About the National Survey for Wales

This survey provides an opportunity for the people of Wales to help shape the actions we take. The information collected is used to help develop policies and decide how services are delivered. By taking part, you are helping us to understand the needs of people in Wales and to make sure that money is spent in the right places and in the most effective way.

The survey is carried out by Verian (formerly Kantar Public) and Beaufort Research on behalf of the Welsh Government, Sport Wales, Natural Resources Wales and the Arts Council of Wales.

The survey covers a wide range of topics such as:

• health and the NHS
• local council services and your local area
• housing
• the environment
• sports and arts

If your address has been selected for the survey, we will have sent you the following letter and leaflet. You may also receive an introduction letter from the field interviewing team.

The first part of the survey lasts around 30 minutes by phone or in the participant’s home. This is followed by an online section which takes about 15 minutes. If the person taking part does not use the internet, this section can be done on the phone.

Households are chosen randomly from the Royal Mail’s publicly-available list of all addresses in Wales. We then write to the selected households with instructions on how they can provide their phone number to us. If we don’t hear back from a household, we will sometimes visit to arrange an interview.

One of our interviewers will randomly select one person in the household, aged 16 or over, to carry out the survey.

If a friend or a relative needs your help to take part in the survey, or you need help to take part yourself, this is fine. But the answers should always come from the person who is chosen to take part in the survey.

To say thank you, those who take part will receive a gift voucher.

We keep all answers confidential and only ever use them for research purposes. If you have any questions about the survey, please get in touch with the survey contractor, Verian, on 0800 008 3244 or at nationalsurveywales@veriangroup.com.

Alternatively, you can contact Welsh Government on 0300 025 2021 or at surveys@gov.wales.

For more information about how we use the information collected, please see our privacy notice.

Taking part is voluntary, but we hope that you can help us make sure that all kinds of people across Wales are represented in the results. We cannot replace you with anyone else. If you do not wish to take part you can either: call the survey helpline on 0800 008 3244, let us know on horizons.confirmit.eu, or email Verian at nationalsurveywales@veriangroup.com. Please let us know your reference number, address, and postcode so we can find your details.

Verian

Verian carry out social research on behalf of government, charities and the voluntary sector. Their studies cover a wide range of topics, such as health, employment, and education.

For more information, visit www.veriangroup.com

Beaufort Research

Beaufort Research is a social research contractor with a focus on Wales and Welsh language issues.

For more information on Beaufort Research, visit www.beaufortresearch.co.uk

The organisations below provide information, advice and support on topics covered in the survey.

Advice from the Welsh Government on coronavirus (COVID-19)

Age Cymru: support and advice for older people.
Tel: 0300 303 4498

Community Advice & Listening Line, Mental Health Helpline for Wales
Tel: 0800 132 737
Text ‘help’ to 81066

Citizens Advice: advice on a wide range of issues.
Tel: 0800 702 2020

Help me quit: help to quit smoking.
Tel: 0800 085 2219

Live Fear Free: support for victims of domestic abuse 24 hours a day.
Tel: 0808 80 10 800

Money Helper: free, independent advice on money issues.
Tel: 0800 138 7777

Shelter Cymru: advice on housing and homelessness. 
Tel: 08000 495 495

Universal Credit Helpline 
Tel: 0800 328 5644

Working Wales: information, advice and guidance about support if you are made redundant.
Tel: 0800 028 4844

NHS 111 Wales: health advice and information, 24 hours a day.
Tel: 111

Volunteering Wales: Register as a volunteer.

Wales Drug and Alcohol Helpline DAN 24/7: Help with alcohol and drug problems, 24 hours a day.
Tel: 0808 808 2234 or text DAN to 81066

National Gambling Helpline: support and advice on gambling problems.
Tel: 0808 802 0133

Mencap Cymru: learning disability helpline Wales. 
Tel: 0808 808 1111

Natural Resources Wales: information on flood risks and warnings.
Tel: 0345 988 1188

Is the study confidential?

Yes, any personal information you give us will be kept confidential and in accordance with the Data Protection Act. You will not be identifiable from the survey results and your answers will only be used for research purposes. However, you are always free to skip any question that you are not comfortable answering. It will not be possible to identify you from any report based on the results.

Your details will not be used for marketing purposes.

How can I make sure the interviewer is who they say they are?

All interviewers working on the National Survey of Wales work for either Verian or Beaufort Research.

They carry an interviewer ID card, which shows their:

• name
• photograph
• identity number

Image

If you would like to check an interviewer's credentials, you can call the National Survey for Wales Information Line on 0800 008 3244.

What happens if I don’t have internet access and can't complete the online section?

If you don’t have internet access, the interviewer will be happy to ask you these questions over the phone instead.

Where can I redeem my gift voucher?

E-voucher

You can redeem your e-voucher at the following retailers (subject to change).

Online only

Argos, DJM Music, Edinburgh Woollen Mill, Habitat, Love2Shop Holidays, Peacocks, Ponden Home, Real Food Hub, Schuh, Schuh Kids, Simply Thank You, Sty Gifts, Virgin Experience Days

Online and in-store

American Golf, Antartex Village, Argos, Barclays Diamonds, Beaverbrooks, Ben Nevis Highland Centre, Blacks, Boots, Chisholm Hunter, Currys, Denby, Edinburgh Woollen Mill, Ernest Jones, Foot Locker, FOPP, Go Outdoors, Gulliver’s World, Gulliver’s Kingdom, Gulliver’s Land, Gulliver’s Farm & Dinosaur Park, Gulliver’s Splash World, Gulliver’s Hotel Halfords, Heron Foods, HMV, Holm Mills, Homesense, H. Samuel, Iceland, Inveraray Woollen Mill, James Pringle Weavers, Jedburgh Woollen Mill, John O’Groats Knitwear, Kernow Mill, Kilmahog Woollen Mill, Loofe’s Clothing, Love2shop Holidays, M&S, Mackinnon Mills, Matalan, McCaig’s Warehouse, Millets, Moffat Woollen Mill, New Look, Peacocks, Pizza Express, Ponden Home, Rituals Cosmetics, River Island, Romanes & Paterson, ROX Diamonds & Thrills, Schuh, Schuh Kids, Semichem, Shoe HQ, Shoe Zone, Simon One, Slaters Menswear, Spean Bridge Mill, TJ Hughes, TK Maxx, The Abbey Mill, The Bronte Weaving Shed, The Entertainer, The Famous Lee Mill, The Food Warehouse, The Old Station Welshpool, The Original Factory Shop, The Perfume Shop, The Scottish Wool Centre, The Works, Watershed Mill, Waterstones, West Highland Woollen Company, Wilton Shopping Village, Wilko

Paper voucher

You can redeem your paper voucher at the following retailers (subject to change).

Abbey Mill, American Golf, Antartex Village, Argos, Barclays Diamonds, Beaverbrooks, Ben Nevis Highland Centre, Bensons for Beds, Blackpool Pleasure Beach, Bonmarché, Boots, Boots Opticians, Boux Avenue, British Heart Foundation, Champneys, Chisholm Hunter, Clarks, Denby, DV8, Eason, Edinburgh Woollen Mill, Ernest Jones, Euronics, F. Hinds Jewellers, Foot Locker, FOPP, Fraser Hart, Go Outdoors, Goals, Goldsmiths, Gulliver’s Theme Parks, H. Samuel, Halfords, Hastings Hotels, Heron Foods, HMV, Holm Mills, Homesense, Iceland, Inveraray Woollen Mill, James Pringle Weavers, Jedburgh Woollen Mill, John O’Groats Knitwear, Kernow Mill, Kilmahog Woollen Mill, Laithwaites, Lakeland Leather, Lightwater Valley, Liverpool FC Official Club Stores, London Bridge Experience, London Tombs, Loofe’s Clothing, Love2shop Holidays, Mackinnon Mills, Mamas & Papas, Mappin & Webb, Masson Mills, Matalan, McCaig’s Warehouse, Moffat Woollen Mill, New Look, Optical Express, Peacocks, Pizza Express, Ponden Home, Pontins, River Island, Robert Dyas, Romanes & Paterson, Rox Diamonds & Thrills, Ryman, Schuh, Schuh Kids, Scottsdale Golf, Semichem, Shoe HQ, Shoe Zone, Simon One, Simply Thank You Gifts, Slaters Menswear, Spean Bridge Mill, Sporting Targets, TJ Hughes, Ten Pin, The Abbey Mill, The Bronte Weaving Shed, The Famous Lee Mill, The Food Warehouse, The Old Station Welshpool, The Original Factory Shop, The Perfume Shop, The Scottish Wool Centre, The Works, TK Maxx, Tottenham Hotspur Football Club Shop, Trossachs Woollen Mill, WHSmith, Watershed Mill, Waterstones, West Highland Woollen Company, Wilko, Wilton Shopping Village, Wookey Hole Caves

Data linking is the process of bringing together person-level records from different sources.

What are the benefits of data linking?

Linking information to other records:

• reduces demands on people to take part in surveys such as the National Survey for Wales
• greatly reduces the cost of collecting information
• allows different types of information to be more readily available, and so allows research to be carried out more quickly
• allows better use to be made of already existing information

Data linking in the National Survey

The Health Information Research Unit (HIRU) for Wales is a research unit based at Swansea University. The core of HIRU’s work is linking information from a number of surveys and databases across Wales through the Secure Anonymised Information Linkage (SAIL) databank.

Respondents to the National Survey have their anonymised survey answers linked to other data sources by HIRU. Names, addresses and postcodes are not included in the linked data. The information is used for research purposes only.

Respondents are able to opt out of having their answers linked. This can be done when taking part in the survey, or afterwards by contacting the Welsh Government’s National Survey project team on 0300 025 2021 or at surveys@gov.wales.