Media Release – 15 October 2012

Wellbeing survey goes online

Greater Christchurch residents can now go online and share their post-earthquake experiences and perceptions in a survey that will help guide CERA and its partner agencies in their work.

The Wellbeing Survey investigates a range of ways in which people have been affected by the earthquakes. That includes looking at the prevalence and causes of stress, quality of life, social connectedness, satisfaction with the recovery and any positive impacts people may be experiencing.

While CERA receives a large amount of anecdotal feedback on residents’ wellbeing, this survey will enable it to gather qualitative research for its planning. The experiences of all those who have lived through the earthquakes are of interest to CERA and its partner agencies.

The survey is being undertaken in two parts. Firstly, Nielsen has surveyed a randomly selected representative sample of 2500 residents from the electoral roll in greater Christchurch.

Secondly, from today, the online component of the survey is open to all residents on the CERA website at www.cera.govt.nz.

CERA General Manager Community Wellbeing Michelle Mitchell says the Wellbeing Survey will be run twice a year for the next three years.
``We need more information about how people are feeling in different parts of town and in the greater Christchurch area. From this, we can see what trends are emerging in different places and identify where best to target resources.”

Michelle Mitchell says that through the online survey residents who were not selected for the representative sample will get the chance to have a say.

``The survey is not just for those who are worst affected by the quakes, it’s for all residents. It will allow all those living in greater Christchurch to engage in a dialogue about the progress of recovery.”

The online survey can be accessed through until Friday, 2 November.

CERA has developed the Wellbeing Survey in partnership with Christchurch City Council, Waimakariri District Council, Selwyn District Council, Canterbury District Health Board and Te Runanga o Ngāi Tahu. The GNS Natural Hazards Research Platform is also a major funder.

The data will be incorporated into the CERA Recovery Strategy monitoring and reporting, which is designed to track the progress of recovery goals using indicators in the social, economic, built, cultural and environmental areas.

© Scoop Media