Household Survey still needs more people

Monday 17 December 2018

More than 500 people are still needed to ensure a survey can fairly demonstrate the cost of living in Guernsey.

The Household Expenditure Survey is run by the States and sees families and individuals keeping a track of what they spend each month.

The survey has two purposes: to create the Household Expenditure Report which provides insights to how consumers’ spending patterns change over time and it will also help the States update the 'basket of goods' used to calculate the island's rate of inflation. The items in the 'basket' are updated as often as possible so the basket remains a true reflection of what we're buying so it stays relevant to current spending habits in Guernsey.

Pictured: What goes in your shopping basket? 

Nearly 450 households have completed it, but the States said they need at least another 550 more to sign up too.

The survey runs until the end of April, 2019, and the Household Expenditure Survey team want to ensure it is a "representative sample" of island households.

Sheila Cameron, Project Leader, said:

“Recent volunteers have chosen to complete the survey during their Christmas break, when they have more spare time. Our fieldworkers can offer survey visits in the evenings, at weekends and flexibly during the day to meet the requirements of busy households. It will be business as usual for the survey team, since we need as many households as possible to take part.”

There are some incentives to take part, with every household offered the choice of either a ticket for the quarterly cash prize draw with a top prize of £500, or a £25 dining voucher for one of Randall’s local restaurants.

To find out more or to volunteer to take part (at any time until April 2019) visit gov.gg/hes, email hes@gov.gg or phone 717188.

The results of the last survey are published here gov.gg/household and inflation figures are published here: gov.gg/rpi

Pictured top: What goes in to your weekly shop?