Ethos Public Relations Manchester

Britain is more neighbourly after the Diamond Jubilee celebrations – those who took part now know five more neighbours each

by Ethos public relations

Analysis by Co-operatives UK, drawing on a survey it commissioned through YouGov, has shown that one in four people (25%) across Britain took part in an event to mark the Queen's Diamond Jubilee.

According to calculations by Co-operatives UK, the national trade association for co-operative businesses, these events were organised co-operatively by 1.5million adults (including around a million women).

Those who came got to know, on average, five more neighbours each that they didn't know before.

The saying runs that if you want something done, ask a busy person and this held true for the Jubilee celebrations. Adults with children in their household were very well represented among those organising events[1] and the more children in the household, the more likely they were to help out with 4% of those with one child in their household compared to 7% with three or more organising an event.

The events overall succeeded in involving a good mix of ages - indeed young people aged between 18 and 24 were more likely to participate in events (28%) than those who have retired (22%).

One in five people (21%) report that community spirit in their neighbourhood has increased due to the Jubilee celebrations. However, the Jubilee was not celebrated evenly across the country - only 7% of people in Scotland, for example, took part in events, compared to 25% nationally.

The research by Co-operatives UK, shows that numbers of neighbours we know by name has halved over the last thirty years. Even so, according to calculations by Co-operatives UK, there are on average 24million conversations every day with neighbours, higher now than two years ago, in 2010.

The Good Neighbour Index tracks the percentage of people who, in the past two years, have been helped by their neighbours (74%), compared to those who have had problems with their neighbours (42%). Perhaps as a result of the events around the Jubilee, the Good Neighbour Index has risen by 5% over the last year – to a level of 48.5 where 100 represents the state of neighbourliness in the base year of 1982, according to calculations by Co-operatives UK. The index is highest, at present, in Wales.

Slightly less people report having problems or disputes with their neighbours than two years ago (42% vs. 44%). The top three complaints are: noise (affecting 22% of people); general behaviour (11%) and children's behaviour (9%). Compared to thirty years ago, the number of people making these complaints has increased threefold.

Three out of four people (74%) report that their neighbours help them out in some way. These include looking after pets (18%), taking in parcels and mail (63%) and keeping a spare key (24%).

“The UK is at heart a co-operative nation and the Jubilee celebrations gave us a permission slip to come together. With twelve million adults taking part in local events, this has been the largest recorded programme of voluntary social action in modern times,” said Ed Mayo, Secretary General of Co-operatives UK.

This year, 2012, has been named by the United Nations as the International Year of Co-operatives. The UK's five thousand co-operative enterprises are coming together later this month for a Co-operatives Fortnight (from 23 June to 7 July) to celebrate the role of co-operation in the UK economy and society.

[1] 4.65% of those with children in the household organised an event themselves compared with 3.12% of adults as a whole.

For more news from Co-operatives UK, click here.

Posted at 15^th June 2012