The goal of conducting the Avondale Random Household Survey was to give voice to a culturally and ethnically diverse and economically disadvantaged community, to assess their needs, goals and wishes.
The Avondale residents who participated in this survey indicated that they liked living in Avondale and most of them felt a sense of belonging in their community. They liked the accessibility and the location of Avondale and also the sense of community and the friendliness of the people but feel the area, especially the town centre is rundown, neglected and lacks basic services such as banks and a post office. Of the small percentage of participants who plan to move away from Avondale, the most common reason given for these plans was housing issues.
On the most part, participants reported feeling safe in their community, the main reason given for this sense of security was the feeling of community. The most commonly cited threat to the participants’ sense of security was drunk and disorderly people, loitering, homelessness and beggars. Disruptive behaviour and loitering was also cited as a reason that participants did not find parks and green spaces in the area safe and pleasant places to visit. However, the majority of participants indicated that they did find the parks and green spaces safe and pleasant and attributed this to lots of people using the parks and the wide open spaces with nice scenery.
Many participants felt that Avondale needed a swimming pool, a community centre and more meeting places. When asked what they would like to see developed in the empty spaces around Avondale, participants indicated that public spaces such as parks and playgrounds would be beneficial to the community as well as food and retail shops.
WHAT ARE ACA’S NEXT STEPS?
The results reinforce & provide a strong Avondale voice that councils, local boards and future development in Avondale can adhere to. ACA will also use these results as a springboard for future projects/action.
THESE ARE ACA’S 5 CORE THEMES BASED ON THE SURVEY RESULTS THAT WILL BE FOCUSED ON:(DECIDED SEPT 2015)
1. Activities and facilities for different target groups; preschoolers, senior citizens and youth.
2. Urban activation and enhancing of empty green and open spaces.
3. Assist in making our local town centre to be attractive and easily accessible for people to want to visit.
4. Youth sport activation and gathering places
5. Addressing Avondale’s Social Deprivation
If you or your community group want to use the results, we welcome you to quote / credit the statistics and encourage you to join forces to make positive future action for Avondale.
avondalecommunityaction.com 