Two thirds of people in Wales admit to having made a New Year’s resolution they haven’t kept

• Prince’s Trust research shows that while 60% of people in Wales have tried to give something up for January, most confess they can’t get through the month without slipping up or going back to their old ways

• Youth charity’s Don’t Give Up – Give Back campaign calls on nation to ditch giving something up in January in favour of giving back through volunteering

Research released today by youth charity The Prince’s Trust has exposed that two thirds of people in Wales have made a New Year’s resolution they haven’t kept.

The findings highlight a tendency for people to give things up in January, with 60% of respondents in Wales claiming that they have tried to give something up before. However, despite their good intentions, most people[2] who try to give things up say they usually don’t get through the month without cheating or going back to their old ways.

66% of people in Wales have made a New Year’s resolution they haven’t kept.

68% of people in Wales who have previously made a resolution to give something up say they usually can’t get through the month without cheating or going back to their old ways.

Unsurprisingly, the most common things people in Wales tend to give up in the New Year are chocolate, cigarettes and alcohol. Although most people deprive themselves in a bid to improve their health or to get back in shape after the Christmas break, their efforts often don’t have the desired effect – with almost half confessing that they didn’t achieve their goals.

It seems that there are many drawbacks to giving things up. One in four people in Wales (26%) find the worst part of giving something up to be depriving themselves of something without seeing any real benefits, while 36% struggle with turning down nice food and drink and almost a third (31%) grapple with feelings of guilt if they cheat on their resolution.

The temptation is often too much for Kiss FM DJ and Prince’s Trust Ambassador Neev Spencer who has repeatedly tried (and failed) to give up chocolate for January. She said: “It’s really tough to give up something like chocolate, even for a small period of time. Even though I tell myself every year that I’m going to be good this time, all it takes is a fleeting glance at a bar of Galaxy and I’m in a world of chocolate deprived-pain. It doesn’t take long before I crack and I don’t know why I put myself through the trauma every year!”

Of the Welsh respondents who have tried to give something up, 38% have tried to give up chocolate, 36% have tried to give up cigarettes and 28% have tried to give up alcohol.

Of those people in Wales who have tried to give something up, 60% hoped to improve their health and 58% were looking to get back in shape after the Christmas break.

48% of people in Wales who have tried to give something up didn’t achieve their goals.

Taking up new interests is happier experience

Although people in Wales are much more likely to try to give something up than they are to take up a new interest in the New Year, those who take something up are more likely to be happy about their experience.

Neil Aubin, a Prince’s Trust Online Volunteer from Cardiff, had a string of broken resolutions to his name when he decided to switch his focus to giving something back. He now volunteers as a business mentor for The Trust’s Enterprise programme through Prince’s Trust Online, which is a new platform that enables young people across the UK to access some of the charity’s services online.

Neil says: “I was never one to either make or keep New Year’s resolutions. Then one Christmas break I read and watched a documentary about The Prince’s Trust. It struck a chord with me about wanting to do something for young people who are just getting started. I wanted to give something back, to do something for others rather than just running around busily dealing with my own world. So I applied and started volunteering for The Prince’s Trust Cymru”

Don’t Give Up – Give Back

Despite the benefits volunteering has to offer, people in Wales are four times more likely to consider taking up a form of exercise or a creative hobby in the New Year than they are to volunteer for charity[2]. While 50% of respondents would consider volunteering for charity, half of those who don’t do so currently (46%) say they don’t have enough time for it, and more than one in ten (15%) feel there is a lack of volunteering opportunities in Wales that appeal to them.

Fortunately, the rise of initiatives such as Prince’s Trust Online, which makes volunteering more accessible by opening up roles that flex around busy lifestyles, is making these common concerns less relevant. The online availability of the platform means volunteers can now mentor young people remotely from anywhere in the UK, with a commitment of just two hours per week, making it easier for them to integrate volunteering into their lives.

As Neil points out, “It has been a very rewarding and interesting thing to do. It is fantastic to support the young people direct (whilst having the wider support of The Prince’s Trust Cymru), and inspiring to see their confidence grow as their businesses get off the ground. I thoroughly recommend it.”

The Prince’s Trust is actively looking for people to volunteer as e-mentors to support the growth of Prince’s Trust Online, which launched in July 2017. The charity today launches its Don’t Give Up – Give Back campaign, which calls on people to ditch giving things up for January in favour of giving something back by volunteering for Prince’s Trust Online.

The Trust’s e-mentors provide invaluable one-to-one support for young people, enabling their mentees to learn the skills they need for self-employment or employment. In order to support

63% of those people in Wales who take something up feel happy about their experience, compared to 40% of those who give something up.

Of those people in Wales who have taken up a new interest in January before, 58% are most likely to take up a type of exercise, 37% are most likely to take up a creative hobby and only 14% are most likely to take up a volunteering role with a charity.

One young person, e-mentors typically commit around two hours per week over a period of three months, and are able to schedule this time around any existing commitments.

To find out more about volunteering opportunities with The Prince’s Trust, visit www.princes-trust.org.uk.