SD36 - Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council

fear of crime, with general levels well in excess of corresponding
statistics from the British Crime Survey.
Recorded crime figures published in Safer Blaenau Gwent
Partnership Strategic Assessment 2008-2009 show that the ward of
Tredegar Central & West have high levels of crime. In particular
motor vehicle related crime, violent crime and criminal damage.
Anti social behaviour is a primary concern to all communities in
Blaenau Gwent. Reducing harm caused by alcohol is a national and
local priority as there is a strong causal link to other priorities such
as violent crime and anti social behaviour.
Youth related incidents reported to Gwent Police account for 50% of
all rowdy/nuisance behaviour calls, which in turn account for 73% if
incidents reported to Gwent Police in the period Oct 06-Sept 07.
However no correlation has been found between trends in rowdy
behaviour and criminal damage or any strong match with school
exclusion data. However, it should be noted that school exclusion
data relates to the location of the school not the pupil’s home
address.
Recent figures from the Office for National Statistics show that men
and women living in Blaenau Gwent have the lowest chance of
survival to the age of 75 compared with other area in Wales. The
survival rate for men is 59.6% in Blaenau Gwent compared to
70.6% in Ceredigion and for women 67.4% compared to
Monmouthshire at 80.9%. Sadly the survival rate for women in
Blaenau Gwent is the lowest in the whole of England and Wales.
Lifelong Learning: Data relating to education, skills and
qualifications in the area indicates a considerable disparity between
Blaenau Gwent and South East Wales and Wales. In Blaenau
Gwent, the proportion of people holding NVQ level 2, or above in
2003 was 41% compared to 43% for South East Wales and 60% for
Wales. The situation is far worse in terms of the proportion of
people holding the higher level 4 qualification or above: 10% for
Blaenau Gwent compared to 17% and 23% for South East Wales
and Wales respectively.
There is also a lower percentage of the population achieving a level
4/5 qualification (such as degree, HNC, HND) with only 14% in
Blaenau Gwent compared to the Welsh average of 17%. Latest
statistics also show that there was a lower proportion of 19 year
olds with 5 GCSE’s (A*-C), with 43% achieving this compared to the
Welsh average of 56%.
Surveys show that most adults would like to be involved in learning,
but experience some barriers that stop them. The majority of
employers who recruit school or college leavers report a significant
skills gap.
An appealing and coherent tourism and leisure experience
Despite the rich industrial heritage of the locality, there are very few
members of the population that identify themselves as Welsh,
rather than British (12% according to 2001 Census). The use of the
Welsh language in Blaenau Gwent is relatively low, when compared
to Wales as a whole and other authorities.
However, there is a distinctive ‘valleys’ culture apparent in the
Blaenau Gwent area – this has developed from a strong sense of
community and social networks that are not linked to the Welsh
language.
12