Neighbourhood Insight for Brixton

1. Neighbourhood Insight
Brixton

2. What matters most to Brixton residents about their
neighbourhood?
• In Lambeth’s 2015 Residents Survey we asked people what makes
Lambeth a good place to live. Over a quarter each find public
transport and clean streets as the most important issues, followed by
one in five for parks and open spaces. The proportion of Brixton
residents mentioning each of these is in line with the borough
average.
• Brixton residents are more likely than residents overall to say a multi-
cultural community is important. Brixton residents are less likely than
residents overall to say that affordable decent housing, health
services and job prospects are important in making Lambeth a good
place to live.

3. What do Brixton residents say most needs improving?
• Street cleanliness is the thing residents say most needs improving,
being highlighted by over a quarter of Brixton residents.
• Addressing the level of crime is also a particular concern for Brixton
residents, being mentioned by one in five residents, significantly
higher than the overall rate for Lambeth.
• Next most in need of improvement for Brixton residents are having
affordable decent housing and activities for teenagers, in both cases
this in line with the borough average. However Brixton residents are
more likely than residents overall to say facilities for young children
need improving.

4. How do Brixton residents feel about their wellbeing?
• Brixton residents’ self-reported ratings of their general health and
mental wellbeing are generally on a par with findings for Lambeth as
a whole.
• Across Lambeth, just over one in ten residents never or hardly ever
exercise, however this rate increases to one in six among Brixton
residents, the highest level of the neighbourhood area.

5. What has changed in Brixton?
• Over four in ten Brixton residents surveyed in our Residents Survey
say their neighbourhood has improved while three in ten say it has
not changed over the last two years. Over one in seven residents
surveyed say the area has worsened in the last two years.
• The high volume of road traffic is having a negative impact on
people’s experience of Brixton town centre (Brixton Public Realm
strategy consultation)

6. What has changed for the better
• Brixton residents have a mixed view on how well the council is delivering its
community outcomes. Positively, Brixton residents are more likely than residents
overall to say the following community outcomes have got better:
• People live in, work in and visit our vibrant and creative town centres
• People take greater responsibility for their neighbourhood
• Crime reduces
• All young people having opportunities to achieve their ambitions

7. What has changed for the worse
• However, Brixton residents are more likely to say the following community
outcomes have worsened over the past year, and of the five neighbourhood
areas, Brixton residents are the most likely to think each of these outcomes have
got worse:
• Lambeth residents have more opportunities for better quality homes
• People achieve financial security
• All Lambeth communities feel they are valued and are part of their
neighbourhoods
• People are healthier for longer
• Brixton residents are more likely to say that changes are having a negative impact
on them and their family – one in ten - than any residents of any of the other 5
neighbourhoods. Over a third say the changes will have a positive impact and
three in ten say the changes will neither be positive nor negative.

8. How do Brixton residents feel about local services?
• Residents were asked to say how satisfied or dissatisfied they are with
the way the council runs things and whether they agree or disagree
that the council provides value for money.
• Brixton residents’ views are generally in line with the findings for
Lambeth overall, however Brixton residents are more likely – almost
three in ten - to disagree the council provides value for money.
• Brixton residents are generally more positive than residents overall
about their experience of contacting the council. Around three
quarters of Brixton residents say council staff are friendly and polite,
and six in ten say the council resolves problems when asked, while
over half find online services useful to them.

9. How business-friendly people feel their area is
• In the Lambeth Business Survey, Brixton businesses tend to be slightly
more optimistic about their future and their ability to grow than the
Lambeth average, with only 3% of Brixton businesses reporting a
reduction in staff over the last year.
• However a significantly lower proportion of businesses in Brixton –
three in ten think that Lambeth Council is business friendly compared
to four in ten overall.

10. How people feel about their community
• Brixton residents are the most dissatisfied of all neighbourhoods with
their local area as a place to live, with one in ten dissatisfied.
• Brixton residents appear to have a clear sense of identity with the
area. Four in five Brixton residents feel that they belong to their area,
the highest of all of the neighbourhood areas. Brixton residents, along
with residents of Streatham, are the most likely to speak highly of
their area if asked, three-quarters doing so.
• Two-thirds of Brixton residents have someone in their area they could
go to for advice and three in five of residents consider their
neighbourhood is changing for the better.

11. How we can work together
• Two in five Brixton residents say they can influence decisions affecting their area,
which is the same as the overall proportion for Lambeth.
• Brixton residents are more likely to feel that they are collaborating to make the
area better, being more likely to agree that residents work with each other to
make improvements, six in ten doing so compared to one in two across Lambeth.
• Citizens need better information about what is going on locally so that they can
feel less isolated and can do things to help themselves, with support if necessary
(Big Local)
• “One of the most significant defining features of Brixton are a number of over-
arching features: the strength of its social economy, and its cultural identity.”
(Brixton Economic Action Plan)