Scottish household survey 2016: key findings

Environment

Climate change

An increasing proportion of adults in Scotland believe that climate change is an immediate and urgent problem.

Over half of adults (55%) view climate change as an immediate and urgent problem, a 5% increase since 2015.

Concern about climate change has increased in particular among the 16-24 age group, and is lowest among the 75+ age group.

2014: 45%

2015: 50%

2016: 55%

Recycling

More households are now disposing of their food waste in local authority-provided food caddies (56% in 2016 compared with 26% in 2012).

While more people in houses than flats use food waste recycling caddies, the proportion of use in flats is increasing.

There is a higher rate of food waste composting in rural areas.

Use of food waste caddies

2012: 26%

2016: 56%

Access to outdoors

Most adults (65%) live within a five minute walk of their nearest area of greenspace, a similar proportion to 2015.

Those living closer to their nearest greenspace are more likely to use it more frequently.

More than a third of adults (36%) visit their nearest area of greenspace at least once a week, which is around the same proportion since 2012 when the question was first asked.

Visits to outdoors

Around half of adults (48%) visited the outdoors at least once a week in the last year. This is around the same proportion as in 2015.

Adults living in the most deprived areas were more likely not to have made any visits to the outdoors in the past twelve months (19%) compared to those in the least deprived areas (7%).

Not at all: 13%

At least once a week: 48%

At least once a month: 20%

At least once a year: 18%

Does not add to 100% because of rounding.