City of Swan is a great place to live and run a business, according to the results of the 2023 Community and Business Perceptions Scorecard.
In February and March this year, we sought feedback from our community to gain a better understanding of what services we are providing well and where we can make improvements.
Thank you to those who took the time to provide valuable feedback. We have taken your comments on board and will integrate your priorities into future planning.
We learned that 95 per cent of residents are satisfied with the City as a place to live and 86 per cent of businesses are satisfied with the City as a place to work or operate a business.
Our community had the opportunity to score our services out of 100.
We set a new industry high score when it comes to our recognition of diverse cultures (63). Our recognition and respect for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, cultures and heritage scored 63, which exceeded the industry average of 59.
Our community told us their main priorities for the City are:
- Community safety and crime prevention
- Streetscapes, trees and verges
- Playgrounds, parks and reserves.
Priorities for local businesses were:
- Business support
- Improving local roads
- Parking management
- Planning and building approvals.
Your feedback also let us know we can improve:
- Consultation and engagement on local projects, plans and issues
- Informing you about what’s happening in your area.
Stephen Cain, CEO, said the City has taken all feedback on board, and is already working on making enhancements.
“This year, we launched our Swan Engage website and we are out in the community seeking your feedback on projects more than ever before,” he said.
“We have implemented community feedback by planting more than 900 trees along Hepburn Avenue, and have re-designed the Brigadoon play space based on community preferences.
“We want to keep you informed as much as possible, so we have re-launched the quarterly Swan Scoop printed newsletters featuring local news on services and projects.
“To improve our community’s safety, we are currently developing an updated Community Safety Plan, increased mobile CCTV units, and upgraded lighting at parks and ovals.
“Throughout 2022/23, we have spent over $2 million on tree planting to increase our tree canopy across the City, launched a $100,000 free tree program for residents and invested another $100,000 on street trees for resident verges.”
Mr Cain said the City would provide updates about each of these, and future initiatives, through its newsletters, social media channels and other communication channels as they progress.