Official Statistics

Community Life Survey 2019/20 - Civic Engagement and Social Action

Analysis of questions from the Community Life Survey 2019/20 related to civic engagement and social action

• From: Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport
• Published: 14 July 2020

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Civic Engagement and Social Action - Community Life Survey 2019/20

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Background

The Community Life Survey collects information about whether adults (16+) have participated in civic engagement and social action.

This chapter focuses on people’s involvement in activities influencing political decisions and local affairs, looking at levels of engagement, as well as people’s feelings around being able to influence local decisions and what would make things easier to do so. Activities could be in the form of engaging in democratic process, such as signing a petition or attending a public rally, becoming a local councillor or school governor, being involved in decision-making groups or getting together to support community projects.

The Civil Society Strategy sets out Government’s ambition to create opportunities for people to change their own lives and the world around them. This could be involving citizens in local decision-making using participatory democracy, or in the design of public service delivery.

The Office for Civil Society (DCMS) is working to open up government and the public sector to citizen input and involvement, including opening up decision making at a local level and helping to build capacity within communities to create active and mobilised citizens

The definitions of civic engagement and social action given in this section are reflective of the questions asked within the Community Life Survey however these definitions may differ to those used elsewhere.

Headline Measures – 2019/20

• 41% of respondents have taken part in civic participation, 21% in civic consultation, and 8% in civic activism
• 27% of respondents agreed that they could personally influence decisions in their local area
• 16% of respondents had been involved in social action

Further data

• The report from ONS Social capital in the UK: 2020 provides data related to social capital, and national, local and individual engagement

Published 14 July 2020