Waitomo District Council trumps in council comparisons for second year
29 Sep 2026, 1:37 PM
Waitomo District Council (WDC) has come out on top for a second time following a benchmarking report that compares them with other Local Government organisations throughout the country.
The results are based on Council’s annual residents survey, and it is the second time WDC has been able to see how it stacks up against similar councils.
WDC carries out a survey each year to understand how residents feel about council’s performance and the way we deliver our services and activities. It is also used to measure seven of Council’s Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and inform the Annual Report each year.
WDC engages Key Research to conduct the survey, which took place in May this year. Key Research conducts surveys for 23 councils across New Zealand in 2025/26, including 20 district councils and 3 city councils.
Overall, WDC’s results compare positively with the other councils participating in the survey.
Out of 60 measures surveyed, WDC achieved the top score in eight measures and significantly above the average for most of the measures. WDC is not the lowest performing Council for any of the measures.
The measures which WDC achieved the highest score out of the 23 benchmarked councils are:
Leadership (74% where average is 55%)
Trust (70% where average is 49%)
Engagement and consultation (83% where average is 50%)
Enquiry handling (83% where average is 71%)
Building consents (74% where average is 55%)
Overall regulatory services (84% where average is 61%)
Libraries (99% where average is 88%)
Cemeteries (98% where average is 85%)
For the second year in a row, WDC has come out on top for engagement and consultation with the highest points differential and a satisfaction score of 83%. The average is 50% and the lowest score was 22%.
Measures where WDC scored significantly above the average and close to the top score across the 23 Councils (less than 5% difference to the top score):
overall reputation
financial management
open/outdoor places
parks, reserves and green spaces
sports fields and playgrounds
public facilities and open/outdoor places
food safety and alcohol licensing
transfer stations
reliability of water supply
availability of footpaths
Measures where WDC scored below the average:
flood protection
overall quality of water (including taste, clarity and odour)
overall stormwater system
kerbside rubbish and recycling collection
pools
public toilets
safety of the roads
overall roading infrastructure
annual property rates are fair and reasonable
quality of life/wellbeing
Chief Executive Ben Smit says despite it being a challenging year with the transfer of water services and its impact on the organisation, demands from central government and the uncertainty with the local government reform, the benchmarking results are a great testament to Council staff.
“We've had to work through a lot this past year with Waikato Waters, responding to severe weather events and the additional workloads from central government. It’s pleasing to see the hard work of our staff is recognised in this way.
“We are very appreciative and thankful for the time residents took to complete the survey.
“We have a dedicated and resilient team who work hard behind the scenes, often with very little positive acknowledgement from our community. While there are always improvements to be made, it’s nice to know we are not doing too bad by comparison, and we should all be pleased with these results.”
Ben encourages everyone who receives the survey to take the time to let us know how we’re doing.
“Good and bad, we want to hear from you. It’s also essential that our residents involve themselves in other council conversations, whether it be bylaw reviews or ideas to improve our facilities. Your participation goes a long way to making the Waitomo District a great place to live, work and play.”