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Department of Premier and Cabinet

Appendix 3 - Community Survey Questionnaire

Community Survey

The communities' perception of the recovery forms a critical element of the Review. Community members were invited to provide feedback on the things they thought stood out as working well and activities they believe could have been done differently. They were also asked to provide further suggestions of things that could be included to help in future recovery programs. Community feedback was sought during November 2013 using:

  • Community feedback forms:
    • inserted in the final edition of the Recovery News and distributed by direct mail to over 4,000 households
    • located at the DISH, Council offices and other contact centres such as local shops and service stations, Neighbourhood House etc
    • online community survey
  • Telephone survey of a representative sample of 302 directly and indirectly-affected community members across the four municipalities, conducted by EMRS and using the same questions as the feedback forms. A summary of results from the telephone survey is included in this Appendix.

The community feedback form is displayed below.

The community feedback form 

Results from the Community Telephone Survey

Positive aspects of the recovery process

"What are three things that stand out as working really well in the recovery process after the fires, and why?"Chart showing what respondents thought worked well. See below for a text description of results.

Without prompting, almost one in three (30%) respondents mentioned "community spirit – assistance and support" as an aspect that had worked well in the recovery process. Other positive aspects mentioned frequently were "information available/service hubs" (16%), Aurora/ Hydro staff - restoring power" (14%), "donated food/ household goods etc" and "volunteers and service providers (eg Police, SES etc.)" (13% each).

Respondents from Lake Repulse were far more likely than other fire-affected areas to have mentioned "Blaze Aid/ fencing restoration" (40%).

Aspects of the recovery process that could have been done better

"What are three things that could have been done better in the recovery process after the fires, and how?"Chart showing what respondents thought could have been done better. See below for a text description of results.

Overall, almost one half (48%) of respondents could not think of any aspects of the bushfire recovery process that could have been done better, giving an answer of either "nothing" (37%) or "unsure" (10%).

The most common response when asked what could have been done better centred around "improved communication channels and information" (12%). A further 6% identified a need to reduce or "decrease regulation and planning with rebuilding" to allow people to recover in a more timely manner.

Suggestions to help improve future recovery programs

"What can you suggest should be included to help in future recovery programs in Tasmania?"Chart showing what respondents thought should be included in future recovery programs. See below for a text description of results.

More than one quarter (28%) of all respondents could not offer any suggested improvements to enhance future recovery programs, giving an answer of either "nothing" (20%) or "unsure" (8%).

Similarly to the previous question, the most frequent suggestion identified a need for "clear communication channels and better mobile coverage", with almost one in five respondents (18%) mentioning this issue.

Other suggestions included "greater personal contact and regular follow up with affected residents" (8%), as well as "central hub/ information centre", "increased back-burning for prevention" and "more social workers and counselling available" (all mentioned by 7% of respondents).