By ALESHA CAPONE
UNLIKE a rather unfortunate Mick Jagger in the hit Rolling Stones song, Brimbank residents can get satisfaction – and lots of it.
A community satisfaction survey on the municipality, carried out by the Victorian Department of Planning and Community Development (DPCD), was released last week.
The DPCD report methodology included interviews with 400 residents and was conducted last year.
Brimbank City Council received a rating of 62 out of 100 for its overall performance, two points higher than the state average.
The council’s customer service scored 76, five points above the state average.
Brimbank’s overall direction was graded 63, a whole 10 points higher than Victorian average.
The council’s advocacy grade was 56, a point beyond the average.
Community consultation in Brimbank was rated at 57, equal to the Victorian mean.
In specific areas of governance, the council scored highest on waste management, with 73, followed by arts centres and libraries on 69.
Other areas the council scored well in were elderly support services, community and cultural issues, emergency and disaster management, family support services, recreational facilities, enforcement of local laws and environmental sustainability.
In contrast, the council’s lowest score – of 55 – was received for traffic management and the condition of streets and footpaths.
The DPCD survey found males aged 18 to 49, plus residents who used council services in person or for their households, rated Brimbank services most favourably.
Residents aged 50 to 64 years old, and women older than 50, were least likely to give the council a positive rating.
The Brimbank administrator’s chairman, John Watson, said the survey demonstrated which areas the public wanted the council to focus on.
“Although the overall results are pleasing, they are not an indication that we can sit on our hands,” he said.
“Council officers analyse these numbers to ascertain the community’s opinions that will guide our short and long-term objectives.
“Good results do not warrant complacency, they provide an incentive for better results next year.”
