A Community Shaped by the Sea- Understanding community values and use of the Shetland coastline: A report prepared for the Shetland Marine Planning Partnership.

This report presents the results of a series of Shetland wide community surveys to capture the value and use of different areas of the Shetland coastline and how it makes people feel. The questionnaire was distributed in paper form and online (see Appendix A). The first part of the questionnaire asked respondents to rate different statements from 1-5 (1 strongly disagreeing and 5 strongly agreeing) such as “Spending time near/ on the sea or coastline around Shetland gives me a sense of wellbeing”. Other questions included how long they had lived in hetland and activities they participate in at the coast. The second part of the questionnaire asked people to map where they value and where they use around the coastline of Shetland. They were also asked to note what they used the area for and/or why they valued it. Although people value the spaces they use, by separating the two it allows people to map areas that they may not visit frequently but are of value to them.
A slightly simplified questionnaire was created for children in primary school aged between 8-11 years old and another questionnaire was developed to specifically gather data around the importance of the coast for creative businesses in Shetland. The results of the questionnaire are contextualized with other relevant data where appropriate.