CAMDEN RESIDENTS SURVEY RESULTS

15 March 2006

Camden Council’s latest survey, published today (Wednesday 15 March), found that residents are increasingly making the most of their local libraries, open spaces and sports and leisure facilities.

The annual poll tracks what local people think about the borough, the council and the services it provides. It revealed that 74 per cent of Camden’s residents were now using local libraries (up from 65% in 2005), 67 per cent are using parks playgrounds and open spaces (up from 62% in 2005) and 44 per cent are using sports and leisure facilities (up from 37%).

The survey also showed that increasing numbers of residents think the council provides good value for money and more so than Londoners - on average - rate their local borough. In the study 43 per cent of respondents said that Camden Council provided good value for money, up five percentage points up on the year before. A recent London wide poll found only 35 per cent thought their local council provided good value for money.

Over two-thirds (67%) of the borough’s residents believe the council is doing a good job and 65 per cent think it is making the area a better place for people to live. Crime though continues to be the top concern in Camden, as it is across the capital, with half (51%) of residents stating that it is one of their biggest worries.

Cllr Raj Chada, Leader of Camden Councillor, said: “While it’s good to be rated as a four star council, the views of people that use services and our residents matter more. I’m delighted to see that more people are making the most of the services we have on offer in Camden and residents think we making the borough a better place to live.

“The fear of crime and anti social behaviour is a big concern for many in London. We are working with the police, community groups and other agencies to reassure residents. Crime is down, but we will do what we can to tackle this and anti-social behaviour, including the continuing use of innovative measures like ASBOs and assisting people to overcome problems like drug addiction that can lead to crime.”

As in previous years, the council was praised for being clean and green. Three-quarters (75%) of residents surveyed praised refuse collection as good or excellent, two-thirds (69%) rated street cleaning highly, and six in ten (59%) said recycling facilities in the borough were also good or excellent. The survey also found more people saying they used local recycling facilities, with three-quarters (74% up from 65% in 2005) now saying they used them.

Finally pollsters found that Camden’s population is more connected to the web than the national average, with 72 per cent of Camden residents having access to the Internet compared to 64 per cent nationally. Two-thirds (64%) of Camden’s adults have access to the Internet at home, with others getting online at work, a place of study, or at their local library or community centre.

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