Most British adults struggle to find time for activities outside work, poll claims

Many surveyed want an extra hour and 17 minutes' in the day

(Getty)

Cooking from scratch, shopping for a new wardrobe and even just doing a decent food shop are among the things people in Britain want to do - but don’t have time for.

A study of 2,000 adults found busy lifestyles mean niggling DIY jobs, recycling, exercising and catching up with our parents on a quick phone call taking a back seat.

Others wish they had more time to help out with their local community and finish off a book which they started months ago.

More than one in four would love more minutes in the day to start up their own allotment to grow fruits and vegetables, with nearly two-fifths wanting to make more time to get some fresh air.

And one in five wished they had a spare moment to take better care of the environment, but instead find themselves rushed off their feet and cutting corners as a result.

Mike Pickering, co-operative social responsibility manager at The Midcounties Co-operative, which commissioned the research, said: “Our research found we really are a nation of ‘busy Brits’, never finding the time to do things which might make us feel more positive or make a difference to our world or communities.

“We particularly wanted to understand if people think they have enough time to adopt more eco-conscious behaviour.

“So it was interesting to see that 45 per cent wished they had more time to be ‘greener’ such as shopping around for environmentally friendly products, reducing their single-use plastic waste or simply walking instead of driving.

“To help overcome the challenge posed by a shortage of time, we’re continuing our 1Change initiative to reduce single-use plastic by encouraging people to make 1Change in 1Minute to demonstrate that even the shortest amount of time can be used to make a collective impact.”

The study also found more than one in four adults work long hours, and even by the time they get home, 17 per cent have too many commitments outside of their job to get any time to themselves.

More than a fifth reckon their lack of time is because they are always running around after everyone else, while a fifth said parenting and taking care of their kids sucks up their free time.

But because of their busy routines, 44 per cent feel like they let others down with friends the most likely to suffer, followed by partners and children.

In fact, a fifth reckon they have been so busy that they have completely blanked helping someone out, with nearly a third not even having a moment to stop and help someone they knew.

As a result, more than half wish there was more time in the day to support their loved ones.

If given the opportunity, it’s not just one more minute people in Britain desire, as the research found the nation would love an extra hour and 17 minutes a day to accomplish more than they already do.

The additional seconds would make people feel happier, more relaxed and calmer - although one in 20 reckon they might even get bored by a longer day.

Worryingly though, 68 per cent still think about everything else on their to-do list in the rare moments of calm they do have.

And 54 per cent admitted to having an “I’ll do it tomorrow” attitude.

It also emerged 46 per cent feel the same when letting someone down.

Nearly a fifth of those polled, via OnePoll, feel a sense of guilt when making a convenience purchase in single-use packaging, and one in four feel guilt-ridden for eating unhealthy food when strapped for time, or spending more money than they should.

Mike Pickering added: “Our 1Change initiative to reduce single-use plastic kicked off earlier this year and has seen many people pledge what change they will make to help tackle this challenge.

“As we know time is tight, we’re now encouraging people to make a 1Change in 1Minute pledge to see what we can achieve collectively by just committing a short amount of time to the cause.”

SWNS