The Economic Growth Strategy

Please find below the results of both the main and easy read consultation surveys. These are being considered to amend and finalise the Economic Growth Strategy.

The Strategy will be considered at a Public Cabinet meeting and the decision and final outcome will be shared on Ask Bexley in the next phase.

Summary of Consultation Results 

The survey produced the following headline results regarding the Economic Growth Strategy: 

• 66% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed with the strategic outcomes of the strategy. 
• 63% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed with the guiding principles of the strategy. 

The most common comments made by respondents included: 

• Multiple expressions for support of the approach set out in the strategy 
• The need to have appropriate metrics to measure success and a monitoring regime 
• The importance of working with delivery partners and the community 
• The importance of improved public transport connections 
• The need to enhance the boroughs town centres 
• The need to look beyond the boroughs grammar schools when addressing education 
• The importance of housing development in meeting local need and driving investment in the borough 
• Concerns around the sustainability of increasing growth including its impact on finite resources, the climate and biodiversity 
• The importance taking advantage of Bexley riverside and its associated infrastructure 

The survey also asked a number of questions regarding employment and skills.  

• In terms of the skills considered to be needed to support economic growth the most popular responses were: 
• technical and professional qualifications with (68% of responses)  
• green and carbon reduction skills (53% of responses)  
• language and communication skills (47% of responses) 
• When asked about their confidence in Bexley’s schools and colleges delivering the skills needed for the future, comments were very mixed and balanced with both confidence and those not confident. 
• When asked about the barriers to learners achieving their career goals, the most popular responses were: 
• lack of knowledge of what good jobs are available (selected by 48% of responses)  
• housing affordability (42% of responses)   
• lack of qualifications (37% of responses) 

The survey also asked about how cultural activities.  

• The most popular barrier to attending cultural events was lack of awareness.  

When asked how cultural activities could be better supported, respondents most frequently emphasised: 

• the need for increased funding to better support cultural activities with greater support and investment in local creative businesses and community groups.   
• better engagement with the community, voluntary, and education sectors, rather than focusing on a single institution. 

East Read Responses 

The ‘easy read’ survey aimed to make the consultation more accessible by presenting a simplified questionnaire. It did this by setting out a series of propositions on the broad issued raised by the strategy and asking respondents to indicate whether they thought these were ‘very good’, ‘good’, ‘ok’, ‘bad’ or ‘very bad’. A summary of responses to each proposition is set out below. 

•  We want more businesses to invest in Bexley - Very good 56%, good 30%, ok 11%, bad 0%, very bad 4%.   
• We want more houses to be built in Bexley. We want people to have a choice for where they live - Very good 36%, good 11%, ok 32%, bad 11%, very bad 11%.   
• We want Bexley to have lots of different types of businesses -Very good 48%, good 38%, ok 14%, bad 0%, very bad 0%.   
• We want our transport system to get better and more affordable - Very good 61%, good 32%, ok 7%, bad 0%, very bad 0%.  
• We want to work better with charities and partners to help Bexley grow -  
• Very good 41%, good 30%, ok 30%, bad 0%, very bad 0%. 
• We want the internet to work better and faster for residents and businesses -  
• Very good 50%, good 27%, ok 20%, bad 3%, very bad 0%.  
• We want growth to help make Bexley a fairer place for everyone - Very good 54%, good 25%, ok 18%, bad 4%, very bad 0%.  
• We want to support people to find good quality jobs - Very good 52%, good 31%, ok 17%, bad 0%, very bad 0%.  
• We want people who live in Bexley to give their views and ideas - Very good 61%, good 36%, ok 4%, bad 0%, very bad 0%.  
• We want to grow in a way that is kind to the environment -Very good 44%, good 26%, ok 26%, bad 4%, very bad 0%. 
•  We want to invest money and time in helping growth - Very good 39%, good 36%, ok 21%, bad 0%, very bad 4%.  
• We want to help businesses spend their money on projects and jobs in Bexley - Very good 52%, good 28%, ok 20%, bad 0%, very bad 0%.  
• We want to work with residents to get their ideas - Very good 50%, good 39%, ok 7%, bad 4%, very bad 0%.  
• We want to help businesses, charities and the council to work together - Very good 52%, good 34%, ok 14%, bad 0%, very bad 0%.  
• We want to help residents with their health problems as soon as we can - Very good 71%, good 21%, ok 7%, bad 0%, very bad 0%.  
• We want to improve internet and transport so that all residents can work or study - Very good 59%, good 33%, ok 7%, bad 0%, very bad 0%.  

There was also an opportunity for respondents of the ‘easy read’ survey to provide free text responses to the question ‘Do you have any other thoughts on these responses?’. The main issues raised here are summarised below: 

•  The importance of providing new affordable housing and maintaining existing stock 
• The need for new and varied town centre uses 
• The importance of preserving existing and providing new infrastructure such as health facilities and schools 
• The need for improved and affordable public transport such as rail and buses 
• The requirement to preserving green spaces for biodiversity and food production. 
• The importance of supporting existing local businesses 
• The need to invest in education to enable people to reach their full potential  
• The importance of cooperation and partnership working 
• The need to define growth in sustainable and deliverable terms