FOI reference: FOI-2026-3484
You asked
Under the Freedom of Information Act, and in reference to a previous FOI request with the reference number FOI-2024-2467, I would like to know the following:
- The cumulative cost, in pound sterling terms, so far of creating the Transformed Labour Force Survey
- The amount spent on creating the TLFS in each year since work started on it
We said
Thank you for your request.
The Transformed Labour Force Survey (TLFS) was created from a series of legacy research and delivery projects over many years. The directly attributable costs of setting up, developing, and testing the TLFS have been captured since financial year 2021 to 2022.
The estimated cumulative direct cost of the TLFS is £67.6 million across five years. The yearly average costs are £13.5 million. The majority of costs incurred relate to the large-scale resourcing required to operate the survey, but the total figure provided includes further costs such as printing, materials, and postage costs.
The £10.6 million increase in spend between financial years 2024 to 2025 and 2025 to 2026 is primarily because of changes in survey design, including sample boosts that have resulted in higher interviewer requirements and increased printing, postage, and incentive costs. In addition, there has been an expansion in transformation activity, such as testing and the development of Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) and Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) classifications. The increase also reflects the inclusion of additional interviewer support expenditure now accounted for within direct costs.
Figures for 2025 to 2026 are 11 months of actuals, plus one month forecast.
Once fully operational, the TLFS will provide increased value for money by using online data collection to reduce the cost per achieved interview compared with the current Labour Force Survey (LFS). We will update on the expected achieved interview costs of the TLFS and how these relate to the LFS as part of the TLFS readiness assessment taking place in July.
You can find the requested figures in the associated download spreadsheet.