British public's satisfaction with public services improve, survey finds

A new UK Customer Satisfaction Index (UKCSI) from the Institute of Customer Service has shown that the British public's satisfaction with public services has improved.

The UKCSI measures customer service in the UK by surveying around 26,000 consumers each year. The overall score across 13 sectors comes in at 77 out of 100, up two points from January 2010.

National public services received an overall customer satisfaction score of 72, up from last year’s score of 69 and locally delivered services collectively achieved a score of 74 in the UKCSI, up two points from 72 in January 2010.

Increases were recorded across most national services, with the Royal Mail up seven points to 73, and the NHS up five points to 77.

The DVLA increased its public satisfaction score by three points.

The police service recorded a four-point rise in customer satisfaction to 67, and local ambulance service rose three points to 85.

However the public express deep concerns over the future quality, responsiveness and accessibility of public services in the face of public spending cuts.

The public most fear that the quality of healthcare will suffer, followed closely by policing and council services, with similar results in terms of the responsiveness of services, where concerns are over the impact of cuts on healthcare, followed by policing.

In terms of accessibility, the public most fear the impact of cuts on access to healthcare, followed by policing and local authority services, but are marginally more optimistic about the future quality of education in the face of budget cuts.

Institute Chief Executive Jo Causon said: "It is extremely encouraging to see the public sector improving its performance over the last year in terms of user satisfaction, however in the face of severe spending cuts and reductions in staff, public organisations now face a significant challenge to maintain service levels in 2011."

Further information:
Institute of Customer Service