12 September 2018

Residents’ satisfaction levels with Marlborough District Council’s services have again rated highly, with drinking water, sewerage and community facilities the top three performers. The Council undertakes an independent annual survey to identify service satisfaction levels and performance scores. Most services have targets for resident satisfaction set in the Council’s Long Term Plan and reported in its annual report.

Where comparisons with New Zealand benchmarks are available, almost all Marlborough District Council scores are higher, with many significantly higher. While the satisfaction level with overall performance was down from 84% in 2017 to 77.8% this year, the long term trend has been one of improvement, and last year’s satisfaction score was the highest achieved in a decade of surveying.

The three top rated services in 2018 are:

· Drinking water - 8.2 out of 10

· Sewerage - 7.9 out of 10

· Community facilities - 7.5 out of 10

The three lowest rated services in 2018 are:

· Democratic process - 5.6 out of 10

· Environmental policy and monitoring - 6.1 out of 10

· Biosecurity - 6.2 out of 10

Chief Executive Mark Wheeler said: “Our overall satisfaction score sits at 78%, a slight drop on last year but well ahead of the New Zealand benchmark of 55%. We are equal to or ahead of the New Zealand benchmark on every count.”

“A new question this year - on whether people are satisfied with Council’s communications - achieved a good result at 75%, against the national benchmark of 53%. Regulatory areas - which traditionally are harder to gain high scores for - like resource consents and building consents - at 61% and 63% - are ahead of last year’s scores and well above the New Zealand benchmark.”

“I’d like to thank our hard working staff for their achievements. They often go the extra mile to deliver an excellent customer experience.”

“While we can’t sit on our laurels - there is always room for improvement - people in Marlborough are generally satisfied with their Council’s performance.”

The survey is available at https://www.marlborough.govt.nz/your-council/long-term-and-annual-plans-policies-and-reports/residents-satisfaction-survey The survey will be reported to tomorrow’s Planning, Finance and Community committee meeting.

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