Cumberland Council: Residents’ Survey
Background & Context
The client was Cumberland Council, a newly formed local authority created by bringing together services from multiple former district and county councils. As a new organisation, the Council did not have any existing residents survey data and therefore lacked a baseline to understand resident perceptions, satisfaction, and priorities.
The core business need was to generate robust, representative insight into residents’ views to inform decision making, service improvement, and future performance tracking. The Council also wanted to benchmark findings against national data from the Local Government Association to understand how local perceptions compared more widely.
The research sought to understand residents’ experiences of living in the area, their satisfaction with Council services, perceptions of value for money, and the extent to which they felt informed, listened to, and able to influence decisions. It also aimed to identify variation across different population groups and geographic areas, including three defined localities within Cumberland.
A key challenge was ensuring inclusive participation across a large and diverse geography, including residents with differing levels of digital access and confidence. The topic itself included potentially sensitive areas such as financial hardship, perceptions of safety, and trust in public services. Reaching a representative sample, including those who may be less engaged or harder to reach, was therefore critical to the success of the project.
Approach
A quantitative residents survey was designed and delivered using a mixed mode methodology, combining postal self completion with an online completion option. This approach ensured accessibility for residents with low digital confidence while still offering convenience for those preferring digital channels.
A stratified random sampling approach was used to select households across all wards in Cumberland. Addresses were ranked using Index of Multiple Deprivation data to ensure representation from communities with varying levels of need and deprivation.
A total of 6,000 households were selected and mailed a survey pack. Each pack included a paper questionnaire, covering letter, and details for completing the survey online via a link or QR code. A reminder mailing was issued to non responders to boost participation.
The survey was open to any household member aged 18 or over. Materials were written in plain English and supported by a helpline to assist respondents where needed, helping to reduce barriers to participation.
In total, 1,228 completed surveys were achieved, exceeding the target sample size and enabling robust analysis at both overall Council level and across the three locality areas of North, Mid and South Cumberland.
The achieved sample was then weighted by age, gender, ethnicity, and location to ensure it accurately reflected the resident population. The final dataset achieved a high level of statistical reliability, with a confidence level of approximately ±3 percent at the overall level.
Outputs
Analysis combined descriptive statistical analysis with subgroup comparisons, identifying statistically significant differences across demographic and geographic groups. Weighting was applied prior to analysis to ensure representativeness. Confidence intervals were calculated to support robust interpretation of findings.
The project also included:
- Spatial analysis, grouping wards into three locality areas to enable more robust geographic comparisons
- Benchmarking analysis against national Local Government Association data to provide wider context
- Sub group analysis highlighting differences by age, financial situation, digital access, and other key characteristics
Outputs provided to the client included:
- A full dataset in Excel format
- Cross tabulated data tables for detailed analysis
- A comprehensive written report presenting findings, insights, and interpretation
Findings were designed to directly inform service planning, communications strategy, and prioritisation of improvements. The results established a baseline for future tracking, enabling the Council to measure change over time and assess the impact of interventions.
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