Scottish Household Survey 2025 findings: Trust in Public Institutions

Summary of key findings

This report draws on key data from the Scottish Household Survey (SHS, 2025) to explore key findings on trust in seven public institutions at a national level in Scotland. It also gives additional detail across various protected characteristics, and for people living in different places, such as urban and rural settings.

The report found:

Trust was highest in the Health System and the Police

• In 2025, adults in Scotland were most likely to express trust in the Health System and the Police (both 74%).[1]
• Trust was lowest for the Scottish Government (46%) and Local Government (50%).
• Between 2023 and 2025, trust increased slightly for the Justice System, remained stable for four out of the seven institutions (the Police, Scottish Government, Civil Service and Education System), and fell slightly for the Health System and Local Government.

Distrust was highest in the Scottish Government and Local Government

• In 2025, adults in Scotland were most likely to distrust the Scottish Government (45%) and Local Government (41%).
• Distrust was lowest for the Police (19%), the Education System (20%) and the Civil Service (22%).
• Compared with 2023, distrust increased most for Local Government (from 35% to 41%) and the Health System (from 18% to 24%).

More adults expressed trust than distrust in every institution apart from the Scottish Government

• ‘Net trust’ is the difference between the percentage of people who expressed trust in an institution, and those who expressed distrust.
• More adults expressed trust than distrust in every institution apart from the Scottish Government.
• The Police had the highest net trust (+54 percentage points), with 74% of adults expressing trust and 19% expressing distrust.
• Net trust in the Scottish Government was neutral, with equal proportions of adults expressing trust and distrust.

Trust varied across population groups

• Adults aged 16 to 34 generally expressed higher levels of trust than those aged 35 to 59 and those aged 60 and over, while disabled adults expressed lower trust and higher distrust than non-disabled adults across all institutions.
• Disabled adults were less likely than non-disabled people to express trust in all seven public institutions. The largest differences were for the Civil Service, Justice System and Education System (13 percentage points each).
• Minority ethnic groups generally reported among the highest levels of trust and lowest levels of distrust across the institutions surveyed.
• Adults living in the 20% most deprived areas expressed lower levels of trust across all institutions than those living in the 20% least deprived areas.
• Differences between men and women were generally modest, although men generally reported slightly higher levels of trust than women across most institutions.
• Differences by urban-rural classification were less pronounced, with no clear or consistent patterns in trust levels.

Trust in institutions declined overall between 2022 and 2025, while distrust increased and views have become less neutral. However, between 2023-2025 the data suggest some stabilisation in trust levels.

• Trust in all seven institutions was lower in 2025 than in 2022. The largest declines were for the Scottish Government and Local Government (both down nine percentage points).
• Changes in trust since 2023 were generally smaller than those seen earlier in the period, with trust levels increasing for the Justice System and remaining stable for four of the seven institutions (the Police, Scottish Government, Civil Service and Education System). This suggests that the decline in trust may be stabilising.
• Distrust increased for six of the seven institutions between 2023 and 2025, with the largest increases for Local Government and the Health System.
• Over the same period, the proportion of adults selecting "don't know" decreased for most institutions.
• Taken together, these findings suggest that public opinion may be moving towards more defined positions of either trust or distrust and away from more neutral positions.

Trust in Public Institutions 2022-2025 – Visual Summary

In 2025, trust was highest in the Health System and Police, while distrust was highest in the Scottish Government and Local Government.

How much trust?   % of adults who trust each institution (2025) 

Highest distrust  Scottish Government 45%  |  Local Government 41%

Context matters Comparisons should be interpreted with caution, as uncertainty varied across institutions (from 22% to 2%).

How much trust?   % of adults who trust each institution (2022–2025) 

Note: The y-axis starts at 40% in order to show variation more clearly.