The NatCen Blog

Here we’ll be talking about our research in the context of the latest news, opinion and
analysis through comments from our team of experts. We’d love to hear from you, so post comments or get in touch with us.

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Posted on 22 January 2020 by Guy Goodwin, Chief Executive

How is life in Britain looking as we enter the 2020s?

Guy Goodwin considers some of the key long-term trends facing politicians and policymakers, ten years on from the 40th and last printed version of the compendium Social Trends.
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Tags: public trust, Social Trends, Society Watch, inequality, life expectancy, social and political attitudes
Posted on 03 August 2017 by Eleanor Attar Taylor, Senior Researcher

British attitudes to abortion

This year marks 50 years since abortions became legally available in Britain. NatCen's British Social Attitudes survey has been tracking changes in attitudes to abortion for over 30 years.
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Tags: British Social Attitudes, abortion, social and political attitudes
Posted on 27 July 2017 by NatCen, Research

Charting changing attitudes – Same-sex relationships

One of the most remarkable changes in attitudes uncovered by NatCen’s British Social Attitudes survey of the past 30 or so years has been how the British public view same-sex relationships.
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Tags: gay marriage, transgender, gay, sexuality, social and political attitudes
Posted on 25 April 2017 by Matt Jonas, Campaigns and Marketing Manager

The End of Liberalism?

Brexit, Trump, Le Pen…. Are we witnessing a significant turning point in British and Western society? Drawing on more than 30 years data, the forthcoming British Social Attitudes report will ask whether we are truly experiencing a major shift towards conservative social values.
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Tags: British Social Attitudes, immigration, politics, social and political attitudes
Posted on 02 September 2016 by Ian Montagu, Senior Researcher ScotCen

Political engagement highest since devolution

Ian Montagu explores the latest Scottish Social Attitudes research on civil and political engagement.
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Tags: Scottish Social Attitudes, politics, social and political attitudes
Posted on 14 July 2016 by Nancy Kelley, Deputy Chief Executive

Class Matters

Why do so many middle class British people think they are working class? What does it mean that they feel like this?
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Tags: British Social Attitudes, class, polling, social and political attitudes, society
Posted on 27 May 2014

Can we really measure racial prejudice?

Today the Guardian reports new data from the British Social Attitudes survey showing that three in ten people describe themselves as being very or a little racially prejudiced. As the co-director of this survey, I’d like to use this space to explain how we arrived at these numbers, and outline the sorts of issues we consider when interpreting attitudinal data.
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Tags: Alison Park, Britain, British Social Attitudes, ethnicity, race, racial prejudice, racism, attitudes, politics, quantitative data, religion, social and political attitudes, social surveys, survey
Posted on 08 December 2011 by Liz Clery, Research Director

Eradicating child poverty – a public priority but an unlikely reality?

On Universal Children’s Day last month, the UK Children's Commissioners warned the government that cuts to children’s services could result in the number of children living in poverty increasing. This will make it even more unlikely that the government will meet its 2020 deadline for the eradication of child poverty, first set out by Tony Blair in 1999.
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Tags: BSA, British Social Attitudes, child poverty, children and young people, society, poverty, social and political attitudes
Posted on 07 December 2011

Are we set for greater polarisation between the haves and have-nots?

Our 28th British Social Attitudes report is published today. For the first time, you can get the whole report online, at no cost at all. We’re very excited to be bringing this rich study to a wider audience. Stretching back to 1983 (taking in seven elections and five prime ministers), it’s a great source of insight about Britain. Our Chief Executive, Penny Young introduces some of the key themes.
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Tags: BSA, British Social Attitudes, social and political attitudes, society
Posted on 19 May 2011

Assisted suicide: public attitudes at odds with UK law

This week is Dying Matters Awareness Week. Research published to coincide with the week finds that death is still a taboo subject for most people: only a fifth of us have talked to anyone about the sort of care and support we’d like at the end of our lives. Here Alison Park discusses research we conducted in 2005 as part of the British Social Attitudes survey series, focusing on attitudes towards two examples of assisted dying - voluntary euthanasia and assisted suicide.
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Tags: assisted dying, BSA, British Social Attitudes, social and political attitudes