Loading ...Originally written by BRIAN O’BRIEN
NINETY five per cent of Southern Grampians Shire residents like living here, according to a State Government survey.
Eight six per cent of shire residents feel safe on the streets after dark, while nearly 73 per cent believe there are opportunities to have a real say on issues affecting the community.
The Department of Victorian Communities has released a report on community strength in local government areas across Victoria looking at 14 criteria to gauge the level of satisfaction in a community.
If you thought it was better to live in the country, this survey bears that out. Rural areas generally scored higher than metropolitan areas on all indicators.
Perhaps the biggest difference was in people who were volunteers. In Southern Grampians 54 per cent of people surveyed were volunteers – in many metropolitan areas it was less than 30 per cent!
The survey in Southern Grampians also showed residents:
The shire’s chief executive officer, Graham Mostyn, said Southern Grampians had performed well across 14 sectors.
He said community strength was enhanced when people felt connected at a local level – and there was good collaboration between policy makers at all levels.
Mr Mostyn believed the survey should help assist policy makers.
“For governments, this may mean directing investment in different ‘connecting activities’ such as recreation, learning and volunteering programs, in order to build community strength in different areas,” he told council.
“It may also mean changing the way services are delivered in order to be flexible to the differing local circumstances indicated in this report.”
Print 
PDF
Comments are closed