Scottish household survey 2016: key findings

Uses

What is the SHS used for?

Scotland's largest random pre-selected survey is at the centre of Scotland's evidence approach to policy-making. This is some of the ways in which the evidence it provides is used:

• Housing data is used to determine the size of the Private Rented Sector in Scotland and is a crucial element of National Records of Scotland ( NRS) Household Projections, which Local Authorities use at the core of their Housing Plans. Affordable Housing Funding is allocated using these projections.
• Much of data for key performance monitoring frameworks, including: nearly one in five Scotland Performs indicators; half of the Housing & Regeneration Outcome Indicators; over half of Active Scotland Outcome Indicators; and, over a quarter of the Child Poverty Measurement Framework Indicators.
• The only source of Fuel Poverty evidence and the only nationally representative source of data on energy efficiency, house conditions and quality. This evidence is used extensively in the design, targeting and funding allocations for SG energy efficiency programmes ( SEEP).
• The Travel Diary component of the SHS is a unique data source on personal travel patterns, which underpins analysis of future transport needs and economic business cases for national and local transport infrastructure investment projects.
• Transport and Housing Energy Efficiency data are crucial for monitoring carbon emissions, informing Climate Change policies and progress.
• All Local Authorities in Scotland use the data in their Single Outcome Agreements; the Improvement Service use data for the Local Government Benchmarking Framework; Community Planning Partnerships to understand and improve local needs and circumstances. There is particular interest in SHS local data on communities, local services, neighbourhoods, volunteering, recycling and access to outdoors and greenspace.