Official Statistics

Main report for the Participation Survey (April 2022 to March 2023)

Updated 30 November 2023

Applies to England

1. Background

• Released: 20th July 2023
• Geographical Coverage: England

This release provides estimates on engagement in the digital, culture, media, and sport sectors reported during the period of April 2022 to March 2023 (2022/23). The Participation Survey is a nationally representative annual survey of adults (16+) in England that aims to track the latest trends in engagement in DCMS and digital sectors ^{[footnote 1]}. The format of the survey is push-to-web, with a paper version for those who are not able or wish not to complete this online.

This report presents the headline estimates during April 2022 to March 2023, and demographic breakdowns ^{[footnote 2]} of adults who have engaged in the specific sector. Further estimates can be found in the accompanying data tables. Differences between groups are only reported on in this publication where they are statistically significant, that is, where we can be more confident that the differences seen in our sampled respondents reflect the population ^{[footnote 3]}. Estimates for the final quarter of 2022/23 (January to March 2023) have also been published in a separate set of data tables, alongside the first three quarters of the survey year.

It should be noted that some questions in the survey ask about engagement with cultural and digital activities in the last 12 months (such that it covered the period April 2021 to March 2023). Comparisons of this year’s 2022/23 results are made against the previous year 2021/22 (covering the period of October to March 2022). We imagine that the COVID-19 pandemic, associated lockdown measures and media coverage may have affected public behaviours, attitudes, and perceptions across the UK towards the topics in the survey. So, the factors described above should be taken into consideration when interpreting the results.

Following on from feedback, we plan to remove the demographic tables from the Participation Survey Quarterly publications, from September 2023. We would continue to include the demographic tables in the annual publications. If you are regularly using the quarterly demographic tables and this proposed change would cause you significant issues, please get in touch with DCMS Survey team participationsurvey@dcms.gov.uk by the end of August 2023, outlining which particular breakdowns you would like us to prioritise.

2. Arts

Examples of physical arts engagement include reading, performing music, or going to a comedy event. Examples of digital arts engagement include watching live-streamed or recorded theatre, participating in live visual arts programs, or listening to pre-recorded music or dance events. The full list of qualifying activities and events we asked about are in Annex 3, and shown in figures 2.4 and 2.5.

• Headline findings
• Who engaged with the arts?
• Geographical breakdown
• Barriers to engagement

Headline findings

During April 2022 to March 2023 (2022/23), 9 in 10 adults (90%) engaged with the arts at least once in the last 12 months, a 2 percentage point increase from 2021/22 (88%).

Figure 2.1 shows that 89% adults had physically engaged with the arts (attended or participated) in the previous 12 months to being surveyed, a 2 percentage point increase from 2021/22 (87%). The corresponding figure for digital arts engagement was 28%, a 1 percentage point increase from 2021/22.

Figure 2.1: Engagement in the arts sector, England: 2021/22 - 2022/23.

Figure 2.2 shows that of the 90% of adults who engaged with the arts, 62% of adults engaged exclusively physically, whilst 27% engaged both physically and digitally and only 1% engaged exclusively digitally.

Figure 2.2: Physical and digital engagement in the arts sector, England: 2022/23.

Figure 2.3 shows that of the adults who engaged with the arts physically, 70% engaged at least once a week. Digital engagement with the arts was lower than physical engagement, and it was also less frequent, with just 10% of adults engaging at least once a week. The most common frequency for adults to engage in the arts digitally was at least 3 to 4 times a year (32%).

Figure 2.3: Frequency of physical and digital engagement in the arts sector, England: 2022/23.

Figure 2.4 shows that the most popular way to engage with the arts physically was reading books or magazines (64%). This was followed by cinema (49%) and playing video games (36%). This was similar to the previous year (2021/22).

Figure 2.4: Forms of physical art engagement, England: 2022/23.

Figure 2.5 shows that for digital engagement watching a pre-recorded music or dance event was the most popular (16%). Around 12% of adults reported that they watched a live music or dance event as it was happening, whilst 7% of adults reported that they watched a pre-recorded arts event including theatre, visual arts or literature. This was similar to the previous year (2021/22).

Figure 2.5: Forms of digital art engagement, England: 2022/23.

Who engaged with the arts ? ^{[footnote 4]}

Figure 2.6 shows that in 2022/23:

• Age: Adults aged 85 and over (77%) were less likely to engage with the arts physically than adults from all of the other age classifications presented here. For digital arts engagement, adults aged 85 or over (24%) were less likely to engage than adults from all of the other age groups aged 50 and above (30-35%). There were also other variations, for instance 20-24 year old adults (93%) physically engaged with the arts more than 60-64 year old adults (87%). For digital engagement there was also some variation; for instance, 80-84 year old adults (32%) digitally engaged with the arts more than 20-24 year old adults (24%).
• Disability Status ^{[footnote 5]}: Non-disabled adults (91%) were more likely to engage physically in the arts than disabled adults (87%). For digital engagement with the arts, there were no differences observed between adults of different disability status.
• Gender ^{[footnote 6]}: Female adults were more likely to engage physically with the arts (91%) than male adults (87%). For digital engagement, there were no significant differences between male adults and female adults (29% and 28% respectively). However, adults who preferred to self-describe their gender (45%) digitally engaged with the arts more than female adults or male adults. There were no other significant differences between the classifications presented here for arts engagement.
• Sexual Orientation: Gay or lesbian (94%) or bisexual (95%) adults were more likely to engage with the arts physically than straight or heterosexual adults (90%) or adults in the “other” sexual orientation classification (86%). For digital engagement, gay or lesbian adults (36%) engaged more with the arts than heterosexual or straight adults (29%). There were no other significant differences between the classifications presented here for arts engagement.

Figure 2.6: Physical and digital engagement in the arts sector, by age, disability status^{[footnote 5]}, gender and sexual orientation ^{[footnote 7]}, England: 2022/23

Figure 2.7 shows that:

• Religion: There were some variation in both physical and digital engagement with the arts between adults of different religions. For example, non-religious adults were more likely to engage in the arts physically (92%) than adults from all of the other religious classifications presented here (74–90%) with the exception of Jewish adults (95%) or adults in the “other” religious classification (89%). For digital engagement, Muslim (20%) or Sikh (18%) adults were less likely to engage than adults from all of the other religious classifications presented here (38–45%).
• Ethnicity: There was a lot of variation in how adults from different ethnic groups engaged with the arts. For example, adults from the Chinese ethnic group were more likely to engage with the arts physically (88%) than adults from the Pakistani ethnic group (72%); whilst for digital arts engagement, adults from the white British^{[footnote 8]} ethnic group (28%) were less likely to engage than adults from all of the other white ethnic groups presented here (33-36%).

Figure 2.7: Physical and digital engagement in the arts sector, by religion and ethnicity, England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity
A	Bangladeshi	G	Caribbean	M	Arab
B	Chinese	H	Any other black, African, or Caribbean background	N	Any other ethnic group
C	Indian	I	Mixed white and Asian	O	English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish, or British
D	Pakistani	J	Mixed white and black African	P	Gypsy or Irish Traveller
E	Any other Asian background	K	Mixed white and black Caribbean	Q	Irish
F	African	L	Any other multi-ethnic background	R	Any other white background

Figure 2.8 shows that:

• Socio-economic classification: Adults from the higher managerial, administrative and professional occupations classification (95%) physically engaged with the arts more than adults from all of the other socio-economic classifications presented here. Adults from the never worked and long-term unemployed classification physically engaged with the arts (76%) less than adults from all of the other socio-economic classifications presented here (86-95%). Adults from the higher managerial, administrative and professional occupations classification digitally engaged more with the arts than adults from all of the other socio-economic classifications presented here (33%). Adults from the intermediate occupations classification (27%) engaged more digitally with the arts than adults from the routine and manual occupations classification (24%). There were no other significant differences between the classifications presented here for arts engagement.
• Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD): There was some variation in both physical and digital engagement in the arts for adults in different deprivation deciles. Adults from the lowest two deciles (most deprived) engaged physically with the arts the least (81% and 84%), compared to adults from all of the other deciles (87-94%). For digital engagement, adults from the most deprived decile (24%) engaged less than adults from the least deprived decile (31%). There were also other variances - for instance, for both physical and digital engagement with the arts, adults in the least deprived, tenth decile (94% for physical and 31% for digital) engaged more than adults in the third decile (87% for physical and 26% for digital).

Figure 2.8: Physical and digital engagement in the arts sector, by socio-economic classification ^{[footnote 9]} and Index of Multiple Deprivation ^{[footnote 10]}, England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Socio-Economic Classification
A	Higher managerial, administrative, and professional occupations
B	Intermediate occupations
C	Routine and manual occupations
D	Never worked and long-term unemployed

Geographical breakdown

Adults from the South West (92%) engaged more with the arts physically than adults from all of the other ITL1 regions presented here (87–91%), with the exception of the South East (91%) and East of England (90%). Adults from London (31%) and the South East (31%) engaged more in the arts digitally than adults from all the other ITL1 regions presented here (25 – 28%), with the exception of the South West (29%).

Figure 2.9 shows that:

• There was a lot of variation in how adults from different ITL2 regions engaged in the arts physically. Adults from the Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Bath and Bristol (93%), Surrey, East and West Sussex (92%), Devon (92%), Cornwall and Isles of Scilly (92%) and Lincolnshire (92%) ITL2 (county) regions engaged more in the arts physically than the average for adults in England as a whole (89%). However, adults from the Greater Manchester (86%), South Yorkshire (86%), East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire (86%), Outer London - West and North West (85%) and Outer London - East and North East (84%) ITL2 regions engaged less than the average for England.

Figure 2.9: Physical engagement in the arts sector, by ITL2 region (County), England: 2022/23.

Figure 2.10 shows that:

• There was a lot of variation in how adults from different ITL2 regions engaged in the arts digitally. Adults from the Surrey, East and West Sussex (35%) and Inner London – East (33%) ITL2 (county) regions engaged more digitally with the arts than the average for adults in England as a whole (28%). However, adults from the Northumberland and Tyne and Wear (24%), Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire (24%), Shropshire and Staffordshire (23%) and South Yorkshire (21%) ITL2 regions engaged less than the average for England.

Figure 2.10: Digital engagement in the arts sector, by ITL2 region (County), England: 2022/23.

Barriers to engagement

Respondents who did not engage with the arts were asked why they did not. The most common reasons given are shown in Figure 2.11 and were:

• For physical engagement in the arts – “I’m not interested” (30%) and “No reason in particular” (26%) were most commonly identified. In the previous year (2021/22), “Due to COVID-19 restrictions or concerns” was one of the most common barriers (27%) which has decreased by 15 percentage points in 2022/23 (12%).
• For digital participation in the arts – “No reason in particular” (41%) was the most commonly identified barrier to engagement. This was similar to the previous year (2021/22).

Figure 2.11: Reasons for not physically or digitally engaging in the arts sector, England: 2022/23.

3. Libraries

Physical library engagement includes borrowing books, music, and films from the library, as well as using the library space to study, or using the library café as a meeting point. Digital engagement with libraries could include using their online catalogue, paying fees online, or borrowing e-books and downloading audiobooks. The full list of qualifying activities we asked about are in Annex 3 and shown in figures 3.3 and 3.4.

• Headline findings
• Who engaged with libraries?
• Geographical breakdown
• Barriers to engagement

Headline findings

During April 2022 to March 2023 (2022/23), around a quarter of adults, 24% used a public library service at least once in the previous 12 months, a 4 percentage point increase from 2021/22 (20%).

This included:

• 19% of adults who visited a public library building or mobile library in person at least once, a 4 percentage point increase from 2021/22 (15%).
• 13% of adults who engaged with library services online, a 1 percentage point increase from 2021/22 (12%).
• A further 2% of adults who reported that they “used library services in some other way” ^{[footnote 11]}. We are unable to identify if these engagements are physical or digital and therefore this chapter (except Figure 3.1) focuses on those 22% of adults who reported specifically engaging with libraries physically or digitally.

Figure 3.1: Engagement in the libraries, England: 2021/22 - 2022/23.

Figure 3.2 shows that, of those who engaged with libraries, the most common frequency to engage with libraries was three to four times a year (34% for physical and 31% for digital engagement). Of those who engaged with libraries digitally, 17% engaged at least once a week, whilst those who engaged physically did so less frequently, with only 9% engaging at this highest reported frequency.

Figure 3.2: Frequency of physical and digital engagement with libraries, England: 2022/23.

Figure 3.3 shows that the most common reasons for physical engagement with libraries was browsing, borrowing, and returning reading and media materials (70%) and use of free Wi-Fi, computer, or printing facilities (24%). This was similar to the previous year (2021/22).

Figure 3.3: Forms of physical engagement with libraries, England: 2022/23.

Figure 3.4 shows that the most common reason for digital engagement with libraries was reserving, renewing, or paying a fine online (53%), followed by searching online library catalogues or dictionaries or making enquiries or borrowing digital or online resources, both 44%.

Figure 3.4: Forms of digital engagement with libraries, England: 2022/23.

Who engaged with libraries? ^{[footnote 4]}

Figure 3.5 shows that in 2022/23:

• Age: - There was a lot of variation in how people of different ages physically engaged with libraries. For instance, 50-54 year old adults (14%) physically engaged with libraries less than all other age groups presented here with the exception of 55-64 year old adults (15–16%), whilst 30-44 year old adults physically engaged with libraries more (22-25%) than 20-29 and 45-64 year old adults (14-18%). There was also some variation in how people of different ages digitally engaged with libraries. For example, 16-19 year old adults digitally engaged with libraries more (around 22%) than adults from all of the other age groups presented here, whilst 20-24 year old adults (17%) digitally engaged more than all adults aged 45 years and over (7-13%).
• Disability Status ^{[footnote 5]}: No differences observed for either physical or digital engagement with libraries.
• Gender ^{[footnote 6]}: Male adults showed the lowest engagement with libraries - 16% for physical and 12% for digital engagement. Adults who preferred to self-describe were the most digitally engaged with libraries (31%). There were no other significant differences in engagement with libraries between the gender classifications presented here.
• Sexual Orientation: There was some variation in how adults of different sexual orientations engaged with libraries. For example, bisexual adults (31%) physically engaged with libraries more than heterosexual or straight (20%) or gay or lesbian (18%) adults. Bisexual adults (30%) also digitally engaged with libraries more than heterosexual or straight (12%) or gay or lesbian (16%) adults.

Figure 3.5: Physical and digital engagement with libraries, by age, disability status^{[footnote 5]}, gender and sexual orientation ^{[footnote 7]}, England: 2022/23.

Figure 3.6 shows that:

• Religion: Christian (19%) or non-religious (19%) adults physically engaged with libraries less than Muslim (24%), Hindu (26%) or Buddhist (28%) adults. Sikh (12%), Christian (12%) or non-religious (12%) adults digitally engaged with libraries less than adults from adults from all of the other religious classifications presented here. Buddhist adults (32%) were more likely to engage digitally with libraries than Muslim adults (21%) or adults in the “other” religious classification (18%). There were no other significant differences in engagement with libraries between the religious groups presented here.
• Ethnicity: There was a lot of variation in how adults from different ethnic groups engaged with libraries either physically or digitally. For instance, adults from the Indian ethnic group were more likely to engage both physically (24%) and digitally (20%) with libraries than adults from the white British^{[footnote 8]} ethnic group (18% physically and 11% digitally).

Figure 3.6: Physical and digital engagement with libraries, by religion and ethnicity, England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity
A	Bangladeshi	G	Caribbean	M	Arab
B	Chinese	H	Any other black, African, or Caribbean background	N	Any other ethnic group
C	Indian	I	Mixed white and Asian	O	English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish, or British
D	Pakistani	J	Mixed white and black African	P	Gypsy or Irish Traveller
E	Any other Asian background	K	Mixed white and black Caribbean	Q	Irish
F	African	L	Any other multi-ethnic background	R	Any other white background

Figure 3.7 shows that:

• Socio-economic classification: Adults from the higher managerial, administrative and professional occupations classification (23%) physically engaged with libraries more than adults from all of the other classifications presented here. Adults from the routine and manual occupations classification engaged with libraries the least for both physical and digital engagement (14% and 9% respectively), with the exception of those in the never worked or long-term unemployed classification. Adults from the never worked or long-term unemployed classification (16%) digitally engaged with libraries more than adults from the intermediate occupations (11%) or routine and manual occupations (9%) classifications. There were no other significant differences in engagement with libraries between the classifications presented here.
• Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD): Adults from the highest two deciles (least deprived) physically engaged more with libraries than adults from the lowest two deciles (most deprived). There were some other variations, for instance adults from the ninth decile (76%) physically engaged with libraries more than adults from the fourth or fifth decile (both 19%). There were no significant differences in digital engagement with libraries between adults of different IMD deciles.

Figure 3.7: Physical and digital engagement with libraries, by socio-economic classification ^{[footnote 9]} and Index of Multiple Deprivation ^{[footnote 10]}, England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Socio-Economic Classification
A	Higher managerial, administrative, and professional occupations
B	Intermediate occupations
C	Routine and manual occupations
D	Never worked and long-term unemployed

Geographical breakdown

Adults from London were more likely to engage with libraries physically (23%) than adults from all of the other ITL1 regions presented here, with the exception of adults from the South East (21%) or East of England (21%). Adults from London (18%) were more likely to engage with libraries digitally than adults from all of the other ITL1 regions presented here.

Figure 3.8 shows that:

• There was a lot of variation in how adults from different ITL2 regions engaged with libraries physically. Adults from the Inner London – East (26%), Surrey, East and West Sussex (25%) and Essex (23%) ITL2 (county) regions engaged physically with libraries more than the average for adults in England as a whole (19%). However, adults from the Tees Valley and Durham (16%), Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire (16%), South Yorkshire (15%), Northumberland, and Tyne and Wear (15%), Cornwall and Isles of Scilly (14%) and Lincolnshire (13%) ITL2 regions engaged less than the average for England.

Figure 3.8: Physical engagement with libraries, by ITL2 region (County), England: 2022/23.

Figure 3.9 shows that:

• There was a lot of variability in digital engagement with libraries between ITL2 regions. Adults from the Inner London – East (21%), Outer London - West and North West (18%) and Inner London – West (17%) ITL2 regions engaged more with libraries digitally than the average for adults in England as a whole (13%). However, adults from the South Yorkshire (11%), Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire (10%), Lincolnshire (10%), Cumbria (9%), Tees Valley and Durham (9%), Northumberland, and Tyne and Wear (9%) ITL2 regions engaged less than the average for England.

Figure 3.9: Digital engagement with libraries, by ITL2 region (County), England: 2022/23.

Barriers to engagement

Respondents who did not engage with the library sector were asked why they did not. The most common reasons given are shown in Figure 3.10 and were:

• For physical engagement – “I’m not interested” (32%) and “No reason in particular” (31%) were most commonly identified. In the previous year (2021/22), “Due to COVID-19 restrictions or concerns” was one of the most common barriers (23%) which has decreased by 16 percentage points in 2022/23 (7%).
• Similarly, for digital engagement – “No reason in particular” (39%) and “I’m not interested” (33%) were most commonly identified as barriers to engagement.

Figure 3.10: Reasons for not physically or digitally engaging with libraries, England: 2022/23.

4. Heritage

Physical engagement with the heritage sector is defined as visiting a variety of places with celebrated histories, such as those connected with industrial history, or ancient monuments, or archaeological sites.

Digital engagement with the heritage sector includes taking a virtual tour of any of those physical locations listed in 4.3, plus viewing documents from an archive in England online, or researching local history online. The full list of qualifying heritage activities we asked about are in Annex 3 and shown in figures 4.4 and 4.6.

In the 2021/22 and 2022/23 questionnaires, a question in the heritage section asked respondents whether the respondent engaged with “virtual or online heritage and museums activities”. In the 2021/22 publication, digital heritage engagement included activities related to museums. In the 2022/23 publication, digital heritage and digital museum engagement are reported separately. This means figures for digital heritage have been revised for 2021/22 in this publication and corresponding data tables.

• Headline findings
• Who engaged with heritage sites?
• Geographical breakdown
• Barriers to engagement

Headline findings

During April 2022 to March 2023 (2022/23), 69% of adults reported having engaged with the heritage sector in the last 12 months, a 5 percentage point increase from 2021/22 (65%).

Figure 4.1 shows that 67% of adults had visited a heritage site physically in the previous 12 months to being surveyed, a 5% increase from 2021/22 (63%). The corresponding figure for digital engagement was 18%, a 2% increase from 2021/22 (16%).

Figure 4.1: Engagement in the heritage sector, England: 2021/22 – 2022/23.

Figure 4.2 shows that of the 69% of adults who engaged with the heritage sector, 51% engaged exclusively physically, 16% engaged both physically and digitally, and only 2% of adults engaged exclusively digitally.

Figure 4.2 Physical and digital engagement in the heritage sector, England: 2022/23.

Figure 4.3 shows that most adults who had engaged with the heritage sector did so at least three to four times a year (around 36% for both physical and digital). Digital engagement with the heritage sector (18%) was much lower than physical engagement (67%), and it was also less frequent, with just 7% engaging digitally at least once a week compared to 11% for physical engagement at least once a week.

Figure 4.3: Frequency of physical and digital engagement in the heritage sector, England: 2022/23.

Figure 4.4 shows that the most popular heritage activities were visiting:

• A city or town with celebrated historic nature (45%)
• Parks or garden with historic or artistic features (44%)
• A historic landscape or habitat (38%)

Figure 4.4: Form of physical engagement in the heritage sector, England: 2022/23.

Figure 4.5 shows that, the top cited reason for engaging with heritage physically was ‘To spend time with family or friends’ (67%), followed by ‘General interest in the subject’ (53%). Furthermore, 38% of adults reported that they engaged with heritage sites because ‘It was in the area’.

Figure 4.5: Reasons for visiting heritage sites, England: 2022/23.

Figure 4.6 shows that the digital heritage activity that most adults engaged with was something not in the list given (82%). From the list given, “Researched your local history online” was the most popular (12%).

Figure 4.6: Forms of digital engagement in the heritage sector, England: 2022/23.

Of those who did engage digitally, accessing free digital content (75%) was more common than any paid digital engagement (the most common paid digital engagement, “pay a monthly or annual subscription”, was 13%).

Who engaged with heritage sites? ^{[footnote 4]}

Figure 4.7 shows that in 2022/23:

• Age: Adults aged 85 or above were less engaged physically (38%) and digitally (10%) with the heritage sector compared to all of the other age groups presented here, with the exception of 80-84 year old adults for digital engagement (14%). There were also other variations; for instance, 65-69 year old adults (73%) physically engaged with the heritage sector more than 16-19 year old adults (60%), 70-74 year old adults (22%) digitally engaged more with the heritage sector than 20-24 year old adults (14%).
• Disability Status^{[footnote 5]}: - Non-disabled adults physically engaged more with the heritage sector (71%) than disabled adults (60%).For digital engagement with the heritage sector, there were no differences observed between adults of different disability status.
• Gender ^{[footnote 6]} : There were no differences between the gender classifications presented here for physical engagement with the heritage sector. However, for digital engagement, male adults (19%) engaged more than female adults (16%). There were no other significant differences between the gender classifications presented here for digital engagement with the heritage sector.
• Sexual Orientation: For physical engagement, gay or lesbian adults (76%) engaged more with the heritage sector than heterosexual or straight adults (69%). For digital engagement, heterosexual or straight adults (18%) engaged less with the heritage sector than adults in the “other” sexual orientation classification (28%). There were no other significant differences between the sexual orientation classifications presented here for engagement with the heritage sector.

Figure 4.7: Physical and digital engagement in the heritage sector, by age, disability status^{[footnote 5]}, gender and sexual orientation ^{[footnote 7]}, England: 2022/23.

Figure 4.8 shows that:

• Religion: Muslim (50%) or Sikh (45%) adults physically engaged less with the heritage sector than adults from all of the other religious groups presented here. Adults in the “other” religious classification (27%) digitally engaged with the heritage sector more than adults from all of the other religious classifications presented here with the exception of Buddhist (24%), Jewish (21%) or Hindu (20%) adults. Muslim adults (13%) digitally engaged with the heritage sector less than Christian (18%), non-religious (18%) or Buddhist (24%) adults. There were no other significant differences between the religious groups presented here for engagement with the heritage sector.
• Ethnicity: There was some variation in how adults from different ethnic groups engaged with the heritage sector. For instance, adults from the mixed white and Asian ethnic group engaged more with the heritage sector, both physically (76%) and digitally (22%), than adults from the mixed white and black African ethnic group (46% for physical engagement and 6% for digital engagement).

Figure 4.8: Physical and digital engagement with the heritage sector, by religion and ethnicity, England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity
A	Bangladeshi	G	Caribbean	M	Arab
B	Chinese	H	Any other black, African, or Caribbean background	N	Any other ethnic group
C	Indian	I	Mixed white and Asian	O	English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish, or British
D	Pakistani	J	Mixed white and black African	P	Gypsy or Irish Traveller
E	Any other Asian background	K	Mixed white and black Caribbean	Q	Irish
F	African	L	Any other multi-ethnic background	R	Any other white background

Figure 4.9 shows that:

• Socio-economic classification: Adults from the higher managerial, administrative and professional occupations classification engaged physically (79%) and digitally (22%) with the heritage sector more than adults from all of the other socio-economic classifications presented here. Adults from the never worked and long-term unemployed classification engaged (47%) less physically with the heritage sector than adults from all of the other socio-economic classifications presented here. Adults from the intermediate occupations classification (70%) physically engaged more with the heritage sector than adults from the routine and manual occupations classification (60%). Adults from the never worked and long-term unemployed classification engaged digitally (17%) less with the heritage sector than adults from the higher managerial, administrative and professional occupations classification. There were no other significant differences between the socio-economic classifications presented here for engagement with the heritage sector.
• Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD): Generally, as deprivation decreased, physical engagement in the heritage sector increased, with adults from the lowest decile (the most deprived) engaging physically with the heritage sector the least (51%) compared to adults from all of the other deciles presented here. For digital engagement, the most deprived decile (14%) engaged less than the fourth to tenth deciles (16-20%).

Figure 4.9: Physical and digital engagement with the heritage sector, by socio-economic classification^{[footnote 9]} and Index of Multiple Deprivation^{[footnote 10]} , England: 2022/23

Bar label	Socio-Economic Classification
A	Higher managerial, administrative, and professional occupations
B	Intermediate occupations
C	Routine and manual occupations
D	Never worked and long-term unemployed

Geographical breakdown

There was a lot of variation in how adults from different regions engaged in the heritage sector physically and digitally. For instance, adults from the South West (72%) engaged physically more than adults from the North West (64%), and adults from the South West (20%) engaged digitally more than adults from the North East (15%), Yorkshire and The Humber (16%), West Midlands (17%) and East Midlands (16%) regions.

Figure 4.10 shows that:

• There was a lot of variation in how adults from different ITL2 (county) regions engaged with the heritage sector physically. Adults from the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly (75%), Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Bath and Bristol (75%), Inner London – West (73%), Surrey, East and West Sussex (73%), Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire (73%), North Yorkshire (72%) ITL2 (county) regions engaged more physically with the heritage sector than the average for adults in England as a whole (67%). However, adults in the West Midlands (61%) Greater Manchester (61%), East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire (61%) and Outer London - East and North East (57%) ITL2 regions engaged less than the average for England.

Figure 4.10: Physical engagement with the heritage sector, by ITL2 region (County), England: 2022/23.

Figure 4.11 shows that:

• There was some variation in how adults from different ITL2 regions engaged in the heritage sector digitally. Adults from the Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Bath and Bristol (21%) ITL2 region engaged more digitally with the heritage sector than the average for adults in England as a whole (18%).

Figure 4.11: Digital engagement with the heritage sector, by ITL2 region (County), England: 2022/23

Barriers to engagement

Respondents who did not engage physically with the heritage sector and digitally with either the heritage sector or with museums and galleries were asked why they did not. The most common reasons given are shown in Figure 4.12 and were:

• For physical engagement, ‘No reason in particular’ (32%) and ‘I’m not interested’ (24%) were the most common barriers cited for not engaging with the heritage sector. In the previous year (2021/22), “Due to COVID-19 restrictions or concerns” was the most common barrier (33%) which has decreased by 22 percentage points in 2022/23 (11%).
• For digital engagement^{[footnote 12]}– ‘I’m not interested’ (39%) and ‘No reason in particular’ (35%) were most commonly identified as barriers to engaging with either the heritage sector or with museums and galleries.

Figure 4.12: Reasons for not physically engaging with the heritage sector and reasons for not digitally engaging with either the heritage sector or with museums and galleries, England: 2022/23.

5. Museums and galleries

For physical engagement, respondents were asked about their visits to museums and galleries in the 12 months prior to completing the survey.

Digital engagement with museums and galleries includes having taken a virtual tour of a museum or gallery in England or researching items from a museums and gallery collection in England online. The full list of qualifying of digital museum activities we asked about are in Annex 3 and shown in figures 5.5.

In the 2021/22 and 2022/23 questionnaires, a question in the heritage section asked respondents whether the respondent engaged with “virtual or online heritage and museums activities”. In the 2021/22 publication, digital heritage engagement included activities related to museums. In the 2022/23 publication, digital heritage and digital museum engagement are reported separately. Figures for digital museum engagement in 2021/22 and 2022/23 are therefore available in the data tables and report.

• Headline findings
• Who engaged with museums and galleries?
• Geographical breakdown
• Barriers to engagement

Headline findings

During April 2022 to March 2023 (2022/23), 36% engaged with museums and galleries in the last 12 months, a 9 percentage point increase from 2021/22 (27%).

Figure 5.1 shows that 33% had physically engaged with museums and galleries in the previous 12 months to being surveyed, a 9 percentage point increase from 2021/22 (24%). The corresponding figure for digital engagement was 9%, a similar level to 2021/22 (9%).

Figure 5.1: Engagement with museums and galleries, England: 2021/22 – 2022/23

Figure 5.2 shows that of the 36% of adults who engaged with museums and galleries, 26% engaged exclusively physically, 7% engaged both physically and digitally, and only 2% of adults engaged exclusively digitally.

Figure 5.2 Physical and digital engagement with museums and galleries, England: 2022/23.

Figure 5.3 shows that although physical engagement with museums and galleries was much higher than digital engagement, it was less frequent. The most common frequency for adults to engage with museums and galleries digitally was at least three to four times a year with 33% of adults reporting this, compared to 29% for physical engagement. The most common frequency for adults to engage with museums and galleries physically was once a year with 33% of adults reporting this, compared to 22% for digital engagement.

Figure 5.3: Frequency of physical and digital engagement with museums and galleries, England: 2022/23.

Figure 5.4 shows that the most popular reason for visiting museums or galleries was “General interest in the subject of the museum or collection” (66%), followed by “To spend time with family or friends” (56%).

Figure 5.4: Reasons for visiting museums or galleries, England: 2022/23.

Figure 5.5 shows that the majority of adults did not engage with the digital museums and galleries activities in the list given (91%). From the list given, both “Taken a virtual tour of a museum or gallery” or “Researched items from a museum or gallery collection” (4%) were the next most popular activity undertaken.

Figure 5.5: Forms of digital engagement with museums and galleries, England: 2022/23.

Almost three quarters of adults in England (73%) reported that they paid for digital museums and galleries content through a TV license fee (all live TV and BBC iPlayer), which was the most common payment method. Only 2% accessed free content online.

Who engaged with museums and galleries? ^{[footnote 4]}

Figure 5.6 shows that in 2022/23:

• Age: Adults aged 85 and over (13%) were the least likely to visit museums or galleries compared to adults from all of the other age groups presented here. Similarly, adults aged 85 or over (5%) were the least likely to engage in museums or galleries digitally with the exception of 80-84 year old adults (7%). There were other variations, for instance, 40-44 year old adults (39%) were more likely to visit a museum or gallery than 16-19 year old adults (30%), and 65-69 year old adults (11%) were more likely to digitally engage with museums or galleries than 30-34 year old adults (9%).
• Disability Status^{[footnote 5]}: Non-disabled adults (36%) were more likely to visit museums or galleries than disabled adults (27%). There were no significant differences in digital engagement with museums and galleries between disability status.
• Gender ^{[footnote 6]}: Female adults (34%) were more likely to visit museums or galleries than male adults (32%). There were no other significant differences in physical engagement with museums and galleries between the classifications presented here. There were no differences in digital engagement with museums and galleries between the gender classifications presented here.
• Sexual Orientation: Heterosexual or straight adults were less likely to engage either physically (34%) or digitally (9%) with museums and galleries compared to adults from all of the other sexual orientation classifications presented here. There were no other significant differences in engagement with museums and galleries between the sexual orientation classifications presented here.

Figure 5.6: Physical and digital engagement with museums and galleries, by age, disability status^{[footnote 5]}, gender and sexual orientation ^{[footnote 7]} , England: 2022/23.

Figure 5.7 shows that:

• Religion: There was some variation in museums and galleries engagement for adults of different religious groups. For example, Jewish adults (56%) were more likely to visit museums and galleries than adults from any of the other religious groups presented here with the exception of Buddhist adults (48%) or adults in the “other” religious classification (39%). Jewish adults (17%) digitally engaged more with museums and galleries than Christian (8%) or non-religious (9%) adults.
• Ethnicity: There was a lot of variation in physical engagement with museums and galleries for adults of different ethnic groups. For example, adults from the Pakistani ethnic group (16%) were less likely to visit museums or galleries than adults from all of the other Asian ethnic groups presented here (28%-51%), with the exception of adults from the Bangladeshi ethnic group (28%). For digital engagement, there were very few differences. However, adults from the white British^{[footnote 8]} ethnic group (8%) engaged less with museums and galleries digitally than adults from any of the “other” white ethnic ethic groups presented here (14%).

Figure 5.7: Physical and digital engagement with museums and galleries, by religion and ethnicity, England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity
A	Bangladeshi	G	Caribbean	M	Arab
B	Chinese	H	Any other black, African, or Caribbean background	N	Any other ethnic group
C	Indian	I	Mixed white and Asian	O	English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish, or British
D	Pakistani	J	Mixed white and black African	P	Gypsy or Irish Traveller
E	Any other Asian background	K	Mixed white and black Caribbean	Q	Irish
F	African	L	Any other multi-ethnic background	R	Any other white background

Figure 5.8 shows that:

• Socio-economic classification: Adults from the higher managerial, administrative and professional occupations classification (43%) were more likely to visit museums or galleries than adults from all of the other classifications presented here. Adults from the never worked and long-term unemployed classification (20%) physically engaged less with museums and galleries than adults from all of the other socio-economic classifications presented here. Adults from the intermediate occupations classification (29%) physically engaged more with museums and galleries than adults from the routine and manual occupations classification (24%). Adults who have never worked or are in long-term unemployment (10%) digitally engaged with museums and galleries more than adults in the intermediate occupations or routine and manual occupations classifications (both 7%). There were no other significant differences in engagement with museums and galleries between the socio-economic classifications presented here.
• Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD): Adults from the lowest two deciles (most deprived) (23 – 27%) were less likely to visit museums or galleries than adults from all of the other deciles presented here. There were other variations, for instance adults from the seventh (36%) decile physically engaged in museums and galleries more than adults in the sixth decile (31%). There were no significant differences for digital engagement with museums and galleries between the deciles presented here.

Figure 5.8: Physical and digital engagement with museums and galleries, by socio-economic classification ^{[footnote 9]} and Index of Multiple Deprivation^{[footnote 10]} , England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Socio-Economic Classification
A	Higher managerial, administrative, and professional occupations
B	Intermediate occupations
C	Routine and manual occupations
D	Never worked and long-term unemployed

Geographical breakdown

Adults from London engaged more with museums or galleries, both physically (46%) and digitally (13%), than adults from all of the other regions presented here.

Figure 5.9 shows:

• There was some variation in how adults from different ITL2 regions engaged in the museums and galleries physically. Adults from the Inner London – East (58%), Inner London – West (57%), Outer London – South (42%), Outer London - West and North West (40%), Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire (39%) and Surrey, East and West Sussex (37%) ITL2 (county) regions engaged more physically with museums and galleries than the average for adults in England as a whole (33%). However, adults in the Lancashire (29%), Greater Manchester (28%), West Yorkshire (28%), Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire (28%), East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire (28%), Shropshire and Staffordshire (27%), Dorset and Somerset (27%), Tees Valley and Durham (26%), Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire (26%), Lincolnshire (25%) and West Midlands (24%) ITL2 regions all engaged less than the average for England.
• Adults from the Inner London – East (58%) and Inner London – West (57%) ITL2 regions visited museums and galleries more than adults from all of the other ITL2 regions in England presented here.

Figure 5.9: Physical engagement with museums and galleries, by ITL2 region (County), England: 2022/23.

Figure 5.10 shows that:

• There was some variation in how adults from different ITL2 regions engaged in the museums and galleries digitally. Adults from the Inner London – West (16%), Inner London – East (15%) and Outer London – West and North West (12%) ITL2 regions engaged more digitally with museum and galleries than the average for adults in England as a whole (9%). However, adults from the Cheshire (7%), West Midlands (6%), Tees Valley and Durham (6%), Devon (6%), East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire (6%) and Northumberland, and Tyne and Wear (6%) ITL2 regions engaged less than the average for England.

Figure 5.10: Digital engagement with museums and galleries sector, by ITL2 region (County), England: 2022/23.

Barriers to engagement

Respondents who did not engage physically with museums and galleries or digitally with either the heritage sector or with museums and galleries were asked why they did not. The most common reasons given are shown in figure 5.11 and were:

• For physical engagement – ‘No reason in particular’ (31%) and ‘I’m not interested’ (29%) were most commonly identified as reasons for not physically engaging with museums and galleries. In the previous year (2021/22), “Due to COVID-19 restrictions or concerns” was the most common barrier (35%) which has decreased by 24 percentage points in 2022/23 (11%).
• For digital engagement ^{[footnote 12]} – ‘I’m not interested’ (39%) and ‘No reason in particular’ (35%) were most commonly identified as barriers to digital engagement with either the heritage sector or with museums and galleries.

Figure 5.11: Reasons for not physically engaging with museums and galleries and reasons for not digitally engaging with the heritage sector or with museums and galleries, England: 2022/23.

6. Domestic Tourism

Adults in England were asked about any domestic holidays (that is, holidays in England) they took in the last 12 months.

• Headline findings

• Who engaged with the domestic tourism?

• Geographical breakdown

Headline findings

During April 2022 to March 2023 (2022/23), 3 in 5 adults (60%) took a holiday in England in the previous 12 months to being surveyed, a 5 percentage point increase from 2021/22 (55%) as shown in Figure 6.1.

Figure 6.1: Engagement in the domestic tourism sector, England: 2021/22 - 2022/23

Of these who took a holiday in England:

• A third stayed 1 to 2 nights (33%)

• Almost half spent 3 to 6 nights (45%)

• Nearly a fifth stayed 7 to 10 nights (17%)

• Only 5% stayed more than 10 nights

Figure 6.2: Percentage of adults who took a holiday in England in the previous 12 months, by length of stay, England: 2022/23.

Figure 6.3 shows that nearly a third (31%) of adults who took a holiday in England stayed at a traditional coastal or seaside town, whilst over a quarter (26%) stayed in the countryside or in a village and a quarter (25%) stayed in a city or large town.

Figure 6.3: Percentage of adults who took a holiday in England in the previous 12 months, by location type, England: 2022/23.

Of those who took a holiday in England, 43% said they visited museums, galleries, heritage or cultural sites or events while they were away.

Who engages with domestic tourism?^{[footnote 4]}

Figure 6.4 shows that in 2022/23:

• Age: Adults aged 85 or over (30%) were less likely to take a holiday in England compared to adults from all of the other age groups presented here. There were also other variations, for instance 70-74 year old adults were more likely to take a holiday in England than 16-19 year old adults.

• Disability Status^{[footnote 5]}: Non-disabled adults (65%) were more likely to take a holiday in England compared to disabled adults (50%).

• Gender: ^{[footnote 6]} Female adults (62%) were more likely to take a holiday in England than adults from any of the other gender classifications presented here. Adults who prefer to self-describe their gender (44%) were the least likely to take a holiday in England. There were no other significant differences in domestic tourism between the gender classifications presented here.

• Sexual Orientation: Heterosexual or straight adults (63%) were more likely to take a holiday in England than adults in the “other” sexual orientation classification (51%). There were no other significant differences in domestic tourism between the sexual orientation classifications presented here.

Figure 6.4: Engagement with domestic tourism, by age, disability status^{[footnote 5]}, gender and sexual orientation^{[footnote 7]} , England: 2022/23.

Figure 6.5 shows that:

• Religion: There was some variation in domestic tourism for adults from different religious groups. For example, Muslim adults (37%) were less likely to take a domestic holiday in England than adults from all of the other religious groups presented here, with the exception of Sikh adults (40%).

• Ethnicity: There were a lot of variation in domestic tourism for adults from different ethnic groups. For example, adults from the white British ethnic group^{[footnote 8]} (65%) were more likely to take a holiday in England compared to adults from all of the other ethnic groups presented here, with the exception of adults from the Irish ethnic group (59%), mixed white and Asian ethnic group (57%) and from the “Any other mixed or multi-ethnic background” ethnic groups (57%).

Figure 6.5: Engagement with domestic tourism, by religion and ethnicity, England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity
A	Bangladeshi	G	Caribbean	M	Arab
B	Chinese	H	Any other black, African, or Caribbean background	N	Any other ethnic group
C	Indian	I	Mixed white and Asian	O	English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish, or British
D	Pakistani	J	Mixed white and black African	P	Gypsy or Irish Traveller
E	Any other Asian background	K	Mixed white and black Caribbean	Q	Irish
F	African	L	Any other multi-ethnic background	R	Any other white background

Figure 6.6 shows that:

• Socio-economic classification: Adults from the higher managerial, administrative and professional occupations classification (71%) were more likely to take a domestic holiday than adults from all of the other classifications presented here. Adults from the never worked and long-term unemployed classification (32%) were less likely to take a domestic holiday than adults from all of the other socio-economic classifications presented here (54-71%) . Adults from the intermediate occupations classification (64%) were more likely to take a domestic holiday than adults from the routine or manual occupations classification (54%). There were no other significant differences in domestic tourism between the socio-economic classifications presented here.

• Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD): There was a general negative correlation between taking a domestic holiday and deprivation - as deprivation decreases the likelihood of taking a holiday in England increased. Adults from the lowest decile (the most deprived) were less likely to have taken a holiday in England last year, than those from the highest decile (the least deprived), 42% compared to 73%.

Figure 6.6: Engagement with domestic tourism, by socio-economic classification^{[footnote 9]} and Index of Multiple Deprivation^{[footnote 10]}, England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Socio-Economic Classification
A	Higher managerial, administrative, and professional occupations
B	Intermediate occupations
C	Routine and manual occupations
D	Never worked and long-term unemployed

Geographical breakdown

Adults from London (54%) were less likely to take a holiday in England than adults from all of the other regions presented here (59 – 65%).

Figure 6.7 shows:

• There was a lot of variation in the proportion of adults from different ITL2 regions who took a holiday in England. Adults from the Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Bath and Bristol (68%), Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire (67%), Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire (67%), Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire (67%), Cheshire (66%) and Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire (66%) ITL2 (county) regions were more likely to take a holiday in England than the average for adults in England as a whole (60%). However, adults from the West Midlands (54%), Inner London – West (52%), Outer London - West and North West (51%) and Outer London - East and North East (50%) ITL2 regions were less likely to take a holiday in England compared to the average for England.

Figure 6.7: Engagement with domestic tourism, by ITL2 region (county), England: 2022/23

7. Use of the internet and smart devices

Respondents were asked about their internet usage and smart devices.

• Headline findings

• Who used the internet?

• Geographical breakdown

Headline findings

During April 2022 to March 2023 (2022/23), internet usage remained high in England with 93% of adults using it, a similar proportion to 2021/22 (93%).

• Over half of adults in England accessed the internet almost all the time (53%), 36% accessed it several times a day, and only 2% accessed it less frequently than several times a week.

• The most common internet speed was “more than 24Mbps, but up to 100Mbps” (48%) and the most common cost for the current internet access was between £21 to £30 per month (33%). Only 3% of adults had internet speeds of 1Gbps or more, and only 7% of adults were paying more than £60 per month for their internet.

Figure 7.1: Internet usage, England: 2021/22 - 2022/23

• 91% of adults in England owned a smartphone, with a laptop computer being the second most owned digital device (62%). Only 4% of adults did not personally own and use at home any digital device on the list provided in the upper half of Figure 7.2.

• Of the smart devices that were personally owned and used at home, 93% of adults owned a Wi-Fi router or internet hub. The second most owned smart device was a voice-activated personal assistant or smart speaker device (such as Amazon Echo, Alexa, Google Home) (41%), followed by a smart energy device (33%). Around 4% of adults did not personally own and use at home any smart devices on the list provided in the lower half of Figure 7.2.

Figure 7.2 Digital and smart devices personally owned, England: 2022/23.

Of the adults who personally owned digital devices and used them at home, half of adults (50%) did not use these personally owned digital devices for work purposes. However, over a third of adults did use their personal smartphone for work (36%), whilst 30% used their laptop computer and 9% used their tablet.

Who used the internet?^{[footnote 4]}

Figure 7.3 shows that in 2022/23:

• Age: There were no significant differences between adults in the younger and middle age groups (16-59 years old) with approximately 98% using the internet. However, for adults over the 55-59 years old age group, internet usage begins to fall, with adults aged 60 years and over (42-95%) less likely to use the internet than adults under 60 years old (97-98%).

• Disability Status^{[footnote 5]}: Non-disabled adults were more likely to use the internet (96%) than disabled adults (88%).

• Gender:^{[footnote 6]} Male adults (94%) were more likely to use the internet than female adults (93%). There were no other significant differences in internet use between the gender classifications presented here.

• Sexual Orientation: Bisexual adults (98%) were more likely to use the internet than adults from all of the other sexual orientations presented here, with the exception of gay or lesbian adults (97%). There were no other significant differences in internet use between the sexual orientation classifications presented here.

Figure 7.3: Use of the internet, by age, disability status^{[footnote 5]}, gender and sexual orientation^{[footnote 7]}, England: 2022/23.

Figure 7.4 shows that:

• Religion: Adults in the “other” religious classification (99%) or non-religious adults (97%) were more likely to use the internet than adults from all of the other religious groups presented here. Christian adults (90%) were less likely to use the internet than Muslim (94%) or Hindu (94%) adults. There were no other significant differences in internet use between the groups presented here.

• Ethnicity: There were a lot of variation in internet usage for adults of different ethnic groups. For example, adults from the Irish ethnic group (88%) were less likely to use the internet than adults from all of the other white ethnic groups presented here (93%-98%).

Figure 7.4: Use of the internet, by religion and ethnicity, England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity
A	Bangladeshi	G	Caribbean	M	Arab
B	Chinese	H	Any other black, African, or Caribbean background	N	Any other ethnic group
C	Indian	I	Mixed white and Asian	O	English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish, or British
D	Pakistani	J	Mixed white and black African	P	Gypsy or Irish Traveller
E	Any other Asian background	K	Mixed white and black Caribbean	Q	Irish
F	African	L	Any other multi-ethnic background	R	Any other white background

Figure 7.5 shows that:

• Socio-economic classification: There was a general trend that all of the socio-economic classifications were significantly different from each other, with adults from the higher managerial, administrative and professional occupations classification having the highest internet use (98%), followed by adults from the intermediate occupations classification (94%), followed by adults from the routine or manual occupations classification (90%) and adults from the never worked and long term unemployed classification (80%) having the lowest internet usage.

• Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD): Adults from the lowest two deciles (the most deprived) (both around 89%) were less likely to use the internet than adults from all of the other deciles (92 – 96%). There were also other variations; for instance, adults from the eighth decile (95%) were more likely to use the internet than adults from the third decile (92%).

Figure 7.5: Use of the internet, by socio-economic classification^{[footnote 9]} and Index of Multiple Deprivation^{[footnote 10]}, England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Socio-Economic Classification
A	Higher managerial, administrative, and professional occupations
B	Intermediate occupations
C	Routine and manual occupations
D	Never worked and long-term unemployed

Geographical breakdown

There was a lot of variation in how adults from different regions used the internet, for instance adults from the East of England (95%) were more likely to use the internet than adults from Yorkshire and The Humber (92%).

Figure 7.6 shows:

• There was a lot of variation in how adults from different ITL2 regions used the internet. Adults from the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire (96%), Outer London - West and North West (96%), Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire (96%) and East Anglia (95%) ITL2 (county) regions were more likely to use the internet than the average for adults in England as a whole (93%). However, adults from the East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire (91%), South Yorkshire (91%) Lincolnshire (91%), North Yorkshire (90%) and Cumbria (90%) ITL2 regions were less likely to use the internet than the average for England.

Figure 7.6: Use of the internet, by ITL2 region (county), England: 2022/23.

8. 5G (Fifth generation)

5G (Fifth generation) is the next step in mobile technology that enables faster mobile data speeds. The questionnaire asked a series of questions about the respondents’ awareness and likelihood to use 5G in the near future.

Headline findings

Between April 2022 and March 2023 (2022/23), 94% of people said they were aware of 5G. Awareness of 5G has remained similar since 2021/22 (94%).

Of adults asked “how much do you know about 5G mobile technology”, Figure 8.1 shows:

• 41% reported that they understood what it is and were interested in getting it in the near future, a 3 percentage point increase from 2021/22 (38%)

• 31% understood 5G but were not interested in getting it in the near future, a 3 percentage point decrease from 2021/22 (34%)

• 21% reported they had heard of it but were not sure what it is, similar to 2021/22 (22%)

• Only 6% had not heard of 5G, a similar proportion to 2021/22 (6%)

Figure 8.1: 5G awareness England: 2021/22 - 2022/23

Respondents were asked whether they agreed with the statements shown in Figure 8.2 and to pick all the statements that applied. Half of adults said they would get 5G if it were free (51%) and just under half of adults (46%) said they were happy with their current mobile internet speeds and would not pay more to get 5G. Only 6% of adults reported they would never get 5G regardless of what it cost.

Figure 8.2: Attitudes towards getting 5G, England: 2022/23.

Respondents who had said that they would pay more for 5G if they really thought it would benefit them were then asked how much extra they would pay per month for their mobile subscription or data plan to be a 5G data plan:

• Nearly a quarter of these respondents were willing to pay up to £2 extra per month for 5G (23%)

• Just over a fifth of adults were willing to pay between £2 and £5 extra per month for 5G (21%)

• Just under a tenth of adults 9% were willing to pay between £5 and £7.50 per month for 5G (9%)

• Around 3 in 10 of these respondents were not willing to pay any extra per month (27%) for 5G

Who has heard of 5G?^{[footnote 4]}

Engagement and awareness of 5G varied between demographic classes. Some of the significant differences were:

• Age: There was a general trend that adults in higher age groups were more likely to have not heard of 5G than adults in lower or middle age groups. For example, adults aged 85 and over (31%) were more likely to not have heard of 5G, compared to adults from all of the other age groups (5-19%).

• Disability Status^{[footnote 5]}: Disabled adults (25%) were more likely to report they had heard of 5G and were unsure what it is than non-disabled adults (20%). Non-disabled adults were more likely to understand what 5G was and were interested in getting it in the near future (44%) than disabled adults (35%).

• Gender:^{[footnote 6]}: Male adults (49%) were more likely to report that they understood what 5G is and were interested in getting it in the near future than female adults (34%), whereas female adults (28%) were more likely to report that they have heard of it but not sure what it is compared to male adults (15%).

• Sexual Orientation: Gay or lesbian adults (54%) were more likely to report that they understood what 5G is and were interested in getting it in the near future, compared to heterosexual or straight (42%) adults or adults in the “other” sexual orientation classification (37%).

• Religion: Christian adults (36%) were less likely to report that they understood what 5G is and were interested in getting it in the near future than adults from most of the other religious groups, with the exception of Buddhist adults (42%), Sikh adults (40%) or adults in the “other” religious classification (38%).

• Ethnicity: Adults from the mixed white and black African ethnic group (13%) were more likely to have never heard of 5G compared to white British adults (5%).

• Socio-economic classification: Adults from the never worked or long term unemployed classification (12%) were more likely to have never heard of 5G compared to adults from all of the other classifications. Adults from the higher managerial, administrative and professional occupations classification (47%) were more likely to have understood what 5G was and be interested in getting it in the future than adults from all of the other classifications (29 – 38%).

• Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD): Geographical breakdowns (ITL1 and ITL2 regions): Adults from London were the most likely to report they understood what 5G was and were interested in getting it in the near future (48%), compared to adults from all of the other ITL1 regions (37 – 43%). There was a lot of variation in how aware adults from different ITL2 (county) regions were of 5G. For instance, one difference was that adults from the Inner London - West (52%) ITL2 region were more likely to report they understood what 5G was and were interested in getting it in the near future than adults from the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, and Oxfordshire (44%) ITL2 region.

9. Digital or Online skills training

Respondents were asked between April 2022 and March 2023 whether they had taken part in any digital or online skills training^{[footnote 13]} in the last 12 months prior to being asked.

• Headline findings

• Who has engaged with digital or online skills training?

• Geographical breakdown

Headline findings

As shown in Figure 9.1, during April 2022 to March 2023 (2022/23), 22% of adults who use the internet in England had taken part in digital skills training in the previous 12 months, a 2 percentage point increase from 2021/22 (20%)

Figure 9.1: Engagement with digital or online skills training, England: 2021/22 to 2022/23

Over half of adults, thought it was important to continue digital or online skills training in their current career or job (54%) and a similar proportion thought developing digital or online skills was important to helping them further career or job prospects (54%).

Figure 9.2 shows that:

• 70% of adults thought that it was important for them to continue digital or online skills training to help with their day-to-day activities, whereas 30% thought it was not important.

Figure 9.2: Attitudes towards and interest in doing digital or online skills training, England: 2022/23.

Figure 9.3 shows that:

• 32% of adults were interested in doing digital or online skills training, whereas 41% were not interested in doing any such training, even if it was self-taught.

Figure 9.3: Interest in doing digital or online skills training, England: 2022/23.

Who has engaged with digital or online skills training?^{[footnote 4]}

Figure 9.4 shows that in 2022/23:

• Age: Of the respondents that use the internet, there was some variation in how adults of different ages engaged with digital skills training. For instance, adults aged 75 years and above (4-5%) were less likely to have taken part in digital skills training than adults from all of the other age groups presented here. There was however little difference in engagement with digital skills training for the younger and middle age groups (16-54 years old).

• Disability Status^{[footnote 5]}: Of the respondents that use the internet, non-disabled adults (23%) were more likely to take part in digital skills training than disabled adults (18%).

• Gender:^{[footnote 6]} Of the respondents that use the internet, male adults (23%) were more likely to engage in digital skills training than female adults (21%). There were no other significant differences in engagement with digital skills training between the gender classifications presented here.

• Sexual Orientation: Of the respondents that use the internet, gay or lesbian adults (28%) were more likely to engage in digital skills training than heterosexual or straight adults (22%). There were no other significant differences in engagement with digital skills training between the sexual orientation classifications presented here.

Figure 9.4: Engagement with digital or online skills training, by age, disability status^{[footnote 5]}, gender and sexual orientation^{[footnote 7]}, England: 2022/23

Figure 9.5 shows that:

• Religion: Of the respondents that use the internet, there was some variation in digital skills training for adults of different religious groups. For example, Christian adults (20%) were less likely to take part in digital skills training than adults from all of the other religious groups presented here, with the exception of Jewish (19%), Sikh (25%) or non-religious (21%) adults.

• Ethnicity: Of the respondents that use the internet, there was a lot of variation in taking digital skills training for adults of different ethnic groups. For example, adults from the white British^{[footnote 8]} ethnic group (19%) were less likely to engage in digital skills training compared to adults from all of the other ethnic groups, with the exception of adults from the Irish ethnic group (23%) and the mixed white and black African ethnic group (30%).

Figure 9.5: Engagement with digital or online skills training, by religion and ethnicity, England: 2022/23.

Figure 9.6 shows that:

• Socio-economic classification: Of the respondents that use the internet, adults from the higher managerial, administrative, and professional occupations classification (25%), were more likely to have taken part in digital skills training than adults from all of the other classifications presented here. There were no other significant differences in engagement with digital skills training between the socio-economic classifications presented here.

• Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD): Of the respondents that use the internet, adults from the eighth decile (20%) were less likely to take part in digital skills training than adults from the second, third and fourth deciles (all at 24%). There were no other significant differences in engagement with digital skills training between the deciles presented here.

Figure 9.6: Engagement with digital or online skills training, by socio-economic classification^{[footnote 9]} and Index of Multiple Deprivation^{[footnote 10]}, England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Socio-Economic Classification
A	Higher managerial, administrative, and professional occupations
B	Intermediate occupations
C	Routine and manual occupations
D	Never worked and long-term unemployed

Geographical breakdown

Adults from London (26%) were more likely to take part in digital skills training than adults from all of the other ITL1 regions presented here.

Figure 9.7 shows:

• Of the respondents that use the internet, there was a lot of variation in how adults from different ITL2 regions engaged in digital skills training.

• Of the respondents that use the internet, Adults from the Outer London – East & North East (29%), Outer London – West & North West (26%) and Outer London – South (26%) ITL2 (county) regions were more likely to take part in digital skills training than the average for adults in England as a whole (22%). However, adults from the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly (18%) and East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire (15%) ITL2 regions were less likely to take part in digital skill training than the average for England.

Figure 9.7: Engagement with digital or online skills training, by ITL2 region (county), England: 2022/23.

10. Data security

Respondents were asked questions on the measures they took to stay safe and secure online and while using digital technology, and they were also asked to consider statements relating to their understanding of the security of personal data. These questions were asked to online respondents only, so the results may be affected due to only respondents who are already using the internet responding to these questions.

Headline findings

Between April 2022 and March 2023 (2022/23), adults in England were generally aware of the measures to stay safe and secure online.

Figure 10.1 shows that:

• Nearly 4 in 5 adults stated that they avoid suspicious links in email, websites, social media messages and pop ups (79%), a similar proportion to 2021/22.

• Nearly three quarters of adults use different passwords for different online accounts and email (73%), similar to 2021/22.

• However, 7% of respondents did none of the measures on the list given, again a similar proportion to 2021/22.

Figure 10.1: Measures taken to stay safe and secure online, England: 2021/22 - 2022/23.

Figure 10.2 shows that to stay safe and secure while using technology (which may or may not have internet access), nearly three quarters of adults said they create strong passwords (73%). Over half of adults allowed computer system and security software updates when prompted (53%) and nearly half back up their information or content frequently (48%). However, while using technology, just over one in ten (12%) adults did none of the things on the list given in Figure 10.2.

Figure 10.2: Measures taken to stay safe and secure while using technology, England: 2022/23.

Around 87% of adults agreed that viruses can damage their computer security, and over three quarters agreed that software should be used to prevent viruses (76%). Only 1% of people did not agree with any of the given statements.^{[footnote 14]}

Respondents were asked about their reasons for not considering the security standards of the internet provider when choosing a new provider, with around 40% of adults in England reporting “it is important but I don’t have enough information to choose between providers based on their security standards”. A further quarter of adults reported “it may be important, but I don’t have enough information about what happens when security standards are not high enough” (25%). Around 11% of adults reported that choosing between providers based on their security standards didn’t feel very important.

Figure 10.3 shows that whilst 37% of adults had upgraded the security of their own devices in the last 12 months, over half of adults (56%) did none of the things from the list given.

Figure 10.3: Action taken to protect data and online security, England: 2022/23.

11. Methods of identification

Adults were asked about the methods they had used to verify their own identity online, for example, when applying for a passport or applying for a new benefit or new job. They were also asked about their preference between verifying their identity digitally or with hard copy documents for different activities, for example, opening a bank account or travelling. These questions were asked to online respondents only, so the results may be affected due to only respondents who are already using the internet responding to these questions.

Headline findings

Figure 11.1 shows that in April 2022 – March 2023, nearly half of adults in England, 45% had provided personal information (such as passport number or date of birth) to verify their identity online. Just under 2 in 5 adults had not verified their own identity online in the last 12 months (39%). There were no differences from 2021/22.

Figure 11.1: Methods used to verify identity online, England: 2021/22 – 2022/23

Figure 11.2 shows that in general, adults preferred to use digital tools for identification than using hard/physical copies for things such as:

• Opening a bank account (44% digital versus 26% physical).

• Travelling (40% digital versus 28% physical).

• Accessing benefits (37% digital versus 20% physical).

• Starting a new job (36% digital versus 22% physical).

Figure 11.2: Preference of methods to verify identity, England: 2022/23.

12. Use of data

Adults responded to questions on how they feel about private companies and the UK government using data in a variety of ways for a range of purposes, as well as their feelings towards sharing personal data. These questions were asked to online respondents only, so the results may be affected due to only respondents who are already using the internet responding to these questions.

Headline findings

Figure 12.1 shows that over two thirds, 67% of adults in England during April 2022 and March 2023 (2022/23) reported that they were comfortable with the UK government using data to make public policies which will keep people safe, a similar proportion to 2021/22.

This contrasts with respondents’ responses towards how private companies use data in relation to any of the uses asked about, where adults were less comfortable.

For the usage of data in general, the majority of adults (63%) in England were comfortable with researchers and scientists using data, a similar proportion to 2021/22.

Figure 12.1: How comfortable adults felt about the UK government or private companies using data, England: 2022/23.

Question	Very or fairly comfortable	Very or fairly uncomfortable	Don’t know
How comfortable you are with the UK Government using data to make public policies which help keep people safe	67%	22%	12%
How comfortable you are with the UK Government using data to understand and better serve society through improved public services	64%	24%	12%
How comfortable you are with researchers and scientists using data to increase our understanding and knowledge of the world, people, culture and society	63%	23%	14%
How comfortable you are with charities using data to help vulnerable people in society	59%	28%	14%
How comfortable you are with data being used to develop services that help people save money, such as price comparison websites	58%	28%	14%
How comfortable you are with Private companies using data to grow the economy and create jobs	44%	40%	16%
How comfortable you are with Private companies using data to develop technology to help people do things more efficiently	43%	43%	15%
How comfortable you are with data being used by private companies to improve their services and products	40%	45%	15%
How comfortable you are with data being used by private companies to design services which help people connect with others, for example, to develop social media platforms	33%	50%	17%

58% of respondents reported they were comfortable (11% very comfortable and 47% fairly comfortable) with data being used to develop services that help people save money, whilst 37% of adults agreed that they “would share data about my spending habits if it would allow me to gain access to services that could save me money”, and 28% disagreed.

When it came to their personal data being used:

• A majority of adults (46% agree and 16% strongly agree) were comfortable with data being used when it is easy for them to understand how and why it is being used.

• A majority (44% agree and 18% strongly agree) would also be open to sharing their medical history or allergy information if it helped develop new medicines or treatments.

• Over 2 in 5 adults (41%) responded that they agreed they would share data about their online activity if it were used to monitor crime and protect me from harm, while 24% disagreed.

13. Data sharing and viewing content online

Respondents were asked questions relating to their habits for sharing online content. This includes their reasons for doing so, the rigour with which they check the source and their motivations for doing so. These questions were asked to online respondents only, so the results may be affected due to only respondents who are already using the internet responding to these questions.

Headline findings

Figure 13.1 shows that during April 2022 to March 2023 (2022/23), 44% of adults reported that they shared content quite or very often, a 2 percentage point increase from 2021/22 (42%), whilst 18% reported that they never shared content, similar to 2021/22.

Figure 13.1: Frequency of sharing online content, England: 2021/22 to 2022/23

Figure 13.2 shows that the most popular reasons for sharing online content were because “It is funny or amusing” (67%) or “It is interesting” (67%).

Figure 13.2: Reasons for sharing online content, England: 2022/23.

• Just over half of adults (51%) reported that they always consider the source and motivation behind the online content they are sharing, whilst only 3% reported that they never did.

• Similarly, just over half of adults (51%) reported that they always examine whether the headline accurately reflects the online content they are sharing, whilst 3% reported that they never did.

• 55% reported that they always considered the likely impact on other users by them sharing online content, whilst 4% reported that they never did.

14. Her Majesty the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee

Respondents were asked for their awareness of the celebratory events for the 70th anniversary of the accession of Queen Elizabeth II.

Headline findings

During April 2022 to March 2023 (2022/23), 91%of respondents were aware of Her Majesty the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, a 19 percentage point increase from 2021/22 (72%), as shown in figure 14.1.

Figure 14.1: Awareness of Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, England: 2021/22 to 2022/23.

Of those adults who were aware of Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, nearly half actually participated in the event (45%)^{[footnote 15]} . Of these respondents who participated in the event, figure 14.2 shows that:

• 76% followed coverage on TV or radio (including watching the event and/or news about the event).

• 32% attended a local event.

• 26% followed this event on social media.

Figure 14.2: Participation in Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, England: 2022/23.

Who was aware of Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee?^{[footnote 4]}

Figure 14.3 shows that in 2022/23:

• Age: Adults aged 24 and below (around 84%) were less likely to be aware of Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee event compared to adults from all of the other age groups presented here. There were also other variations; for instance, 80-84 year old adults (96%) engaged more than 30-34 year old adults (89%).

• Disability Status^{[footnote 5]}: There were no differences observed in awareness of this event between adults of different disability status.

• Gender:^{[footnote 6]}: Female adults (93%) were more likely to be aware of Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee than adults from all of the other gender classifications presented here. Adults who preferred to self-describe their gender were the least aware of this event (3%) compared to adults of all of the other gender classifications presented here. There were no other significant differences in awareness of this event between the gender classifications presented here.

• Sexual Orientation: Adults in the “other” sexual orientation classification (80%) were less likely to be aware of this event than adults from all of the other sexual orientation classifications presented here (93 -94%), except bisexual adults (89%). There were no other significant differences in awareness of this event between the sexual orientation classifications presented here.

Figure 14.3: Awareness for Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, by age, disability status^{[footnote 5]}, gender and sexual orientation^{[footnote 7]}, England: 2022/23.

Figure 14.4 shows that:

• Religion: Christian adults (94%) were more likely to be aware of Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee than adults from all of the other religious groups presented here. Non-religious adults (93%) were more likely to be aware of Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee than adults from all of the other religious groups presented here, with the exception of Christian adults (94%). There were no other significant differences in awareness of this event between the religious groups presented here.

• Ethnicity: There was some variation in awareness of this event for adults of different ethnic groups. For example, adults from the white British^{[footnote 8]} ethnic group were more aware (94%) of this event than adults in the “any other white background” ethnic group (89%).

Figure 14.4: Awareness for Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, England: 2022/23 by religion and ethnicity, England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity
A	Bangladeshi	G	Caribbean	M	Arab
B	Chinese	H	Any other black, African, or Caribbean background	N	Any other ethnic group
C	Indian	I	Mixed white and Asian	O	English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish, or British
D	Pakistani	J	Mixed white and black African	P	Gypsy or Irish Traveller
E	Any other Asian background	K	Mixed white and black Caribbean	Q	Irish
F	African	L	Any other multi-ethnic background	R	Any other white background

Figure 14.5 shows that:

• Socio-economic classification: Adults in the never worked or long term unemployed classification (76%) were the least aware of this event compared to adults from all of the other socio-economic classifications presented here (93-95%). Adults from the routine and manual occupations classification (93%) were less likely to be aware of this event than adults from the higher managerial, administrative and professional occupations classification (95%) or the intermediate occupations classification (95%). There were no other significant differences in awareness of this event between the socio-economic classifications presented here.

• Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD): Adults from the lowest decile (the most deprived) (85%) were the least aware of the event compared to adults from all of the other deciles presented here. There were also some other variations; for instance, adults from the fifth decile (22%) were more aware of this event than adults from the third decile (20%).

Figure 14.5: Awareness for Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, by socio-economic classification^{[footnote 9]} and Index of Multiple Deprivation^{[footnote 10]}, England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Socio-Economic Classification
A	Higher managerial, administrative, and professional occupations
B	Intermediate occupations
C	Routine and manual occupations
D	Never worked and long-term unemployed

Geographical breakdown

There was a lot of variation in how adults from different ITL1 regions were aware of Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee event. For instance, adults from the South East (94%) were more aware than adults from Yorkshire and The Humber (89%).

Figure 14.6 shows:

• There was a lot of variation in the proportion of adults from different ITL2 regions being aware of Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee event. Adults from the Devon (95%), Kent (95%) and Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire (94%) ITL2 regions were more aware of Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee event than the average for adults in England as a whole (91%). However, adults from the Greater Manchester (88%), West Yorkshire (88%), West Midlands (88%), and Outer London - West and North West (88%) ITL2 regions were less aware than the average for England.

Figure 14.6 Awareness for Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, by ITL2 region (County), England: 2022/23.

15. UNBOXED: Creativity in the UK

Respondents were asked about their awareness of the “UNBOXED: Creativity in the UK” major event.

• Headline findings

• Who was aware of UNBOXED: Creativity in the UK?

• Geographical breakdown

Headline findings

For the UNBOXED event between April 2022 to March 2023 (2022/23), 3% of respondents had heard of this event, a similar level to 2021/22.

^{[footnote 16]}

Figure 15.1: Awareness of UNBOXED: Creativity in the UK, England: 2022/23

Of those who were aware of the UNBOXED Event, 12% of respondents actually participated in the event^{[footnote 15]}.

• 32% attended a local event.

• 32% followed coverage on TV or radio (including watching the event and/or news about the event).

Figure 15.2: Participation in UNBOXED: Creativity in the UK, England: 2022/23

Who was aware of UNBOXED: Creativity in the UK?^{[footnote 4]}

Figure 15.3 shows that in 2022/23::

• Age: Adults aged 80 and over (around 1%) were the least likely to be aware of the Unboxed event compared to adults from all of the other age groups presented here. There were no other significant differences in awareness of this event between the age groups presented here.

• Disability Status^{[footnote 5]}: There were no differences observed in awareness of this event between adults of different disability status.

• Gender:^{[footnote 6]}: Male adults (4%) were more likely to be aware of the UNBOXED event than female adults (3%). There were no other significant differences in awareness of this event between the gender classifications presented here.

• Sexual Orientation: Gay or lesbian adults (7%) were more likely to be aware of this event than heterosexual or straight (3%) or bisexual (2%) adults. There were no other significant differences in awareness of this event between the sexual orientation classifications presented here.

Figure 15.3: Awareness for UNBOXED: Creativity in the UK, by age, disability status^{[footnote 5]}, gender and sexual orientation^{[footnote 7]}, England: 2022/23.

Figure 15.4 shows that:

• Religion: Christian adults (3%) were less likely to be aware of the UNBOXED event than Jewish (6%), Buddhist (7%) or non-religious (4%) adults. There were no other significant differences in awareness of this event between the religious groups presented here.

• Ethnicity: Adults from the mixed white and black Caribbean ethnic group (7%) were more likely to be aware of the UNBOXED event than adults from the white British^{[footnote 8]} ethnic group (3%). There were no other significant differences in awareness of this event between the ethnic groups presented here.

Figure 15.4: Awareness for UNBOXED: Creativity in the UK, by religion and ethnicity England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity
A	Bangladeshi	G	Caribbean	M	Arab
B	Chinese	H	Any other black, African, or Caribbean background	N	Any other ethnic group
C	Indian	I	Mixed white and Asian	O	English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish, or British
D	Pakistani	J	Mixed white and black African	P	Gypsy or Irish Traveller
E	Any other Asian background	K	Mixed white and black Caribbean	Q	Irish
F	African	L	Any other multi-ethnic background	R	Any other white background

Figure 15.5 shows that:

• Socio-economic classification: Adults from the higher managerial, administrative and professional occupations classification (4%) were more likely to be aware of this event than adults from the intermediate occupations classification (2%) or the routine and manual occupations classification (2%). There were no other significant differences in awareness of this event between the socio-economic classifications presented here.

• Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD): There were no observed differences in awareness of this event between adults of different deprivation deciles.

Figure 15.5: Awareness for UNBOXED: Creativity in the UK, by socio-economic classification^{[footnote 9]} and Index of Multiple Deprivation^{[footnote 10]}, England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Socio-Economic Classification
A	Higher managerial, administrative, and professional occupations
B	Intermediate occupations
C	Routine and manual occupations
D	Never worked and long-term unemployed

Geographical breakdown

Adults from London (4%) were more likely to be aware of this event than adults from all of the other regions presented here, with the exception of adults from the South West (3%), South East (3%) or West Midlands (3%).

Figure 15.6 shows:

• There was a lot of variation in how adults from different ITL2 regions were aware of the UNBOXED event. Adults from the Inner London – East (6%) and Inner London West (5%) ITL2 (county) regions were more likely to be aware of the event than the average for adults in England as a whole (3%).

Figure 15.6 Awareness for UNBOXED: Creativity in the UK, by ITL2 region (County), England: 2022/23

16. Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022

Respondents were asked about their awareness of the “Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022” major event.

• Headline findings

• Who was aware of the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022?

• Geographical breakdown

Headline findings

During the period of April 2022 to March 2023 (2022/23), around 3 in 5 adults (58%) were aware of the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022, a 19 percentage point increase from 2021/22 (40%).

Figure 16.1: Awareness of Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022, England: 2021/22 to 2022/23.

Of those who were aware of the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022, over a quarter actually participated in the event (28%)^{[footnote 15]} . Of these respondents who participated in the event, figure 16.2 shows that:

• 90% followed coverage on TV or radio (including watching the event and/or news about the event).

• 22% followed this event on social media.

Figure 16.2 Participation in the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022, England: 2022/23.

Who was aware of the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022? ^{[footnote 4]}

Figure 16.3 shows that in 2022/23:

• Age: There was a positive correlation with age and awareness of the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022. Generally, as age increased, the level of awareness increased with the exception of adults aged 85 and over (62%) who were less aware than 60-79 year old adults (68-71%).

• Disability Status^{[footnote 5]}: Non-disabled adults (60%) were more likely to be aware of the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022 than disabled adults (57%).

• Gender:^{[footnote 6]}: Male adults (61%) were more aware of the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022 than female adults (56%) or those adults who prefer to self-describe their gender (39%). Adults who preferred to self-describe (39%) were the least aware. There were no other significant differences in awareness of this event between the gender classifications presented here.

• Sexual Orientation: Heterosexual or straight (66%) or gay or lesbian (69%) adults were more aware of this event than adults from all of the other sexual orientation classifications presented here. There were no other significant differences in awareness of this event between the sexual orientation classifications presented here

Figure 16.3: Awareness of Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022, by age, disability status^{[footnote 5]}, gender and sexual orientation^{[footnote 7]}, England: 2022/23.

Figure 16.4 shows that:

• Religion: There was some variation in awareness of this event for adults from different religious groups. For example, Christian adults (64%) were more likely to be aware of this event than adults from all of the other religious groups presented here, with the exception of Jewish (56%) or Sikh (57%) adults.

• Ethnicity: There was a lot of variation in how adults of different ethnic groups were aware of the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022. For instance, one difference was that adults in the “any other white” ethnic group (37%) were less likely to be aware of this event than adults from all of the other white ethnic groups presented here (both 64%).

Figure 16.4: Awareness of Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022, by religion and ethnicity, England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity
A	Bangladeshi	G	Caribbean	M	Arab
B	Chinese	H	Any other black, African, or Caribbean background	N	Any other ethnic group
C	Indian	I	Mixed white and Asian	O	English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish, or British
D	Pakistani	J	Mixed white and black African	P	Gypsy or Irish Traveller
E	Any other Asian background	K	Mixed white and black Caribbean	Q	Irish
F	African	L	Any other multi-ethnic background	R	Any other white background

Figure 14.5 shows that:

• Socio-economic classification: Adults from the higher managerial, administrative and professional occupations classification (66%) were more aware of the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022 than adults from all of the other classifications presented here. Adults in the never worked or long term unemployed classification (39%) were the least aware compared to adults from all of the other classifications presented here. Adults from the intermediate occupations classification (61%) were more likely to be aware of this event than adults from the routine or manual occupations classification (57%). There were no other significant differences in awareness of this event between the socio-economic classifications presented here.

• Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD): Adults from the lowest three deciles (the most deprived) (48-50%) were less aware of this event than adults from all of the other deciles presented here. There were also some other variations: for instance, adults from the eighth decile (64%) were more aware of this event than adults from the sixth decile (59%).

Figure 16.5: Awareness of Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022 by socio-economic classification^{[footnote 9]} and Index of Multiple Deprivation^{[footnote 10]}, England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Socio-Economic Classification
A	Higher managerial, administrative, and professional occupations
B	Intermediate occupations
C	Routine and manual occupations
D	Never worked and long-term unemployed

Geographical breakdown

Adults from the West Midlands (84%) were the most aware of the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022, compared to adults from all of the other ITL1 regions presented here.

Figure 16.6 shows:

• There was a lot of variation in how adults from different ITL2 regions were aware of the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022. Adults from the West Midlands (87%), Herefordshire, Worcestershire & Warwickshire (85%), Shropshire & Staffordshire (79%), Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire (64%), Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire (64%) and Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Bath and Bristol (63%) ITL2 (county) regions were more aware of the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022 than the average for adults in England as a whole (58%). However, adults from the South Yorkshire (54%), Tees Valley and Durham (53%), Greater Manchester (53%), Inner London – West (52%), Northumberland, and Tyne and Wear (52%), Outer London – South (50%), West Yorkshire (49%), East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire (48%), Inner London – East (46%), Outer London - West and North West (46%) and Outer London - East and North East (44%) ITL2 regions were less likely to be aware than the average for England.

• Adults from the West Midlands (87%), Herefordshire, Worcestershire & Warwickshire (85%), and Shropshire & Staffordshire (79%) ITL2 regions were the most aware of the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022, compared to adults from all of the other county regions in England presented here.

Figure 16.6: Awareness of Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022, by ITL2 region, England: 2022/23.

17. Coventry City of Culture

Respondents were asked about their awareness of the “Coventry City of Culture” major event.

• Headline findings

• Who was aware of Coventry City of Culture?

• Geographical breakdown

Headline findings

During April 2022 to March 2023 (2022/23), nearly a quarter of adults, 23% reported that they were aware of Coventry City of Culture (shown in Figure 17.1), a 2 percentage point increase from 2021/22 (21%).

Figure 17.1: Awareness of Coventry City of Culture, England: 2021/22 to 2022/23

Of those who were aware of the Coventry City of Culture event, around 7% of those respondents actually participated in the event^{[footnote 15]}. Of these respondents who participated in the event, figure 17.2 shows that:

• 59% followed coverage on TV or radio (including watching the event and/or news about the event).

• 26% attended a local event.

• 21% followed this event on social media.

Figure 17.2: Participation in Coventry City of Culture, England: 2022/23

Who was aware of Coventry City of Culture?^{[footnote 4]}

Figure 17.3 shows that in 2022/23:

• Age: There was generally a positive correlation between age and awareness of this event, except for adults aged 85 and over when awareness fell to 26%. 16-19 year old adults (8%) were least aware of this event compared to adults from all of the other age groups presented here.

• Disability Status^{[footnote 5]}: There were no differences observed in awareness of this event between adults of different disability status.

• Gender:^{[footnote 6]}: Male adults (24%) were more likely to be aware of this event than female adults (22%). There were no other significant differences in awareness of this event between the gender classifications presented here.

• Sexual Orientation: Gay or lesbian adults (29%) were more likely to be aware of this event than adults from all of the other sexual orientation classifications presented here, except adults in the “other” sexual orientation classification (21%). Heterosexual or straight adults (24%) were more likely to be aware of this event than bisexual adults (16%). There were no other significant differences in awareness of this event between the sexual orientation classifications presented here.

Figure 17.3: Awareness of Coventry City of Culture, by age, disability status^{[footnote 5]}, gender and sexual orientation^{[footnote 7]}, England: 2022/23.

Figure 17.4 shows that:

• Religion: There was some variation in awareness of the Coventry City of Culture event for adults of different religious groups. For example, Muslim adults (7%) were less aware of this event than adults from all of the other religious groups presented here.

• Ethnicity: There was a lot of variation in awareness of the Coventry City of Culture event for adults of different ethnic groups. For example, adults from the Irish ethnic group (31%) were more likely to be aware of this event than adults from all of the other ethnic groups presented here, with the exception of adults from the white British10 (26%), Caribbean (21%) or “any other mixed or multi ethnic background” (18%) ethnic groups.

Figure 17.4: Awareness of Coventry City of Culture, England: 2022/23 by religion and ethnicity, England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity
A	Bangladeshi	G	Caribbean	M	Arab
B	Chinese	H	Any other black, African, or Caribbean background	N	Any other ethnic group
C	Indian	I	Mixed white and Asian	O	English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish, or British
D	Pakistani	J	Mixed white and black African	P	Gypsy or Irish Traveller
E	Any other Asian background	K	Mixed white and black Caribbean	Q	Irish
F	African	L	Any other multi-ethnic background	R	Any other white background

Figure 17.5 shows that:

• Socio-economic classification: Adults from the higher managerial, administrative and professional occupations classification (30%) were more aware of this event than adults in all of the other classifications presented here, whilst adults in the never worked or long-term unemployed classification (12%) were the least aware. Adults from the intermediate occupations classification (24%) were more likely to be aware of this event than adults from the routine or manual occupations classification (20%). There were no other significant differences in awareness of this event between the socio-economic classifications presented here.

• Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD): Adults from the higher managerial, administrative and professional occupations classification (30%) were more aware of this event than adults in all of the other classifications presented here, whilst adults in the never worked or long-term unemployed classification (12%) were the least aware. Adults from the intermediate occupations classification (24%) were more likely to be aware of this event than adults from the routine or manual occupations classification (20%). There were no other significant differences in awareness of this event between the socio-economic classifications presented here.

Figure 17.5: Awareness of Coventry City of Culture, by socio-economic classification11 and Index of Multiple Deprivation12 England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Socio-Economic Classification
A	Higher managerial, administrative, and professional occupations
B	Intermediate occupations
C	Routine and manual occupations
D	Never worked and long-term unemployed

Geographical breakdown

Adults from the West Midlands (46%) were the most aware of the Coventry City of Culture event compared to adults from all of the other ITL1 regions in England presented here.

Figure 17.6 shows:

• There was a lot of variation in how adults from different ITL2 regions were aware of the Coventry City of Culture Event. Adults from the Herefordshire, Worcestershire & Warwickshire (58%), West Midlands county region (44%), Shropshire & Staffordshire (37%), Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire (31%) and East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire (27%) ITL2 (county) regions were more likely to be aware of this event than the average for adults in England as a whole (23%). However, adults from the Tees Valley and Durham (20%), Northumberland, and Tyne and Wear (19%), Outer London – South (9%), Cumbria (19%), South Yorkshire (19%), Inner London - East (19%), West Yorkshire (19%), Lancashire (18%), Merseyside (17%), Kent (17%), Essex (17%), Greater Manchester (16%), Outer London - East and North East (15%) and Outer London - West and North West (15%) ITL2 regions were less likely to be aware of the event than the average for England.

• Adults from the Herefordshire, Worcestershire & Warwickshire (58%) ITL2 region were significantly more aware of this event than adults from any of the other ITL2 regions in England presented here.

Figure 17.6: Awareness of Coventry City of Culture, by ITL2 region (county), England: 2022/23.

18. Live Sports

Respondents were asked information about attendance at live sports in the last six months (that is, covering the period October 2021 to March 2023). Note that questions related to gambling refers to the last 12 months (that is, covering the period April 2021 to March 2023).

• Headline findings

• Who attends live sporting events?

• Geographical breakdown

Headline findings

Between April 2022 and March 2023, over 1 in 5 adults (22%) reported that they had attended live sports in person in the last six months, a 4 percentage point increase from 2021/22 (18%), as shown in figure 18.1.

Figure 18.1: Live sport attendance, England: 2021/22 - 2022/23

Of those live sports, the order of popularity of attendance was:

• Football (65%)

• Rugby (19%)

• Some other type of sport (17%) (any sport not listed in Figure 18.2^{[footnote 17]} )

• Cricket (15%)

These were the most popular sports in the previous year too.

65% of respondents who watched live sports on TV said all of these events were professional sports where the participants were being paid, whereas 10% said most of them were. Only 11% of respondents said none of the events were professional sports where the participants were being paid.

Around 3 in 5 adults (59%) watched live sports on TV. Of the live sports on TV, figure 18.2 shows that the most watched was:

• Football (81%)

• Tennis (41%)

• Rugby (38%).

Figure 18.2: Live sporting events watched in-person in the previous 6 months or on TV, by sport type, England: 2022/23.

Around 21% of adults who attended live sports (of any type) in person in the previous 6 months placed a bet. This compares to 14% of adults who watched live sports on TV who placed a bet while watching.

Figure 18.3 shows that of the adults who attended live sports in person and placed bets:

• 50% reported to do so very rarely,

• 19% said some of the time,

• 15% said most of the time.

Whereas, of the adults who watched live sports on TV and placed bets:

• 48% did so very rarely,

• 35% placed a bet some of the time,

• 11% placed a bet most of the time.

Figure 18.3: Engagement in betting during watching live sports in person and on TV, by frequency, England: 2022/23.

Who attends live sporting events?^{[footnote 4]}

Figure 18.4 shows that in 2022/23:

• Age: Attendance at live sporting events steadily decreased as the age group of the respondents increased, with adults aged 80 years and over engaging the least (6-8%) compared to adults from all of the other age groups presented here

• Disability Status^{[footnote 5]}: Non-disabled adults (25%) were more likely to have attended live sporting events in person than disabled adults (14%).

• Gender: ^{[footnote 6]} Male adults (29%) were more likely to have attended live sporting events compared to female adults (15%) and adults who prefer to self-describe their gender (9%). There were no other significant differences in the attendance of live sporting events between the gender classifications presented here.

• Sexual Orientation: Heterosexual or straight adults (23%) were more likely to attend a live sporting event compared to bisexual adults (16%) or adults in the “other” sexual orientation classification (15%). There were no other significant differences in the attendance of live sporting events between the sexual orientation classifications presented here.

Figure 18.4: Attendance of live sporting events in the previous 6 by age, disability status^{[footnote 5]}, gender and sexual orientation^{[footnote 7]} , England: 2022/23.

Figure 18.5 shows that:

• Religion: Non-religious adults (24%) were more likely to attend live sporting events compared to Christian (22%), Hindu, (18%) or Muslim (14%) adults or adults in the “other” religious classification (14%). Christian adults (22%) were more likely to attend sporting events than Muslim adults (14%) or adults in the ‘any other’ religion classification (14%). Jewish adults (24%) were more likely to attend live sporting events than Muslim adults (14%). There were no other significant differences in the attendance of live sporting events between the religious groups presented here.

• Ethnicity: There was some variation in live sport attendance for adults of different ethnic groups. For example, adults from the white British^{[footnote 8]} ethnic background (23%) were more likely to attend live sporting events than adults from all the Asian ethnic groups (9 – 14%) presented here with the exception of adults from the Indian ethnic group (19%).

Figure 18.5: Attendance of live sporting events in the previous 6 months, by religion and ethnicity, England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity	Bar label	Ethnicity
A	Bangladeshi	G	Caribbean	M	Arab
B	Chinese	H	Any other black, African, or Caribbean background	N	Any other ethnic group
C	Indian	I	Mixed white and Asian	O	English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish, or British
D	Pakistani	J	Mixed white and black African	P	Gypsy or Irish Traveller
E	Any other Asian background	K	Mixed white and black Caribbean	Q	Irish
F	African	L	Any other multi-ethnic background	R	Any other white background

Figure 18.6 shows that:

• Socio-economic classification: Adults from the higher managerial, administrative and professional occupations classification (26%) were more likely to attend live sporting events compared to adults from all of the other classifications presented here. However, adults in the never worked or long-term unemployed classification (13%) were less likely to attend live sporting events compared to all the other classifications presented here. There were no differences observed between adults from the intermediate occupations classification (19%) or the routine and manual occupations classification (18%). There were no other significant differences in the attendance of live sporting events between the socio-economic classifications presented here.

• Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD): There was some variation in live sporting event attendance for adults in different deciles. Adults from the lowest two deciles (most deprived) were less likely to attend live sporting events (approximately 16 – 17%) compared to adults in the highest decile (least deprived) (approximately 27%). There were also other variations; for instance, adults from the seventh and eighth decile (both 24%) were more likely to attend live sporting events than adults from the third and fourth decile (19% and 20% respectively).

Figure 18.6: Attendance of live sporting events in the previous 6 months, by socio-economic classification^{[footnote 9]} and Index of Multiple Deprivation^{[footnote 10]}, England: 2022/23.

Bar label	Socio-Economic Classification
A	Higher managerial, administrative, and professional occupations
B	Intermediate occupations
C	Routine and manual occupations
D	Never worked and long-term unemployed

Geographical breakdown

There were no differences between adults in different ITL1 regions attending live sporting events. Figure 18.7 shows:

• There was a lot of variation in how adults from different ITL2 regions attending live sporting events. Adults from the Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Bath and Bristol (27%), Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire (27%) and Inner London - West (27%) ITL2 (county) regions were more likely to attend live sporting events than the average for adults in England as a whole (22%). However, adults from the Kent (18%), Dorset and Somerset (18%), East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire (17%) and Cornwall and Isles of Scilly (16%) ITL2 regions were less likely than the average for England.

Figure 18.7: Attendance of live sporting events in the previous 6 months, England: 2022/23

Annex 1

1. The Participation survey is commissioned by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). In February 2023, there was a Machinery of Government (MoG) change and responsibility for digital policy now sits within the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT). DCMS continues to run the digital policy sections of the Participation Survey on behalf of DSIT.

2. The fieldwork for the Participation survey has been conducted by Kantar Public since October 2021.

3. This release is based on self-completed questionnaires conducted either online or using paper questionnaires. The survey was completed between April 2022 and March 2023. The total sample size for this survey year was 33,524. Sample sizes for each breakdown can be found in the accompanying tables.

4. All households sampled were invited to complete the survey online with the option to request a paper questionnaire instead. A targeted sample was also sent two paper questionnaires in their second reminder letter to encourage responses from those at risk of digital exclusion. In April 2022 to March 2023, 29,006 people (87%) completed the survey online and 4,518 (13%) completed the paper version of the questionnaire. Due to space limitations in the paper questionnaire, not all questions from the online survey are included in the paper version and the source of each survey measure is therefore referenced in the accompanying tables. Please take this into consideration when interpreting the results.

5. The Participation Survey represents a set of Official Statistics and as such has been produced to the professional standards set out in the Code of Practice for Statistics. Official Statistics undergo regular quality assurance reviews to ensure they meet customer needs and are produced free from any political interference. Please see the UK Statistics Authority’s Code of Practice for more information.

6. Stringent quality assurance procedures have been adopted for this statistical release. All data and analysis had been checked and verified by at least two different members of the DCMS team and Kantar Public to ensure the highest level of quality.

7. Guidance on the quality that is expected of Participation Survey statistical releases is provided in a quality indicators document. These quality indicators outline how statistics from the Participation survey match up to the six dimensions of quality defined by the European Statistical System (ESS). These are: relevance, accuracy, timeliness, accessibility, comparability and coherence.

8. The Participation survey measures participation by adults (aged 16 and over) living in private households in England. No geographical restriction is placed on where the activity or event occurred.

9. Unless stated, participation in activities must be for the purpose of recreation or leisure, including voluntary work. It excludes involvement in activities where the prime motivation is paid work or academic studies.

10. Changes over time and differences between groups are only reported on where they are statistically significant at the 95% level. Statistically significant differences have been determined in this report on the basis of non-overlapping confidence intervals. This means that we can be confident that the differences seen in our sampled respondents are reflective of the population. Specifically, the statistical tests used mean we can be confident that if we carried out the same survey on different random samples of the population, 95 times out of 100 we would get similar findings. When sample sizes are smaller we can be less confident in our estimates so differences need to be greater to be considered statistically significant.

11. The upper and lower bounds presented in this report have been calculated using a 95% confidence interval. This means that had the sample been conducted 100 times, creating 100 confidence intervals, then 95 of these intervals would contain the true value. When the sample size is smaller, as is the case for certain groups and in certain years, the confidence intervals are wider as we can be less certain that the individuals in the sample are representative of the population. This means that it is more difficult to draw inferences from the results.

12. The data are weighted to ensure representativeness of the Participation Survey sample. Weighting is based on January–March 2022 Labour Force Survey data from the Office for National Statistics. There are two types of weighting: (i) to compensate for unequal probabilities of selection, (ii) to adjust for non-response. Detailed information on the weighting procedure can be found on the Technical Note from Kantar Public.

13. The GSS has a policy of monitoring and reducing statistical survey burden to participants where possible, and the burden imposed should be proportionate to the benefits arising from the use of the statistics. As a producer of statistics, DCMS is transparent in its approach to monitoring and reducing the burden on those providing their information, and on those involved in collecting, recording and supplying data. The compliance cost of a survey is calculated by [Number of responses to the survey multiplied by the median time spent completing the survey (in minutes)]. The Participation Survey had 33,524 respondents in April 2022 to March 2023, and the median survey completion time was 25 minutes, therefore the compliance cost for the survey this year was 13,968 hours and 20 minutes.

14. For more information about the Participation survey and to access other guidance documents and the questionnaire, see the Participation Survey web pages.

15. The responsible statistician for this release is Donilia Asgill. For enquiries on this release, please contact ParticipationSurvey@dcms.gov.uk.

16. Following on from feedback, we plan to remove the demographic tables from the Participation Survey Quarterly publications, from September 2023. We would continue to include the demographic tables in the annual publications. If you are regularly using the quarterly demographic tables and this proposed change would cause you significant issues, please get in touch with DCMS Survey team (participationsurvey@dcms.gov.uk) by the end of August 2023, outlining which particular breakdowns you would like us to prioritise.

Annex 2

Term	Definition
Arts	A list of activities that are classified as engagement with the arts is given in Annex 3.
Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games	The Commonwealth Games is an international multi-sport event involving athletes from 72 nations and territories across the Commonwealth of Nations. The 2022 Commonwealth Games was held in Birmingham.
Confidence interval	A confidence interval provides a range in which there is a specific probability that the true value for the population will fall. For the Participation Survey 95% confidence intervals are used which means, had the sampling been conducted 100 times, creating 100 confidence intervals, then 95 of these intervals would contain the true value for adults in England.
Coventry City of Culture	UK City of Culture is a competition run by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) every four years. The UK City of Culture started in May 2021 in Coventry and ended in May 2022.
Data	Information about people, things and systems. Information about people could include things like their names and addresses or it could be about the population, like the proportion of adults who own a property. Information about systems includes how companies perform, like hospital waiting times or company sales figures. Information about things might include the stock of food at a supermarket or the number of ventilators at a hospital.
DCMS and DSIT Sectors	The DCMS sectors referred to in this report are; arts, heritage, museums and galleries, libraries, tourism, major events and live sport.The DSIT sectors referred to in this report are; digital and internet, 5G, digital or online skills training, data security, methods of identification, data security, use of data and data sharing.Prior to February 2023, all of these sectors were classified as DCMS sectors, but following Machinery of Government changes, the digital sectors are the responsibility of DSIT.
Digital engagement	Digital engagement in each sector is defined as visiting a website or using an app related to that sector.
Digital or online skills training	The Participation Survey asks whether respondents had taken part in any digital or online skills training. This might include training in how to carry out basic functions such as using digital or online applications to communicate and carry out basic internet searches and to stay safe online.
Disability	The harmonised question for disability status “Do you have any physical or mental health conditions or illnesses lasting or expected to last for 12 months or more?” is asked to identify those respondents with a long lasting health conditions and illness and those without.
Domestic Tourism	Holidays (that is, staying at least one night away from your home) in England was counted as tourism within the Participation Survey.
Engagement	This refers to either attending and/or participating in one of DCMS’ sectors, either in person or online, for example, going to the theatre (attendance) or playing a musical instrument (participation).
Ethnic groups	The Participation Survey respondents were asked to self-identify in terms of ethnicity. The options follow the harmonised question for ethnicity.
Gambling	The Participation Survey captures information on respondents placing bets during sporting events.
Gender	The Participation Survey respondents were asked if they would describe themselves as Male, Female, or Prefer to self-describe, or Prefer not to say, following the harmonised question for gender.
Heritage	A list of activities that are classified as engagement with heritage is given in Annex 3.
Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee	A series of celebrations that took place throughout 2022 to celebrate the late Her Majesty The Queen’s 70-year reign as Sovereign.
Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD)	IMD is a geographical measure which classifies the relative deprivation of an area. It combines 7 indices to produce one overall measure for the area (rather than the individual). It takes into account income, employment, education, skills and training, health and disability, crime, barriers to housing and services, and living environment.
International Territorial Levels (ITLs)	ITLs are a UK geographical classification of administrative areas, used by OECD member countries for statistical purposes. In England, the Participation Survey covers: 1. ITL 1 (Regions): there are 9 regions, for example, North West England, or London. 2. ITL 2 (Counties and groups of counties): there are 33 county regions, for example, East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire, or Outer London – East and North East
Libraries	The list of activities that are classified as public library use is given in Annex 3.
Live sports	Watching sport as it is being played in real time.
Museums and galleries	A list of activities that are classified as engagement with museums and galleries is given in Annex 3.
Physical engagement	Engaging with DCMS sectors in-person, that is, not using digital means.
Religion	The Participation Survey respondents were asked to self-identify themselves in terms of religious beliefs. The options follow the harmonised question for religion, and are based on affiliation (rather than belief or practice).
Sexual orientation	The Participation Survey respondents were asked “Which of the following options best describes how you think of yourself?”. The options were Heterosexual or Straight, Gay or Lesbian, Bisexual, Other, or prefer not to say, following the harmonised question for sexual orientation designed to capture ‘self-perceived sexual identity’.
Router/internet hub	A router is a device that communicates between the internet and the devices in your home that connect to the internet.
Significant increase/decrease	A significant increase/decrease at the 95% level means that if we carried out the same survey on different random samples of the population, 95 times out of 100 we would observe the increase/decrease.
Smart device	Smart products are devices or appliances controlled via an internet connection.
Socio-economic group (NS-SEC)	NS-SEC is a form of socio-economic classification based on the employment status and occupation of the respondent. The individual is placed within one of the three socio-economic groups: 1. Higher managerial, administrative and professional occupations 2. Intermediate occupations 3. Routine and manual occupations. There is a fourth category “never worked and long-term unemployed”, which also encompasses adult students.
UNBOXED	UNBOXED: Creativity in the UK was a celebration of creativity and innovation, that took place across England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales and digitally from March to October 2022.
5G	5G stands for fifth generation. It is the next step in mobile technology. It offers faster mobile internet speeds.

Annex 3

Arts

The respondent was asked whether they had participated in a given list of arts activities, or attended a given list of arts events (not including paid work, school or college or structured academic activities). Eligible activities and events were as follows:

Physical Participation:

• written stories, plays, or poetry
• read books or magazines
• written or performed music
• painting, drawing, printmaking, calligraphy
• crafts (textile, ceramic, sculpting, carving, woodwork)
• choreographed or performed a drama or dance routine
• designed or programmed video games including on a smartphone or tablet
• played video games including on a smartphone or tablet
• made films or videos as a hobby including original animations
• photography as a hobby
• other arts, crafts, or creative activities at home

Physical Attendance:

• an exhibition of art, photography or sculptures
• a play, drama, musical, Pantomime, Ballet, Opera
• an event connected with books, reading, or writing
• a cinema screening of a film or movie
• a craft exhibition (not a crafts market; crafts include for example textiles, woodworking)
• a live music event
• a festival and or carnival (music, food, culture)
• a street art event
• a live dance event
• a fashion show
• a comedy event
• some other cultural event in England

Digital Engagement:

• a live arts event including theatre, visual arts or literature
• a pre-recorded arts event including theatre, visual arts or literature
• a live music or dance event, watched as it was happening
• a pre-recorded music or dance event

Heritage

Physical engagement:

The respondent was asked whether they had visited any of the following places in person (not including paid work, school or college or structured academic activities):

• a city or town with celebrated historic nature
• a historic building open to the public (non-religious)
• a historic place of worship attended as a visitor (not to worship)
• a park or garden open to the public with historic or artistic features
• a place connected with industrial history (such as an old factory, mine or railway)
• an ancient monument or archaeological site (such as a castle, fort, burial site)
• a site connected with sports heritage NOT visited for the purposes of watching sport (such as Wimbledon or Wembley stadium)
• a site connected with maritime or underwater heritage (such as shipwrecks)
• a historic landscape or habitat (such as coastline, countryside)
• Some other heritage site or historic place

Digital engagement:

The respondent was asked which of these virtual or online activities they had done (not including paid work, school or college or structured academic activities):

• taken a virtual walking tour of a historic town or city, heritage site, castle or monument in England (Not including drone flights)
• researched your local history online
• viewed documents from an archive in England online
• engaged with text, image, audio, video, or animation, games, or podcast content from heritage sites in England

Libraries

Physical engagement:

The respondent was asked whether they had done any of the following things when they visited a public or mobile library (not including paid work, school or college or structured academic activities):

• borrowed, browsed or returned books, newspapers, music, CDs, DVDs or audiobooks
• accessed online resources such as e-books, magazines or journals
• used free Wi-Fi, computer or printing facilities
• sought information related to your or someone else’s health
• used the space to study or work
• took part in an event (for example a reading group, film screening or author visit)
• took a child to an event
• visited the library café or met up with someone
• did something else

Digital engagement:

The respondent was asked whether they had done any of the following things when accessing library services online (not including paid work, school or college or structured academic activities):

• Reserved or renewed books or paid a fine
• Searched online catalogues or dictionaries or made an enquiry
• Borrowed digital or online resources such as e-books, e-audio or e-magazines but without visiting the library
• Viewed or participated in an online event or activity organised by the library
• Checked information online about the library such as opening hours, available facilities or services offered
• Accessed online services via library membership such as journals or family history sites
• Accessed some other library service online

Museums and galleries

Physical engagement:

The respondent was asked if they had visited a museum or gallery in person in England in the last 12 months.

Digital engagement:

The respondent was asked which of these virtual or online activities they had done (not including paid work, school or college or structured academic activities):

• taken a virtual tour of a museum or gallery in England
• researched items from a museum or gallery collection in England online
• engaged with text, image, audio, video, or animation, games, or podcast content from museums in England

Annex 4

The questionnaire has been produced as a result of a series of engagements with key stakeholders and the social survey needs of DCMS sectors. We have worked closely with Kantar Public to devise a clear and effective questionnaire to acquire data for DCMS policy teams. There is some overlap with questions observed in the Taking Part Survey, however we advise not to compare findings from these two different surveys. For more information on the distinction between the Taking Part Survey and the Participation Survey please look in the methodology documents on the website.

1.   In February 2023, there was a Machinery of Government (MoG) change and responsibility for digital policy now sits within the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT). This MoG change did not affect the contents of the Participation Survey for 2022/23 - digital questions were still part of the survey and continue to be reported on in the same way. ↩

2.   Where possible in this report, demographic breakdowns are provided for age, gender, disability status, socio-economic classification, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, Index of Multiple Deprivation and for ITL1 and ITL2 regions. We have reported findings based on a single demographic rather than the intersection of multiple demographics. It is therefore possible that similar trends are seen in multiple demographics, for instance people in ethnic minority groups tend to be younger on average than white British people and are more likely to live in urban areas, although we have not tested this hypothesis within the Participation Survey data. ↩

3.   The 95% confidence intervals are indicated by error bars on the charts. They show the range that we are 95% confident the true value for the population falls between. When there is no overlap between the error bars for two or more groups, we can be more confident that the differences between groups represent true differences between these groups in the population. ↩

4.   Demographic questions in the survey were voluntary and self-reported by the respondent. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³

5. 30 November - We have updated our breakdowns by disability status in our annual publication to align with the Government Statistical Service harmonised standard. As a result, we have made some revisions to the 2022/23 annual report and the associated tables. For further information, please see the update on the Participation Survey website. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶ ↩¹⁷ ↩¹⁸ ↩¹⁹ ↩²⁰ ↩²¹ ↩²² ↩²³ ↩²⁴ ↩²⁵

6.   In the 2022/23 questionnaire, a question was asked how the respondent described themselves, from a choice of Male, Female, Prefer to self-describe and Prefer not to say. This question has since been replaced in the 2023/24 survey to the harmonised sex and gender identity questions. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³

7. Sexual orientation is an umbrella concept which encompasses sexual identity, attraction and behaviour. The question asked in the Participation Survey follows the harmonised standard based on a substantial body of research designed to capture self-perceived sexual identity. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹²

8.   The white British ethnic group relates to bar O in the bar chart and includes adults from an English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish or British ethnic group. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸

9. This is a form of socio-economic classification based on the employment status and occupation of the respondent. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹

10.   The Index of Multiple Deprivation is a geographical measure which classifies the relative deprivation of an area. It combines seven indices to produce one overall measure for the area (rather than the individual). It takes into account income, employment, education, skills and training, health and disability, crime, barriers to housing and services, and living environment. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹

11.   Respondents were asked if they “used library services in some other way”. This “other” category is not an option for other cultural sectors. ↩

12.   Due to the way the questionnaire was worded in 2021/22 and 2022/23, barriers to engaging digitally cannot be separated for heritage and museums services. Therefore, the digital barriers list shown in Figure 4.12 and 5.11 represent respondents who selected “None of these” when asked whether they engaged with virtual or online heritage and museums activities. ↩ ↩²

13.   This is training about digital or online skills rather than any other form of training online.  This might include training in how to carry out basic functions such as using digital or online applications to communicate and carry out basic internet searches and to stay safe online. ↩

14.   The full list of statements can be found in question 123 of the Participation Survey questionnaire or the published annual data tables. ↩

15.   Respondents were asked which major events they had participated in. This was only asked to respondents reporting that they had heard of the event when asked either during or after the event had taken place. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

16.   It is possible more adults engaged than heard about it, based on the way it was advertised as a series of local events rather than one branded event called UNBOXED. ↩

17.   Any sport except football, rugby, tennis, cricket, athletics, golf, snooker, swimming and gymnastics. ↩