Dungannon and South Tyrone Borough Council has scored a  ' first ' in the Province with residents expressing top levels of satisfaction with Council services in comparison to the 25 other local authorities. This result, and a full report on the findings of the province wide survey by Research and Evaluation Services, Belfast will be presented to the Council 's Development Committee tonight, Monday 19th April.

The survey questioned 400 residents in each Council area on awareness, satisfaction levels, and efficiency of a wide range of public services. According to Dungannon and South Tyrone residents, the top five most important services provided by Council are refuse collection, street cleaning, recycling, parks/play facilities and dog control.

The Council scored a top three place for its provision of Parks and Play Areas (1st place), Promotion of Community Services (2nd), Dog Control (2nd), Street Cleaning (2nd), Refuse Collection (3rd) and Civic Amenity Sites (3rd). The survey also revealed that communication with residents has improved and the most preferred method of communication is via the Council> '> s newsletter > '> Update> '> which is currently being distributed to all households across the Borough.

Mr William Beattie, Chief Executive of Dungannon and South Tyrone Borough Council is delighted with the results:

 "We are particularly pleased that Dungannon has been placed at number one for 'overall satisfaction with Council services'. The figures indicate that 78% of our residents are satisfied with the Council's performance. This result reflects very much on the Council's strategy by way of our Corporate Plan 2002 - 2005 which includes civic leadership and quality of life for our residents as strategic priorities. However we should not be complacent - I note that in the section  'Getting the right Person or Department by Enquiry '  we fair very badly with a ranking of 20th equal.

"Councillors and council employees are to be congratulated on the overall result and we will strive to make even further improvements in the present year."

Dungannon and South Tyrone Borough Council also earned a first place in Efficiency of Services, Promoting a Positive Image for the Borough and for treating residents fairly and without discrimination.

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Emma Heatherington
Public Relations Officer

Tel: 028 8772 0341