Annual Community Satisfaction Survey
The City of Hobart has commissioned annual community satisfaction surveys since 2021. The surveys are conducted on behalf of the City by Metropolis Research.
The key objective of the survey is to better understand how we are perceived by our community, measure satisfaction with the City of Hobart, Hobart City Council leadership and the delivery of services and facilities as well as identifying issues of concern within Hobart.
The next survey will be undertaken in August 2024.
The 2023 survey looked at:
- overall performance
- governance and leadership
- customer service
- satisfaction with services and facilities
- safety
- personal wellbeing.
You can read an overview report of the 2023 satisfaction survey on our website(PDF, 3MB).
How is the survey conducted?
Surveys were undertaken by telephone from 14 November to 1 December 2023. There were 500 respondents.
Each interview involves in-depth conversations to understand the issues important to Hobart residents and gauge how Hobart City Council is performing. It measures residents' satisfaction with the City of Hobart’s overall performance, City services and facilities, and customer service.
What did the results show?
The 2023 survey results indicated the City of Hobart recorded an overall satisfaction score of 6.4 out of 10 – rated as a solid performance. This was a marginal increase of 2 per cent from 2022.
The average satisfaction with 32 City of Hobart services and facilities increased marginally in 2023, remaining at a good level of satisfaction - 7 out of 10 (up from 6.9 in 2022).
Satisfaction at an excellent level was observed with:
- weekly garbage collection (8.5)
- food and garden waste collection (8.4)
- recycling collection (8.4)
- parks, gardens and playgrounds (7.9)
- McRobies Gully Waste Management Centre - the Tip (7.9)
- community events, festivals and markets (7.8).
The issues that impacted negatively on overall satisfaction in the 2023 survey were local roads, Council governance and accountability, university issues, car parking and traffic management.
Those surveyed were also asked about their perception of safety and, for the first time, personal wellbeing.
The majority of respondents felt very safe during the day (8.8) in public areas. This declined at night (6.8) with the main reasons being crime and policing, lighting, drugs and alcohol as well as anti-social behaviour.
To get a better understanding of community wellbeing some questions were asked about health and wellbeing. Respondents were asked about their physical and mental health, housing security, future security, relationships and community connections. Average satisfaction with physical health was very good (7.6) and mental health excellent (7.9).
What issues were identified by respondents?
The annual community satisfaction survey is also an opportunity to explore current issues of concern in Hobart for residents.
The top issues residents were most concerned about include:
- traffic management
- building, housing, planning and development
- customer service
- car parking availability and enforcement
- road maintenance and repairs
- Council governance, performance and accountability
- environment and sustainability issues
- housing availability and affordability.
What are we doing on key issues?
We use the annual survey results to improve our services, strategies and plans. We also use them to inform our planning and decision making, and we are committed to continuing to listen to our community and responding to their needs.