What the survey says: The six key elements that make up our lives

Households

Over half of adults (51 per cent) are married and living with a spouse, while 32 per cent are single and have never been married, or in a civil partnership. A third (33 per cent) of households in Scotland contain only one person, made up of single adults (19 per cent) and single pensioners (14 per cent).

Owner-occupation is the predominant tenure for most household types (65 per cent), with the notable exception being for single-parent households (where 48 per cent are in social rented housing) and single adult households (32 per cent in the social rented sector).

The private rented sector has shown small but consistent signs of growth from 5 per cent in 1999 to 11 per cent in 2010, associated with a decline in the social rented sector (from 32 per cent to 23 per cent). The 15 per cent most deprived areas in Scotland are characterised by high concentrations of social housing, with 54 per cent of households in the social rented sector, compared with 17 per cent in the rest of Scotland.

Almost half (49 per cent) of those households who have lived at their current address for less than one year are from the private rented sector.

Communities

The overwhelming majority (93.5 per cent) of adults say their neighbourhood is a very or fairly good place to live, in line with previous surveys.

Adults living in rural areas are more likely to say their neighbourhood is "very good" (78 per cent) compared with those from urban areas (49 per cent).

Over a quarter (28 per cent) of adults particularly dislike the environment they live in. Antisocial behaviour is relatively low. The perceptions of neighbourhood problems represent some of the lowest levels ever reported.

The most common problems are litter, with nearly a quarter (24 per cent) saying this is very or fairly common in their area, and animal nuisance such as noise or dog fouling (23 per cent).

Some 11 per cent of respondents said vandalism, graffiti and damage to property were common in their neighbourhoods. The number of people who had to deal with noisy neighbours and loud parties was nearly 10 per cent.

Three-quarters of adults (76 per cent) say they felt very or fairly safe while walking alone in their neighbourhoods after dark, while almost all (97 per cent) say they feel safe when they are alone in their home at night.

Education

Levels of satisfaction with schooling among parents are high, with 91 per cent of all parents with school-age children satisfied with the education provided by their child's school.

The satisfaction decreases slightly as the age of the child increases, from 96 per cent for those aged four-six down to 88 per cent for 13 and over.

Typically, about half of households have access to some form of play areas. Over half (51 per cent) have access to a park, and 46 per cent have access to either a playground or field or other open space.

Generally, those households within rural areas are more likely to say children would be very safe or fairly safe when walking or cycling to play areas on their own. For example, 58 per cent of householders in large urban areas think it would be safe to travel to a playground, compared with 79 per cent in remote rural areas.

Those from rural areas are less concerned about bullying (less than one-third across all play areas) as compared with those from urban areas (up to half of householders are concerned across all play areas).

Health

Almost a quarter (24 per cent) of adults smoked in 2010, but that is a 6.5 per cent reduction on 1999.

More men than women smoke (26 per cent and 23 per cent respectively). Younger men more commonly smoke than younger women, with the gap widest between the ages of 25 and 34.

A third of households in Scotland (33 per cent) contain at least one person with a long-standing illness, health problem or disability.

Owner-occupier households (28 per cent) and those who rent from the private sector (19 per cent) are less likely to contain someone with long-standing health problems or disabilities than those living in the social rented sector (52 per cent) or other tenure type.

One in four single pensioners (24 per cent) and one in five older smaller households (22 per cent) have care needs.

Around three-quarters of adults (74 per cent) say their health is either "very good" or "good".

Only 7 per cent say it is "bad" or "very bad".The internet

Two-thirds of Scottish households have internet access (68 per cent).

Home internet access increases with household income, from fewer than half of households with income less than 15,000 to 97 per cent of those with an income greater than 40,000.

More than half (52 per cent) of households in the 15 per cent most deprived areas have home internet access, compared with 69 per cent in the rest of Scotland.

Over nine in ten households in Scotland have a broadband connection. Uptake rates are very similar among internet-using households in the 15 per cent most deprived areas, (94 per cent) compared with the rest of Scotland (96 per cent). Take up of broadband is lowest for remote areas, at 92 per cent.

Just over a quarter of adults (27 per cent) do not use the internet. There is a clear relationship between age and use of the internet, with use declining as respondents get older. Similarly, women are more likely than men to be non-users (30 per cent and 25 per cent respectively), although the main gender difference is among those aged 60 or older, with very little difference in the proportion of younger males and females.

Local services

Almost two-thirds (64 per cent) of adults are satisfied with local health services, local schools and public transport. This represents a slight decrease of under 1 per cent on the 2009 figure of about 65 per cent.

The majority (86 per cent) of adults are very or fairly satisfied with local health services, with 83 per cent very or fairly satisfied with local schools and 74 per cent very or fairly satisfied with public transport.

Almost half (49 per cent) of adults say their council is good at letting people know about the kinds of services it provides, while 43 per cent say that it is providing high quality services.

In contrast, just under a quarter (23 per cent) of adults agreed that their council is good at listening to local people's views before it takes decisions. Generally speaking, older adults are likely to be more satisfied with local government services than younger adults.

At least two-thirds of adults said they would find the majority of local services, such as doing small food shopping or using a post office, convenient if they needed to use them. More than nine in ten (92 per cent) adults said they would find shopping for small amounts of food convenient, which was the highest percentage for any of the services.