For immediate release

14 May 2026

Residents asked to rate the services in Kawerau

Every three years, Kawerau District Council asks residents to rate all Council services from kerbside recycling and greenwaste collection through to rates, facilities, parks and reserves, community safety, and more.

The results from the Kawerau community are compared to previous surveys and to other councils across Aotearoa New Zealand.  Feedback lets Council know if they are on the right track and shows how the Council stacks up against other territorial authorities in New Zealand.

Kawerau District Council chief executive Morgan Godfery said, “With these insights, Council can invest in services and facilities that the community identifies as valuable. The aim is to improve residents' satisfaction with the Council’s overall performance.”

The results also enable Council to measure its performance against targets set in their Long Term Plan.

SIL Research is conducting the Council’s Triennial Residents Survey for 2026. Based in the Hawkes Bay, SIL has more than 25 years’ experience conducting research for local government organisations and completed Kawerau’s last triennial residents survey in 2023.

Since the early 1990s, Council has been completing the Triennial Residents Survey to measure the overall satisfaction of Council services and operations by residents and ratepayers.

In 2023, Council received an overall satisfaction rating of 70% from residents which was well above the New Zealand benchmark for councils of 50%.

Data will be collected using a mixed-methods approach to maximise participation and ensure broad community representation, including:

• Postal surveys
• Social media and links on the Council’s website
• Phone calls
• Surveys delivered to some schools, community agencies, and organisations

The survey asks participants a variety of questions about the services Council delivers to residents with a 10-point rating scale and takes about 10 minutes to complete.

The residents’ feedback can lead to practical improvements such as removing hazardous trees, improving footpaths, and building public toilets closer to the town centre in response to community concerns. These examples show how residents’ input makes a real difference to services in Kawerau.

The survey is anonymous; no one will be personally identified in any feedback or results presented.

Data will only be used to provide Council information and statistics about their services and facilities.

To ensure a broad cross-section of community responses, people from both the Kawerau Māori ward and Kawerau general ward will be surveyed using a randomised selection method.

Any members of the community and ratepayers can give feedback as the surveys are available online hard copies are available at the council offices, library and isite.

The results will be shared with the Kawerau community and are outlined in the annual report.

Your opinion will help shape the future of Kawerau. Fill out the Triennial Residents Survey now! www.silresearch.co.nz/kawerau

For more information, call the Council on 07 306 9009, or email info@kaweraudc.govt.nz

Ends/.

For more information, please contact Kawerau District Council Communication and Engagement Manager Tania Humberstone on 0274643785.