This report draws on the following components of the Community Appraisal:
27% of adult parishioners are aged 65+. This gives an estimated 21.3% of the Isle of Wedmore’s total population aged 65 and over. This is considerably higher than the national average, which is 15.9%, and even higher than the averages for Sedgemoor (19.1%), Somerset (19.4%) and the South West as a whole (18.6%). This means that this age group is, 34% higher as a proportion of the population of the Isle of Wedmore, when compared to their proportion of the national population.
A majority of those in the lowest income group (53%) are aged 65 and over. However, nearly a third (30%) of the highest income group were also 65+, with only 8% of the middle income group being in this age bracket. This indicates a polarisation in this age group between the wealthy and those who are possibly living on little more than the state pension. This polarisation is echoed in the top and bottom socio-economic groupings, and represents vital information for guidance on planning for the needs of elderly people in our community - especially in respect of housing , health and social services.
Wedmore village itself has a significantly older age profile than the rest of the parish, with 30% being aged 65+, whilst this drops to 18% in the outlying villages.
Not surprisingly, those who have lived here the longest - over thirty years - are much more likely to be aged 65+, 41% of them in fact, whilst only 10% of those having moved here within the last five years are aged 65 and over. This may indicate that the rate of people '‘retiring'’ to Wedmore may be slowing down, in favour of an accelerated influx of young families with children - without historical trend data this is hard to ascertain.
In common with all other groups within the Parish of Wedmore, elderly people are utterly dismayed by the traffic situation in the villages. Along with parents of young children, they are the group most deeply concerned about safety on the roads.
More than any other group, they are concerned about housing provision for local people - not just sheltered housing and nursing homes for themselves, but also affordable housing for younger people (in many cases, their own adult children).
They are deeply grateful for, and enthusiastic about, the excellent provision, as they see it, of retail, health, social services and community services such as the Day Centre and the Community Bus. Also, they much appreciate the range of leisure interests that can be pursued via the various clubs, societies and sports available. In short, they feel they are extremely lucky to live in Wedmore, which is why they do not want to have to move out of the village once they are too old or infirm to live alone, or if their family homes become too big for them to manage.
People aged over 65 are more likely than the parish as whole to be ‘extremely concerned’ about the following road traffic issues:
| Issue | Rank | "Extremely concerned" - all parish | "Extremely concerned" - aged 65+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parked cars on blind bends and hills | 1 | 70% | 77% |
| HGVs in the villages | 2 | 69% | 75% |
| Speeding vehicles | 3 | 65% | 70% |
| Parked cars causing congestion | 4 | 48% | 57% |
| Lack of pavements | 5 | 44% | 48% |
| Traffic fumes | 6 | 26% | 32% |
| Traffic noise | 7 | 23% | 27% |
And they are more likely than the parish population as a whole to agree with the following road traffic improvements in the villages:
| Improvement | Rank | All agree | Aged 65+ agree |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ban HGVs except for access | 1 | 75% | 77% |
| One-way system | 2 | 64% | 72% |
| 20 mph speed limit in Wedmore | 3 | 64% | 65% |
| 40 mph speed limit Wedmore to Clewer | 4 | 57% | 61% |
| Disabled parking | 5 | 53% | 59% |
| 40 mph speed limit Wedmore to Blackford | 6 | 56% | 64% |
Elderly women had a different view on the core traffic problems in Wedmore than did elderly men, as illustrated by these excerpts from the two focus groups:
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So, the women want some practical action on the ground to make crossing the road safer, and they are very adamant about the need for a car park in Wedmore. The men take a more philosophical ( and gloomy) view - believing that the menace of the motor vehicle is here to stay, at least until petrol costs price most people out of the market, and that drivers take no notice of speed limits and pinch points anyway.
99% of people aged 65 and over, who think that the Isle of Wedmore needs any new housing, believe that the parish needs sheltered housing provision for the elderly, and 95% of all adults in the same category also believe this. No real surprise there, but 58% also feel that this is important for the whole community, not just for themselves (50% of all adults also agreed that it is important for the whole community).
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93% of them also feel that Wedmore needs a nursing home for the elderly, compared to 87% of all Wedmore adults who feel the same. Again, about half of these feel that this would be important for the whole community - perhaps because it might help to keep different generations of the same family together. Above all, it would enable those who have lived here all their lives to remain in their own community, near to family and friends. There was some dismay over the fact that Elmsett Hall has closed.
In addition to looking forward to their own imminent housing needs, our 65+ year olds also felt strongly that there should be more low-cost housing provision for young first-time buyers. 96% felt that the Isle of Wedmore needs this, as did 96% of all adults in the parish.
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47% of the 65+ age group feel that Wedmore needs no new housing (compared to 43% of all adults). They are more likely than other adults to give as their reasons that Wedmore is already too crowded, and that larger communities in Sedgemoor should accommodate any new housing requirements.
Indeed, this age group is most likely to be against any development in the villages. Broadly in line with all Wedmore adults, 80% of them would like Wedmore to stay the size it is, and 58% would be happy if there were no expansion of the village boundaries. The surrounding countryside is important to them, and their least preferred farmland diversification route would be: housing estates (only 2% of over-65s strongly agree with this suggestion).
Clearly, there needs to be some reconciliation between the apparently opposing views - viz. sheltered housing and low-cost housing are badly needed; but these must be achieved with no enlargement of the Isle of Wedmore, and with no boundary changes to expand it!
Elderly people in the Isle of Wedmore are significantly more concerned than other adults about the twin issues of crime and anti-social behaviour. However, their actual direct experience of crime and anti-social behaviour is, fortunately, generally lower than that of other adults living in the parish.
This means that elderly people believe that they are threatened by the possibility of becoming a victim of crime, but in fact only a tiny minority have actually been affected, especially the more serious crimes such as violence and mugging (none had been affected) and alcohol and drug abuse (less than 1% had been affected). Sadly, when it comes to the most common crime in Wedmore - house burglary - it seems that all sectors of the community are affected to a similar extent:
| Crime/anti-social behaviour, in rank order of "concern" | All extremely concerned | Aged 65+ extremely concerned | All personally affected | Aged 65+ personally affected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| House burglary | 64% | 73% | 16% | 15% |
| Under-age drinking | 61% | 71% | 9% | 2% |
| Drug abuse | 60% | 67% | 1% | Less than 1% |
| Alcohol abuse | 54% | 61% | 3% | 1% |
| Vandalism/graffiti | 52% | 62% | 5% | 5% |
| Vehicle crime | 51% | 56% | 12% | 5% |
| Dog fouling | 49% | 54% | 15% | 10% |
| Litter | 41% | 51% | 12% | 7% |
| Violence to the person | 51% | 62% | 1% | None |
| Theft from person (mugging) | 51% | 61% | 1% | None |
| Theft/damage of farm equip. | 47% | 51% | 3% | 2% |
| Noise disturbance(not traffic) | 25% | 32% | 14% | 8% |
In reality they are, broadly, unaffected by crime, as such; but are very affected by anti-social behaviour. After house burglary, they are most directly affected by dog fouling (as is the rest of the community), followed by noise disturbance, largely from young people roaming the streets at night. The elderly ladies’ focus group had quite a lot to say on the subject. The conversation started on an "extremely concerned" note:
"I wouldn’t feel safe walking around at night"
"No, not late at night."
"I’d be worried about the pub"
"And drugs"
"Maggie had her handbag taken off her at night"
"People rushing past you. I am not as steady on my feet"
"I know somebody who got some money out of the bank, came out and his wallet was gone"
But, as they warmed to the subject, they began to realise that, perhaps, things weren’t quite a dark as they had painted them:
"I’m not worried about being mugged in Wedmore, although I do know someone who had things taken from their car"
"I don’t feel worried, I feel quite happy in Wedmore. Our crime rate is very low here"
"There’s no violence - it’s more boisterousness"
"I must say the youth I come across are usually very polite and friendly"
They felt that the young people of Wedmore have no facilities, and nowhere to go:
"I do think that something we need for the village is somewhere for the teenagers to go. I know I am old, but I feel sorry for them."
"Make a skateboarding park, say up at the top of the field. If they can put one up in the square in Wells, why can’t they put one up in Wedmore, permanently?"
However, they also blamed local publicans for the underage drinking, and felt - quite strongly - that parents were at fault for giving their children plenty of cash and letting them roam the streets unsupervised:
"The Swan has a rave on a Friday night once a month and the parents are supposed to be there looking after them. They just set up the bar and let them go around the village"
"It’s our own young people doing all the vandalism, unfortunately. Their parents aren’t interested in what their youngsters get up to"
"They are leaving their children to get on with it. They perhaps don’t worry if they don’t get home until later"
"But we do get a lot of young people, especially when the pubs close"
"I think we should do what they do in America. Over there, in some towns, they have a curfew up to 10.30pm. After that all the kids under the age of 18 have to be off the streets or else."
"You should see what they’ve done to the village hall. The social services supplied us with padded chairs and they have been slashed, the wooden armpieces unscrewed. I mean, it takes a job to unscrew an armpiece."
In summary, elderly people are largely unaffected by serious crime( except burglary)and, on reflection, they concede this. But they find a range of anti-social behaviour damaging their lives, or making them feel threatened. Most notably:
Their preferred solutions to these problems are:
| More visible policing | 90% |
| Neighbourhood Watch | 88% |
| Police to enforce drinking age limit | 87% |
| Improve youth facilities | 82% |
| Enforce dog fouling laws | 79% |
| Drug/drink education and prevention | 79% |
Although 82% wanted youth facilities improved, only 30% endorsed the idea of a skatepark (the number one request from teenagers in the villages), preferring the idea of ‘art and drama after school’.
96% of elderly people ever use a car (98% for all adults in the parish), the remaining four per cent always use the bus or the Community Bus. 45% of this age group ever use the Community Bus (compared to 35% who ever use the public bus. Of these, 71% use the service for shopping). All those who regularly use the Community Bus are deeply grateful for it:
"Tuesday, Taunton; Wednesday is Bridgwater; Thursday is Weston and Friday is Street. You ring up the night before to book your seat"
"Yes. If you want to get some shopping"
"The service of the community bus is absolutely essential to the older residents of Wedmore."
"The community bus is a great asset. Perhaps more drivers could be encouraged to come forward."
"Increase awareness that the community bus can be hired privately".
"I would just like to say the community bus is a life saver. We are truly grateful to the council and volunteer drivers who provide us with this wonderful service. Long may it continue."
Although the elderly ladies in the focus group declared themselves reasonably happy with the public bus service (elderly men all appeared to use only their cars), in the main survey, a majority of the group aged 65+ felt that there was a need for improvement in the service:
| Improvement (in order of importance ) | % aged 65+ who thought it necessary |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 68% |
| Wheelchair access | 67% |
| Reliability | 65% |
| Destination | 63% |
| Departure/arrival times | 61% |
| Ticket prices | 55% |
Perhaps surprisingly, for this group, price was the least important factor. Perhaps the reason that only 4% always use the public bus is that such a large majority feel that the service is inadequate in such fundamental ways.
The countryside surrounding the Isle of Wedmore is important to 98% of people aged 65+ (the identical percentage applies to all the adults in the community). Elderly people’s views on how the Isle of Wedmore’s environment could be improved were also broadly in line with the rest of the adult community. The following items were given particular importance by this age group:
| Changes that would improve the environment | % aged 65+ strongly agreeing |
|---|---|
| Lorry ban | 68% |
| Increase recycling | 58% |
| Plant trees/hedges/wildflower meadows | 55% |
| Ban new building on agricultural land | 45% |
| Build a by-pass | 42% |
| Limit the use of agro-chemicals | 41% |
89% of people aged 65+ use the Wedmore surgery (compared to 84% for all parish adults), and 47% use a Wedmore chiropodist.
Social services are particularly appreciated for providing the Day Centre, exclusively attended by elderly ladies.
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And there is nothing but praise and gratitude for the excellent range of health services that are available within the village:
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In the focus groups, the elderly ladies, in particular, were delighted with the wide range of shops available to them within walking distance. Many of them could remember Wedmore’s retail past:
"When I first came here it was a grocery shop"
"And then it was a greengrocer"
"The gift shop used to be a chemist"
"The chemist now, used to be a grocers. Before that it used to be a drapers"
"Where Mrs Metters used to be, that used to be a greengrocers and a barbers."
"Most villages have a shop and a post office and that’s it"
"It is most unusual to have as many shops and the variety and still be a village"
Some of them would like delivery, to save them having to walk back up the village carrying a heavy load of shopping (or bring the car, thus increasing the congestion), and they would all like pedestrian crossings to help them get to Pisces/Sally’s and to the Post Office.
These are the top-scoring Wedmore outlets which people aged 65+ use always, and which they consider vital to keep in the village. In other words, shops that they depend on:
| Outlet | Aged 65+ always use | Aged 65+ consider vital |
|---|---|---|
| Paper Shop | 78% | 96% |
| Post Office | 70% | 98% |
| Chemist | 63% | 92% |
| Butchers | 45% | 92% |
| Hair/beauty salons | 40% | 69% |
| Bakery | 37% | 94%. |
The most popular potential additional retail services with this age group are a farmers’ market (76% would ever use) and farm shops (71% would ever use).
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