Active Adults Survey
Overview
The Active Adults Survey is a biennial household survey
commissioned by Sport Wales to measure levels of sports
participation, club membership, volunteering and other sporting
matters amongst adults in Wales.
The survey is the main source of data in Wales on incidence of
sports participation, sports club membership and other
sport-related issues amongst adults (aged 15 years and above) in
Wales, providing unrivalled insight into patterns of sports
participation across the adult population.
The results of the survey are used by partner organisations
including the Welsh Government, local authorities and national
governing bodies of sport to inform their strategic planning and
operations.
The survey covers:
- participation levels in a range of sports and physical
recreation activities;
- sports club membership and participation;
- volunteering in sport;
- participation in competitive sport;
- usage of leisure and fitness centres;
- barriers and motivation for participation in sport.
A range of demographic information is also collected for
analysis, including gender, social class, age, disability and
household structure. The sample is stratified to allow analysis at
a local authority level, as well as other geographical
classifications.
Fieldwork for the Active Adults Survey 2012 is
currently taking place.
Survey method (2008-09)
Sampling method
The 2008-09 Active Adults Survey collected over 22,000 responses
based on a random probability sample stratified by local authority,
and was undertaken by Cello mruk research, on behalf of Sport
Wales.
At least 1000 interviews were collected in every local authority
area in Wales. Fieldwork was conducted over a 12-month period -
between 1st March 2008 and 28th February 2009 - to avoid any
seasonal effects on the results.
Households were selected at random to participate in the
research using the Postcode Address File complied by the Royal
Mail. The selection is clustered by Output Area (selected at
random) to minimise costs while ensuring the survey is robust. On
contact with a selected household, one adult is selected at random
using the Next Birthday Rule.
Selected households and individuals were under no obligation to
take part in the survey, and no incentives were offered for them to
do so. Households were contacted up to 6 times in order to complete
an interview.
Weighting method
2008-09 Survey responses are weighted to take account of unequal
selection probabilities, and for differential non-response, using a
three-stage weighting protocol. This ensures that the distribution
of the responding sample matches that of the adult Welsh
population.
Previous surveys
The Survey has been run using two other methods prior to 2008.
From 1987 to 1998, the Survey was part of Beaufort Research's Wales
Omnibus Survey, and was conducted in four waves of 1000 adults
each, in each quarter.
From 1998 to 2005, the Survey was expanded to allow reporting of
results at local authority level, using a stratified quota
sample.
Key findings
Technical documents
Data tables
- Data tables can be found in the Statistics section of this website.