Thursday 20 August 2020
The first report detailing the results of the Guernsey Community Survey is released today. 3,699 people responded to the survey which makes it the most responded to States survey in recent times.
The findings cover an extremely wide range of topics relating to the pandemic response, the 'lockdown' and the phased exit from lockdown. They show:
83% of respondents thought the lockdown restrictions were fair and justified, while 13% thought at least some aspects were not.
Household expenditure decreased during lockdown for 54% of respondents, stayed the same for 29% and went up for 17%.
Household income decreased for 38% of respondents, stayed the same for 57% and went up for 5%.
20% said they their physical activity increased a lot, and 17% said it decreased a lot.
55% rated their life satisfaction as six or more out of eight. This compares to 63% in 2018.
The survey also asked in detail about Islanders' health and wellbeing, their views on travel and what they believe are greatest threats currently facing the community.
The threat of a second wave and/or second lockdown was the most commonly identified threat, referred to by 48% of respondents. Although the second most commonly identified threat was the 'Bailiwick bubble' being isolated from the rest of the world, this concern was identified by only 5.5% of respondents.
There were also a broad range of views on what the biggest opportunities are, with recurring themes being the promotion, support and investment in local business and services, including tourism and the Island as a holiday destination (post-pandemic). Supporting and investing in the resilience and inclusivity of the community was also a popular theme.
This is the first report and more detailed reports will follow on the other topics covered by the survey (such as work and education, carers, caring, bereavement, accessing health services, volunteering and shopping), in the next few months.
Deputy Gavin St Pier, Chair of the Civil Contingencies Authority said
"I am encouraged first and foremost by the large number of people who took part in the survey. It's a tremendous response and the feedback will help to shape the government's thinking as we move forward with our pandemic response.
These results suggest there is a lot of support from the community for how the response has been handled so far. I don't see that as vindication. This has been a situation no one has faced before and there was no way to know at the outset if our plan for responding would be the right one, and even now is too early to be certain of that. We also need to be mindful that what has worked so far may not work if we face a second wave or other challenges presented by the pandemic, it will depend very much on the circumstances at the time. But I do see it as a reflection of how the community came together, pulling in the same direction. To me, that is what has made the Bailiwick's response such a success so far."
Deputy Heidi Soulsby, President of the Committee for Health & Social Care said
"This survey covered all aspects of our lives during lockdown and shortly after. The results relating to health are particularly important as we've been mindful throughout that we need to balance the measures brought in to protect us from COVID-19 against other impacts of lockdown. But this report, and the others to follow, will tell us about much more than just our health. Our finances and economy, our sense of safety and our hopes and fears for the future are all covered, meaning that, when we put this together with data from other sources, we will have a truly holistic view of the impact of lockdown. This in turn will help inform us both in terms of determining any future response to the pandemic and in prioritising what we do as part of the Revive and Thrive Recovery Strategy."
Helen Walton, Head of Data & Analysis for the States of Guernsey said
"With 7% of the population completing the survey, this is the best response we have had in recent times and makes for an extremely robust and reliable set of findings. The figures in the report have confidence intervals of +/- 2.5%. That said, we have looked at the demographic profile of the respondents compared to the local population and applied weightings where appropriate to ensure the results are genuinely representative.
Completing our analysis to get these preliminary results out is something my team has done at 'COVID speed', knowing that this information is needed for our policy-makers as soon as possible, so it can inform the ongoing coronavirus response. We will continue to analyse the data in more detail and we are planning to issue further detailed reports with more findings from the survey later in the year."
