Do you know your neighbour's name?
At a time when politicians have pledged to strengthen local communities, it seems our new government may have a tough job on their hands as less than 5% of British people profess to know their neighbours names reveals a survey by Weber®; the world’s favourite barbecue brand.
The survey of over 2,000 UK residents by Weber® reveals the scale of our anti-social behaviour as one in five admitted to actively going out of their way to avoid their neighbours. The ‘fairer sex’ also came across the meanest as men were twice as likely to reach out to their neighbours than women.
All hope is not however lost, as almost three-quarters of Brits believe it’s important to know their neighbours and over half of the nation would like to make an effort to get to know them better. Younger generations are also more likely to welcome a new neighbour than the over 55yrs age group.
With National Barbecue Week 25th - 31st May kick-starting the barbecue season, there’s no better time to come out of hibernation, get out into our gardens and enjoy good food and good company. Weber® and Tom and Henry Herbert of TV’s The Fabulous Baker Brothers: A Bite of Britain have joined forces to encourage the UK to reach out to our neighbours and get together this summer with their Come on Over campaign.
“We conducted the Come on Over survey to highlight how potentially insular the UK is becoming and hopefully encourage the nation to get together.” said Chris Trewhitt, Marketing Manager at Weber®.
“Numerous surveys including those by Public Health England tell us how valuable communities are to improving health and wellbeing and yet we are becoming ever-more distant from our closest neighbours.”
“It’s such a pity we seem to be losing our sense of community spirit,” said Tom Herbert. “My family have been part of the local neighbourhood fabric, baking and breaking bread for over five generations. It’s so important for so many reasons; our Hobbs House Bakery business couldn’t run without the support of our community but on a personal level it gives me a sense of identity and belonging.”
“Barbecues are such a great way to get people together,” continued Henry Herbert “there’s something utterly irresistible about the scent of a barbecue wafting over the garden fence – it’s almost a natural call to ‘come on over’.
“Barbecuing can be as simple as sizzling a sausage or as impressive as a 10lb rotisserie pork or seared tuna. You can cook whatever suits you, your budget and your creativity, with the added benefit that you don’t need to clean the house before or after!”
Together Weber® and the Herbert brothers will be providing expert advice, hints and tips on how to cook and host the perfect barbecue with the Come on Over campaign. Launching on Thursday 14th May will also be a #comeonover competition offering people around the country the chance to win a Weber® master-class and party at their home for them and their friends (old and new). For more information or to enter the Come on Over competition visit www.facebook.com/webergrillsuk
Weber® Come on Over Survey Key Findings:
LOVE THY NEIGHBOUR, MOST OF US DON’T EVEN KNOW THEIR NAMES!
• Less than 5% of the nation know their neighbours’ names.
• Those living in Wales are most likely to know the names of all of their neighbours, whilst those in Yorkshire and London are the least likely.
• Almost one in five of us have admitted to actively going out of our way to avoid our neighbours.
• Over a third of Brits admit to never socialising with their neighbours.
BUT THE NATION WANTS TO CHANGE
• Interestingly whilst almost three-quarters of the nation agree that it is important to get to know their neighbours, just over half say they would like to know them better.
• It seems getting to know our neighbours is important across the board with this being just as important to the 16-34 year olds as it is the 44-55+ year old age group.
• Over half (54%) of the UK agree that they would like to know their neighbours better.
• The majority (62%) of Londoners agree that they would like to know their neighbours better, followed by Yorkshire (57%) and the South East (56%).
30 YEAR OLD SCOTTISH MEN MAKE THE MOST SOCIABLE NEIGHBOURS!
• One-third of people in Belfast socialise with their neighbours every day.
• Men are almost twice as likely to invite a new neighbour round for dinner than women.
• Almost a quarter of men socialise with their neighbours at least once a week.
• It seems men are more inclined to offer a helping hand, with two in five men saying they would ask a new neighbour if there was anything they could help with, compared to less than a third of women.
• 25-34 seems to be the most sociable age group, being the most likely to invite a new neighbour round for dinner.
• Liverpudlians are most likely to reach out to a neighbour after a crisis, compared with less than 5% of those in Plymouth.
THE KEY TO MOVING IN ETIQUETTE?
• Perhaps solving the question of why we don’t get to know our neighbours, 60% of the nation agrees that it is neither neighbours’ obligation to introduce themselves when moving in.
• The younger generations are more expectant for new neighbours to introduce themselves over them taking the initiative (23%), compared to those over 55 (5%).
• Two-fifths of Londoners are more outgoing when it comes to introducing themselves when a new person move into the neighbourhood, compared to one-quarter of Welsh.
• Surprisingly, one in ten 16-24 year olds say they send their new neighbours a welcome letter when they move into the area, compared with the over 55s, who are the least likely to do so.
• Over a quarter of 25-34 year olds would say hello to a neighbour first when moving in, compared to less than 20% of over 55s.
• Southampton tops the list of most helpful neighbours, with over two in five people saying they would offer to help their neighbours, compared to Norwich and Bristol where less than a third said they would offer help to new neighbours.
• Glaswegians appear to be the most generous neighbours, with one in ten people from the area claiming they welcome their new neighbours with a housewarming gift.
WHAT MAKES A GOOD NEIGHBOUR?
• The nation believes taking in post or deliveries is the attribute they most associate with being a good neighbour, with noise consideration and neighbourhood watch also coming high in the list.
• People in Leeds are most in favour of a noise-considerate neighbour, with over two thirds of them choosing this as one of their top three most important attributes in a neighbor.
• Knowing who we are living next to, feeling part of a community and feeling safer came top in the nation’s list of top three reasons to get to know our neighbours.
• When asked to pick their top three reasons to get to know our neighbours, close to half of those in Brighton (47%), and in the 16-24 age group (44%) felt it is important to get to know their neighbours in order to feel more safe.
WE’RE LESS NEIGHBOURLY THAN WE USED TO BE
• The majority of the nation’s adults remember there being a far more sociable community feel with neighbours in their childhood than there is today.
• Newcastle seems to have been a social hub in its heyday, with almost two thirds of locals claiming that there was a far more sociable community feel with neighbours in their childhood, compared with just 40% in Southampton.
• A third of people in Cardiff, along with Glaswegians and Londoners feel that their neighbours from their childhoods were friendlier than their current ones.
