Results from Slough Borough Council’s most recent attitude survey of residents have revealed the highest recorded levels of satisfaction with living in the town than ever before.
The survey, carried out by QA Research in 2007 on a cross section of Slough residents, revealed that 82 per cent of residents were satisfied with living in their neighbourhood.
Seventy-four per cent of residents were also satisfied with living in Slough generally which had seen an increase seven per cent since 2006. Eighty-two per cent of residents also agreed that people from different backgrounds get on well in their local area (compared to 73 per cent in 2006).
And Slough Borough Council has seen an improvement in satisfaction ratings with 61 per cent of residents feeling satisfied with their local authority, compared to 51 per cent in 2006.
Residents also feel more informed by the council than in 2006. Fifty-five percent of residents feel informed, compared to 49 per cent in 2006. The number of residents who don’t feel informed has fallen by 10 per cent from 19 per cent to nine per cent.
Specific services provided by the council have also seen improvements. The top five services residents are satisfied with are:
* Waste and refuse collection – 82 per cent
* Street lighting – 79 per cent
* Recycling facilities (kerbside collection) – 72 per cent
* Recycling facilities (bottle banks) – 71 per cent
* Parks and open spaces – 67 per cent
The top five services residents are dissatisfied with are:
* Facilities for young people – 20 per cent (down 16 per cent from 2006)
* Road and pavement repairs – 13 per cent (down 15 per cent from 2006)
* Local public transport – 11 per cent (down 9 per cent from 2006)
* Arts facilities and museums – 11 per cent (down 17 per cent from 2006)
* Housing services – 9 per cent (down 14 per cent from 2006)
The survey report concluded that the ‘main story is one of improving scores for overall satisfaction with the way Slough Borough Council runs things, with local neighbourhoods overall and with nearly all services. For a number of services dissatisfaction is also falling by significant amounts. A continuation of the work already taking place may ensure that satisfaction continues to improve over future years.’
Rob Anderson, leader of Slough Borough Council, said: “I am really pleased to see that satisfaction with living in the town and the council has gone up. Every year residents have greater expectations of us and it’s important to recognise that we have to rise to that challenge of continuous improvement across the board.
“We know there is still a huge amount of work to be done, particularly around community safety, the quality of our neighbourhoods and facilities for young people but we are determined to continue to improve our services for the benefit of all residents.”
Slough Borough Council
