When: December 2011. Number of responses: 2017.

Feedback on the People's Panel

• 64% of panellists felt satisfied with the way the panel has operated and 53% would be likely to recommend it to family and friends
• Most think they receive the right number of survey invitations, however a quarter feel they don't receive result updates often enough, and just under a third feel they don't get sufficient information on other opportunities to participate
• 67% would be interested in receiving invitations to take part in focus groups
• Panellists say they like the panel because it provides an opportunity for people to have a voice, express their needs and perspectives and influence council's decisions
• Panellists would like more evidence that their views have been used to inform or change council's ideas, plans or policies
• Other suggested improvements were:
  • providing more information and context about the projects and surveys
  • making surveys simpler and shorter
  • allowing more space for open ended comments
  • providing simpler more direct reports with better visuals, and
  • making the panel more representative of Auckland's diverse communities through further promotion / advertising and by providing financial incentives to take part

Regarding council's consultation processes generally:

• 46% had seen some form of newspaper or magazine coverage relating to the council's planning documents and their associated consultation processes. A smaller proportion of panellists had seen or heard similar coverage and marketing activity online, through radio ads, social media, bus advertising and outdoor advertising.
• 62% of panellists had provided feedback on one or more of the council's plans - with the Auckland Plan and the Waste Management and Minimisation Plan receiving the most feedback.
• 52% were satisfied with the opportunities Auckland Council provides to participate in decision-making processes, but only 20% felt confident that their input would influence council's decisions.

Panellists' comments that they would like survey results to be clearer and easier to access has led to key findings of each survey being included on the People's Panel webpage, along with the full report. The overall findings will be used to guide further improvements to the People's Panel and Auckland Council's wider consultation processes and practices.

When: October 2011. Number of responses: 2465.

Auckland Council interacts with many thousands of customers each day by providing information, answering queries, completing requests for service, and receiving feedback. To help Auckland Council improve the service it provides to Auckland residents, People's Panel members were asked about the experiences they have had interacting with council.

67% of panellists had interacted or contacted the Auckland Council in the last three months.

Of the panellists who had interacted or contacted the Auckland Council in the last three months:

• 76% had interacted or contacted the council twice or more in the last three months.
• Most common methods for contacting or interacting with the council:
  • 59% - visiting the website
  • 50% - ringing the call centre
  • 33% - email
  • 30% - phoning a specific department or council staff member
• 64% had contacted or interacted with the council to obtain some information.
• 71% felt that their most recent interaction or contact with the council was relatively straightforward.
• Over 80% were satisfied or more than satisfied with their most recent interaction with council.
• 71% of panellists had used their preferred method to contact council.
• Of those panellists who had not used their preferred method to contact council, 69% did so because the nature of the matter meant that they had to interact with council via this particular method.
• Suggested areas for improvement were:
  • Council to give feedback and follow up
  • A more user friendly and up-to-date website
  • Faster response times
• Single preferred method for contacting or interacting with council (all panellists)
  • 26% - ringing the call centre
  • 24% - email
  • 21% - visiting the website
  • 17% phoning a specific department or council staff member.

When: October 2011. Number of responses: 1871.

The purpose of the survey was to develop a better understanding of current customer usage and attitudes towards the existing Auckland Libraries' website, in order to inform development of the new website. The survey was completed by 1,742 members of the People's Panel and 129 respondents contacted through Auckland Libraries social network sites.

• 86% of those who completed the survey were members of Auckland Libraries.
• 49% visited the library between once a week and once or twice a month.
• 68% were infrequent users of the Auckland Libraries' website, or had never used it.
• 92% spent 3 or more hours online a week.
• 61% visit the Auckland Libraries' website to search for books, check reviews and to see if books are available.
• 43% find the Auckland Libraries' website reliable, generally easy to use and to navigate.
• 23% suggested making the Auckland Libraries' website more user friendly with better navigation, less clutter (especially the home page), plain language and simple headings.
• 75% are likely to recommend Auckland Libraries to others.

The results helped Libraries better understand how their customers are using the Libraries websites and have identified areas of strength and weakness.

Auckland Libraries will seek further customer input as the new website project develops.

When: October 2011. Number of responses: 1963.

Auckland Council is working on a plan to provide a proactive approach to the management of historic heritage of the region. Panellists' views on historic heritage and its management in the Auckland region were sought to inform the drafting of this plan.

• 88% believe that protection of historic heritage is important
• 78% have visited a historic heritage site in the last 6 months, 76% of those visits were to a museum
• 54% think historic heritage is not well understood in their area
• The highest ranking proposed council initiative was for giving historic heritage more protection in Auckland's plans, (includes scheduling more historic sites, structures, places and areas; archaeological sites; and, sites of significance to Maori).
• The next most supported initiative was improving public access to historic heritage.
• Most panellists believe the role for caring for historic heritage is the responsibility of a number of parties

Once completed, the Historic Heritage Plan will provide clear goals to maximise the potential of historic heritage in Auckland. There will be opportunities to give feedback on the draft plan when it is released in mid 2012.

When: August 2011. Number of responses: 2398.

Auckland Zoo asked the People's Panel for feedback to assist planning of future series of Zoo Music - evening concerts at the zoo which have been held since 2004.

• 23% of panellists had attended a Zoo Music concert in the past. Reported attendance at concerts peaked at 31% in 2010, but dropped to 8% in 2011
• 86% of those who had attended a concert were satisfied or very satisfied with their Zoo Music experience
• Panellists were mostly to come and see "Flight of the Conchords", the Wellington Ukulele Orchestra and Anika Moa
• 46% of panellists said they were likely to attend in future
• The maximum entry price most panellists were willing to pay was $20 for adults and $10 for children.

This information, together with other research carried out by the zoo, enabled Auckland Zoo to determine whether it could proceed with a profitable series and the decision was made not to present Zoo Music concerts in 2012.

Key contributing factors were the limited number of suitable artists that were interested, available and had not performed at the Zoo in recent years, and the costs associated with performances by those artists.

Auckland Zoo has not ruled out Zoo Music or a similar event for future years.

When: September 2011. Number of responses: 2029.

The Long Term Plan (LTP) is a ten year strategic plan, which describes the activities and priority projects that Auckland over the next 10 years and how these will be funded. Panellists' were asked for their views on how council's activities should be funded.

• Opinion was divided on how to fund costs associated with Auckland's growth. 38% thought property developers should mainly fund the upgrades. 34% thought these costs should be shared between ratepayers and property developers and 13% thought they should be mainly funded by the users of services.
• At Least 60% of respondents thought general rates should fund services seen as benefitting the wider community, such as rubbish and recycling, libraries and park and beach management. 50% or more thought facilities and services benefiting specific members of the community such as sports and recreational facilities, the Arts and events, should be funded either by a combination of rates and user fees or through user fees and charges alone.
• At least 47% of respondents thought general rates should be used to fund improvements to existing community facilities and swimming pools, and parks and open spaces (both new and existing).
• There was no clear preference how other new facilities such as swimming pools and sports facilities should be funded. General rates, targeted rates and development contributions or a combination all received support.
• At least 53% of respondents thought user-fees should be used to fund information and monitoring for licensing, building consents and resource consents.

The People's Panel survey was part of a wider consultation process to ensure different perspectives were considered during the development of the Draft Long Term Plan.

There will be opportunities to give feedback on the draft Long-term Plan from 24th of February and 23rd of March and it will be adopted in June 2012.

When: August 2011. Number of responses: 2505.

Feedback on the comprehensive resource management document and how panellists preferred to receive and respond to information about council plans.

• 60% preferred Auckland Resource Management Plan as the name for the new resource management document.
• 92% wanted to know about any proposed changes that would affect them in their homes.
• 71% wanted access information about council plans on the council website. 55% wanted key features of plans posted to all residents. 44% were interested in attending public meetings attending public meetings or other face-to-face activities to learn more about the plans
• 95% wanted to be able to give feedback on draft plans online.

Auckland Council has used these results when planning communication and consultation activities for council plans.

Although panellists' preferred name was Auckland Resource Management Plan, existing familiarity of key stakeholders with the working title "The Unitary Plan led to the name "Auckland Unitary Plan" being chosen for the resource management document.

When: April 2011. Number of responses: 2086.

When the new Auckland Council was created in November 2011, a region wide library service also was established, giving residents to access books, CDs and other items in all 56 library locations regardless of where they lived within the region.

This survey investigated how often panel members requested books from other locations.

• 86% of those who responded were library members and selected all but one of the Auckland Library's 56 different locations (including the mobile library) as their main library.
• 58% had requested books or other item from another location since 1 November 2011.

Auckland Library will use these results when planning future services.

When: May 2011. Number of responses: 1399.

Feedback on the proposals in Auckland Unleashed - the Auckland Plan discussion document.

These responses comprised a significant part of the total feedback given on Auckland Unleashed which was used to inform the writing of the draft Auckland (Spatial) Plan.

This survey covered many different and important areas making it difficult identify a few key findings. Aucklanders had further opportunities to give feedback on the draft Auckland Plan, which will adopted in March 2012.

When: June 2011.Number of responses: 1862.

Views on the council's publication OurAuckland.

• 64% had seen or read at least one of the four editions of OurAuckland.
• 70% were not aware that OurAuckland is also available online on the council's website.
• The most popular sections in OurAuckland were: What's on events/activities/things to do 80%; Auckland wide issues, news and council plans 75%;Local news 74%; Walkways and parks of the month 63%.
• 69% think the level of detail in OurAuckland is about right but 20% would prefer more detailed information.
• Panellists would like to see improvements in distribution (15%), more factual information and transparency on council projects and spending (13%) and for the text to be easier to read (13%).

These results will be used when planning future editions of OurAuckland.

When: May-June 2011. Number of responses: 1914.

Auckland Council is required by law to develop a single Waste Management and Minimisation Plan to replace the seven different plans inherited from the former legacy councils.

The People's Panel survey was part of the public consultation process carried out to inform the early stages of writing the draft plan.

• 88% aware of what to put in their recycling bin.
• 70% prefer wheelie bins for general household waste.
• 57% would be interested in a separate organic collection for food and waste.
• 54% think there should be uniform charge for general household waste.
• 41% think general household waste should be user-pays.
• 96% think a "no junk mail" notice on their letterbox should be adhered to.

These results, together with other feedback, informed the writing of the draft Auckland Waste Management and Minimisation Plan.

Aucklanders had further opportunities to give feed back on this draft plan from November 2011 to January 2012 . The final plan is due to be adopted by June 2012

When: February 2011. Number of responses: 1044.

Feedback on the new Auckland Council print publication.

• 83% said they were likely to read the print publication.
• 70% preferred the title Our Auckland.
• Information about events (local and regional), transport and roads, parks, rubbish and recycling, and how rates are spent were the topics panellists most wanted to read about in Our Auckland.

Panellists' feedback led to OurAuckland being chosen as the title of the council publication and also influenced the choice of the front cover format.

When: January 2011. Number of responses: 1806.

In the first People's Panel survey, members gave their views on living in Auckland, what they liked most and what is important to them.

• The vast majority of responding panellists (85%) were happy (very happy + happy) living in their local neighbourhood, their wider local area (78%), and Auckland as a whole (70%).
• Likes: Sense of community, good neighbours, a "village-like feeling" were what panellists liked most about their neighbourhood. Wider local area and in Auckland as a whole - easy access to beaches, walkways, the waterfront and other recreational areas; The distinctive features of Auckland - its volcanoes, harbours, panoramic views, leafy suburbs and climate - and the variety of things to do in the region, were also valued.
• Dislikes: Traffic! The top dislike for neighbourhoods, local areas and Auckland as a whole were traffic related - congestion, ongoing road works, poor traffic behaviour, the expense of travel and the difficulties faced by cyclists and pedestrians.
• Improvements suggested: In neighbourhoods: panellists wanted safer streets: better roads, improved road layout and signage, lower speed limits and more pedestrian friendly footpaths. In the wider region and Auckland as a whole there was a desire for improved and cheaper public transport, integrated ticketing, better park and ride options, and alternatives to private vehicle use.

The results from this survey informed the drafting of the Auckland (Spatial) Plan and local board plans which Aucklanders had further opportunities to give feed back on. The Auckland (Spatial) Plan will adopted in March 2012.