The results of the annual Adults Residents’ Perception Survey show more people expressing satisfaction with the council than the London and national average

Barnet residents have higher levels of overall satisfaction with their council than both the national and the London averages, according to the results of the latest Barnet Council Adults Residents’ Perception Survey.

The survey results, taken from winter 2023/24, found 65% of residents were satisfied with Barnet Council – in line with the last survey, which was taken in 2021/22. This beats both the London average (56%) and the national average (53%), both of which have declined since 2021/22.

The survey was carried out by independent social research company Opinion Research Services and sampled 2000 people via the telephone and face-to-face on street interviews. ORS used used a randomly selected sample of addresses and landlines provided from the telephone exchanges, as well as purchasing a list of mobile numbers from commercial suppliers based on living in Barnet. They also selected a representative sample of residents to take part in the survey face to face in town centres and other public places.

Three-quarters of Barnet residents responding to the survey feel that the council is trustworthy (76%) which is up compared to 2021, and again substantially above the London average (59%) and the national average (55%).

The Leader of Barnet Council, Cllr Barry Rawlings, said: “We are grateful to all the people who took part in our Residents’ Perception Survey. It’s important to us that we can monitor our performance as a council. Our residents are at the heart of everything we do, so we are grateful to those who took part in this survey for the positive feedback. We will take everything they said onboard.

“While our budgets are now more constrained than before, we will do everything we can to maintain our residents’ trust and satisfaction in the services we provide.”

Barnet residents also said they love where they live – 85% were satisfied with Barnet as a place to live, which is in line with the results of the last survey. In addition, 86% of residents surveyed said they feel like they belong to the local area, and 83% see the borough as a family-friendly place to live.

Almost three-fifths of residents surveyed feel the council involve residents when making decisions and act on the concerns of residents – the latter is substantively above the London average (53%) and the national average (49%).

Satisfaction with the council’s universal services, such as refuse collection and street cleaning, have also increased or remained consistent against 2021 findings. Both are above the London and national averages.

Residents also continue to be happy with the council’s staff, its customer care, and promoting equal opportunities and equal access to quality services. All have seen increased satisfaction or remained in line since 2021/22.

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