HOUSEHOLDERS in the Hanleys are to be asked how they would like to see life in the villages take shape over the next few years.

They will be given a chance to have their say at a meeting in Hanley Swan Village Hall on Friday, September 6.

The meeting is being held by the villages' parish plan working party to record issues that matter to residents. This will provide foundations for a parish plan, outlining aims and fears for the future.

This document, due to appear early neat year, will in turn help the parish council gain "quality" status, allowing it greater funding and autonomy.

The working party is also sponsoring prizes for a photographic competition at the 50th Hanleys' Village Show on August 24, encouraging snappers to capture aspects of work, recreation, natural history and the best and worst of life in the parish.

The pictures are designed to stimulate debate about local life and will also be on dis- play at the meeting in September.

Working party chairman Brian Symonds said feedback from "guinea pigs" who had been asked to fill out draft questionnaires for distribution at the September meeting had been "very positive".

"They will be available on September 6 and people can stay and fill the in at the hall or take them home with them," he said. "Or, if people don't come to the hall, we will deliver one by hand to every household not represented at the meeting."

The results of the questionnaire, which will feature questions on topics including employment, the environment, education, transport, communications, roads and footpaths, will be made public at a further meeting on November 15.

Meanwhile, entry forms for the village show competition can be obtained from shops in Hanley Swan.