important at all’ to them were asked to report why they felt this way. 120 people provided valid responses for this question. The responses were coded and categorised, and are as follows:

·      47.5% (57) of the respondents said they had no interest in Heather House. Some of the responses from this category included: ‘current activities are not of interest to me’; ‘I never use it’; ‘I have no need to attend’; ‘I have plenty of other activities’.

·      27.5% (33) of the respondents stated that they were not aware of Heather House and have never heard of it.

·      8.3% (10) of the respondents replied that the building and its facilities need to be improved. Responses for this category included: ‘It looks very dated’; ‘the whole place is dirty and disgusting’; ‘it looks run down and dirty’; ‘it’s old and tatty’; ‘if the facilities were improved, I would make use of it’.

·      6.7% (8) of the respondents replied that they dislike the area. Responses for this category included: ‘I wouldn’t visit that part of town’; ‘the area is not particularly nice’; ‘I try not to associate with others around here’; ‘it has a bad reputation – when I say Park Wood, people are put off’.

·      4.2% (5) of the respondents replied that they do not use Heather House due to the lack of marketing and information about it. Responses included: ‘it isn’t marketed properly, I had no idea it existed’; ‘lack of information on events’; ‘more advertising of events is needed; ‘do you even have a website?’

·      4.2% (5) of the respondents replied no time for it, due to work or other activities.

·      4.2% (5) of the respondents replied that Heather House should be kept open to benefit the local community. Responses for this category included: ‘we need the hall kept open for all to use, as we have nothing in Park Wood’; ‘the building is important to the community’; ‘it is an asset to the wider community’; ‘we need a community hall which residents can use for events and clubs, a place where all can get involved with the right encouragement’.

·      2.5% (3) of the respondents think the area is dangerous. They stated that, ‘I would never use Heather House. I feel scared walking past thee as it is known for drug dealings and constantly has thugs hanging around the car park’; ‘it’s a no-go at night’; ‘it is a scary place, there are always needles and rubbish outside’.

·      2.5% (3) of the respondents are unable to travel to Heather House, due to disabilities.

·      2.5% (3) of the respondents said they don’t live in the area and so, would use other venues nearer to their home.

The Future of Heather House

Residents were asked whether they would like to be involved in the future of Heather House through: attending a focus group on the future of Heather House; being a volunteer for events at the House; and volunteering with the day-to-day running of the House.

80.3% (257) of the survey respondents did not reply to this question; 14.7% (47) of the survey respondents replied that they would be interested in attending a focus group on the future of Heather House; 9.1% (29) of the respondents replied that they would be interested in being a volunteer for events held at Heather House; and 3.8% (12) of the respondents replied that they would be interested in volunteering with the day-to-day running of the House. Whether respondents replied to the question and the way in which they would like to be involved were not related to where they live in relation to Heather House, as there were no significant differences between location and responses.Resident Survey Demographics

Home Tenure

 

Length of time at current property

Is anyone in the Household currently claiming unemployment benefit?

 

Householder make-up

 

 

 

 

Acorn Respondent Profile

 

 

 

 

Stakeholder Survey Responses

 

There were eight stakeholder users that were invited to take part in the consultation, six provided a response, and of these three were short mat bowling groups.

 

Membership

Of the six stakeholder groups two have stated that they are specifically aimed at older people (over 55’s and over 65’s) with this being a prerequisite for one club due to its nature. There is one group that is aimed at young people, particularly those that are seen as deprived and another club that hires the hall for one to one tuition while the other two groups state to be open for members from all age groups and communities.

Although just two groups have stated they are aimed at specifically at older people, four stakeholders have provided membership figures showing that their group’s membership is currently made up of only over 65’s.

The group that is aimed at young people has the highest membership with 85 regular attendees, with the majority of these (75%) aged under 25 years and it is a sport orientated group. The private hirer for one to one tuition has the least number of members. The second biggest group is aimed at the Elderly and is a social orientated club.

 

Usage & Facilities

Stakeholders were asked how often they meet at Heather House. The two groups with the greatest membership are using Heather House several times a week, while the other stated they use it one a week.

Stakeholders were asked to state which of current facilities in Heather house were vital and which were useful to their groups running. All stakeholders stated that a large sports hall (approx. 250m²) and car parking were critical to the running of their group. Four groups said a kitchen was critical and the same four groups said that storage was also critical, while one group said both these facilities were useful but not necessary. There was one group who said a committee style meeting room was critical and another said it was useful and one group stated that in additional to the large sports hall, the medium sports hall was also critical to the running of their group.

Three groups responded to the question’ are there any other facilities that are critical to the running of your club/ group? These stakeholders mentioned toilets, a lockable room to store equipment and ‘somewhere to wash would be handy’. When asked about the future needs of their group one stakeholder repeated the need for lockable storage, another stated the need to have a clear floor space that is reasonably flat and true.

Needs & the Future of Heather House

In terms of satisfaction as user of Heather House all respondents said that the centre meets their group/clubs need ‘Very Well’ or ‘Well’. All stakeholders also said that Heather House is a ‘Very Good’ or ‘Good’ community facility.

Stakeholders were asked if they had any other venues available to them, if Heather House was unavailable, all responded no. When asked what impact it would have on their club/group if Heather House was unavailable all responded negatively with three stating the club would close or their services would not be available locally, one stating they have tried to look for alternative but none were suitable. The remaining two responses said it would be a ‘disaster’ and would cause a ‘large impact’ if Heather House was unavailable.

In terms of going forward stakeholders were asked about their willingness to be involved in the future of Heather House. There were three stakeholders that said they would be willing to participate in the project, there was one stakeholder that said they would be willing to steward the new or improved facility without long term support from the Council, three were not sure and two said no. There were two stakeholders that said they would be willing to contribute monies to either a new or improved facility. Three respondents said they would be willing to collaborate with other clubs/groups to help develop a sustainable business plan for Heather House and the remaining three stakeholders were unsure. 

 

Additional comments about Heather House and its future

Without Heather House our members would lose a means of socialising and having a purpose and overall important to our well being

Heather House is in an already deprived area with many of our members lonely and without the ability to access other areas and clubs. This hall is a vital facility for this area. There is no other similar facility in this area.

I think one of the issues is that Heather House is not advertised as a venue. It seems to be underused and has the potential to offer so many services to the local community, but clubs and groups are not aware of it.

HH is an ideal venue for our club. It is a structurally sound building, apart from the fact it has an asbestos roof, that is ok if left alone, it is perfectly situated for us.

Our exclusive use of Reed Hall has made a large impact in the community, through our club with the backing of England Boxing young people can participate in a sport which promotes a healthy body and mind, discipline, respect and a family atmosphere for our members even the most deprived families can benefit from.

Lifeline to many elderly, lonely people good public transport facilities to Heather House. We looked for new facilities when informed last year that it was to close, to a high cost to us as the only two available site we moved proved unsuitable at a great cost to the club.

 

 

 

 



[1] An invalid response is one where the intention cannot understood, that is nonsensical or contains only symbols.