Borders Railway Baseline Study - Final Report

Appendix G Business Survey

Borders Rail Baseline Study Business Survey

Introduction

The Borders Railway will begin operation on the 6^th September 2015. There will be regular train services between Tweedbank and Edinburgh, calling at new stations at Galashiels, Stow, Gorebridge, Newtongrange, Eskbank and Shawfair.

The Scottish Government is undertaking research to investigate the impacts of the Borders Railway on the communities in Midlothian and the Scottish Borders served by these new services. As part of this, it is important that a picture is built up of business conditions in these areas, before services commence.

This survey is aimed at businesses across the potential catchment area of the new line and aims to establish:

background information about your business and its recent performance;
awareness of the new rail line;
whether the new line is expected to impact on future business performance;
whether the line will impact on employment decisions;
your employees’ current commuting and business travel patterns; and
your business’s current access to suppliers and customers.

This survey should take no longer than 15 minutes to complete.

This exercise may be repeated in a number of years and compared with the results from the present day, allowing the impacts of the new line on business performance to be determined.

If you have any queries regarding the survey please contact:
bordersrailwaysurvey@peterbrett.com

Background information

Q1 What is the name of your business? _______________________________________________________

Q2 What is your role in the organisation?_____________________________________________________

Q3 What is the primary activity of your business?
[Tick one]

Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing
Mining and quarrying
Manufacturing
Electricity, Gas, Steam and air conditioning
Water supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation activities
Construction
Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles
Transport and storage
Accommodation and food service activities
Information and communication
Financial and insurance activities
Real estate activities
Professional, scientific and technical activities
Administrative and support service activities
Public administration and defence; compulsory social security
Education
Human health and social work activities
Arts, entertainment and recreation
Tourism
Other (please specify)_____________________

Q4 Please provide the postcode for the current location of your business ______________________________________________

Q5 Is this your principal office?
[Tick one]

Yes [go to Q7]
No [go to Q6]

Q6 Please provide the postcode of your principal office _________________________________________

Q7 Do you have any other premises in Midlothian and the Scottish Borders and / or the rest of the UK?
[Tick all that apply]

Yes, Midlothian and the Scottish Borders please specify where
Yes, rest of UK please specify where, if a nationwide business then insert ‘nationwide’
No

Awareness of New Line

Q8 Were you aware of the scheduled opening of the Borders Railway before receiving notification of this survey?
[Tick one]

Q9 Do you know what the closest station to your site on the Borders Railway will be?

Yes Insert name of station __________________
No
Not sure

Business Location

Thinking about the current site of your business:

Q10 How long has your business been operating at this location?
[Tick one]

Less than 1 year (Go to Q11)
1 3 years (Go to Q11)
3 – 5 years (Go to Q11)
6 – 10 years (Go to Q11)
More than 10 years (Go to Q13)
Don’t know (Go to Q13)

Q11 Which of the following best describes your organisation’s situation with respect to this site?:[Tick one]

Relocated from elsewhere – please specify where and when ___________________
This location was opened up as part of a business expansion
Set up a new business at this location

Q12 Was the announcement regarding the opening of the Borders Railway a factor in your decision to begin operating in this area?
[Tick one]

Yes, this was the main factor in locating the business here
Yes, this was one of a number of important factors in locating the business here
Yes, this was a fairly minor factor in locating the business here
No, this was not a factor in locating the business here
Don’t know

Q13 I am going to read out a number of potential advantages/disadvantages for businesses operating in the area. Please indicate whether you consider your current location offers you a competitive advantage, a competitive disadvantage or neither, relative to your competition.
	Advantage	Disadvantage	Neither
Low rent
Higher quality premises
Expanding / thriving local area
Pleasant area to work in
Close to suppliers
High demand in the local area
Lack of competition in local area
Proximity to customer markets
Low labour costs
Wide labour catchment
Skilled / experienced local labour force
Good road links to the site
Good public transport links to the site
Easy to park / deliver
Receive state incentives / assistance
Other (please specify)_____________

Q14 What would you say is the main advantage of operating in the area?

_________________________________________________________________________________

Q15 What would you say is the main disadvantage of operating in the area?

__________________________________________________________________________________

Q16 Do you have any plans to move from, expand or contract at this site?
[Tick one]

No, stay the same as at present
Yes, expand operations on this site
Yes, contract operations on this site
Yes, relocate – please specify where ____________________________
Prefer not to say
Don’t know

Your employees

Q17 Approximately how many people does your business currently employ at your present location?
Fulltime
Parttime
Temporary / Seasonal

Q18 What is the main mode of travel to work used by your employees? Please provide an approximate percentage by mode with answers summing to 100%.
Car		Bus
Rail		Motorbike
Walk		Cycle
Other (please specify)____________

Q19 Do your staff typically travel in the course of work (e.g. to meetings or to make deliveries)?

Yes (go to Q20)
No (go to Q22)

*Q20* Do your staff typically travel to any of the following locations in the course of work? If yes, please indicate frequency of travel either per week or per month (whichever you prefer)
	Yes/no	Per Week	Per Month
Midlothian
Scottish Borders
Edinburgh
Other Scotland
Other UK
Overseas

Q21 What is the main mode of travel used by your employees in the course of work (business travel)? Please provide an approximate percentage by mode with answers summing to 100%.

Markets Served and Suppliers

Q22 In terms of your outputs, which geographical markets do you currently serve from this location? Please provide an approximate percentage by area with answers summing to 100%.

Q23 Where are your main competitors currently located? Please provide an approximate percentage by area with answers summing to 100%.

Q24 Where are your suppliers currently located? Please provide an approximate percentage by area with answers summing to 100%.

Recent Business Conditions

Q25 What is your level of satisfaction with current business trading conditions?
[Circle one]

Q26 What has influenced recent business conditions? Please indicate yes/no

What would you say is the main factor which has influenced recent business conditions?____________________

Q27 How easy or otherwise is it for you to recruit suitable staff?
[Circle one]

Q28 Over the last three years, have your business employment levels
[Circle one]

Q29 How has the level of investment in your business changed compared to the previous financial year at your current site?
[Circle one]

Q30 Was this change influenced in any way by the forthcoming opening of the Borders Railway?
[Tick one]

Influenced Significantly
Influenced slightly
No influence

Q31 Approximately what was your annual turnover in the last financial year at your current site?
[Tick one]

Less than £50k
£50k £100k
£100k £250k
£250k £500k
£500k £1 million
£1 million £5 million
Over £5 million
Don’t know / rather not say

Q32 Has your business’s current annual turnover changed compared to two years ago?

Yes (Go to Q33)
No (Go to Q34)

Q33 By how much has your business’s current annual turnover changed compared to two years ago?
	by less than 5 per cent	by 59 per cent	by 1024 per cent	by 2549 per cent	by 50 per cent or more
It has increased
It has decreased

Anticipated Impact of Borders Railway

*Q34 Thinking about the impact that the opening of the Borders Railway may have on your business, please indicate how much you agree or disagree with the following statements.*
	Strongly Agree	Agree	Neither agree nor disagree	Disagree	Strongly disagree	Don’t know / Can’t say
The Borders Railway will lead to an increase in our turnover
Having access to Borders Railway will mean more reliable staff travel times
The Borders Railway will make it easier for us to recruit staff
The Borders Railway will allow us to recruit better skilled staff
The Borders Railway will make it more difficult to retain staff
When the Borders Railway is open we will be able to expand our customer base
Having access to the Borders Railway will mean we will increasingly use suppliers from different areas
We will rely less on local customers when the Borders Railway opens
We will supply our products/services to a wider area due to the Borders Railway
When the Borders Railway opens we will need to take on more staff

*Q35 Please provide an estimate of the potential impact of the opening of Borders Railway in terms of turnover / customer base and / or employment levels at your current site.*
	High Positive Impact (>10%)	Medium Positive Impact (6%10%)	Low Positive Impact (1%5%)	No Impact 0%	Low Negative Impact (1% to 5%)	Medium Negative Impact (6% to 10%)	High Negative Impact (>10%)
Turnover / Customer Base
Employment