Welsh Government publishes first results from its major new Covid-19 survey
Llywodraeth Cymru yn cyhoeddi canlyniadau cyntaf arolwg newydd pwysig yn ymwneud â COVID-19
New research showing how people across Wales have been affected by the coronavirus crisis has been published for the first time today.
The new monthly telephone version of the National Survey for Wales asked 3,000 people from across Wales questions on wellbeing and loneliness, employment, finances, food poverty, GP appointments, social care, and education to find out the how the pandemic has affected their lives.
Whilst the coronavirus crisis has brought unprecedented amounts of uncertainty the survey shows that people in Wales are generally happy with a good sense of community spirit, but are understandably more anxious than normal.
Key results from the May survey include:
- 93% of parents with a child at primary school and 85% of parents with a child at secondary school are content that the school is finding ways to support children with their learning.
- 75% of people say they are generally happy with 41% of people saying they had experienced anxiety during the period.
- 85% of people feel they belong to their local area (+13% from last year)
- Four out of five working people say they would get full pay if self-isolating, and 44% say they can do most or all of their work from home.
Thanking those that participated in the survey Finance Minister Rebecca Evans said:
“This survey is invaluable as it provides us with a snapshot of how the lives of people from across Wales have been affected by the pandemic. Listening to these views will help us to make decisions based on sound evidence as we begin our road to recovery.
“The challenges we have faced in the last few months have been unprecedented and there are still more to come as we begin to build back better. But the one thing that stands out through it all is the resilience of the Welsh people. I want to thank everyone for the strength they have shown and the willingness to take part in this research.”
Full results from the survey are available on the National Survey web pages
Notes to editors
The National Survey for Wales: 2020 monthly survey is a large, random sample telephone survey covering people from across Wales. It began on 24 April 2020, after face-to-face National Survey fieldwork was halted on 16 March 2020 due to the coronavirus outbreak.
The survey covers a representative, randomly-selected cross-section of the population including people who are less literate, do not have internet access, or are otherwise hard to reach. It is carried out to the highest standards and has been independently assessed as having National Statistics status. This means the results can be relied on to give a robust picture of the lives and views of people across Wales.
The sample surveyed is selected from people who previously took part in the face-to-face of the National Survey and agreed to take part in further research. The achieved sample size each month is approximately 1,000 (although it was higher in May 2020 at just over 3,000 respondents) and the response rate is around 74% of those asked to take part.
The survey lasts 20 minutes on average and covers a range of topics that are of particular relevance to the coronavirus situation. It also includes a small number of topics that would otherwise have been covered in the face-to-face survey but for which direct comparability with earlier results is not essential.
The results published today are only part of what is covered by the survey. Reports on specific survey topics will be reported throughout the year.
Fieldwork for the monthly survey continues, and the findings from each month will be published in the following month. The results from the June monthly survey will be published in the second half of July.
In mid-July the Welsh Government will additionally be publishing the latest full-year results for the National Survey for Wales, collected from April 2019 to March 2020.
Results and more information about the National Survey for Wales can be found at: www.gov.wales/nationalsurvey.