Thank to everybody who took part in our telephone survey.

During December 1999 and January 2000 we interviewed by telephone over 800 households in Swindon and the surrounding area. These households were selected randomly in proportions equivalent to the populations in each postcode area. We have published our preliminary findings.

Interviews were undertaken between the hours of 10.00am and 7.00pm during the week and at weekends. We were thus able to interview broad range of households. Even though interviews took between 15 minutes and 20 minutes each we found that respondents were generally co-operative and once convinced of the bone fide nature of the survey many volunteered much more information that the basic factual questions demanded. Interviewers were instructed to note any extra comments they received. Because of this, at the end of the study period the principal interviewers got together to share their impressions of this further information, this report includes some of that information.

We are confident that the quality of response provides an accurate snap-shot of Swindon’s shopping, employment and leisure habits at the beginning of the new Millennium.

There were a number of refusals mainly from elderly people who understandably did not want to reveal too much personal information. Some parents with young children who did not have time to complete the questionnaire declined. We noted that as our catchment widened there was more inclination of respondents to refuse, stating that they had no interest in Swindon and did not use its facilities.

At this stage we consider that the survey group are generally older than the average for the area. The survey could not include those households that were ex-directory or did not possess a telephone.

However this is not the sole research we are undertaking, so the views of these other groups can be included elsewhere.

NEW TOWN CENTRE
During the course of our survey interviewers discovered a polarisation of perception of Swindon Town Centre. People were either totally committed to or totally prejudiced against Swindon Town Centre. This tended to relate to how close they were to the Town Centre. Those people who used it regularly were much more appreciative of its qualities.

Negative views were expressed by people who lived outside Swindon and by those who preferred other town centres. There was also the perception that Swindon was not a leisure shopping location. People mentioned places like Bath, Cheltenham or Cirencester as offering a better day out. These people considered Swindon to be a dreary, functional place and would not consider it a desirable shopping option.

Positive views came from shoppers who appreciated its functional shopping environment. Some people were satisfied with the range of shops. The three anchors of Debenhams, House of Fraser and M&S were regularly mentioned along with the other shops like C&A, British Homes Stores and Bon Marché. Many people expressed a regret that McIlroys had closed down. People shopping on a budget used the town centre a lot because of the ability to ‘shop around’ with a good range of shops selling cheaper goods.

Clothing and shoe shopping are very popular in the town centre as well as music, video and book buying. It was not often that people would combine food or clothing shopping in a visit to the Town Centre although the Tesco Metro is popular for those wishing to buy a few items before they leave the town centre.

THE DESIGNER OUTLET CENTRE
There were very few town centre trips that included the designer outlet centre. It is viewed as having a completely different attraction to New Town.

The Designer Outlet Centre proved popular with those looking for ‘labels’. Shoppers appreciated the sheer number of retailers and the fact that the shops are under cover and there are decent places to eat and drink. It was not considered a cheap place to shop. It is also clear from the survey that many people visited it out of curiosity once or twice but then never returned. However it did have its champions. One gentleman observed that his wife "lives in the Designer Outlet Centre".

 OLD TOWN
Again, shopping trips to Old Town tend to be completely separate to New Town. The Old Town does seem to function as a district centre for food shopping and a location for smarter restaurants. Some people enjoyed the antique and speciality shops.

 FOOD SHOPPING
The New Town Centre has both a Sainsbury’s and a Tesco Metro and although these were not used for main shopping by visitors to the town centre they were useful for people who lived within walking distance or worked in the Centre. Around the outskirts of Swindon exist a wide range of supermarkets, most of which are accessible by public transport, but which are generally visited by car for the weekly shop. Each surrounding towns and the larger villages has at least one major supermarket retailer i.e. Co-op, Somerfield or Waitrose. Proximity and convenience was an important factor in a respondent’s choice of supermarket although some householders mentioned that they went further afield to a preferred outlet.

A significant number of households did all their shopping at one supermarket, never needing to use a convenience store. A large proportion of people used the stores only once a week or even less often making most of their food purchases in bulk.

Many households remained loyal to a particular supermarket either for reasons of pricing or quality of food. In some of the outlying towns and villages people (mainly the older generation) used a number of traditional high street shops to accumulate their food shopping needs, but this was a very low proportion.

Difficulties involved in food shopping for non car owners stemmed from the act of getting to and from the store especially having bought a large weekly or monthly shop. Shopping was significantly easier for car users. Although bus services run to the supermarkets shoppers complained of the difficulty of carrying all their shopping home and poor pedestrian facilities - especially in the district centres. Some preferred to take a taxi. Older people often relied on sons or daughters to get their shopping for them. Only a handful of people mentioned that they have their shopping delivered to their home.

The use of convenience stores varies from place to place depending on the range of shopping nearby. We noticed a growing dependence on garages and chain newsagents for example the Dillons shops that exist in smaller towns and suburbs of Swindon. Only in the surrounding villages was there any mention of traditional corner shops. In Gorse Hill and Cavendish Square residents complained of a lack of good shopping in these centres. Very few people were able to rely upon these centres exclusively for all their food shopping.

Hardly anyone surveyed made any mention of the fresh food market in the New Town Centre.

CLOTHES AND SHOES
Again respondents were split in clothes shopping preferences. It was recognised that the New Town Centre did offer economical clothing, but we perceived that there was a growing competition with some of the district centres, especially West Swindon, where the Asda sells clothes and there is a bargain clothes shop. These places were particularly attractive to families with children.

For a wider and perhaps more upmarket choice significant numbers of people travelled to the big shopping centres of other cities for example, Reading and Cribbs Causeway, in Bristol. Significantly fewer than might be imagined visit the Designer Outlet Centre to regularly purchase clothes or shoes. One person commented to us that the Outlet Centre would be OK if you were size 8 or size 20, but for anything in between the choice would be severely limited.

Mail order catalogue shopping proved popular especially amongst older generations in rural areas who found it difficult to get to clothes stores. Some people are beginning to use the Internet for clothes shopping. For example one respondent had just bought their winter coat from Next’s web page because there was a larger selection available there than in the store in town.

A significant number of people regularly made clothes purchases abroad either in the course of their work or whilst they were on holiday. These people were aware of the variations of cost between clothing bought here and in Europe or the USA and if they went to these places tended to make a point of buying their clothes when they were away. For example one woman, who travelled for her work regularly bought her clothes in Milan.

INTERNET SHOPPING
Internet usage is becoming quite popular. Most people were aware that they could now use the Internet to shop and those who had tried it were all satisfied with the outcome. Of those who had internet access, but had not tried on-line shopping, the overriding objection was the fear of credit card fraud. The most popular products purchased seemed to be those which had a known quality or quantity i.e. car or computer accessories and books. Older people and those on low incomes noted they did not have access to the internet because it was not available at local libraries in the area.

A significant number of people indicated their intention to gain web access and try out Internet shopping in the near future.

HOUSEHOLD SHOPPING
The overwhelming majority of shoppers surveyed used out-of-town or district centre stores for their household and electrical requirements. These would either be retail parks on the edge of Swindon such as West Swindon or Greenbridge or retail parks on the edges of other towns and cities nearby.

Apart from the B&Q in the centre of Swindon hardly anybody used the town centre for this kind of shopping, however it was rare that people would visit B&Q as well as the town centre. It was treated in the same manner as if it were on the outskirts. The main reason for this is car usage. It would be rare for anybody to walk or travel by bus to these stores due to the bulky nature of the purchases.

People who did not have access to a car expressed considerable difficulty when purchasing such items. Either they relied upon assistance or were forced to choose from a very limited local supply. For example an elderly man living in Gorse Hill said that his only source of electrical shopping was a second hand shop within walking distance of his home.

Some people said they would buy electrical goods at Heathrow airport, when they travelled.

CHRISTMAS SHOPPING
We took advantage of the season to ask people where they had or intended to do their Christmas present shopping. At one end of the scale we were surprised that some people had managed to do all their shopping in West Swindon. Again Asda was a popular choice, especially for budget shoppers with children. Many elderly or disabled respondents said that they gave people money because of the difficulties they had in selecting and purchasing.

We noticed that wealthier respondents might go quite far afield to do their Christmas shopping. For many it was considered a leisure activity and an opportunity for a day out or a short holiday. From Swindon there were a number of organised coach tours to Cribbs Causeway and Bluewater. Other people said they had gone on organised trips to Paris. One person said that they took a short shopping break to New York.

 SHOPPING TIMES
A significant number of people would do shopping on the way home from work, stopping off at the retail centres on the edge of town, this would be for food as well as household shopping. Lunchtime shopping also proved popular for people at work and confirmed the growing trend of people working longer hours and having to squeeze in spare time for other activities. Clothes and shoe shopping and to a lesser extent household items tended to be purchased at weekends and thus to coincide with a family outing. Food shopping now that it tends to be done in bulk is also becoming a family outing.

Thus as a social activity shopping might be considered one of the few activities that most families engage in together.

LEISURE ACTIVITIES
The Wyvern Theatre was mentioned as being used by a large proportion of people, but upon further investigation it is noted that the majority of people who visit it do so only once or twice a year. Serious theatre goers would travel to Oxford or London.

Most people from Swindon and immediate surroundings when going to the cinema travelled to Greenbridge or West Swindon; this would generally require a journey by car. Not many people from further afield would specially travel to Swindon as they could just as easily go to a more local cinema. A small number of people mentioned art films at the Arts Centre in the Old Town.

Not many people mentioned concerts as a leisure activity and if they did go it would more likely be to London or Bristol. A small number of people surveyed mentioned the Link Centre but there is a feeling that not many big acts include Swindon on their tour itineraries.

A small but significant minority said they enjoyed the range of activities at the Arts Centre and expressed the wish that more such facilities were available.

Going out into the town centre of Swindon was not generally popular except amongst the 16-25 age group. There is a widely held feeling of insecurity when venturing into the town centre after 6pm, people said that they were concerned about the car parks, underpasses and side alleys which if badly lit and not overlooked made people feel uncomfortable. People told us that a lot of theme pubs and night clubs have recently opened up in the town centre and these have proved popular with 16 to 25 year old men, with whom the elderly particularly felt unsafe.

The Old Town was popular among local residents for pubs and restaurants, it was generally felt that the best pubs and restaurants in Swindon are in this part of town. Younger age groups felt that the "scene" had recently moved to the New Town pubs.  Village pubs proved very popular among people surveyed both in Swindon and outside, most often used for eating out at weekends.

There seems to be a good selection of clubs for the elderly and many old people we spoke to said that this was their only source of social interchange during the week. Their importance can therefore not be overstated.

Many people had visited Swindon Transport Museum, particularly with children. Not everyone mentioned that it had recently closed and there was not a huge recognition that a new museum was about to open. Very few mentioned the museum in the Old Town. Most avid culture lovers would make special journeys to London or Oxford and also mentioned visiting museums and art galleries as part of their holidays.

Happily there was a view across the social divides that it was important to take children to museums and the art galleries as part of good parenting and as an inexpensive outing.

Many older people especially in rural areas relied on television for entertainment.

SPORTS
Apart from Swindon Town Football Club, no other major spectator sport attractions were regularly mentioned. A few people mentioned the ice hockey at the Link Centre. Watching country sporting activities such as point to point and golf was the most popular spectator sport mentioned.

The most popular outdoor sport mentioned was golf, other country pursuits such as hunting, fishing and shooting were also mentioned.

Swimming is a very popular activity especially with families. A lot of people use the Oasis Leisure Centre on a regular basis. Using the gym and other fitness classes were also quite popular. The Oasis, Link Centre, Health Hydro and Cannons were all mentioned. Facilities have to be close to home or work. Other leisure centres in surrounding towns and villages were also very popular. But some people lived in villages where facilities were poor or non existent and they felt they were too far away from town facilities.

TRANSPORTATION
The car is the most important mode of transport in the Swindon area; for most people it is the quickest and most reliable way of getting around and to the town. Some families had several cars, and it was not unusual for even quite modest households to posses more than one car. Many people also said they owned a bicycle, especially children’s bikes, though these were not greatly used. If people did not have a car then they would make use of someone who did for shopping and travelling around. However they often complained that they would have to wait until it was convenient for another person to go and that they would therefore have no choice in when and where they could go. The main complaints centred on the charges made at the various car parks. The station car park was considered to be too small by a number of people.

Shoppers often favoured the larger multi-storey car parks because of the increased likelihood of being able to find a space. It was noted that at Christmas it was very difficult to park in the town centre, this had encouraged several more people than usual to go into the town by bus. Evening access also tended to be by bus and taxi to enable the respondent to drink.

The park and ride system in Swindon is not used very often, however other schemes in Oxford and Bath proved more popular with people who used them.

Most people said that they lived within 5 minutes walk of a bus stop - many noted to us that this did not mean they lived within five minutes of a bus! There were a number of complaints about the service offered. Routes kept being changed, bus stops were on the wrong (out of town) side of the road and they were inconvenient for shoppers. People mentioned inadequate amount of storage space. Disabled users complained about the lack of buses with low floor access and the impossibility of predicting which routes these busses would be on. This was also mentioned by mothers with push chairs and the elderly. Also bus users would need to have a good knowledge of local timetables to make sure they did not miss a vital bus, time would be at a premium for their visits. Many people mentioned that in their village there were only a couple of busses a day and most people observed that the busses did not run late enough at night.

In rural areas there were a number community bus schemes established to help people get around to shops and leisure activities. These schemes were generally set up to compensate for the lack of a normal bus service in the area. Even if someone lived within five minutes walk of a bus stop the service would be so infrequent as to make it unusable.

A significant number of people were prepared to walk to local shops to pick up items and some did their main shopping by foot or by bicycle. Again there were restrictions in what they could carry home. One person told us they roller bladed to the local store.

GENERAL INFORMATION
Even those people who live nearer the centre of Swindon travel to work by car, because most of the employers are situated on the outskirts. Not many employers offered help with the cost of travelling and those that did tended to be larger firms or their employees were delivery or sales personnel.

Our survey encountered a wide range of family types. For example we spoke to families that have adult sons and daughters still living with them, single parent families, second marriages and families of students. There were also a significant number of single person households. People also mentioned to us that they had close relatives living nearby; an interesting observation for a town with such a rate of change of population. Some people mentioned that they had moved to the town and liking it had encouraged other family members to do likewise. Older people had continued to live here once retired and others had moved to the area because they considered it ideal for retirement. Some householders we spoke to were at weekend cottages in the area although they generally lived elsewhere.

We were surprised at the accuracy with which most people told us their weekly food spend. This hinted to us that they might be working to quite a tight budget.

FURTHER WORK
It should be noted that this is not the culmination of our consultation, merely the start.

If you would like to comment on these findings or tell us what you think, then please fill in the feedback form.