Wellbeing on the rise for Christchurch
Christchurch City Council Newsline: 12th September 2018
It’s official: Life is good in Christchurch – and getting better, the latest nationwide Quality of Life Survey shows.
The survey – a collaboration between nine councils around New Zealand – examines how different urban areas fare when it comes to the wellbeing of their residents.
It has found that 84 per cent of people in Christchurch consider their quality of life good, very good or extremely good. This is in line with other cities and an increase on the 78 per cent positive rating from Christchurch residents surveyed in 2016.
Christchurch residents are also significantly more likely (65 percent compared to the average of 58 percent) to say people from different cultures and with different lifestyles make the city a better place to live.
“The main reasons people gave for feeling good about life in Christchurch were their positive relationships and involvement in social networks, good physical and financial health, and comfortable and affordable housing,” Christchurch Mayor Lianne Dalziel says.
“The most heartening finding is that 56 percent think Christchurch has got better in the last 12 months – versus a 29 per cent average for the other cities surveyed – and this is attributed to all the new facilities and building projects, like libraries, pools, and retail and hospitality outlets.
“The results suggest that the people of Christchurch are happier with the way the city is taking shape,” Mayor Dalziel says.
However, confidence that the Christchurch City Council makes decisions in the best interests of the city has fallen to 36 per cent, down from 47 per cent in 2016.
“The same result came through in our residents’ survey, and this is something we’re focusing on,” Mayor Dalziel says.
A total of 6894 New Zealanders completed the 2018 Quality of Life Survey, which was carried out by independent research agency Nielsen. There was a sample of 495 from Christchurch.
The local government research project used a random, representative sample, with quotas applied by age, ethnicity and ward location.
Other key findings include:
- 73 percent say Christchurch is a great place to live.
- 57 percent say their housing costs (rent, mortgage, house insurance and house maintenance) are affordable.
- 86 percent have found that their house is suitable for their needs, and 68 per cent say their house doesn’t have a problem with damp or mould.
- 17 percent felt stressed most or all of the time in the last 12 months, lower than Auckland levels of 21 percent and 19 percent in Wellington.
- 43 percent of Christchurch respondents say they feel safe in the central city after dark – lower than the national average of 48 percent. However, the figure was better than in 2016, when only 31 percent said they felt safe in the central city after dark.
- 78 percent say dangerous driving is a problem in the city in the last year and 71 percent view begging in the streets as an issue.
View the 2018 Quality of Life in Christchurch Survey report.