Community forums are not representative
But, as Tim Naylor points out, the problem with community forums is that they attract a self-selecting audience that can be far from representative. This is certainly true of my local forum, which only seems to attract an audience of people over 50 years old.
So while community forums are a commendable way of enabling public and politicians to exchange information, ideas and concerns, until such time as somebody can think up a way of making them truly representative of the public as a whole I don’t think it’s a good idea to let them make decisions on important matters. - Graham Bell, Leamington Spa (full address supplied).