Other Issues

This section covers the remaining points raised by the questionnaire that do not fall under the main categories in the findings of the plan.

Local Business And Employment

The Swan Inn, Parson Drove – one of
many local businesses

A part of the questionnaire dealt in various ways with local employment trends and self-employment within the parish. This also impacts partly on the traffic and public transport areas. Of those that make a daily journey, 89% do so by car, while only 2% use a bus. The distance that people commute to work is also quite widespread, as shown in fig. 18.

The fact that 17% of the population work from home reflects the rural nature of the parish, but for those that do commute, the distances are widespread, as people travel to Wisbech, Peterborough, Kings Lynn or London.

The figures for employment in the village shown in fig. 19, reflect the demographics that show a substantial older population in the parish, as nearly 40% of those that stated their employment status are retired. Amongst the working population, unemployment is respectably low.

12% of the parish are self-employed or run a business within the parish, and a further seven people indicated that they intended to start a business within the parish in the next 12 months. Despite being a rural community, it seems that local business is thriving within Parson Drove.

Continued...

fig. 18 – How far do you travel to work or college?

fig. 19 – Employment status across the parish