Techno takeover in British kitchens

Often criticised as being a nation obsessed with TV dinners, Britons are taking entertainment in the kitchen to a new level with over one in four of Britons, 28% having a television or stereo in their kitchen.

However, as the kitchen becomes the new hub of the household, almost as many people, 24% don’t even have more traditional items such as a freezer or washing machine in their kitchen, according to the latest research from Legal & General.

With modern technology visibly encroaching on the kitchen, many households are seeing the room turn into the entertainment zone of the home and, as a result, are relegating some of the more traditional items and appliances associated with cooking and eating to other areas of the home.

Legal & General’s Changing Face of British Homes’ research asked a GB representative sample of over 4,000 people, what items they had in their kitchen. The results reveal a change in function for the role of the kitchen with people adapting the kitchen to suit their modern lifestyles.

Televisions in the modern kitchen are becoming a familiar sight with one in five households, 20% claiming to have one in their kitchen. TVs are particularly popular with multi generation households at 25% and these were also the least likely to have their freezer in their kitchen, 27%

Same gender couples living together emerged as the technoholics. They are just as likely to have a stereo as they do a microwave, 23% and 24% respectively in their kitchen, and a quarter, 25% say they also have a TV.

One in ten, 10% of young professionals claim not have an oven in their kitchen and are more likely to have a stereo, 32%. In fact, overall people are more likely to have a stereo, 28% than a washing machine 25% in their kitchens.

Traditional kitchen items not in the kitchen:

Kitchen item - % of kitchens without this item
Dryer 70%
Dishwasher 66%
Washing machine 25%
Freezer 24%
Microwave 12%
Fridge 7%
Cooker / Oven 6%

Garry Skelton, Marketing Director at Legal & General’s general insurance business commented: “It is interesting to see the role of the kitchen evolving from that of its traditional association with food and cooking appliances. This clearly reflects people’s increasingly diverse lifestyles. The research has unveiled an emerging trend for people to surround themselves with the technology in the kitchen that is elsewhere in the house.

"Legal & General would advise homeowners to make sure their home contents insurance reflects these changes and is regularly updated so they have the right cover to meet their changing needs. And to not forget the value of those more traditional kitchen items, that may now be in the garage or a utility room.”