About the survey
The Quality of Life 2008 Survey is the third national survey in a partnership between 12 Quality of Life Project cities and districts and the Ministry of Social Development. The 12 cities and districts are: North Shore, Waitakere, Auckland, Manukau, Hamilton, Tauranga, Wellington, Porirua, Hutt, Christchurch, Dunedin and Rodney.
The 2008 survey is part of an ongoing series of surveys and research exploring quality of life and well-being issues. Topics covered include:
- Quality of Life
- Health and Well-being
- Crime and safety
- Community, Culture and Social Networks
- Council Processes
- Built Environment
- Public Transport
- Lifestyle – Work and Study
Information obtained from the survey will be used to help inform central and local government policy makers. The information will be particularly useful for cities undertaking monitoring of progress toward achieving community outcomes under their Local Government Act requirements.
Quality of life and North Shore City
Most residents in North Shore City continue to believe they have a high quality of life, according to the results of the latest national Quality of Life survey, released on 6 April. The biennial Quality of Life survey measured the perceptions of over 570 residents in North Shore City with a total of over 8,100 residents participating across the country.
Ninety-two point three per cent of residents living in North Shore City rated their overall quality of life positively, compared to an average of 91.9 percent nationally. Similarly, 89.2 percent of the city residents viewed their overall health as favourable. The city came second out of 12 cities and districts in its ‘good or better’ rating of general health.
Standards of living within our city are also positive, with the majority of people interviewed, 86 per cent, saying they had sufficient money to cover the cost of their everyday lives.
Most residents (97.3 per cent) felt safe in their homes during the day, and 95.7 per cent felt safe after dark. Feelings of safety in central city areas after dark were considerably lower, at 65.7 per cent, but this compares with a national figure of 49 per cent.
Social connectedness within our communities still needs to improve with only 50.9 per cent saying there was a sense of community in their local neighbourhood, compared with 53 per cent in 2006.
Over half (57.4 per cent) of North Shore’s residents said that cultural diversity makes their city a better or much better place in which to live. People felt that diversity brings a broader perspective together with new ideas and that it helps people appreciate other cultures as well as their own. Only 8.5 per cent said that cultural diversity made their city a worse or much worse place in which to live.
Please visit www.bigcities.govt.nz to view the Quality of Life 2008 report.