Views sought on the District Council

Residents in south Warwickshire are being asked for their views on local council services as part of a national survey.

Stratford-on-Avon District Council is sending out 4,000 questionnaires to households across the district this week, with questions ranging from anti-social behaviour to recycling.  

"With every council in the country taking part in this survey, the results will allow us to compare ourselves to other similar councils," says Cllr Trevor Russel, the District Council's Portfolio Holder for Change & Performance.  

"The aim is to get the public's views and opinions about our services such as sport, leisure and planning, as well other general matters like quality of life and community issues.  

"Whilst we already carry out a fair bit of public consultation, the key difference with this survey is that the questionnaires are being sent to random addresses across the whole area instead of a specific group or audience.  

"I would like to urge every resident who receives one of these questionnaires to please fill it in as honestly as you can and return it to us.  

"The answers will remain confidential although the actual results will be sent to the government to provide a means of benchmarking public opinion and studying national patterns of service satisfaction."  

The survey takes the form of an introductory letter from District Council Chief Executive Paul Lankester, attached to a 16-page questionnaire with a reply paid envelope for its return.   

The surveys are being carried out entirely by post.  Households taking part have been selected to meet Government sampling requirements and there is no opportunity to complete them on request or via the on-line route.   

Recipients will have until mid-October to complete and return their surveys, although two reminder mailings will also be done in October and November.  Initial results are expected towards the end of the year.