According to the 2021 Census, 81.7% of the population of England and Wales was white, 9.3% Asian, 4.0% black, 2.9% mixed and 2.1% from other ethnic groups.

Experimental statistics for population estimates by ethnic group broken down into age and sex at a national regional level for England and Wales.

According to the 2021 Census, London was the most ethnically diverse region in England and Wales – 63.2% of residents identified with an ethnic minority group.

This dataset provides Census 2021 estimates that classifies the 19 tick-box ethnic groups, by age, sex, and age and sex.

These datasets provide a breakdown of ethnic group by age and sex, ethnic group by age and ethnic group by sex

Information from Census 2021 on the sex and age characteristics of ethnic groups and how this has changed since 2011 in England and Wales.

Since 1991, the census for England and Wales has included a question about ethnic group.

In 2021, the ethnic group question had two stages. Firstly, a person identified through one of the following five high-level ethnic groups:

• "Asian, Asian British, Asian Welsh"

• "Black, Black British, Black Welsh, Caribbean or African"

• "Mixed or Multiple ethnic groups"

• "White"

• "Other ethnic group"

Secondly, a person identifies through 1 of the 19 available response options, which include categories with write-in response options.

According to the 2021 Census, the population of England and Wales was more diverse in younger generations than in older ones. As of this year, approximately ** percent of Generation Alpha in England and Wales, the youngest generation, belonged to the white ethnic group, compared with ** percent of the Pre-War generation.

These datasets provide a breakdown of detailed ethnic group by age and sex, ethnic group by age and ethnic group by sex

Information from Census 2021 on the sex and age characteristics of ethnic groups and how this has changed since 2011 in England and Wales.

Since 1991, the census for England and Wales has included a question about ethnic group.

Ethnic group The ethnic group that the person completing the census feels they belong to. This could be based on their culture, family background, identity or physical appearance.

Respondents could choose 1 out of 19 tick-box response categories, including write-in response options.

Usual resident A usual resident is anyone who on Census Day, 21 March 2021 was in the UK and had stayed or intended to stay in the UK for a period of 12 months or more, or had a permanent UK address and was outside the UK and intended to be outside the UK for less than 12 months.

This dataset represents ethnic group (19 tick-box level) by economic activity status and by occupation, for England and Wales combined. The census data are also broken down by age and by sex for each subtopic.

The ethnic group that the person completing the census feels they belong to. This could be based on their culture, family background, identity, or physical appearance. Respondents could choose one out of 19 tick-box response categories, including write-in response options.

Total counts for some population groups may not match between published tables. This is to protect the confidentiality of individuals' data. Population counts have been rounded to the nearest 5 and any counts below 10 are suppressed, this is signified by a 'c' in the data tables.

This dataset shows population counts for usual residents aged between 16 to 64 years old only. This is to focus on ethnic groups differences among the working age. Population counts in these tables may be different from other publications which use different age breakdowns.

"Asian Welsh" and "Black Welsh" ethnic groups were included on the census questionnaire in Wales only, these categories were new for 2021.

This dataset provides Census 2021 estimates that classify usual residents in England and Wales by ethnic group. The estimates are as at Census Day, 21 March 2021.

For quality information in general, please read more from here.

For specific quality information about labour market, please read more from here

Ocupation counts classifiy people who were in employment between 15 March and 21 March 2021, by the SOC code that represents their current occupation. (Occupation is classified using the Standard Occupation Classification 2020 version). Details of SOC code can be found here.

Ethnic Group (19 tick-box level)

These are the 19 ethnic group used in this dataset:

• Asian, Asian British or Asian Welsh
  • Bangladeshi
  • Chinese
  • Indian
  • Pakistani
  • Other Asian
• Black, Black British, Black Welsh, Caribbean or African
  • African
  • Caribbean
  • Other Black
• Mixed or Multiple ethnic groups
  • White and Asian
  • White and Black African
  • White and Black Caribbean
  • Other Mixed or Multiple ethnic groups
• White
  • English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish or British
  • Gypsy or Irish Traveller
  • Irish
  • Roma
  • Other White
• Other ethnic group
  • Arab
  • Any other ethnic group

Dataset population: Persons

Ethnic group

Ethnic group classifies people according to their own perceived ethnic group and cultural background.

This topic contains ethnic group write-in responses without reference to the five broad ethnic group categories, e.g. all Irish people, irrespective of whether they are White, Mixed/multiple ethnic groups, Asian/Asian British, Black/African/Caribbean/Black British or Other ethnic group, are in the "Irish" response category. This topic was created as part of the commissioned table processing.

About this dataset

Context

The dataset tabulates the population of England by race. It includes the population of England across racial categories (excluding ethnicity) as identified by the Census Bureau. The dataset can be utilized to understand the population distribution of England across relevant racial categories.

Key observations

The percent distribution of England population by race (across all racial categories recognized by the U.S. Census Bureau): 67.17% are white, 24.82% are Black or African American, 0.31% are American Indian and Alaska Native, 4.02% are some other race and 3.67% are multiracial.

Content

When available, the data consists of estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2018-2022 5-Year Estimates.

Racial categories include:

• White
• Black or African American
• American Indian and Alaska Native
• Asian
• Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
• Some other race
• Two or more races (multiracial)

Variables / Data Columns

• Race: This column displays the racial categories (excluding ethnicity) for the England
• Population: The population of the racial category (excluding ethnicity) in the England is shown in this column.
• % of Total Population: This column displays the percentage distribution of each race as a proportion of England total population. Please note that the sum of all percentages may not equal one due to rounding of values.

Good to know

Margin of Error

Data in the dataset are based on the estimates and are subject to sampling variability and thus a margin of error. Neilsberg Research recommends using caution when presening these estimates in your research.

Custom data

If you do need custom data for any of your research project, report or presentation, you can contact our research staff at research@neilsberg.com for a feasibility of a custom tabulation on a fee-for-service basis.

Inspiration

Neilsberg Research Team curates, analyze and publishes demographics and economic data from a variety of public and proprietary sources, each of which often includes multiple surveys and programs. The large majority of Neilsberg Research aggregated datasets and insights is made available for free download at https://www.neilsberg.com/research/.

Recommended for further research

This dataset is a part of the main dataset for England Population by Race & Ethnicity. You can refer the same here

This file contains the following variables: Measure, Source, Time, Geography, Geography_code, Ethnicity, Ethnicity_type, Regional, Population, Ethnic Population, Total Ethnic Population, Value1, Value1_type, Value2, Value2_type

Source England and Wales 2021 Census

Type of data Survey data

Type of statistic National Statistics

Publisher Office for National Statistics

Publication frequency 10 years

Purpose of data source The Census takes place every 10 years. Census data gives the government the information it needs to plan and run public services. It is also used as a benchmark for other statistical estimates, and can help illustrate differences between various groups in the population.

Publication release date: 22 December 2022

From: Office for National Statistics

The data measures the ethnic diversity of England and Wales by region and type of area, for example urban and rural. Data comes from the 2011 Census and is published on 'Ethnicity facts and figures'.

Between 2023 and 2024, over ******* percent of all those registered with type 2 diabetes in England were Asian or Asian British. This statistic displays the share of individuals registered with diabetes in England in 2023/24, by ethnicity.

According to the 2021 Census, 62.9% (37.5 million) of the overall population of England and Wales was of ‘working age’ (between 16 and 64 years old).

National and subnational mid-year population estimates for the UK and its constituent countries by administrative area, age and sex (including components of population change, median age and population density).

Data on population coverage and ethnic breakdowns over time for the feasibility research on producing statistics on the population by ethnic group for England from administrative data.

In 2024/25, over ******* stop and searches were performed by the police in England and Wales on White people, compared with almost ****** on Black people, and ****** on Asian people.

This dataset provides Census 2021 estimates that classifies the detailed (287) ethnic groups, by age, sex, and age and sex.

Data on population coverage and ethnic breakdowns, comparing different versions of the feasibility research on producing statistics on the population by ethnic group for England from administrative data.