Calderdale residents feel safe in the day but have concerns in the borough at night, survey shows

People voiced their hopes, fears, likes and dislikes about their borough, the results of which will shape new council policy to build social cohesion.

While most spoke positively about their neighbourhoods this is tempered by concerns about issues including safety and anti-social behaviour, their answers revealed.

Conversations between council officers and people out in their own neighbourhoods provided the responses over three months earlier this year.

Calderdale Council is using the findings to inform policy aimed at building social cohesion and senior Cabinet members will discuss these when they meet on Monday (November 4).

Almost 800 people over the length and breadth of the borough gave their opinions on core questions asked.

Most people feel safe in their own neighbourhoods and in Halifax and Calderdale during the daytime.

But the picture changes as night falls, with more than a third of people speaking about not feeling safe in their own neighbourhood and almost half about not feeling safe in Halifax.

Drunkenness and anti-social behaviour are identified as the main issues.

Addressing night time safety, street lighting and anti-social behaviour would potentially improve people’s overall feelings of safety locally and in the wider areas of Halifax and Calderdale, says the report.

Most people felt positively connected to their local neighbourhood.

But there were challenges around local infrastructure, lack of care or maintenance in some areas, a lack of community spirit or connection, and some crime and antisocial behaviour.

Brighouse, Elland, Hipperholme and Lightcliffe, Ovenden, Sowerby Bridge and Town ward people speak less about Calderdale when describing their place to others, officers found.

And many people in Todmorden, Park and Warley wards think that others would not understand what Calderdale – celebrating its 50th anniversary as a borough with a Year of Culture this year – is.

Others feel that recent TV shows and films made in the area, including Gentleman Jack and Happy Valley, have raised its profile.

Better maintenance of places and more investment in infrastructure and community initiatives would boost feelings of belonging, people felt.

More community events and spaces would support more diverse interactions between communities, along with promoting physical activity and use of the countryside, responders thought.

Litter and fly tipping are other big issues that affect a lot of communities but there are lots of people and groups working together to address it.

Over half of people are positive about achieving their aspirations in Calderdale and speak about a desire to stay in the area and hope for good things for themselves and their families – good employment and educational opportunities, good health and good local infrastructure to support their ambitions.

But a small number of people feel they are unlikely to achieve their aspirations in Calderdale for a mixture of reasons, including lack of employment opportunities for young people, anxiety about housing and house prices and local infrastructure not meeting their needs – priority areas for improvement.