Department for Culture Media and Sport

about taking part

'Taking part' England's survey of leisure, culture and sport.

‘Taking Part’ is the first survey of its kind to provide detailed, robust data about engagement with culture and sport. Previously, data had been gathered from a variety of sources, making the data disjointed and of varying reliability.

The need for consistent, high quality data led to DCMS and four partners (Arts Council England, English Heritage, the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) and Sport England) commissioning the Taking Part survey.

'Taking Part’ is a continuous national survey, achieving an annual sample size of around 14,000 people in 2008/09. The fieldwork for 'Taking Part' is being conducted by BMRB Social Research. The survey’s main objectives are to:

  • provide a central, reliable evidence source that can be used for a wide range of analysis of cultural and sporting engagement, and more specifically provide a clear picture of why people do/do not engage
  • meet the needs and interests of everyone who uses Taking Part data, including relevant public bodies and the public

"Taking Part" has been designated a “National Statistic” by the UK Statistics Authority, meaning that it meets the highest possible standards of quality. 
The datasets from the survey are deposited for public access at the UK Data Archive at Essex University. Search using Study Number 5717 or by entering "taking part". Please note that datasets are deposited for not-for-profit educational and research purposes only.

Further information: