Council conducting safety survey

FILE

Rotorua District Council is encouraging residents to take part in the district's annual Perceptions of Safety Survey underway this week.

Local company APR Consultants is conducting the survey for the council through telephone questionnaires of 400 randomly selected Rotorua residents.

The survey will take place over the next few weeks and is available online for the wider community to give personal views on safety in Rotorua.

Included in the questions, the survey also asks about residents' awareness of local safety initiatives and experiences they have had with crime.

Rotorua district councillor Merepeka Raukawa-Tait, portfolio leader for the council's People Strategy, is urging locals to participate in the survey.

"Information compiled from the survey will help us to evaluate the success of existing community safety projects and is used for forward planning, such as development of our People Strategy," said Mrs Raukawa-Tait.

"It will also give us an indication of any areas that may need more attention or where more support is needed for our community."

The survey is for residents 15 years and over. Focus groups will be set up this year alongside traditional survey methods, such as calling landlines, to specifically target young people and give them the chance to voice their opinions.

Councillor Tania Tapsell, leader of the youth strand of the council's People Strategy, said she strongly encourages local young people to take-up the opportunity to have their opinions heard.

"Previously youth have been targeted as a 'problem'. This is their chance to show they can be part of the solution, and we'd love to know what they think."

The survey is available on the council's website www.rdc.govt.nz, APR's website www.aprconsultants.co.nz, Working4youth website working4youth.co.nz, and through the Treasure Rotorua Facebook page.

Results are expected to be available by the end of June 2014.