1. How were people selected to take part in the study?
We selected people using Child Benefit records from 150 postcode sectors in the UK and interviewed them every year. Each year we also selected a boost sample of people from the same postcode sectors to make sure that the study was as representative as possible
2. How have the families who took part in the study changed over time?
When the study started in 1999 we only interviewed low income families or lone parent families. In 2001 we started to interview all families with children. In 2007 and 2008 we returned to looking at specific families, including lone parent families, low income families, families with three or more children and families with at least one adult or child who had a disability or long standing illness.
3. Has the focus of the questions changed over time?
While the study's main focus has stayed the same, some questions have changed to reflect changes in policy. In 2001 questions were added about children’s educational attainment and parents’ aspirations for their children.
In 2002 questions were added about local services and school attendance.
In 2003 questions were changed to reflect the introduction of the Working and Child Tax Credit. In 2005 we revised our questions about childcare to make them comparable with other studies. In 2006 we added new questions to find out about choices and constraints around working.
4. How can the study's data be used?
It can be used in two ways. Data from a specific year provides a ‘snap shot’ of family life for a cross-section of British society. By using data from several years we can find out what is happening to families over time.
5. Where can I find the data?
The data for 1999 to 2005 is currently available through the
UK Data Archive.