Scottish Household Survey – 2020 telephone survey

Scotland’s Chief Statistician today released the results of the Scottish Household Survey – 2020 Telephone Survey, providing a snapshot of the characteristics, attitudes and behaviours of Scottish households and individuals during late 2020 and early 2021.

This is the first time the Scottish Household Survey (SHS) interviews have been conducted by telephone. The results are published as Experimental Statistics and are not directly comparable with the survey results for previous years.

Public services and institutions

• 74% of adults reported that they trusted the Scottish Government. Adults aged 16 to 24 were more likely to express trust in the Scottish Government than those aged 75 or over.
• 88% of adults were satisfied with local health services, 78% with schools and 70% with public transport. 61% were satisfied with all three services. Satisfaction with public transport was lower in remote rural areas than in large urban areas.
• 25% of adults felt they could influence decisions affecting their local area.

Housing and community

• 94% of households were very or fairly satisfied with their housing. Owner-occupiers were more likely to be satisfied than those in the social rented sector.
• 96% of adults rated their neighbourhood as a very or fairly good place to live. Ratings tended to be more positive in less deprived areas.
• 61% of adults agreed that there were places in their neighbourhood where people could meet up and socialise. Adults in the least deprived areas were more likely to agree.
• 88% of adults agreed they could rely on someone in their neighbourhood if they were alone and needed help. Adults in the least deprived areas were more likely to agree.
• 35% of adults reported having felt lonely in the previous week. Loneliness was more common in younger adults, disabled adults and those from deprived areas and urban areas.

Money and resources

• 64% of households reported managing well financially. This was less common in more deprived areas, in rented households or if the highest income householder had been furloughed.
• 61% of households with a child aged under 12 said that it was very easy or easy to afford childcare.
• 93% of households had access to the internet. Internet access was lower in the most deprived areas and among social rented and single pensioner households.

Volunteering, culture and physical activity

• 64% of adults had taken part in formal or informal volunteering in the previous year.
• 44% of adults had attended a cultural event or place of culture in the previous 12 months. Attendance was higher among younger adults, non-disabled adults and those in the least deprived areas.
• 83% of adults had participated in a cultural activity in the previous 12 months. Participation was higher among women and those in the least deprived areas.
• 86% of adults had participated in physical activity in the previous four weeks.

Environment

• 80% of adults felt that climate change was an immediate and urgent problem. This view was more common among younger adults and those in the least deprived areas.
• 68% of adults lived within a five-minute walk of their nearest area of green or blue space (such as parks, woods, rivers or coasts). This was more common in remote rural areas than in large urban areas.
• 79% of adults visited the outdoors at least once a week. Disabled adults and those living in the most deprived areas were less likely to do so.

The figures released today were produced in accordance with professional standards set out in the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.

Background

Scottish Household Survey 2020 Telephone Survey - Key Findings - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

The Scottish Household Survey 2020: Methodology and Impact of Change in Mode - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

Since 1999, the SHS has collected information on the characteristics, attitudes and behaviours of Scotland’s people, using face-to-face interviewing in people’s homes. It was paused in March 2020 due to COVID restrictions. A telephone version of the SHS was piloted in October 2020 and rolled out to the remainder of the 2020 sample in January to March 2021.

Due to the change in approach, the results of the SHS 2020 telephone survey are not directly comparable to SHS results for previous years. The accompanying methodology report explores how the change in approach may have impacted the results. These include changes to the profile of the people who agreed to take part in the survey, and questions being answered differently over the telephone than they would have been face-to-face.

Around 3,000 households were interviewed for the SHS 2020 telephone survey, compared to around 10,500 for the SHS 2019. Due to the smaller sample size, it is not possible to provide data for individual local authorities.

This report is classified as Experimental Statistics and is produced in accordance with professional standards. See standards of official statistics in Scotland for more information.