Community Life Survey 2019/20
This report summarises the results from the 2019/20 survey, which ran from April 2019 to March 2020.
Documents
Details
Background
The Community Life Survey is a household self-completion survey of adults aged 16+ in England. The survey is a key evidence source on social cohesion, community engagement and social action.
This report summarises the results from the 2019/20 survey, which ran from April 2019 to March 2020. In 2016/17, the survey discontinued face-to-face collection and moved fully to a ‘push to web’ approach.
The majority of the fieldwork took place prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Further information on the impact the pandemic may have had on our estimates is available in Annex B.
This nationally representative survey provides statistics on behaviours and attitudes to inform policy and action in these areas. The survey provides data of value to a range of users, including government departments, public bodies, those working in the voluntary and charity sectors and the public.
Responsible statistician: Alistair Rice
Statistical enquiries: evidence@dcms.gov.uk, @DCMSInsight
Media enquiries: 020 7211 2210
Date: 14th July 2020
Headline Estimates
Estimates from the 2019-20 Community Life Survey show that among adults (16+) in England:
- 23% took part in formal volunteering at least once a month.
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37% took part in formal volunteering at least once in the last year.
- 75% have to charitable causes in the last 4 weeks.
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Of which, £24 was the average donation given.
- 27% felt able to influence decision affecting their local area.
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53% wanted to be more involved in local decision making.
- 76% were satisfied with their local area as a place to live.
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82% agreed their area was a place where people from different backgrounds get on well together.
- 63% felt they belonged to their immediate neighbourhood.
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84% felt they belonged to Britain.
- 74% met up in person with family or friends once a week or more.
- 6% said they felt lonely often or always.
Chapters
1. Identity and Social Networks
3. Neighbourhood and Community
4. Civic Engagement and Social Action
5. Volunteering and Charitable Giving
Notes
- There are likely to be interactions between different demographics reported in this publication. For example, ethnic groups have different age and regional profiles. This report considers each demographic characteristic individually, so differences cited here cannot necessarily be attributed directly to the characteristic being described.
- The 2014/15 and 2015/16 survey had a smaller overall sample size than other years reported in this report so figures for these years may be less reliable.
- Small sample sizes for some demographic characteristics (such as some ethnic minority groups) presented in this report mean we are less able to detect significant differences between groups.
- All results summarised in this report are from the ‘push to web’ methodology. Respondents can choose to complete the survey online or use a paper questionnaire. Not all questions are included in the paper version of the questionnaire.
- 95% confidence intervals have been used throughout the report. For further explanation and for definitions of terms please refer to Annex A
- Differences between groups are only reported on in this publication where they are statistically significant i.e. where we can be confident that the differences seen in our sampled respondents reflect the population. Further information on this approach is provided in Annex A.
- The Community Life Survey fieldwork period ran from April 2019 to March 2020. We do not anticipate that the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, and the associated restrictions and guidance introduced in the UK, have affected our estimates. Further information is provided in Annex B.