Cost of Living Survey

We recently wrote to a selection of residents in both Stourport and parts of Kidderminster, seeking views on cost of living.

Overwhelmingly, 98% of respondents said that cost of living had increased by 'a lot' or 'a little', with a very small proportion saying it has stayed the same or gone down.

With the RPI and the CPI inflation indices at record lows, the reality in Wyre Forest is that people are feeling the pinch under the current recession.

When asked which aspects of regular expenses is causing the problems, 56% stated that utility bills were the worse concerns, 23% complaining about food prices, 16% worried about petrol and diesel prices and the remainder worried about mortgages and rent.

These results were reinforced with the answers to specific motorist issues, with nearly a half worried about fuel costs, a quarter concerned about car tax, whilst the remainder were equally concerned about insurance and speed cameras.

The effects of these increased costs are that people are cutting back. 21% of respondents are now going out less often; 24% changing to cheaper brands; 24% cutting out on luxuries. 16% are using the car less often and 15% are cutting down on holidays.

Worryingly, people are saving less. Nearly two thirds of respondents are no longer saving or have cut back on savings, while just a quarter are still maintaining their savings. 15% were not saving in the first place.

The replies to our survey also asked for comments on matters not covered by the questionnaire.

The biggest group of people who took the trouble to add comments were worried about issues surrounding local transport and the state of local road surfaces. Moreover, a number of people mentioned the need for improved infrastructure in the south of the Wyre Forest district - specifically a by-pass for Stourport. Mark Garnier has been committed to securing funding for the much needed Stourport Relief Road since first becoming Wyre Forest's Parliamentary spokesman in 2004.

Second most popular topic was local policing and antisocial behaviour - a regular feature of local surveys. However, evidence suggests that residents welcome the local PACT initiative and this is being used as a line of communication between residents and local police.

Tax and the economy featured as the third greatest area for comment, followed by concerns over the poor deal for pensioners, environmental issues and - a regular area for concern - immigration.

Thank you to all who took part in the surveys.