Taking part in a survey?
Have you been asked to take part in a survey?
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) produces statistics which are relied on by central and local government, businesses and individuals to make decisions and to plan for the future.
To make sure our statistics are reliable and relevant, we need information which reflects the whole population.
Information for businesses
If you have received a survey from us asking you to take part, you can find more information about what is involved and how we will use your response by going to the A-Z of business surveys pages. This link also provides details of the published statistical data that your information contributes to.
The information we gather is used to produce statistics which central and local government, businesses and individuals rely on to make decisions, assess the economic position of the country and to plan for the future.
The ONS Respondent Charter for Business Surveys sets out our commitment to the people who take part in our business surveys. The aim of this charter is to help you understand why your participation is important and what you can expect from us.
Enquiries
If you are unable to find the information you need on these pages, we have a dedicated team assisting respondents to our business surveys – please telephone the number on your survey questionnaire where our highly trained staff will assist you, (Please be aware that calls may be recorded for quality and training purposes).
Opening times are 8.30am till 5.00pm Monday till Thursday and 8.30am til 4.30pm Friday.
Feedback
We welcome your suggestions about how we can improve our surveys and would also like to hear from you if you are happy with the service you have received. You can email us at: BDD.Respondent.Feedback.Team@ons.gov.uk
Information for households and individuals
If you have received a letter from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) asking you to take part in an ONS survey – or if you have already taken part in the International Passenger Survey – you can find out more about what is involved and how we will use your responses from our general information about household surveys or view the surveys at the A to Z of household and individual surveys page.
The ONS Respondent charter for surveys of households sets out our commitments to the people who take part in our surveys and helps you understand what you can expect from us.
We sometimes commission other research organisations to carry out surveys on our behalf: the Crime Survey for England and Wales is currently being carried out by TNS-BMRB. To find out more about TNS-BMRB’s commitment please go to the TNS-BMRB website.
The information we gather in survey interviews is used to produce statistics such as the unemployment figures, measures of inflation and levels of migration to and from the UK.
Central and local government, businesses, charities, academics and others rely on those statistics to make decisions and plan for the future.
Enquiries
If you want to make an appointment for the interviewer to call or have a query about the survey you’ve been asked to take part in, please call us on 0800 298 5313. Minicom users should dial 18110 before this number.
Opening times are 9am-9pm on Monday to Thursday, 9am-8pm on Friday and 9am-1pm on Saturday.
For the Crime Survey for England and Wales please ring the Crime Survey information line at TNS-BMRB on 0800 051 0882
Feedback
We welcome your suggestions about how we can improve our surveys and would also like to hear from you if you are happy with the service you have received.
You can email us at: surveyfeedback@ons.gsi.gov.uk.
External Links
UK Statistics Authority Code of Practice
Freedom of Information Act 2000