What is community and how can yours be better?

‘Local community’ is a term that will mean different things to different people. Now, a newly published survey has distilled the notion for those over 50 and how local communities can be improved.

For those under 50, the concept of community might entail local school families, parenting groups or sporting clubs. That will remain true for some over-50s, but, for many, the concept changes as we get a little older.

With that change in concept will come a change in expectations of what you can do for your local community, and what that community can do for you.

With this in mind, National Seniors Australia (NSA) commissioned a survey of more than 3000 Australians, asking each of them four questions. Using the answers NSA compiled a community ‘wish list’ for older Australians.

The four questions

A survey that asks only four questions may seem a little shallow, but it does have the advantage of keeping participants focused. And if the questions are good ones, the results are likely to be more insightful.

The four questions posed to respondents in this NSA survey were:

1. Do you think actively participating in a community can improve a person’s quality of life?
2. How would you define your community?
3. Does your community offer older people a good quality of life?
4. What needs to change in your community to improve your quality of life?

Perhaps unsurprisingly, participants found the second question the most difficult to answer. Of those who did answer it, nearly two-thirds defined it using geographical terms such as town or suburb. A smaller proportion referred to people networks (such as parenting groups) or formal groups (a sports club, for example).

Eighty per cent of those surveyed thought participating in community improved life quality. However, only a little over half of respondents thought their community provided a good quality of life.

The local community wish list

As might be expected of a survey of more than 3000 participants, a large and diverse range of suggestions were proffered. The NSA combined these into 15 major wish-list categories:

1. transport and pathways
2. accessibility
3. information and communication
4. health services
5. local facilities
6. activities and socialising
7. housing
8. aged care
9. development and population
10. green spaces and environment
11. crime and public safety
12. money and discounts
13. job opportunities
14. attitudes and local culture
15. better government.

Even reduced to 15 categories, the summary of suggestions is broad. Some of the items on the list will require input or action from higher levels government. Others might be tackled more easily locally.

Wish number six – activities and socialising – provides one such example. Responses in that category included ones such as this: “More seniors activities. Not easy to find locally.” And another: “More weekend activities for the older workers to participate in.”

Responding to such requests may require a dedicated resource, or could be incorporated into existing facilities. For example, my local cricket club has in recent years introduced an over-50s side that plays fortnightly.

Those wishing to find out more about the survey can do so by viewing the full NSA report.

How do you define community? Are there ways yours could be improved? Let us know in the comments section below.

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