CLEARLY one of the most important factors in making Basingstoke a great place to live is how safe residents in the borough feel.

Cllr Clive Sanders said Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council has worked hard to ensure residents feel safe, especially in the town centre, signing up to the Purple Flag Award last year, and despite funding cuts to community patrollers by Hampshire County Council, the borough council has pledged £500,000 to ensure that 12 patrollers will remain on the streets.

According to this year’s survey, 98 per cent of people feel safe in Basingstoke and Deane in the day, compared to 96 per cent in 2012 and 91 per cent in 2008.

The number of people who feel safe at night across the borough has leapt from 56 per cent in 2008 and 78 per cent in 2012 to 87 per cent this year.