More than 90 per cent are happy living in Basingstoke

MORE than 90 per cent of residents are happy living in Basingstoke, according to a new council-commissioned survey.

Preliminary figures from Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council’s residents’ survey state that 92 per cent are “satisfied with their local area as a place to live”.

This breaks down into 59 per cent of people saying they were “very satisfied” and 32 per cent saying they were “fairly satisfied”.

Only one per cent of the 1,156 adults interviewed between October and November last year by ICM Research said they were “very dissatisfied” living in the borough.

The figures have been welcomed by Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council leader Councillor Clive Sanders.

“It’s great to hear that residents really like where they live,” said Cllr Sanders. “We have been helping communities to make improvements to their neighbourhoods and to shape their own area’s future.”

Cllr Sanders also welcomed results that showed residents were generally happy with the borough council. The figures show that 77 per cent are “happy with how the council runs things” and 60 per cent believe that the council delivers “value for money”. And 70 per cent of residents said the council keeps them informed about the services it provides.

Cllr Sanders said: “This is a challenging time for all councils as we try to do more with less.

“The residents’ survey shows that we are doing a pretty good job of getting that balance right. “It is vital that we continue to do things more efficiently by listening to our residents.

“We are reassured that residents remain largely positive about the council, local services, and about the borough as a place to live. But we are not complacent and there is still a lot of work to do to improve things for our residents.”

Other headline figures from the survey state that 87 per cent feel they belong to their local area, and 75 per cent of people feel their neighbourhood is “a place where people from different backgrounds get along”.

The previous residents’ survey was conducted in 2008. The new data is fed into the borough’s Council Plan document which outlines the council’s top priorities in the next four years.