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Labour Force Survey Five-Quarter Longitudinal Dataset, April 2024 - June, 2025
No full textAbstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.Background
The Labour Force Survey (LFS) is a unique source of information using international definitions of employment and unemployment and economic inactivity, together with a wide range of related topics such as occupation, training, hours of work and personal characteristics of household members aged 16 years and over. It is used to inform social, economic and employment policy. The LFS was first conducted biennially from 1973-1983. Between 1984 and 1991 the survey was carried out annually and consisted of a quarterly survey conducted throughout the year and a 'boost' survey in the spring quarter (data were then collected seasonally). From 1992 quarterly data were made available, with a quarterly sample size approximately equivalent to that of the previous annual data. The survey then became known as the Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS). From December 1994, data gathering for Northern Ireland moved to a full quarterly cycle to match the rest of the country, so the QLFS then covered the whole of the UK (though some additional annual Northern Ireland LFS datasets are also held at the UK Data Archive). Further information on the background to the QLFS may be found in the documentation.
Longitudinal data
The LFS retains each sample household for five consecutive quarters, with a fifth of the sample replaced each quarter. The main survey was designed to produce cross-sectional data, but the data on each individual have now been linked together to provide longitudinal information. The longitudinal data comprise two types of linked datasets, created using the weighting method to adjust for non-response bias. The two-quarter datasets link data from two consecutive waves, while the five-quarter datasets link across a whole year (for example January 2010 to March 2011 inclusive) and contain data from all five waves. A full series of longitudinal data has been produced, going back to winter 1992. Linking together records to create a longitudinal dimension can, for example, provide information on gross flows over time between different labour force categories (employed, unemployed and economically inactive). This will provide detail about people who have moved between the categories. Also, longitudinal information is useful in monitoring the effects of government policies and can be used to follow the subsequent activities and circumstances of people affected by specific policy initiatives, and to compare them with other groups in the population. There are however methodological problems which could distort the data resulting from this longitudinal linking. The ONS continues to research these issues and advises that the presentation of results should be carefully considered, and warnings should be included with outputs where necessary.
LFS Documentation
The documentation available from the Archive to accompany LFS datasets largely consists of the latest version of each user guide volume alongside the appropriate questionnaire for the year concerned. However, volumes are updated periodically by ONS, so users are advised to check the latest documents on the ONS Labour Force Survey - User Guidance pages before commencing analysis. This is especially important for users of older QLFS studies, where information and guidance in the user guide documents may have changed over time.Occupation data for 2021 and 2022 data filesThe ONS has identified an issue with the collection of some occupational data in 2021 and 2022 data files in a number of their surveys. While they estimate any impacts will be small overall, this will affect the accuracy of the breakdowns of some detailed (four-digit Standard Occupational Classification (SOC)) occupations, and data derived from them. Further information can be found in the ONS article published on 11 July 2023: Revision of miscoded occupational data in the ONS Labour Force Survey, UK: January 2021 to September 2022.2022 WeightingThe population totals used for the latest LFS estimates use projected growth rates from Real Time Information (RTI) data for UK, EU and non-EU populations based on 2021 patterns. The total population used for the LFS therefore does not take into account any changes in migration, birth rates, death rates, and so on since June 2021, and hence levels estimates may be under- or over-estimating the true values and should be used with caution. Estimates of rates will, however, be robust.Main Topics:The five-quarter longitudinal datasets include a subset of the most commonly used variables from the Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS), covering the main areas of the survey
Community Life Survey, 2023-2024
No full textAbstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.The Community Life Survey (CLS) is a household survey conducted in England, tracking the latest trends and developments across areas key to encouraging social action and empowering communities, including: volunteering and charitable giving; views about the local area; community cohesion and belonging; community empowerment and participation; influencing local decisions and affairs; and subjective well-being and loneliness.The CLS was first commissioned by the Cabinet Office in 2012. From 2016-17, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) took over responsibility for publishing results. During 2020, the DCMS also commissioned the Community Life COVID-19 Re-contact Survey (CLRS) (SN 8781) to provide data on how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected volunteering, charitable giving, social cohesion, wellbeing and loneliness in England.For the 2023-24 and 2024-25 survey years, DCMS partnered with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) to boost the CLS to be able to produce meaningful estimates at Local Authority level. This has enabled data collection at the most granular level since data collection commenced. The questionnaire for 2023-24 was developed collaboratively to adapt to the needs and interests of both DCMS and MHCLG, including some new questions and changes to existing questions, response options and definitions in the 2023-24 and upcoming 2024-25 surveys.BackgroundUp to 2015-16, the survey used a face-to-face methodology. Following thorough testing (experimental online versions of the survey were released for 2013-14, 2014-15 and 2015-16), the CLS moved online from 2016-17 onwards, with an end to the previous face-to-face method. The survey uses a push-to-web methodology (with paper mode for those who are not digitally engaged). The survey informs and directs policy and action in these areas;to provide data of value to all users, including public bodies, external stakeholders and the public; andunderpin further research and debate on building stronger communities.The CLS incorporates a small number of priority measures from the Citizenship Survey, which ran from 2001-2011, conducted by the then Department for Communities and Local Government. These measures were incorporated in the CLS so that trends in these issues could continue to be tracked over time. (The full Citizenship Survey series is held at the UK Data Archive under GNs 33347 and 33474.)Further information may be found on the GOV.UK Community Life Survey webpage.The Community Life Survey 2023-2024 was conducted between October 2023 and March 2024, with samples issued on a quarterly basis. The survey was conducted via an online and paper survey method called Address Based Online Surveying (ABOS). This is an affordable method of surveying the general population that still employs random sampling techniques. ABOS is a type of 'push to web' methodology, with a paper mode for those who are not digitally engaged.A Secure Access version of the data is available under SN 9406 and includes additional demographic variables and geographic indicators. Users should note that the Secure version is subject to restrictive access conditions, and are strongly advised to check whether the Safeguarded version is suitable for their needs before considering an application for the Secure version.Main Topics:The survey asks about a range of topics including: community empowerment, engagement and cohesion, civic engagement, volunteering, social action, charitable giving, subjective wellbeing and loneliness.The paper questionnaire covers the same broad topics as the online survey. However the paper questionnaire is reduced in length, therefore not all questions asked in the online survey are included in the paper version.</p
Living Costs and Food Survey, 2023-2024
No full textAbstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.Background:
A household food consumption and expenditure survey has been conducted each year in Great Britain (excluding Northern Ireland) since 1940. At that time the National Food Survey (NFS) covered a sample drawn solely from urban working-class households, but this was extended to a fully demographically representative sample in 1950. From 1957 onwards the Family Expenditure Survey (FES) provided information on all household expenditure patterns including food expenditure, with the NFS providing more detailed information on food consumption and expenditure. The NFS was extended to cover Northern Ireland from 1996 onwards. In April 2001 these surveys were combined to form the Expenditure and Food Survey (EFS), which completely replaced both series. From January 2008, the EFS became known as the Living Costs and Food (LCF) module of the Integrated Household Survey (IHS). As a consequence of this change, the questionnaire was altered to accommodate the insertion of a core set of questions, common to all of the separate modules which together comprised the IHS. Some of these core questions are simply questions which were previously asked in the same or a similar format on all of the IHS component surveys. For further information on the LCF questionnaire, see Volume A of the LCF 2008 User Guide, held with SN 6385. Further information about the LCF, including links to published reports based on the survey, may be found by searching for 'Living Costs and Food Survey' on the ONS website. Further information on the NFS and Living Costs and Food Module of the IHS can be found by searching for 'Family Food' on the GOV.UK website.
History:
The LCF (then EFS) was the result of more than two years' development work to bring together the FES and NFS; both survey series were well-established and important sources of information for government and the wider community, and had charted changes and patterns in spending and food consumption since the 1950s. Whilst the NFS and FES series are now finished, users should note that previous data from both series are still available from the UK Data Archive, under GNs 33071 (NFS) and 33057 (FES).
Purpose of the LCF
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has overall project management and financial responsibility for the LCF, while the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) sponsors the food data element. As with the FES and NFS, the LCF continues to be primarily used to provide information for the Retail Prices Index, National Accounts estimates of household expenditure, analysis of the effect of taxes and benefits, and trends in nutrition. The results are multi-purpose, however, providing an invaluable supply of economic and social data. The merger of the two surveys also brings benefits for users, as a single survey on food expenditure removes the difficulties of reconciling data from two sources.
Design and methodology
The design of the LCF is based on the old FES, although the use of new processing software by the data creators has resulted in a dataset which differs from the previous structure. The most significant change in terms of reporting expenditure, however, is the introduction of the European Standard Classification of Individual Consumption by Purpose (COICOP), in place of the codes previously used. An additional level of hierarchy has been developed to improve the mapping to the previous codes. The LCF was conducted on a financial year basis from 2001, then moved to a calendar year basis from January 2006 (to complement the IHS) until 2015-16, when the financial year survey was reinstated at the request of users. Therefore, whilst SN 5688 covers April 2005 - March 2006, SN 5986 covers January-December 2006. Subsequent years cover January-December until 2014. SN 8210 returns to the financial year survey and currently covers April 2015 - March 2016.
Northern Ireland sample
Users should note that, due to funding constraints, from January 2010 the Northern Ireland (NI) sample used for the LCF was reduced to a sample proportionate to the NI population relative to the UK.
Family Food database:
'Family Food' is an annual publication which provides detailed statistical information on purchased quantities, expenditure and nutrient intakes derived from both household and eating out food and drink. Data is collected for a sample of households in the United Kingdom using self-reported diaries of all purchases, including food eaten out, over a two week period. Where possible quantities are recorded in the diaries but otherwise estimated. Energy and nutrient intakes are calculated using standard nutrient composition data for each of some 500 types of food. Current estimates are based on data collected in the Family Food Module of the LCFS. Further information about the LCF food databases can be found on the GOV.UK Family Food Statistics web pages.
Secure Access version
A Secure Access version of the LCF from 2006 onwards is available from the UK Data Archive under SN 7047, subject to stringent access conditions. The Secure Access version includes variables that are not included in the standard End User Licence (EUL) version, including geographical variables with detail below Government Office Region, to postcode level; urban/rural area indicators; other sensitive variables; raw diary information files (derived variables are available in the EUL) and the family expenditure codes files. Users are strongly advised to check whether the EUL version is sufficient for their needs before considering an application for the Secure Access version.Occupation data for 2021 and 2022 data filesThe ONS have identified an issue with the collection of some
occupational data in 2021 and 2022 data files in a number of their
surveys. While they estimate any impacts will be small overall, this
will affect the
accuracy of the breakdowns of some detailed (four-digit Standard
Occupational
Classification (SOC)) occupations, and data derived from them. None of
ONS' headline
statistics, other than those directly sourced from occupational data,
are affected and you
can continue to rely on their accuracy. For further information on this
issue, please see:
https://www.ons.gov.uk/news/statementsandletters/occupationaldatainonssurveys.
Main Topics:Household questionnaire:
The first part of the LCF questionnaire collects information about households; the majority of the questions are asked at a household-level, with the household reference person typically responding on behalf of the household as a whole. The household questionnaire includes questions on a range of subjects including family relationships, ethnicity, employment details and the ownership of household durables. It is also the source of all expenditure information not recorded in the LCF diary; principally that which concerns regular payments typically made by all households and large, infrequently purchased items such as vehicles, package holidays and home improvements.
Individual questionnaire:
The income questionnaire follows on immediately from the household questionnaire and collects the key person-level variables used on the survey. The principal components of the LCF income questionnaire are the sections covering income from employment, benefits and assets. These together form an overview of the total income received by each household, as well as each household member individually.
LCF Diary:
In addition to the two questionnaires, each individual aged 16 years and over in the household is asked to keep diary records of daily expenditure for two weeks. The EUL version includes only derived variables from the expenditure diary
COVID-19’s Lasting Effects in People With and Without Persistent Pain: A UK-Based Survey of Symptoms, Psychological Flexibility, and Mental Health, 2021
No full textPersisting symptoms following COVID-19 may adversely impacts general mental health of people with chronic pain, and psychological flexibility may buffer these impacts. However, it remains unclear whether such lasting implications of COVID-19 would differ between people with and without chronic pain.
This study investigates the relationships between persistent symptoms post COVID-19, psychological flexibility general mental health among people with and without persistent pain, during the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK.
204 adults living in the UK were recruited via social media, and completed an online survey including measures of persistent symptoms, depression (Patient Health Questionnaire-9), anxiety (General Anxiety Disorder-7) and insomnia (Insomnia Severity Index), and psychological flexibility (Multidimensional Psychological Flexibility Inventory), and were included in the analyses.
Participants with persistent pain (n = 70) experienced more persistent symptoms, poorer general mental health, and higher level of psychological inflexibility, compared with participants without persistent pain (n = 133). Overall, the relationships between persistent physical symptoms, general mental health, and psychological (in)flexibility showed similar patterns in the two groups. Participants with more persistent physical symptoms experienced significantly poorer general mental health. Furthermore, people with higher levels of psychological inflexibility reported worse general mental health. There was little evidence that psychological (in)flexibility could “buffer” the association between persistent physical symptoms and general mental health. Conclusions: People with chronic pain appear more vulnerable to persistent symptoms and reduced general mental health, compared with people without pain. Treatments that reduce psychological inflexibility, such as ACT, may improve outcomes for people with persistent symptoms post COVID-19
Health Survey for England, 2022
No full textAbstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.The Health Survey for England (HSE) is a series of surveys designed to monitor trends in the nation's health. It was commissioned by NHS Digital and carried out by the Joint Health Surveys Unit of the National Centre for Social Research and the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health at University College London.The aims of the HSE series are:to provide annual data about the nation’s health;to estimate the proportion of people in England with specified health conditions;to estimate the prevalence of certain risk factors associated with these conditions;to examine differences between population subgroups in their likelihood of having specific conditions or risk factors;to assess the frequency with which particular combinations of risk factors are found, and which groups these combinations most commonly occur;to monitor progress towards selected health targetssince 1995, to measure the height of children at different ages, replacing the National Study of Health and Growth;since 1995, monitor the prevalence of overweight and obesity in children.The survey includes a number of core questions every year but also focuses on different health issues at each wave. Topics are revisited at appropriate intervals in order to monitor change.
Further information about the series may be found on the NHS Digital Health Survey for England; health, social care and lifestyles webpage, the NatCen Social Research NatCen Health Survey for England webpage and the University College London Health and Social Surveys Research Group UCL Health Survey for England webpage.
Changes to the HSE from 2015:Users should note that from 2015 survey onwards, only the individual data file is available under standard End User Licence (EUL). The household data file is now only included in the Special Licence (SL) version, released from 2015 onwards. In addition, the SL individual file contains all the variables included in the HSE EUL dataset, plus others, including variables removed from the EUL version after the NHS England disclosure review. The SL HSE is subject to more restrictive access conditions than the EUL version (see Access information). Users are advised to obtain the EUL version to see if it meets their needs before considering an application for the SL version.COVID-19 and the HSE:Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the HSE 2020 survey was stopped in March 2020 and never re-started. There was no publication that year. The survey resumed in 2021, albeit with an amended methodology. The full HSE resumed in 2022, with an extended fieldwork period. Due to this, the decision was taken not to progress with the 2023 survey, to maximise the 2022 survey response and enable more robust reporting of data. See the NHS Digital Health Survey for England - Health, social care and lifestyles webpage for more details.The 2022 HSE included additional detailed questions on fruit and vegetable consumption, perception of own weight and child’s weight, an eating disorder screener, and the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT). The survey also provided updates on repeated core topics, including general health, social care, long standing illness and smoking.Main Topics:Core topics
General healthLongstanding illnessSmokingAverage weekly alcohol consumptionDrinking (heaviest day in last week)Consent to data linkage (NHS central register, HES)Socio-economic information: sex, age, income, education, employment etcPrescribed medications (health visit)
Additional topics
Doctor diagnosed hypertension and diabetesSocial care receipt and provisionFruit and vegetable consumptionPhysical activityEating disordersLoneliness
Measurements
Height and weightBlood pressure (health visit)Waist and hip circumference (health visit)Saliva sample (health visit)Urine sample (health visit)Blood sample for cholesterol, glycated haemoglobin (health visit)Blood sample for environmental chemical exposure (human biomonitoring)</ul
British Social Attitudes Survey, 2024
No full textAbstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.BackgroundThe British Social Attitudes (BSA) survey series began in 1983. The series is designed to produce annual measures of attitudinal movements to complement large-scale government surveys that deal largely with facts and behaviour patterns, and the data on party political attitudes produced by opinion polls. One of the BSA's main purposes is to allow the monitoring of patterns of continuity and change, and the examination of the relative rates at which attitudes, in respect of a range of social issues, change over time. Some questions are asked regularly, others less often. Funding for BSA comes from a number of sources (including government departments, the Economic and Social Research Council and other research foundations), but the final responsibility for the coverage and wording of the annual questionnaires rests with NatCen Social Research (formerly Social and Community Planning Research). The BSA has been conducted every year since 1983, except in 1988 and 1992 when core funding was devoted to the British Election Study (BES).Further information about the series and links to publications may be found on the NatCen Social Research British Social Attitudes webpage.Main Topics:Each year, the BSA interview questionnaire contains a number of 'core' questions, which are repeated in most years. In addition, a wide range of background and classificatory questions is included. The remainder of the questionnaire is devoted to a series of questions (modules) on a range of social, economic, political and moral issues - some are asked regularly, others less often. Cross-indexes of those questions asked more than once appear in the reports.In 2024 the questionnaire included the following topics: Household Composition; Employment; Tenure; Internet Usage; Politics; Monarchy; Funding of Social Care; Satisfaction with NHS; NHS Priorities & Principles; Pensions & Retirement; Attitudes to Private/State Schools; Zero Hours Contracts & Employment Rights; Taxes & Government Spending; Assisted Dying; Tobacco & Cannabis; Poverty, Inequality & Cost of Living; European Union; Immigration; Foreign Policy & Defence; Climate Change & Housing; Prejudice & Inequalities; Voting & Political System; General Election Vote; National Identity & Ethnicity; Religion; Disability; Education; Benefits & Income.</p
UK Farms Survey: Pollinator-dependent Crops, 2014-2015
No full textAgricultural expansion and intensification are the main drivers of pollinator decline. To reverse the negative effects of agriculture on pollinators, it is important to involve key agricultural stakeholders in designing and implementing conservation actions.
We interviewed 89 farmers of pollinator-dependent fruit crops across the UK in 2014 and 2015, with the majority of interviews carried out in person. A combination of closed and open questions was used to analyse farmer perceptions of the importance of pollinators, and the crop yield and quality outcomes they deliver. We used Likert-scale statements to measure psychological factors based on the Theory of Planned Behaviour, and tested the determinants of the intention to plant flowers as nectar and pollen sources for pollinating insects with multiple linear regression. We found that fruit farmers who perceived a high importance of pollinators also perceived high dependence. Compared to values of crop pollinator dependence reported in the literature, farmers' perceptions of their crop’s pollinator dependence were the same or lower for apple farmers, and the same or greater, for blackcurrant farmers. Fruit farmers in our sample were motivated to plant flowers for pollinating insects more by what they believed to be the benefits of doing so, and their ability to do so, than by their beliefs about social approval, for example from other farmers or customers. In accordance with this result, attitudes and perceived behavioural control were the major determinants of apple and blackcurrant farmers’ intentions to perform the behaviour.
Given the importance of perceived behavioural control, we recommend outreach activities that provide training, guidance and field demonstration on the practicalities of planting flowers for pollinators in fruit farms.
The questionnaire also gathers data on farmer knowledge of pollinating insects and their status, on farmer knowledge of mycorrhizal fungi and their role in production (cider apples only) and on pollinator conservation actions being taken on the 89 UK fruit farms
Net4Health: Social Networks and Adolescent Health, 2025
No full textSocial networks and friendship groups are important factors related to the development of health risk and health promoting behaviours, mental health and wellbeing, educational attainment, and positive social engagement in adolescence and early adulthood.
The MRC/CSO Social and Public Health Sciences Unit has been studying adolescent social networks and health in the West of Scotland for several decades. The Teenage Friends and Lifestyles (1995), Peers and Levels of Stress (2006), and Adolescent Lifestyles in Contemporary Europe (2011) studies have been a rich source of information on the health needs of Scotland's younger citizens and have helped to identify how risk factors have changed over time.
Net4Health will continue from the previous studies and aims to understand how peer and social network influences on adolescent health operate in the West of Scotland today, and how these influences have changed, particularly in relation to mental health and wellbeing and within changing digital social environments. It is hoped that this study will provide information that will inform the appropriate design of social network interventions to improve health and wellbeing.The Net4Health project involves collecting social network and health data from adolescents attending secondary schools in Scotland. Net4Health builds upon previous networks and health research conducted in the Social and Public Health Sciences Unit (SPHSU). It aims to study the change in adolescent health behaviours and outcomes comparing the 2020s to previous decades, how peer-, school-, and family-level determinants of health outcomes have changed, and explore mechanisms through which interventions could improve health outcomes. It will also explore novel methods for collecting data relating to the relational aspects of adolescent health.
Net4Health will involve documentary analysis of school policies and structures, surveys with school year groups; and in a subset of schools: qualitative network interviews with pupils and teachers, and wearable device assessment of movement and use of space.</p
Transnational Elite Communities and the Reproduction of Inequalities: Metadata and Documentation, 2023-2025
No full textThis project employed a mixed-methods approach.
The project team compiled and analysed an archive of 42 publicly available documents produced by OBP (or its members) and the OBP webpage for the last 26 years, using the Wayback Machine including advanced online search operators: 42 OBP-produced text; and Wayback machine: ‘OBP.com’ 1998-2024.
The project team interviewed facilitators who train OBP members in the organisation's rules and how to participate in forum. It also interviewed salaried staff of OBP and conducted expert interviews with senior figures from other CEO peer groups.
- 28 semi-structured interviews with OBP forum facilitators;
- 2 semi-structured interviews with salaried staff of OBP; and
- 5 semi-structured expert interviews with senior figures from other CEO peer organisations.
Lastly, the project team interviewed members, their spouses and adult children in Johannesburg, London and Mumbai. The team conducted 61 semi-structured interviews with members in Jo’burg, London & Mumbai; and 12 semi-structured interviews (9 paired) with spouses & adult children of members in Jo’burg, London and Mumbai.
This collection includes only metadata and documentation; the underlying data could not be archived due to ethical constraints.This research project aims to expand our knowledge about the historical development, international spread, and impact of peer advisory groups for senior executives, which have otherwise been rarely studied. Alongside these aims, the project wants to learn how peer advisory groups support senior executives’ personal and professional development and how they foster collaboration. In doing so, it aims to contribute to the fields of business studies, geography and sociology.
A total of 75 senior business executives in Britain, India and South Africa who are members of peer advisory groups, and 30 professionals who support the running of these groups, will be interviewed for this project. The interviews will be completely confidential, and there are elaborate practices in place to protect confidentiality. The interviews will last between one and two hours. Dr Higgins will conduct the interviews in collaboration with Dr Ujithra Ponniah, a Senior Researcher at the University of Witwatersrand.</p
Quarterly Labour Force Survey Household Dataset, October - December, 2024
No full textAbstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.BackgroundThe Labour Force Survey (LFS) is a unique source of information using international definitions of employment and unemployment and economic inactivity, together with a wide range of related topics such as occupation, training, hours of work and personal characteristics of household members aged 16 years and over. It is used to inform social, economic and employment policy. The LFS was first conducted biennially from 1973-1983. Between 1984 and 1991 the survey was carried out annually and consisted of a quarterly survey conducted throughout the year and a 'boost' survey in the spring quarter (data were then collected seasonally). From 1992 quarterly data were made available, with a quarterly sample size approximately equivalent to that of the previous annual data. The survey then became known as the Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS). From December 1994, data gathering for Northern Ireland moved to a full quarterly cycle to match the rest of the country, so the QLFS then covered the whole of the UK (though some additional annual Northern Ireland LFS datasets are also held at the UK Data Archive). Further information on the background to the QLFS may be found in the documentation.Household datasetsUp to 2015, the LFS household datasets were produced twice a year (April-June and October-December) from the corresponding quarter's individual-level data. From January 2015 onwards, they are now produced each quarter alongside the main QLFS. The household datasets include all the usual variables found in the individual-level datasets, with the exception of those relating to income, and are intended to facilitate the analysis of the economic activity patterns of whole households. It is recommended that the existing individual-level LFS datasets continue to be used for any analysis at individual level, and that the LFS household datasets be used for analysis involving household or family-level data. From January 2011, a pseudonymised household identifier variable (HSERIALP) is also included in the main quarterly LFS dataset instead.Change to coding of missing values for household seriesFrom 1996-2013, all missing values in the household datasets were set to one '-10' category instead of the separate '-8' and '-9' categories. For that period, the ONS introduced a new imputation process for the LFS household datasets and it was necessary to code the missing values into one new combined category ('-10'), to avoid over-complication. This was also in line with the Annual Population Survey household series of the time. The change was applied to the back series during 2010 to ensure continuity for analytical purposes. From 2013 onwards, the -8 and -9 categories have been reinstated.LFS DocumentationThe documentation available from the Archive to accompany LFS datasets largely consists of the latest version of each volume alongside the appropriate questionnaire for the year concerned. However, LFS volumes are updated periodically by ONS, so users are advised to check the ONS LFS User Guidance page before commencing analysis.Additional data derived from the QLFSThe Archive also holds further QLFS series: End User Licence (EUL) quarterly datasets; Secure Access datasets (see below); two-quarter and five-quarter longitudinal datasets; quarterly, annual and ad hoc module datasets compiled for Eurostat; and some additional annual Northern Ireland datasets.End User Licence and Secure Access QLFS Household datasetsUsers should note that there are two discrete versions of the QLFS household datasets. One is available under the standard End User Licence (EUL) agreement, and the other is a Secure Access version. Secure Access household datasets for the QLFS are available from 2009 onwards, and include additional, detailed variables not included in the standard EUL versions. Extra variables that typically can be found in the Secure Access versions but not in the EUL versions relate to: geography; date of birth, including day; education and training; household and family characteristics; employment; unemployment and job hunting; accidents at work and work-related health problems; nationality, national identity and country of birth; occurrence of learning difficulty or disability; and benefits. For full details of variables included, see data dictionary documentation. The Secure Access version (see SN 7674) has more restrictive access conditions than those made available under the standard EUL. Prospective users will need to gain ONS Accredited Researcher status, complete an extra application form and demonstrate to the data owners exactly why they need access to the additional variables. Users are strongly advised to first obtain the standard EUL version of the data to see if they are sufficient for their research requirements.Changes to variables in QLFS Household EUL datasetsIn order to further protect respondent confidentiality, ONS have made some changes to variables available in the EUL datasets. From July-September 2015 onwards, 4-digit industry class is available for main job only, meaning that 3-digit industry group is the most detailed level available for second and last job.Review of imputation methods for LFS Household data - changes to missing valuesA review of the imputation methods used in LFS Household and Family analysis resulted in a change from the January-March 2015 quarter onwards. It was no longer considered appropriate to impute any personal characteristic variables (e.g. religion, ethnicity, country of birth, nationality, national identity, etc.) using the LFS donor imputation method. This method is primarily focused to ensure the 'economic status' of all individuals within a household is known, allowing analysis of the combined economic status of households. This means that from 2015 larger amounts of missing values ('-8'/-9') will be present in the data for these personal characteristic variables than before. Therefore if users need to carry out any time series analysis of households/families which also includes personal characteristic variables covering this time period, then it is advised to filter off 'ioutcome=3' cases from all periods to remove this inconsistent treatment of non-responders.
Occupation data for 2021 and 2022 data filesThe ONS has identified an issue with the collection of some occupational data in 2021 and 2022 data files in a number of their surveys. While they estimate any impacts will be small overall, this will affect the accuracy of the breakdowns of some detailed (four-digit Standard Occupational Classification (SOC)) occupations, and data derived from them. Further information can be found in the ONS article published on 11 July 2023: Revision of miscoded occupational data in the ONS Labour Force Survey, UK: January 2021 to September 2022.Main Topics:The LFS household datasets cover:characteristics of the household: number of people of working age; number of people over working age; number of children aged 0 to 4; number of children aged 5 to 15; number of dependent children (i.e. those in full-time education) aged 16 to 18economic activity in the household: number of people in employment; number of people in full-time employment; number of people in part-time employment; unemployed; economically inactive; students; sick or disabled; economically inactive but would like to work and are not seeking work because they do not believe there is work available ('discouraged workers'); care of dependants</ul