A survey of local people in Cowdenbeath has delivered more than 3,000 comments and suggestions for the new development body in the town.
My Cowdenbeath ran a large-scale community engagement exercise between July and October 2023 and local people stepped-up to have their say, with 1,124 taking part in a community survey, leaving 3,066 comments and ideas.
The research has now been published, which will help local groups to develop plans for the town. The report can be downloaded here.
Across 20 detailed questions, locals were asked for their opinions on everything from public transport to green spaces.
Stuart Duffy, who analysed the results of the research, hopes it will prove a useful foundation to develop a number of local initiatives.
“We were really pleased with the level of participation in this research, with local folk keen to have their say in our online survey and when we had our stalls at the Gala Day and on the High Street. Everyone has an opinion about our town and we’ve been all ears to listen to everything they’ve had to say!”
The research asked a number of questions about life in Cowdenbeath, with locals giving the town an overall score of 3.2 out of 5. Some of the best scoring areas for the town were public transport links which had a 51% favourable score, and green spaces at 38% favourable.
Safety in public, the range of leisure services and educational standards were rated as OK, with mainly average scores.
Locals had more to say about areas they rated ‘poor’ or ‘needs work’ however, with the range of shops in the High St having the worst negative rating at 62%. Housing, the state of local playparks, work prospects, street cleansing and communication on local issues also scored poorly.
When asked what brings the greatest feeling of pride in the town, the top response was Cowdenbeath Gala at 44%, with the town’s murals and public art scoring 41% and the sense of community spirit at 25%.
There was also wide support for improvements to the High Street public realm (96%) and the public park (91%) together with a host of other ideas and suggestions put forward.
The local community firmly rejected any plans for the introduction of parking charges in the town, with 65% opposed to any move to change Cowdenbeath’s free parking.
Stuart said there would be a chance for young people to be involved next, with plans for a special campaign focussing on their opinions, “We adapted this first exercise to focus primarily on adults but we have ideas for a special project focussing on young people in the area over the next few months. We hope all the local youngsters will be just as keen to have their say and take part as the adults have been!”
The research also found three quarters of respondents were supportive of My Cowdenbeath community development group being established for the town, with 75% behind the group and 68% in favour of the 5 main themes, outlined on their website. The research project was funded by a contribution from 4 Winds and the Maxwell Centre Advisory Group.
The research is available for all local groups to download and use to help them develop the case for projects or improvements in the local community, with one of the first objectives to establish a small working group to oversee plans for the Cowdenbeath Community Action Plan 2024-30, to replace the previous outdated plan by Coalfields Regeneration Trust developed in 2018.
If you have any questions about the research or want to get involved in any projects, please email info@mycowdenbeath.scot with your details.
My Cowdenbeath CIC 