Thursday 5 June 2014

Another day, another survey

Cornwall Council wants to know what you think ( it is writing to a random sample of 3000 Cornish households to ask them).

But:

1. Will it be credible for the Council to make decisions based on those who respond out of 3000?  (Last time this was done in 2009 the Council wrote to about 18,000 households).

2. As the questions do not strictly conform to the Local Government Association criteria, will the Council be able to compare its performance to those of other authorities. When it was surveyed in the last year of the old County Council its results for residents' satisfaction, value for money etc were poor by comparison.

3. Many questions seem a little bit pointless. If 1,000 respondents say one of their priorities is shopping facilities is that a mandate to give permission for more out of town shopping centres?

4. This may 'only' cost £8,000 to the external company (Marketing Means) but there will be many hours of work for Council officers in assessing the results, disseminating them to members, arranging reputation workshops for members for members to consider them. These costs are just as real as the amount paid to Marketing Means.


5. Will we learn anything that we do not already know only too well?

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