The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is looking into new ways it can gather information on the attitudes to working of older people, to avoid “missed opportunities” when policy making.

The study, Planning and preparing for later life: A social survey feasibility study, said the risks of not conducting the survey are “substantial”, particularly around collating bespoke evidence regarding policies which have already been implemented, including pension freedoms and the causes behind auto-enrolment opt-outs.

Conducted by NatCen Social Research, the study also looks into improving data around optimising pension information, advice and guidance as well as requirements of the self-employed.

Tweeting on its releases, Association of British Insurers head of retirement policy, Rob Yuille, said: This study from NatCen Social Research and The Pensions Policy Institute is a welcome step - since pension freedoms we've called for better data about people's retirement decisions, why they make them, and their wider circumstances.”

According to the DWP, it is also looking to understand why people do or do not choose specific products, how they fit into their retirement plans and how they engage with them.

On the importance of data around the self-employed, the study suggested that a relatively large sample size of 9,000 is considered.

One way in which the DWP could meet these requirements is through “data fusion”, in order to “ information needs and maximise value from existing data sources”.

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