WHAT THE PUBLIC SAY....

During October and December 2009 SOS BUS NI undertook a Client Survey. The aim was to find out how informed the general public are about the bus and the services we offer. The key findings from the survey are:

>75.2% of those surveyed were in the 18-24 year old age bracket
>83.2% of those surveyed had consumed alcohol on the night they were surveyed
>79.2% of those surveyed lived in the Greater Belfast area
>78% of people were aware of the bus prior to the survey
>51.9% of people said they knew of other people who had used the bus before
>39% of those surveyed said they had used the bus more than 4 times
>65% of those surveyed knew that the bus had a paramedic on board
>50% of those surveyed knew that SOS volunteers could help those in distress to get home safely
>Only 52% of those surveyed planned in advance how they would get home after being out
>Only 4% of all respondents carried an attack/rape alarm

>88% of users felt that the presence of the bus and the volunteers manning it made the Dublin Rd area safer.

This is the first survey that we have conducted to evaluate the public’s view of SOS bus and to establish how aware people are of the service we deliver.

It demonstrates that users of the bus have a solid understanding of what we do and many of those surveyed gave us very positive feedback. Others came forward with some helpful suggestions that will allow us to better serve the public.

The survey was developed and managed by Patrick Black from Queen’s University Belfast. We would like to thank Patrick for his diligence and professionalism in facilitating this worthwhile study.