ONS Tells Survey Households They Cannot Be Replaced If Online Submission Fails

The ONS posted the message on social media after a user reported difficulty submitting a survey form online. The figures show why this matters: the Labour Force Survey — the main household survey used to produce official UK labour market estimates — recorded an overall response rate of just 21.3 per cent for January to March 2025. That’s up from 12.7 per cent for July to September 2023, but it remains low enough that every selected household counts.

The ONS position is straightforward: you can’t be replaced. So if the online route fails, the expectation is that respondents keep trying rather than giving up.

The Office for Statistics Regulation has flagged survey response and representativeness as ongoing challenges across the statistical system, with the Labour Force Survey a prominent example. The Monthly Business Survey tells a different story — its response rate was 83.6 per cent in quarter four of 2024, compared with 79.2 per cent in quarter four of 2020 and 88.1 per cent in quarter four of 2017, suggesting household surveys face a harder task than business ones in maintaining participation.

For Kent households, this has practical consequences. Anyone selected for an ONS survey who hits a wall with the online process is still expected to complete it — and local economic and labour market data used by Kent councils, NHS Kent and Medway Integrated Care Board, and other public services can be affected when response quality falls. Service planners and local authorities rely on these national estimates to allocate resources and plan provision.

Key information

• ONS Survey Enquiry Line (freephone): 0800 298 5313
• ONS Household and Individual Studies helpline (freephone): 0800 085 7376
• If you receive an ONS survey letter and cannot complete it online, contact the above lines for alternative completion options