Customer Perceptions

This project is designed to help us gain a better understanding of our residents' views of the council and to help us set targets to improve where necessary.

We will carry out a large survey, (with tick box questions), and focus groups (group discussions) on alternate years. We completed the first round of focus groups in the spring of 2004 and the first survey took place a year in 2005. A second round of focus groups were held in 2006.

The surveys provide us with useful statistical information about how many people feel, and their attitudes to particular issues or services the council provides.

However we also need to find out why people feel the way they do. This is the reason for planning focus groups. The focus groups compliment the quantitative surveys because residents discuss issues in depth. They will give us the opportunity to understand why residents hold the views they do; what has influenced them to hold these views; and how we can improve their perception of services and the council in the future. The focus groups also give us useful ideas about things that we may not have thought of.

Summaries of the main findings of the survey in 2005, and the focus groups in 2004 and 2006, are set out below.

We have not programmed a customer perceptions survey for 2007 as we were required to undertake an in-depth survey, called a ‘Best Value’ survey, of attitudes to the council and council services at the end of 2006. To see the results of this, please see the link under Related Information on the right of this page.