The New Zealand Urban Design Protocol (Protocol) was launched in 2005 and sets a platform for making our towns and cities more successful through quality urban design. At the time of the survey, the Protocol had a total of 174 signatory organisations.
Background to the project
In order to evaluate the overall effectiveness of the Protocol and its signatories Action Plans, including their outcomes, the Ministry for the Environment (the Ministry) engaged simpsonedwards & Associates to provide assistance in a study to inform this evaluation.
The study involved qualitative and quantitative research with signatory organisations. Full details of the methodology used for this research study, including how the survey participants were selected, are described in a separate technical report.
This report
This report provides a stock take of the Protocol and is part of a wider evaluation of the Protocol and its signatory Action Plans, and will help the Ministry to evaluate and determine the future direction of the programme.
The findings from this study are presented in two separate volumes – a main report containing the survey findings and key recommendations, and a separate technical report containing a detailed description of the methodology and approach, questionnaire and cross tabulations.
Respondent profile
Responses to the online survey were received from 110 out of 174 signatory organisations, equating to signatory response rate of 63 per cent, and as such, we can be confident that the results presented and discussed in this report are representative. Of the total participants invited to respond (n=256), an overall response rate of 49 per cent (or n=126) was achieved (further details regarding the response rate calculations may be found in the separate technical report).
The profile of those responding to the online survey (n=126) is summarised as follows:
- Nearly half of all respondents (47 per cent) were from consultants, developers and investors, while nearly one in three (29 per cent) responses were from Local Government. The remaining responses (24 per cent) were equally divided between Central Government (12 per cent), professional, educational institutes and sector organisations (13 per cent)
- Three out of five respondents (62 per cent) held senior management or executive positions, while one in five (21 per cent) held senior technical positions
- Three out of four respondents (74 per cent) were identified as being the Urban Design Champion for their organisation, while the remaining responses (26 per cent) were solicited from other urban design representatives in the organisation.
Background to the project
March 2010
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