Greater Shepparton City Council's Local Government Community Satisfaction Survey for 2022/2023 has shown positive results, with the second highest Overall Performance rating since the inception of the survey in 2012.
The score of 63 was one point under the highest score which Council received last year, which is an excellent result despite the challenges faced during the past 12 months. Council's Overall Direction score of 60 was also encouraging being the third highest result achieved since the survey started.
These 2022/2023 results place Council at the top end of the scale across the state, which Council's Director Corporate Services, Chris Teitzel, said was a pleasing outcome.
"It is great to see positive results over the past 12 months, especially when compared to other council's across the state. Victorian councils have reported the lowest Community Satisfaction Survey results in 10 years, while Greater Shepparton's have been relatively stable," he said.
"We do acknowledge however, how challenging the past year has been for the community, especially during the October 2022 flood event. Council's services and facilities suffered significantly during this time, especially the state of local roads, and this was reflected in the survey results."
The condition of sealed local roads saw a significant decrease of 11 points, to a level which hasn't been seen since 2017. While disappointing, Mr Teitzel said this was expected due to the widespread flooding and the devastating impact it caused.
"While the majority of Council's local roads have now been repaired, works are still ongoing and will continue to ensure the conditions are improved. We appreciate the community's patience while these repairs have been undertaken," he said.
In comparison to other Victorian councils, Greater Shepparton scored above average in several areas including advocacy, community consultation, parks and reserves and the Library.
The survey indicators which saw the biggest increases over the past 12 months included building controls, annual property rates, the Transfer Station and town planning. In comparison, the results for weekly household rubbish collection decreased by six points, the second highest decrease for the year.
Mr Teitzel said this was likely due to the frequency changes implemented in Kialla and Tatura earlier this year.
"We understand this decrease can be attributed to the frequency changes and we appreciate the time that it takes time for people to adjust their habits. Council is continuing to work through these changes and is assisting residents through ongoing education and support," he said.
Residents were given a chance to provide their feedback and opinions on the performance of Council via the Community Satisfaction Survey, which was conducted quarterly by Thinkfield.
Thinkfield used Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing (CATI) as a random probability survey of residents aged 18+ years in Greater Shepparton. They also utilised face-to-face consultation throughout the Shepparton CBD. A total of 800 residents provided feedback throughout the 12-month period.
Mr Teitzel said the results are important as they allows Council to better understand whether it is meeting community expectations of the services it provides.
"The survey aims to gather impressions on all of the services, facilities and activities Council provides. It provides insight into ways Council can improve service delivery, and all of the information gathered is used to provide ongoing improvements for Greater Shepparton," he said.
"It is good for us to see where the community would like to see improvements, as this helps shape our future direction. We thank everyone who took part in the survey, their feedback is extremely important."
