More and more South Gloucestershire residents say they love where they live.
That is the finding of a new report published by South Gloucestershire Council.
The annual ‘Quality of life: better or worse?’ report for the district reveals that satisfaction with the local area as a place to live has increased over the last four years, with 85 per cent of respondents saying that they are ‘fairly satisfied’ or ‘very satisfied’ with their local area.
The proportion of local residents being ‘very satisfied’ has increased by 9 per cent over the last four years.
Cllr John Calway, leader of South Gloucestershire Council, said: “This report shows that we are delivering on our priorities, which have been shaped by the views of local people and our partner organisations.
“We are delighted that increasing numbers of people enjoy living in South Gloucestershire, and that they enjoy a good standard of living.
“But we are not complacent and will continue to improve so that South Gloucestershire remains a great place to live and work.”
The report covers a range of quality of life indicators, which monitor those things that make an area a good place to live.
Among the other key findings were:
- Improving school results, with increasing numbers of pupils achieving five or more A*-C grades or equivalent at GCSE including English and maths
- less 16-18 year olds not in education, employment or training (NEET) than last year, despite the recession
- life expectancy significantly longer than the national average
- a premature death rate 23.5 per cent lower than the national average
- over the last year the number of households who have become homeless has reduced significantly
- the use of temporary accommodation for homeless families continues to reduce, building further on last year’s reduction of 32 per cent
- in the year to April 2009, 35 per cent more affordable homes were delivered compared to the previous year’s figure
- local crime rates are significantly lower than the national average
- roads are becoming safer, with casualty rates at the lowest point since the council became a unitary authority in 1996
- fewer people claiming benefits than the national and regional averages
The findings will be used by the council and its partners to identify and address priorities for the future.
The full report is available online at www.southglos.gov.uk/qualityoflife.
Source: South Gloucestershire Council
