DATASETS
UK Social Capital Atlas
The UK Social Capital Atlas measures social connections and economic mobility to examine the relationship between social capital and economic mobility. This public dataset is based on information from six billion friendships among UK adults aged 25-64.
Download from HDX
Key Features
Cross-class friendship + other measures
The UK Social Capital Atlas includes measures of cross-class friendship, otherwise known as economic connectedness, as well as other features of the social network, including language connectedness, age connectedness, volunteering rates and other measures.Subnational granularity
The UK Social Capital Atlas includes social measures at various levels of granularity, including middle layer super output areas (MSOAs), postcode districts, and local authorities.Publicly available
The UK Social Capital Atlas is publicly available and can be downloaded from Humanitarian Data Exchange.Methodology
Step 1: Determine relevant sample
We studied people using Facebook between 25-64 years old who resided in the United Kingdom as of February 2025, and had at least 100 friends on the platform, which represented roughly 58% of the UK population for that age group.Step 2: Assign sample to estimated socioeconomic status
We determined predicted home locations and assigned an associated socioeconomic status based on features such as residential area (including average income) and other measures.Step 3: Measure social capital
We operationalize social capital through three distinct yet interconnected categories: cross-type connectedness (bridging social capital), social cohesion (forms of bonding capital), and civic engagement.Step 4: Observe patterns between social capital and upward mobility
We assess patterns among areas such as cross-class friendships (and the settings they occur in), upward mobility, and subjective well-being to identify implications for policy and research.RESOURCES
Using UK Social Capital Atlas
The UK Social Capital Atlas can be downloaded from the Humanitarian Data Exchange (HDX).
Download from the Humanitarian Data Exchange