Building Standards verification performance framework - national customer satisfaction survey: survey findings 2021

Appendix 2: National survey questionnaire

2021 Customer Satisfaction Survey for Building Standards

Please tell us what you think

Introduction

The Scottish Government (Building Standards Division) would like to obtain your views and feedback about the local authority verifier Building Standards service in Scotland. This is a national survey that is being administered separately to customer feedback questionnaires issued by individual local authorities.

As a Building Standards customer since April 2020, we would like to hear about the quality of service you have received, for example when applying for a building warrant and/or submitting a completion certificate. We are interested in your views on the customer service you have experienced as opposed to the actual decision made in response to an application.

How to complete the survey

You will be asked to identify which local authority verifier your feedback relates to. If you have been a customer of more than one local authority verifier and would like to provide additional feedback, please complete a separate survey.

The survey should take approximately 10 minutes to complete (this may take a little longer depending on how much feedback you wish to give). Please note, the final question asks you for any additional comments or feedback not covered by the previous questions.

As you progress through the survey, you will only be presented with those questions that are relevant to you. If you are unable to answer any questions, or if you feel they are not applicable, please leave them blank.

Reassurance

Pye Tait Consulting is carrying out this survey independently on behalf of the Scottish Government and all 32 local authorities in Scotland. The findings from the survey will be treated confidentially and reported anonymously by Pye Tait Consulting under the Data Protection Act 2018 and the Market Research Society (MRS) Code of Conduct.

If you have any queries, please contact Tom Wilson at Pye Tait Consulting, via t.wilson[at]pyetait.com or by telephoning 01423 509433

To continue, please select a local authority verifier to provide your views and feedback. Please note that after you press 'submit' at the end of this survey, you will return to this page and your response for this local authority verifier will be marked as 'completed' (below). Thank you for taking the time to complete this online survey.

Part 1: About you and your application: [Local authority verifier selected]

Q1.In order to minimise selection error, customers are not presented with this drop-down list of 32 local authorities to manually select which to provide feedback about. Instead, this information was either pre-filled (for customers of one local authority verifier) or a dynamically controlled reduced list was presented for customers of more than one local authority verifier (typically agents).

Which ONE of the following local authorities are you responding about in this survey? (Please tick the appropriate box and complete a separate survey for any other local authorities of which you have been a customer since April 2020).

• Aberdeen
• Aberdeenshire
• Angus
• Argyll and Bute
• City of Edinburgh
• Clackmannanshire
• Dumfries and Galloway
• Dundee
• East Ayrshire
• East Dunbartonshire
• East Lothian
• East Renfrewshire
• Eilean Siar
• Falkirk
• Fife
• Glasgow
• Highland
• Inverclyde
• Midlothian
• Moray
• North Ayrshire
• North Lanarkshire
• Orkney
• Perth and Kinross
• Renfrewshire
• Scottish Borders
• Shetland
• South Ayrshire
• South Lanarkshire
• Stirling
• West Dunbartonshire
• West Lothian

Q2. In what capacity have you been a customer of the Building Standards service? [Tick one only]

• Applicant for a building warrant and/or submitter of a completion certificate (e.g. building owner/tenant)
• Agent working on behalf of another applicant/submitter
• Both of the above, i.e. direct applicant/submitter AND agent
• Other

If 'Other' – please specify: ____________________________________

Q3. [Only asked if Option 1 selected to Q2] Did you use an agent to act on your behalf as part of the application process?

• Yes
• No
• Don’t know

Q4. For which of the following categories of work have you submitted an application? [Tick all that apply]

• Domestic new build – multiple plotted developments (houses/flats)
• Domestic new build – other (e.g. one-off house build)
• Domestic existing build - extension
• Domestic existing build - alteration
• Non-domestic – residential (e.g. hostels, guest houses, hotels, hospitals)
• Non-domestic – assembly (e.g. churches, schools, health centres, libraries, stadia)
• Non-domestic – commercial (e.g. shops, restaurants and office buildings)
• Non-domestic – Industrial (e.g. factory buildings, manufacturing units, refineries)
• Non-domestic – storage/agricultural (e.g. grain stores, car parks, bonded warehouse)

If 'Other' – please specify: ____________________________________

Part 2: Meeting your expectations: [Local authority verifier selected]

Q5. Overall, to what extent did the service you received from the local authority verifier Building Standards service meet your expectations? Please rate on a scale from 1 'not at all' to 10 'completely'?

Q6. Please provide your reasons for this rating:

Part 3: Progressing your application: [Local authority verifier selected]

Q7. How satisfied were you with the time taken by the local authority verifier Building Standards service to undertake each of the following? [Leave any statements blank if don't know or not applicable]

	Very satisfied	Fairly satisfied	Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied	Fairly dissatisfied	Very dissatisfied
Respond to telephone enquiries
Respond to written enquiries
Issue the first report for a building warrant application (e.g. detailing non-compliance or further information requested)
Process the application and grant a building warrant
Respond to a request for a site visit
Accept a completion certificate

Q8. How satisfied are you with the way you were informed about the progress of your application? [Leave blank if don't know or not applicable]

• Very satisfied
• Fairly satisfied
• Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied
• Fairly dissatisfied
• Very dissatisfied

Q9. [Only asked if 'fairly dissatisfied' or 'very dissatisfied' to Q8] What are your reasons?

Part 4: Quality of service: [Local authority verifier selected]

Q10. To what extent do you agree or disagree with each of the following statements about the advice and guidance you received from local authority verifier Building Standards service staff? [Leave any statements blank if don't know or not applicable]

	Strongly agree	Agree to some extent	Neither agree nor disagree	Disagree to some extent	Strongly disagree
I received sufficient advice and guidance to meet my needs
The advice and guidance I received was consistent
The advice and guidance I received was helpful

Q11. To what extent do you agree or disagree with each of the following statements about the quality of service received from Building Standards service staff? [Leave any statements blank if don't know or not applicable]

	Strongly agree	Agree to some extent	Neither agree nor disagree	Disagree to some extent	Strongly disagree
Staff were polite and courteous
Staff were helpful
Staff were efficient
Staff were knowledgeable
I felt as though someone took ownership of my enquiry
Any problems that arose were adequately resolved
I felt valued as a customer

Q12. [Only asked if 'Strongly Agree' to any components of Q10 or Q11] You have stated STRONGLY AGREE to at least one of the above statements with respect to the advice, guidance and quality of service you have received. Please can you explain what was particularly good?

Q13. [Only asked if 'Strongly Disagree' to any components of Q10 or Q11] You have stated STRONGLY DISAGREE to at least one of the above statements with respect to the advice, guidance and quality of service you have received. Please can you explain your reasons?

Q14. How satisfied were you with each of the following aspects of the inspection visit? [Leave any statements blank if don't know or not applicable]

	Very satisfied	Fairly satisfied	Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied	Fairly dissatisfied	Very dissatisfied
Flexibility of dates and times to meet my needs
Professionalism of the inspection staff
Thoroughness of the virtual inspection
Quality of the advice and guidance received from the inspection staff
My understanding of the next steps following the inspection

Part 5: Communications: [Local authority verifier selected]

Q15. In which of the following ways did you interact with the local authority verifier Building Standards service? [Tick all that apply]

• Email
• Telephone
• Letter
• On-site visit
• At the Building Standards service offices
• Other

If 'Other' – please specify: ____________________________________

Q16. On a scale from 1'very poor' to 10 'very good' - how would you rate each of the following aspects of the local authority verifier's written information and documentation:

	1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10
Accuracy
Quality
Helpfulness
Layout and presentation
Use of plain English

Q17. How satisfied are you with each of the following forms of electronic communication made available by the local authority verifier Building Standards service? [Leave any statements blank if don't know or not applicable]

	Very satisfied	Fairly satisfied	Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied	Fairly dissatisfied	Very dissatisfied
Website
Email
SMS/text message
e-newsletter

Q18. [Only asked if 'fairly dissatisfied' or 'very dissatisfied' to any of Q17 A to D] You stated fairly dissatisfied or very dissatisfied to at least one of the options in the last question about electronic communication. What are your reasons?

Q19. Generally, in what ways (if any) do you think the local authority verifier Building Standards service could improve its communications?

Part 6: Accessibility: [Local authority verifier selected]

Q20. How easy was it to make contact with the local authority verifier Building Standards service via each of the following methods? Please rate on a scale from 1 'very difficult' to 10 'very easy'

	1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10
In general
By phone
By email
In person/virtually

Q21. Please provide reasons for your ratings:

Q22. To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statements in relation to the local authority verifier Building Standards service? [Leave any statements blank if don't know or not applicable]

	Strongly agree	Tend to agree	Neither agree nor disagree	Tend to disagree	Strongly disagree
Building Standards service staff are accessible if I want to meet with them (in person or virtually)
Building Standards service staff are approachable

Part 7: Overall satisfaction and final comments: [Local authority verifier selected]

Q23. Overall, how would you rate your satisfaction with the Building Standards service? Please rate on a scale from 1 'not at all satisfied' to 10 'completely satisfied'

Finally, do you have any final comments about how you believe the local authority verifier Building Standards service could be improved in the future?