A crowd of people at Columbia Road market
- Levels of public satisfaction, trust, value for money, feeling informed in the council all up
- Cost-of-living and crime remain residents’ top two priorities
- Improved satisfaction across most service areas
- 8 out of 10 people satisfied with the area, 9 out of 10 say they get along
Residents have given their approval to Tower Hamlets Council’s work to improve their lives in the latest independent Annual Residents’ Survey (ARS).
In one of the most upbeat survey results the council has ever seen, positive public sentiment has increased in almost every area, with the council also consistently above the local authority national average as measured by the Local Government Association (LGA).
In the past two years, the council has made significant investment in services to improve more lives and the quality of service it delivers.
This includes being the only local authority in the country to provide universal free school meals to all primary and secondary schools; £13.7m investment in a new YoungTH youth service, insourcing of housing and leisure including reopening leisure centres under its new Be Well brand and £5m additional investment into the council’s insourced waste service.
The ARS, which is taken from a representative sample of residents based on the borough’s demographics, shows that people are feeling the benefits.
Some of the general highlights include:
- 84% say they are satisfied with the local area (nat. average is 74%)
- 66% say they trust the council (nat. average is 55%)
- 90% say they get on well (nat. average is 77%)
- 51% feel the council provides value for money (nat. average is 40%)
- 65% feel the council keeps them informed (nat. average is 54%)
- 59% feel the council acts on concerns of residents (nat. average is 49%)
- 95% feel safe in the day (the nat. average is 92%)
Note: Nat. Average is the national local authority average measured by the LGA.
Lutfur Rahman, Executive Mayor of Tower Hamlets, said:
“These results show that residents are feeling more positive about both Tower Hamlets as a place and the work the council is doing.
“We are starting to see the results of our hard work and investment we have made into council services. Our aim is to be one of the best performing local authorities in the country and I am pleased that we score higher than the national average in almost every area.
“As a place, 84% of people are satisfied with the local area and 90% of residents say people from different backgrounds get on well with each other. Tower Hamlets is already the most densely populated and fastest growing place in the country, and these results confirm why.”
Improved services
On a service level, again in most areas there has been increased public satisfaction among service users compared to last year (2023).
Percentage of all residents satisfied with service (including non-service users):
- Waste collection: 69% - up 5
- Street cleaning: 63% - up 9
- Street lighting: 79% - up 10
- Parks and green spaces: 81% - up 14
- Council housing: 36% - up 9
- Social housing: 36% - up 10
- Recycling services: 73% - up 11
- Policing: 52% - up 16 (note: not a council service)
- My Council Tax account: 69% - up 21
- Parking services: 47% - up 12
- Local health services: 62% - up 12 (note: council a partner)
Percentage of service users only satisfied with the service:
- Housing benefits service: 81% - up 25
- Sports and leisure services: 79% - up 12
- *Pest control: 63% - up 4
- *Children’s Centres: 75% - up 6
- *Nursery education: 79% - up 6
- *Primary education: 82% - up 4
- *Secondary education: 76% - up 6
- *Youth Service: 44% - down 3 (Note: the council new Youth Service – YoungTH only launched this summer)
*means the results are not deemed statistically significant due to the smaller number of participants that answered.
Responding to challenges
Many people living in Tower Hamlets face significant challenges that have been exacerbated during the cost-of-living crisis. The inner-London borough remains a place with major disparities in wealth and household incomes. This is reflected in the survey results, where 40% of residents gave the cost-of-living as their top area of concern, just behind crime which is at 42% this year.
The council’s ongoing Cost of Living Help campaign has supported residents to access thousands of pounds of extra support and benefits. Recent new polices and announcements include targeted support for low-income households to pay their council tax bills, alongside a new pensioner household support scheme coming soon.
The council’s groundbreaking universal free school meals policy means it’s the only local authority in the country to provides universal free school meals for every primary and secondary pupil, saving the average family £550 per child on average each year. Since free secondary school meals were launched last year, pupils have received over one million hot meals.
In addition, qualifying young people in further and higher education are supported through a £600 Education Maintenance Allowance and £1,500 University Bursary Awards.
On community safety, the council has invested heavily in its £3.9m CCTV systems to act as a strong deterrent and gather good quality evidence to bring offenders to justice. There has been £2.3million in funding for 40 more Tower Hamlets Enforcement Officers (THEOs), along with other improvements such as upgrading street lighting.
Notes:
- The Annual Residents Survey results are available to view on the council website at www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/residentssurvey
- In Tower Hamlets between 2011 and 2021 the population grew by 22.1 per cent. Now on average, 112 people live on a football pitch sized area compared to the national average of just three people (2021 Census).
- This makes Tower Hamlets the most densely populated place in the country, with the fastest growing population.
- Tower Hamlets also has one of the most diverse populations in the country. This includes having the nation’s biggest Muslim population, as well as a proud heritage of other communities including Jewish, Somali, Bengali and white English.
- The Local Government Association national averages are taken from February 2024 around the time of the councils ARS.
Posted on Thursday 17th October 2024