THE results of the largest ever resident research ever commissioned by Wirral Council have been published today.

The authority brought in leading market research agency Ipsos Mori – at a cost of £25,000 – to conduct the survey of 1100 people across the borough.

According to its report, people in Birkenhead are most concerned about crime and anti-social behaviour, with road and pavement repairs the main priority for those living in Wirral West.

People also felt that feeling safe and healty were their were the most important factors in residents' quality of life.  

Seventy eight per cent of those surveyed said they were happy with where they lived. 

People felt that improvements were needed in road and pavement repairs and street cleanliness.

More activities for teenagers and having good job prospects were issues many considered to be 'most important'.

The vast majority of residents felt safe during the daytime,. 

The results were revealed to public sector, business and community groups during a presentation at the Floral Pavilion in New Brighton this afternoon.

Council leader Phil Davies said: "Knowing what residents need and want – and then making sure they get it – is the fundamental principle public services in Wirral are built upon.

"The results of the benchmarking research show where residents want us to focus our efforts to deliver big improvements in people’s lives.

"This is the first time we have a definitive picture of what our residents want and need.

"It's now up to all the service providers across Wirral to use this information to shape programmes and services to meet residents needs and expectations."

Cllr Davies continued: "Using Ipsos Mori polling data not only allows us to track how we are doing in meeting the needs of Wirral residents, it also benchmarks us against similar councils across the country, so we can learn and improve as an organisation."

Mori’s chief executive Ben Page said: “I’ve looked at 100 or so councils during 30 years in this job. Wirral is not in crisis, it is clearly on the road to improvement.

“Seventy eight per cent of people surveyed are happy with the place in which they live.”