Demographic Questions

We appreciate that when you are completing a survey on the budget or waste and recycling services it may seem strange that we ask about your age, gender, ethnicity or whether you have a disability.  You may feel that the questions are irrelevant or possibly intrusive.

The reason we ask you these questions is to help us understand the needs, service use, perceptions, satisfaction, behaviour and lifestyle of different members of the community. The Council also has a duty under equalities legislation to ensure that services are delivered in a fair way to everybody in the borough. 

A person's point of view will be influenced by many things such as their life experiences, background or challenges they may face day to day.   When we consult or survey residents on changes to services or policies it is important that we consider the needs of everyone and have an understanding of potential issues.

For example: 

If we undertook a consultation on a new community centre and received a lot of negative feedback from people with a disability, knowing this would give us an opportunity to reconsider the proposal or undertake further consultation with this group to understand their point of view and make amendments accordingly. 

All questions are optional, so if you do not feel comfortable providing the information you can skip these questions. 

For more information on surveys and consultations at Maidstone Borough Council or if you are having trouble completing one of our surveys please contact: Consultation@maidstone.gov.uk