Family Resources Survey

Last updated

The Family Resources Survey (FRS) is one of the United Kingdom's largest household surveys. It is carried out by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) with the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen), and Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) on an annual basis, by collecting information on the incomes and characteristics of private households in the United Kingdom. It is sponsored by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).

Contents

History

The survey was launched in 1992 to supply DWP with the information it required for policy analysis and it has been conducted annually since then. Before 1992, the department had to rely on other government surveys, for example the Family Expenditure Survey (now established as Living Cost and Food Survey) and the General Household Survey. However their sample sizes proved insufficient for the needs of DWP. [1]

Beginning with a sample size of about 26,000 households, the number was reduced in 1997 to 24,000 households. After Northern Ireland was included in the sample and a 100% boost was introduced for Scotland, the sample size rose to 29,000 households in 2002 across the UK. In the most recent survey, the sample size was over 25,000 households. [2]

Further changes occurred in 1998 when certain parts of the questionnaire were dropped in order to reduce the length, and in 1999 a system of rotating blocks of questions was introduced to reduce respondent fatigue. As a result, in recent years, the mean time of an interview is approximately 1 hour long, and the questions asked deal with topics such as the receipt of Social Security benefits, assets and savings, housing costs and income.

In addition, households who take part receive a £10 Post Office voucher, per household, as a token of the FRS's appreciation. Note that the survey sample excludes those living in hostels, communal areas and care homes, as they are not included in the FRS's definition of a "private" household.

At present, the FRS is designated by the UK Statistics Authority as National Statistics. The FRS provides the data for a number of other DWP Accredited Official Statistics, formerly 'National Statistics', publications: Households Below Average Income, Pensioners' Incomes Series, and Income-Related Benefits: Estimates of Take-up.

Methodology and scope

The interviews are carried out on a face-to-face basis and all adult residents in a household aged 16 and older are interviewed. The reference period is based on the financial year (April to March) and data is released annually. [3]

Survey results

The DWP reviews the survey results and uses the data from the FRS in its Policy Simulation Model (PSM) in order to evaluate existing policies and costing policy options. [4] The FRS data is released annually, around February/ March, and is covered by a published report which has different chapters to highlight the breadth of information the FRS collects, as well as the change that may have occurred since the previous year's publication. The most recent survey was published on March 21 2024 [5] . The chapters included are: Income and State Support, Tenure, Disability, Carers, Pensions, Savings & Investments, Self-Employment, Household Food Security and Food Ban Usage, and Childcare.

Furthermore, the FRS supplies data which is incorporated in the analysis of patterns of benefit receipt and benefit forecasting. It is also used to analyse income using Households Below Average Income (HBAI) methodology.

The FRS data can be accessed via Stat-Xplore.

Related Research Articles

Retirement is the withdrawal from one's position or occupation or from one's active working life. A person may also semi-retire by reducing work hours or workload.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Welfare state in the United Kingdom</span> Welfare Programs in the United Kingdom

The welfare state of the United Kingdom began to evolve in the 1900s and early 1910s, and comprises expenditures by the government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland intended to improve health, education, employment and social security. The British system has been classified as a liberal welfare state system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Survey of Income and Program Participation</span> Census survey

The Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) is a statistical survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. The SIPP is designed to provide accurate and comprehensive information about the incomes of American individuals and households and their participation in income transfer programs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Department for Work and Pensions</span> Ministerial department of the UK Government

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is a ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for welfare, pensions and child maintenance policy. As the UK's biggest public service department it administers the State Pension and a range of working age, disability and ill health benefits to around 20 million claimants and customers. It is the second largest governmental department in terms of employees, and the largest in terms of expenditure (£187bn).

In the United Kingdom, the Retail Prices Index or Retail Price Index (RPI) is a measure of inflation published monthly by the Office for National Statistics. It measures the change in the cost of a representative sample of retail goods and services.

Pensim2 is a dynamic microsimulation model to simulate the income of pensioners, owned by the British Department for Work and Pensions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Poverty in the United Kingdom</span>

Poverty in the United Kingdom is the condition experienced by the portion of the population of the United Kingdom that lacks adequate financial resources for a certain standard of living, as defined under the various measures of poverty.

Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) is a United Kingdom welfare payment for adults younger than the State Pension age who are having difficulty finding work because of their long-term medical condition or a disability. It is a basic income-replacement benefit paid in lieu of wages. It is currently being phased out and replaced with Universal Credit for claimants on low incomes, although the contribution-based element remains available.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Income in the United Kingdom</span>

Median household disposable income in the UK was £29,400 in the financial year ending (FYE) 2019, up 1.4% (£400) compared with growth over recent years; median income grew by an average of 0.7% per year between FYE 2017 and FYE 2019, compared with 2.8% between FYE 2013 and FYE 2017.

The Policy Simulation Model (PSM) is a static microsimulation model which encapsulates the tax and benefits system, and population, of Great Britain. It is based on survey data from the Family Resources Survey (FRS) which is uprated to simulate the current year, together with several years into the future through a process of static uprating. The uprating process covers a complex range of processes, ranging from simple numerical uprating of financial values, to modelling the draw-down of old benefits through to the implications of the rising state pension age.

The General Household Survey (GHS) was a survey conducted of private households in Great Britain by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The aim of this survey was to provide government departments and organisations with information on a range of topics concerning private households for monitoring and policy purposes.

The Annual Population Survey (APS) is a combined statistical survey of households in Great Britain which is conducted quarterly by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). It combines results from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) and the English, Welsh and Scottish Labour Force Survey boosts which are funded by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES), the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), the Welsh Government and the Scottish Government.

The Families and Children Study (FACS) is a longitudinal study collecting information about families with dependent children in Great Britain, managed by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).

Universal Credit is a United Kingdom social security payment. It is means-tested and is replacing and combining six benefits, for working-age households with a low income: income-related Employment and Support Allowance, income-based Jobseeker's Allowance, and Income Support; Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit; and Housing Benefit. An award of UC is made up of different elements, which become payable to the claimant if relevant criteria apply: a standard allowance for singles or couples, child elements and disabled child elements for children in the household, housing cost element, childcare costs element, as well as elements for being a carer or having an illness or disability and therefore having limited capability to work.

The Living Costs and Food Survey (LCF) is a survey carried out in the United Kingdom by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). It is carried out on a calendar year basis and collects information on expenditure of goods and services for private households. The survey is primarily designed to collect expenditure information, however it also gathers information about the income of household members.

Welfare dependency is the state in which a person or household is reliant on government welfare benefits for their income for a prolonged period of time, and without which they would not be able to meet the expenses of daily living. The United States Department of Health and Human Services defines welfare dependency as the proportion of all individuals in families which receive more than 50 percent of their total annual income from Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), food stamps, and/or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits. Typically viewed as a social problem, it has been the subject of major welfare reform efforts since the mid-20th century, primarily focused on trying to make recipients self-sufficient through paid work. While the term "welfare dependency" can be used pejoratively, for the purposes of this article it shall be used to indicate a particular situation of persistent poverty.

Beyond 2011, also known as The Beyond 2011 Programme, was a project initiated by the UK Statistics Authority to look at the alternatives to running a UK census in 2021. In 2008, the Treasury Select Committee had expressed concerns about the increasing cost of running the census and inaccuracies in data gathered only every ten years. In 2010 the newly elected coalition government reiterated such concerns responding to a report by the UK Statistics Authority.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Kingdom National Accounts – The Blue Book</span>

The annual United Kingdom National Accounts records and describes economic activity in the United Kingdom and as such is used by government, banks, academics and industries to formulate the economic and social policies and monitor the economic progress of the United Kingdom. It also allows international comparisons to be made. The Blue Book is published by the UK Office for National Statistics alongside the United Kingdom Balance of Payments – The Pink Book.

Disability in the United Kingdom covers a wide range of conditions and experiences, deeply impacting the lives of millions of people. Defined by the Equality Act 2010 as a physical or mental impairment with a substantial and long-term adverse effect on a person's ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities, it encompasses various aspects of life, including demographics, legislation, healthcare, employment, and culture. Despite numerous advancements in policy and social attitudes, individuals with disabilities often encounter unique challenges and disparities.

The National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) is a registered charity and is the largest independent social research institute in the UK. The research charity was founded in 1969 by Sir Roger Jowell and Gerald Hoinville with the aim of carrying out rigorous social policy research to improve society.

References

  1. ↑ ONS Family Resources Survey key facts Archived 2009-09-17 at the Wayback Machine , retrieved 21 September 2009
  2. ↑ "Family Resources Survey: financial year 2022 to 2023". GOV.UK. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
  3. ↑ ONS Family Resources Survey study information, retrieved 21 September 2009
  4. ↑ DW, Family Resources Survey 2007-2008 report Archived 2011-08-26 at the Wayback Machine , retrieved 21 September 2009
  5. ↑ "Family Resources Survey: financial year 2022 to 2023". GOV.UK. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.