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Social Focus on Urban Rural Scotland 2003

chapter five: Neighbourhoods: Perceptions and Participation

Recent research provides evidence that peoples perceptions of their community and its structures and characteristics; and their social interaction, social networks and social support may contribute to economic and social benefits. This concept is commonly known as social capital. Potential benefits include better local and national economic performance, more efficient local labour markets, and higher levels of educational attainment, lower crime rates and improved health.

While there is no agreed definition of social capital, there is a general consensus towards a definition, which emphasises the strengthening of social networks.

For example, the OECD defines social capital as "networks together with shared norms, values and understandings that facilitate co-operation within or among groups".

Measuring social capital is not straight-forward. It is usually measured in social surveys, by asking about attitudes and interactions. The question set is potentially long and complicated, and its analysis does not easily convert into a single measure of 'high' or 'low' social capital. The Scottish Household Survey (SHS) includes a number of questions on social capital, and this chapter uses this information to compare indicators of social capital by urban and rural areas.

The results show that people living in rural and remote areas tended to be at the higher end of the range for the positive indicators. For example, people in rural areas are:

• more likely to do voluntary work;
• more likely to feel involved in their local community;
• more likely to feel safe when walking in their neighbourhoods in the evening; and
• less likely to experience anti-social behaviour.

Perception of their neighbourhood

The SHS defines a 'neighbourhood' as the street the people live in and the street nearby in an urban area, while in rural areas a neighbourhood is defined as the local area. People are asked to give their opinions on their neighbourhood and how they rate it. More than 9 out of 10 people in Scotland rate their neighbourhood as a very or fairly good place to live. Almost 90 per cent of people in large urban areas rate their neighbourhoods as very or fairly good, and this percentage rises to 96 per cent in remote rural areas.

What people like and dislike about their neighbourhoods

Overall people in Scotland are more likely to have aspects of their neighbourhoods they particularly like than they particularly dislike. Only 5 per cent of people said that there was nothing they particularly liked about their neighbourhood, whereas, 46 per cent of adults said there was nothing they particularly disliked.

Throughout Scotland the 'quiet and peaceful' aspect of their neighbourhood was the one aspect people particularly liked. Almost 50 per cent of people in large urban areas cited this aspect, rising to some 75 per cent in rural areas. The 'friendly people' aspect of the neighbourhood was another which people across Scotland (some 30 per cent) recognised as something they particularly liked.

There are other aspects that people like about their neighbourhoods depending on whether they live in urban or rural areas. In rural areas the 'nice landscapes/ open spaces' and 'good outlook / view' are aspects which rank highly. Whereas in urban areas 'convenient shop/ other amenities' and 'good public transport' are aspects people particularly like.

In urban areas the aspects of their neighbourhood which people particularly dislike which are cited most often are 'young people hanging about' and 'vandalism' (16 and 13 per cent of people citing these aspects respectively). Whereas in rural areas 'poor public transport' is the most commonly quoted aspect (13 per cent) that people dislike about their neighbourhoods.

Anti-social behaviour

People living in urban areas are significantly more likely to encounter anti-social behaviour than people living in rural areas. In all areas, 'groups of young people hanging about' and 'rubbish or litter' are quoted as the most commonly encountered anti-social behaviour. Some 35 per cent of people in large urban areas report these anti-social behaviours as very or fairly common - the comparable figure in remote rural areas is some 10 per cent.

Other results from the survey show that in 2001, some 10 per cent of Scottish households had property damaged by vandalism in the previous year. Some 12 per cent of households within urban areas have had property damaged by vandalism, compared to 5 per cent of households in rural areas.

Perception of crime

People's perception of their neighbourhood is also governed by how safe they feel there. In 2001, some 20 per cent of people felt not particularly safe or not at all safe when walking in their local neighbourhood in the evening. People in rural areas and small towns are more likely to feel safe when walking in their local neighbourhood in the evening.

Results from the Scottish Crime Survey (SCS) show the proportion of people feeling unsafe walking alone in their area after dark falling from 39 per cent in 1993 and 35 per cent in 1996 to 28 per cent in 2000.

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