The Place Survey

All Local Authorities were required to undertake the Place Survey for the first time in September 2008. The Place Survey is designed to find out how a cross sample of local residents feel about their local area and public services.

Survey results

The results show that Richmond upon Thames is one of the best places to live in the country, with an overwhelming 92% of residents saying they are satisfied with their local area as a place to live. Resident satisfaction with the way the council runs things at 53% is the highest in the suburbs and among the best in capital, and understanding of how council tax is spent has seen an increase since 2006/2007 to 57%.

Other highlights include Richmond’s community cohesion score, with 88% believing that people from different backgrounds get on well together in the local area. Self-reported health as “good” or “very good” was also high at 85%.  

Improvement areas

Although Richmond’s scores are positive overall, there are some areas for improvement. For example, just under a third feel they can influence decisions in their locality. We will be taking appropriate action to improve performance in these areas ahead of the next survey.

Full results and more information

For a full list of results, the Place Survey report for 2008/2009(pdf, 1250KB) produced by Ipsos Mori is provided here.

The Executive Board and the Richmond upon Thames Partnership have considered the results and they will be used by the Local Authority and its partners to inform and improve service planning and delivery.