Why we don't
trust the public institutions?
Councils:
Staff on balance, are seen to treat people well. But authorities
are most likely to be associated with poor quality leadership
and management. They are seen as unlikely to admit fault or learn
from their mistakes, and the public sees councils as not interested
in their views.
Police:
Are rated positively on the quality of management and the
way staff treat people, although the public is divided on whether
the people treat people equally irrespective of race, religion
and colour. Many think the police are poor at keeping people informed
about services, and admitting mistakes.
NHS:
Local hospitals get very positive ratings on the way staff
treat people, and are seen as more likely to be interested in
the public's views. They are also seen as the most willing to
learn from mistakes.
Audit
Commission Web site
The
report "Trust in the Public Sector" in PDF format
Sign
up for our free weekly newsletter
Comment on this story on the forum
|
|
People are generally critical of
the level of information provided by the public sector, the quality
of leadership and management and public bodies' openness when
they have made mistakes.
Staff providing public services are in general trusted highly.
But people are less trusting of the organisations they work for
- and this is declining, according to new research by MORI for
the Audit Commission.
Trust in public organisations is driven by two major factors:
the quality of service people receive, and whether they think
organisations are honest and competent. Trust is increased when
staff treat people well, when friends and family say positive
things and when public organisations are seen to keep promises
and learn from their mistakes. Trust is lost when the public believes
they have poor quality leaders and managers, and when the organisation
is not interested in people's views.
Across all sectors, people are generally positive about the quality
of local services. Around 70% of people rated the quality of service
from local NHS hospitals as 'good' and only 14% said it was 'poor'.
Police services were rated 'good' by 60% and 'poor' by 15%. And
local authorities were rated as 'good' by 40%, and 'poor' by 30%
of people.
When asked how much they trust public agencies, NHS hospitals
get the highest rating with 79% trusting hospitals either 'a great
deal' or 'a fair amount', compared to 74% for police and 48% for
councils. People are divided on whether they trust councils: 48%
said they did not trust them very much or at all, compared to
24% for police and 18% for hospitals.
Earlier qualitative research on trust by MORI showed that the
public supports independent scrutiny, provided it brings about
improvement. But this study shows low public awareness of the
role of watchdogs and regulators - which presents a challenge
for bodies such as the Audit Commission.
Audit Commission Chairman James Strachan said:
"Here is a clear challenge to public bodies to be seen as
open, honest and willing to change. There is also a challenge
to watchdogs and regulators. Strategic Regulation focuses on those
areas of public service where the need for improvement is greatest.
It also needs to find new and better ways of communicating with
the public. This is increasingly critical with the public becoming
less inclined to accept Government and public bodies' own reporting.
Frank, independent reporting will be essential to measure both
the capacity and the success of all the new organisations and
public private partnerships now being created by Government."
|
