The Community Satisfaction Survey is carried out every two years to understand and identify community priorities, explore resident experiences when contacting Council, and measure overall satisfaction with Council's performance.
Calls are made by independent partner Micromex Research on a random selection basis. Only residents over 18 can participate and AlburyCity employees and immediate their families cannot take part.
In February 2022, 400 local residents were randomly contacted by telephone for the Community Satisfaction Survey.
Despite a marginal decline in overall satisfaction since the last survey in 2020, at 90%, AlburyCity satisfaction levels are significantly higher than other regional Council's, whose combined satisfaction was an average of 83%.
Satisfaction with ease of contact with Council was a strong result at 92%, how the contact was handled was at 84%, and residents indicated that they were satisfied with Council's level of communication at 87%.
In addition, residents are generally satisfied with the 57 services surveyed, with the majority having satisfaction ratings of 70% or higher.
A number of indicators were found to be the most important in ensuring our community remains satisfied. By addressing these indicators in particular, we hope to improve overall community satisfaction.
We heard that a key driver for overall satisfaction is Council's focus on long-term planning, with the work we are undertaking in developing the 'Albury 2050 Community Strategic Plan' providing our guiding light for the future of our region.
Our 'Two Cities One Community' Partnership with Wodonga Council, and the 'Albury Wondonga Cross Border Regional Deal' are also key strategies in planning for our regions' future.
The top five key drivers of community satisfaction in 2022 and 2020 were:
| 2022 Community Satisfaction Survey | 2020 Community Satisfaction Survey |
|---|---|
| Long term planning for Albury | Satisfaction with the level of communication |
| Community input into Council decision-making | Provision of Council information to the community |
| Provision of Council information to the community | Town planning decisions |
| Riverside Parks | Long term planning for Albury |
| Town Planning decisions | Overall condition of the local road network |