Melton council wins tick of approval from residents

Melton residents are happy with their council, according to results from the latest community satisfaction survey.

And the council is pleased with the survey results, which were released at its meeting last week.

“The survey results are encouraging, especially given the high levels of growth in the municipality,” Melton council general manager of community services Maurie Heaney said.

A total of 800 households were surveyed as part of the independent 2014 Householder Customer Satisfaction Survey and results showed the residents rated their overall satisfaction with Melton City Council’s performance at 6.84 out of 10, which is categorised as “good”.

The average satisfaction with the council’s governance and leadership was rated 6.83, also in the “good” category.

Customer service was rated “excellent”, which was slightly higher than in other western regions and in metropolitan Melbourne.

Residents also reported a “very good” sense of community, with an average rating of 7.40, and were also satisfied with the council’s services and facilities. But survey respondents identified traffic management, public transport, safety, policing and crime, and council rates as areas that could be improved.

“We strive to perform at the highest possible level and are always looking towards continuous improvement in service and infrastructure delivery to meet the needs of our community,” Mr Heaney said.

He said the results would support the council approach in areas where the responsibility for services was with other tiers of government, in making annual budget decisions and in operational planning and service delivery.

Last week the state government also announced the launch of a 2015 Community Satisfaction Survey, a telephone survey also seeking the opinion of ratepayers on their local council.

About 400 residents from 69 participating councils, including Melton and Moorabool, will take part in the survey, which will also seek opinion on councils’ community consultation, advocacy and customer service, and overall performance.

Interviews for Melton and Moorabool have already been conducted with the results to be published in the statewide Local Government Services Report.