Potholes and parking replace crime as topic that most concerns residents

A study has looked at what worries Macclesfield residents the most compared to 25 years ago - with potholes and parking now ranking highest. The research, by academics at Keele University, was also carried out in the late 1990s.

A quarter of a century ago it found crime including burglary and robbery, was a major concern but now this has been replaced by failing infrastructure, future prospects for the town centre.

Respondents also listed a raft of car related issues such as the condition of roads and pavements, poor or unsafe parking, speeding and driver behaviour near schools.

Dr Evi Girling, a senior research fellow in criminology who lead the study, said: “In the 1990s, people in Macclesfield expressed a wide range of concerns, some of which reflected problems that were high on the public agenda nationally at that time.

“These included worries about burglary, car theft, and drugs and anti-social behaviour, especially around licensed premises and about groups of young people in public spaces.

“Our new study shows that those worries have not gone away, but they are today less prominent in what people tell us about what it is like to live in and feel safe in this town.

“For most of our participants, crime was not at the forefront of their accounts of concerns about the town and their ability to imagine a secure future there.”

The study also revealed what Macc residents most value about the town.

Its heritage, connectivity to other urban centres and its proximity to beautiful countryside were listed.

They considered the town a relatively safe place to live and to raise a family in.

The study was called Place Crime and Insecurity in Everyday Life, and was funded by the Economic and Social Research Council

Professor Ian Loader, from the University of Oxford, who were also involved, said: “People’s attention nowadays seems more focused on a range of harms that we might broadly term environmental.

“Acts of care and repair of the physical and natural environment are a prominent feature.”

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