Social Audit... Research Findings - Local Environment

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2.8         2.8    The Local Environment      

One of the key themes to have emerged from the research is that many residents clearly place great value on the particular qualities of their local built and natural environment.  

The Built Environment   back   return to top of page

A number of interviewees noted that the Cwmparc, Treorchy and Ynsywen area had a rich social, economic and cultural history which was reflected in the areas physical fabric and in particular in a number of imposing buildings constructed at the turn of the century (e.g. the Abergorki Hall, the Parc and Dare).

However, unfortunately many of these buildings are in poor condition and in need of renovation . Many interviewees felt that this state of affairs constituted a waste of one of the areas key attributes and argued a concerted effort be made to recognise and promote the area’s unique history. 

Suggestions ranged from incremental measures such as plaques commemorating the birthplaces of famous local people or events to more major schemes such as the establishment of a town trail or heritage centre which could link in with similar developments in Trehafod and even Cardiff Bay. This it was felt would not only be a source of enrichment for the local community but could play a key role in the areas economic regeneration through the promotion of heritage tourism and educational visits. 

The experience of Treorchy.net appears to suggest that there is both internal and external interest in the area and its history. An online living/oral history project has generated considerable local interest from individuals wanting to place contributions and read others contributions whilst the website’s guestbook regularly receives comments from as far a field as the United States (often from the descendants of emigrants from the area).

The Natural Environment   back   return to top of page

As is described above the condition of the immediate built environment, the fly tipping of rubbish and dumping of burnt out cars in green areas was a frequent source of complaint. However, many individuals also expressed the view that the natural environment was a key local asset where people could engage in recreational activities that are for the most part free of charge. 

Local hills were a place where residents exercised their dogs, enjoyed the local wildlife, or went for long walks to simply enjoy the scenery. For local children the natural environment offers an opportunity for free play that is lacking for their counterparts in more built up areas. 

As can be seen from the following comments collected during a series of focus groups with 8-15 year olds “the mountains” were routinely regarded as one of the best things about the area, particularly during the summer holidays:  

“its a free place you can go where you want ....... there is lots of places to play”

“in the summer we make secret dens up on the mountains”

“we get a river and dam it up and swim in it”

“you can take your dogs for a walk”

“there is a bike track up there that we built ourselves .....its all downhill with ramps and drops and that”

“we go camping in up there in the summer....loads of us some in tents some just roughing it.....we just go up there and mess about”

“you can go on bike rides up the mountain and go fishing for trout in the river”  

In the same way that the area’s unique economic, social and cultural heritage was felt to be something that could play a key role in the areas economic regeneration, some respondents also expressed the view that the natural environment could also be something that could be used to attract tourists or field study trips,  (it was reported for example that the Cwm at the head of Cwmparc is the southernmost in Britain and that it possesses flora which is unique to the area). 

It was also the case that some of the young people expressed considerable interest in outdoor pursuits such as rock climbing or mountaineering. In this context one suggestion was that an outdoor pursuit/field study centre could be opened in the area.  

Conclusion 13:  

Although residents identify problems in their local built and natural environment many also see the aspects of the environment as key local assets . These aspects of the environment are central to the quality of life in the area but are currently under developed in terms of their potential contribution to such key issues as the provision of recreational facilities and economic regeneration  

Recommendation 11: 

That the regeneration group initiate feasibility studies to explore the potential development of a heritage centre/trail, outdoor pursuits/field study centre and a bike track. These studies should consider whether these enterprises could be established as community businesses employing or owned by local people/groups.  

Despite this very positive evaluation of both the built and natural environment there are clear concerns shared by residents about a range of environmental issues. A wide range of issues emerged in the focus groups, in interviews and in the survey responses to relevant questions. The questionnaire survey included a question which asked respondents to rate the seriousness of a number of potential issues in the local built environment. Here responses focused primarily on issues of dog fouling and litter which although ostensibly minor were felt to exert a profoundly negative effect upon the area’s general appearance. As can be seen in Table 13 these issues ranked first and second respectively in the big problems identified by respondents.  

Table 13: Respondents Views Of “Big Problems” In Their Local Environment.  

Concern about the areas general appearance and upkeep also featured strongly in responses to qualitative aspects of the research. Here there was particular concern about problems with litter and fly tipping, contributing to a general “shabbiness” in the areas appearance :

“General appearances matter….if its shabby then there is no respect - a pleasanter environment means that people will not litter and dump household stuff”

“Stop fly tipping!”

“Fly tipping is the biggest problem”

“……bathroom suites …everything is dumped. By Forestry House there are beds dumped, rubbish bags, fridges, TVs”  

The immediate blame for these problems tended to be divided between the local authority who were perceived as failing in their duty to provide adequate street cleaning services and a minority of residents who actually dropped the litter/fly tipped.  

“there’s no cleaning of roads and back lanes. There used to be three road sweepers …..there is none now….. just young boys picking litter”

“They just tip their rubbish out the back”

Although, derelict buildings did not feature strongly as an issue in the survey results it did feature in the community visioning events in Treorchy and Ynyswen where concern was expressed about the presence of boarded up shops on the high street and empty properties in residential areas:

“the council need to take action against absentee landlords. Improvement notices were served two years ago but there has been no action……its supposed to take six months then action but there has been nothing”

“they need to clean up the run down shops in Treorchy and the boarded up shops …..the owners need to be contacted and the shops repossessed.”

However, underlying residents statements about the appearance of their area was the pervasive view that the areas appearance reflected a sustained neglect and lack of investment by wider government agencies which focused their concern (and investment) on Cardiff:  

“you need to travel outside the Rhondda to get a tidy environment”

“where we are living up here we are out of sight and out of mind”

“the biggest thing is most of the money spent by the government goes to Cardiff. They don’t need bettering .....we need bettering!”.    

The Back Lanes   back   return to top of page

A major source of resident’s complaint that was not covered in the questionnaire survey was the condition of the lanes that are situated at the rear of much of the housing in Cwmparc, Treorchy and Ynyswen. 

From the outset it should be stated that these lanes are classed as being “unadopted” which essentially means that they are not owned by the council. 

Because of this it has been reported to the research team that the district auditor bars the local authority from expenditure on the lanes, which it is claimed would ultimately amount to the spending public money on the upkeep of private property. 

However, for many residents the condition of the back lanes constituted the major environmental issue in their area. Indeed some felt so strongly about the back lanes that they attended the community visioning events solely to voice their opinion on this subject. The main areas of complaint fell into two main categories. First that the build up of litter and fly tipping in these areas had created local eyesores and in some instances problems with vermin infestation: 

“the back lanes in front of the church have never been done…..they are terrible”

“the back lanes are horrific - there will be a real problem with rats”  

The second major area of complaint related to the accessibility and usefulness of the lanes in the condition that they are in. For example, some residents reported that their back lanes had become so overgrown with weeds, so strewn with rubbish or so rutted that they had effectively become impassable for ordinary motor vehicles:  

“Tarmacing of the lanes in Brynhyfryd Street needs to be done ASAP. This is the 21^st Century!”

“Holes in the surface of the lanes….it’s like an obstacle course”  

Indeed there were some instances there were some reported instances where heavy vehicles such as coal lorries or fire engines had found the lanes to be impassable. Furthermore some respondents claimed that the condition of the lanes meant that they were unable to make use of garages which they had constructed at the rear of their properties. 

This meant that they were forced to park their cars on the road, leaving them vulnerable to theft and vandalism (see section 3.3) and exacerbating problems associated with parking and access described in (section 3.7). Finally the third area of complaint was that the back lanes were having a direct effect on the value of properties whether in terms of the visual effects on the value or through damage caused by flash flooding as a result of culverts becoming overgrown:  

“rainwater run off is coming through the garages ….. if nothing else we need drainage channels….there are culverts there but they are so overgrown you can’t see them”

“the lanes behind the houses ….they affect house prices”  

Conclusion 14: 

The condition of the back lanes is therefore something that is considered to be a serious problem by many residents. Instead of playing a key role in alleviating problems relating to parking, vandalism/theft of cars and access difficulties they have become an eyesore and a negative influence on the quality of life.  

A number of related activities can be identified to improve this situation both in the short and medium term. Unfortunately, the issue of adoption of the lanes by the local authority is the only long-term solution but this legal procedure is beyond the remit of the Regeneration Group although it should maintain pressure on the authority to pursue this solution. In the shorter term a number of related activities could be pursued.  

Recommendation 12: 

The Regeneration Group should encourage use of local authority initiatives such as “waste busters” and where necessary maintain pressure on the local authority to meet its statutory obligations to clear fly tipping and other nuisance materials.

The Regeneration Group should promote organised litter picking activities to both clear the areas identified and promote greater local responsibility on the part of residents. The Health and Safety implications of this activity should be fully explored prior to its implementation.

The Regeneration Group should explore with residents a shared cost scheme for the improvement of the back lanes. Individual household costs may be low enough to be offset by improved property values.

Damage to the natural environment   back   return to top of page

Elements of the qualitative research were conducted during and in the immediate aftermath of an extremely dry springtime which in turn produced a wave of forest and grass fires. Although these fires affected the whole of the South Wales area the Rhondda Valleys were particularly badly affected and it is therefore unsurprising that this issue dominated discussion of the damage that was caused to the natural environment. For example, the following comments were recorded during focus groups with local young people:

“most of the mountains are black because of the fires”

“stop the fires ...they’re spoiling the view”

“there's too many fires”

“older kids make fires...its dangerous for wildlife...a horse got burnt and nearly died”

“there's been more deaths to animals than at any time”  

However, many respondents also expressed concern about the more mundane and routine types of damage to the natural environment such as littering, fly tipping and dumping of burnt out vehicles in local beauty spots or the dumping of rubbish in the rivers. Whilst specific issues have been identified above it is also clear that a general concern for the environment should be reflected in all the actions of the Regeneration group. 

The physical environment is a key component of any regeneration process and there are strong links between poor environment, crime, nuisance behaviours and anti-social behaviours. Degraded environments do not promote civic responsibility and social commitment to the area. They have the opposite effect and can contribute significantly to the poor image and reputation of a community and add to other stigmatising influences to discourage investment in an area.  

Conclusion 15: 

There is clear concern amongst residents about the condition of the local built environment in terms of issues such as litter, dog mess and fly tipping. The cleanliness, appearance, usefulness and effective dereliction of back lanes is a source of particular anger for many local residents. Additionally there is also concern about damage caused to the natural environment by fires, fly tipping, plastic wastes in the rivers and general vandalism.

Recommendation 13: 

That the physical regeneration of the area is incorporated as a key aspect of the wider process of regeneration. The process of physical regeneration should include the development of waste and/or under utilised sites as leisure amenities (e.g. walks picnic areas) and a sustained programme of clearance of litter/fly tipping blackspots.

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