In 2023, our consultants conducted the Community Views survey in City of Canning to support Council planning, policy and advocacy work. Here’s what we found.
Overall Liveability in Canning was considered high at 65.5/100, above the 2023 benchmarks for Australia (62.6) and Western Australia (64.2).
Canning residents nominated 'feeling safe' (76%) and 'access to the natural environment' (59%) as the top two attributes that contributed most towards making somewhere a good place to live.
Improving perceptions of safety in Canning was critical to progressing liveability and overall quality of life.
Despite placing such a high value on 'feeling safe' Canning residents were less likely to feel safe relative to the Greater Perth benchmarks, rating their local experiences 6.2 out of 10. This combination of high importance coupled with below average local area experiences means that any initiatives, communications or policy to enhance feelings of safety would contribute positively to Canning’s Overall Liveability Index.
Housing affordability and rising cost of living were key issues in Canning, particularly among renters.
Exploring what it’s like to live in a local area through the lens of certain cohorts (e.g. renters, young people, etc.) provided Canning with a more detailed and nuanced view of the key issues in the community. Fifty-eight percent of renters in Canning (who make up 30% of the community) selected ‘affordable decent housing’ as an important attribute when considering what makes somewhere a good place to live (2nd most important), compared to 32% of all Canning residents.
Canning is a culturally diverse community (50.9% born overseas), and these cultural differences shape the overall values and needs of the resident population.
The ability to understand resident values by different groups within the community (including culturally and linguistically diverse populations) is critical for inclusive social policy and planning. The results of Living in Canning showed that residents born in non-English speaking countries placed greater value on education and social cohesion. Positively, both of these aspects of importance were well experienced by residents born in non-English speaking countries - ‘high quality education opportunities’ at 6.9/10 and ‘social cohesion’ at 7.2/10.
There were a range of different liveability perceptions spatially across Canning, with south-western suburbs experiencing higher levels of liveability compared to suburbs in the north.
Having a large sample size enabled analysis at the suburb level. Suburbs in the south-west of the LGA such as Rossmoyne, Shelley, Riverton and Willeton returned higher liveability scores - in the range of 71.6 to 75.3. Suburbs in the north, such as Bentley, St James, Queens Park & Welshpool and East Cannington returned lower liveability scores - in the range of 56.1 to 61.4.
The results of the Living in Canning survey can be accessed on their views.id site.
Community Views is an independent, robust and repeatable community survey that helps local councils and other organisations to credibly, comprehensively and efficiently represent their community’s views and needs in policy and advocacy. Book an introduction here.