What you think about life in Herefordshire

A survey of people in Herefordshire has shown that around eight out of ten people are satisfied with their local community as a place to live.

The aspects of quality of life seen to have improved most in the last three years are education provision, sports and leisure facilities and access to nature.

The facts have come to light in a survey carried out by the council towards the end of last year.

It reveals that around half of the 1,578 people who responded agreed that people from different backgrounds got on well together in their local area.

In relation to council services, while 17 per cent said they were dissatisfied, 44 per cent said they were satisfied with the council - the same figures as a year ago.

Satisfaction with household waste collection has improved by six percentage points up to 88 per cent since last year, while satisfaction with local tips has fallen by eight percentage points to 79 per cent.

Other key findings include:

· For residents, the most common source of information about the council has switched from the local media to information published directly by the council
· 17 per cent said they volunteer for an average of two hours or more per week - similar to last year
· Driving to work in the car is the usual method for 66 per cent of respondents who are employed
· 30 per cent of respondents felt they could influence decisions affecting their local area - similar to last year
· 27 per cent said their local area had a "high" level of anti-social behaviour - no change to last year

A full copy of the survey is available on line and can be viewed at www.herefordshire.gov.uk/research

The Herefordshire Satisfaction Survey will go before members of Herefordshire Council's cabinet on Thursday, January 24, with a recommendation that the results be used to improve the quality of council services.