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Around one in seven adults said they did not always or often socially distance while meeting up with others over the last seven days, figures show.
Some 85% of adults reported always or often socially distancing while meeting up with people outside their household, support or childcare bubble, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.
Some 14% responded “sometimes”, “not very often” and “never”, rising to 24% of adults aged 16-29.
The most common reasons were because they were seeing friends (59%) and family members (47%), the ONS said.
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It said there may be “valid, essential reasons” why people were unable to maintain social distancing and it does not necessarily mean they were breaking the coronavirus rules.
Overall, 10% of adults said they had met up indoors with someone not from their household, support or childcare bubble in the last seven days.
More than half (57%) had done so outside.
The ONS found that younger adults were more likely not to socially distance when meeting up with friends.
Two thirds of adults aged 16-29 said they did not socially distance because they were with friends, compared to 38% of adults aged 70 and over.
Older adults were more likely to not socially distance from family – 55% of adults aged 70 and over who did not always or often socially distance gave this reason, compared to 38% of 16-29-year-olds.