Dataset population: Persons, Households

Census 2021 rounded population and household estimates for local authorities and regions in England and Wales, by sex and five-year age group.

Population and household characteristics by built-up area (BUA) size classification and individual BUAs, England (excluding London) and Wales, Census 2021. Data are available at a country, BUA size classification and individual BUA level.

Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.

The 2021 UK Census was the 23rd official census of the United Kingdom. The UK Census is generally conducted once every 10 years, and the 2021 censuses of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland took place on 21 March 2021. In Scotland, the decision was made to move the census to March 2022 because of the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The censuses were administered by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) and National Records of Scotland (NRS), respectively. In England and Wales, Census 2021 was the first census with a digital-first design, encouraging participants to respond online rather than on a paper questionnaire.

Topics covered in the 2021 UK Census included:

• demography and migration
• ethnic group, national identity, language and religion
• labour market and travel to work
• housing
• education
• health, disability, and unpaid care
• Welsh and other languages
• UK armed forces veterans
• sexual orientation and gender identity.

A census of population is held every ten years in the UK, in England and Wales it is undertaken by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), in Scotland by the National Records of Scotland (NRS) and in Northern Ireland by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA).

In England, Wales and Northern Ireland the latest census was taken on Sunday 21st March 2021. Due to issues around COVID-19, the census in Scotland was held a year later on 28th June 2022.

The census asks questions about you, your household and your home. In doing so, it helps to build a detailed snapshot of our society. Information from the census helps the government and local authorities to plan and fund local services, such as education, doctors' surgeries and roads.

Topics covered by the data released by the Census agencies include -

Demography and migration, UK armed forces veterans, ethnicity, national identity, language, religion, labour market, housing, sexual orientation, gender identity, education, health, disability and unpaid care.

The data in this series covers aggregate data at geographies from country level down to Output Area. Due to disclosure control (data can be blurred, changed or withheld to protect anonymity) not all datasets are available at all levels.

Main Topics:

- Accommodation and Housing

- Demography

- Health

- Identity

- Labour Market

- Language

- Ethnicity

- Education

- Disability and Unpaid Care

- Sexual Orientation

- Gender Identity

- Religion

- Armed Forces

This dataset provides Census 2021 estimates that classify usual residents aged 16 years and over in England and Wales by year last worked and by age. The estimates are as at Census Day, 21 March 2021.

As Census 2021 was during a unique period of rapid change, take care when using this data for planning purposes. Read more about this quality notice.

Estimates for single year of age between ages 90 and 100+ are less reliable than other ages. Estimation and adjustment at these ages was based on the age range 90+ rather than five-year age bands. Read more about this quality notice.

Area type

Census 2021 statistics are published for a number of different geographies. These can be large, for example the whole of England, or small, for example an output area (OA), the lowest level of geography for which statistics are produced.

For higher levels of geography, more detailed statistics can be produced. When a lower level of geography is used, such as output areas (which have a minimum of 100 persons), the statistics produced have less detail. This is to protect the confidentiality of people and ensure that individuals or their characteristics cannot be identified.

Coverage

Census 2021 statistics are published for the whole of England and Wales. Data are also available in these geographic types:

• country - for example, Wales
• region - for example, London
• local authority - for example, Cornwall
• health area – for example, Clinical Commissioning Group
• statistical area - for example, MSOA or LSOA

Employment history

Classifies people who were not in employment on Census Day into:

• Not in employment: Worked in the last 12 months
• Not in employment: Not worked in the last 12 months
• Not in employment: Never worked

Age

A person’s age on Census Day, 21 March 2021 in England and Wales. Infants aged under 1 year are classified as 0 years of age.

The census is undertaken by the Office for National Statistics every 10 years and gives us a picture of all the people and households in England and Wales. The most recent census took place in March of 2021.The census asks every household questions about the people who live there and the type of home they live in. In doing so, it helps to build a detailed snapshot of society. Information from the census helps the government and local authorities to plan and fund local services, such as education, doctors' surgeries and roads.Key census statistics for Leicester are published on the open data platform to make information accessible to local services, voluntary and community groups, and residents. There is also a dashboard published showcasing various datasets from the census allowing users to view data for Leicester and compare this with national statistics.Further information about the census and full datasets can be found on the ONS website - https://www.ons.gov.uk/census/aboutcensus/censusproductsCountry of birthThis dataset provides Census 2021 estimates that classify usual residents in England and Wales by their country of birth. The estimates are as at Census Day, 21 March 2021.Definition: The country in which a person was born. For people not born in one of in the four parts of the UK, there was an option to select "elsewhere". People who selected "elsewhere" were asked to write in the current name for their country of birth.

The census is undertaken by the Office for National Statistics every 10 years and gives us a picture of all the people and households in England and Wales. The most recent census took place in March of 2021.The census asks every household questions about the people who live there and the type of home they live in. In doing so, it helps to build a detailed snapshot of society. Information from the census helps the government and local authorities to plan and fund local services, such as education, doctors' surgeries and roads.Key census statistics for Leicester are published on the open data platform to make information accessible to local services, voluntary and community groups, and residents.Further information about the census and full datasets can be found on the ONS website - https://www.ons.gov.uk/census/aboutcensus/censusproducts

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.

Area type

Census 2021 statistics are published for a number of different geographies. These can be large, for example the whole of England, or small, for example an output area (OA), the lowest level of geography for which statistics are produced.

For higher levels of geography, more detailed statistics can be produced. When a lower level of geography is used, such as output areas (which have a minimum of 100 persons), the statistics produced have less detail. This is to protect the confidentiality of people and ensure that individuals or their characteristics cannot be identified.

Coverage

Census 2021 statistics are published for the whole of England and Wales. Data are also available in these geographic types:

• country - for example, Wales
• region - for example, London
• local authority - for example, Cornwall
• health area – for example, Clinical Commissioning Group
• statistical area - for example, MSOA or LSOA

Ethnic group (20 categories)

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.

UK residents by individual countries of birth and citizenship, broken down by UK country, local authority, unitary authority, metropolitan and London boroughs, and counties. Estimates from the Annual Population Survey.

Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.

The Great Britain Historical Database has been assembled as part of the ongoing Great Britain Historical GIS Project. The project aims to trace the emergence of the north-south divide in Britain and to provide a synoptic view of the human geography of Britain at sub-county scales. Further information about the project is available on A Vision of Britain webpages, where users can browse the database's documentation system online.

These data were originally collected by the Censuses of Population for England and Wales, and for Scotland. They were computerised by the Great Britain Historical GIS Project.

The 19th century censuses gathered data only on "occupations", meaning individuals' roles in the workplace, but the changing nature of work created a need for separate counts by "employer's business". The first such industry statistics resulted from the 1911 census, but the first data included here are from 1931. The 1931 data, unlike the later data, are tabulated by place of residence, as data on journeys to work were not gathered by that census.

Main Topics:

Numbers of workers in each industry, usually cross-classified by gender. The industrial classifications used change substantially over time, and by modern standards generally go into great detail about the manufacturing sector. For 1931 and 1951, one set of tables provide a detailed classification for counties and large towns and another provides a simplified classification for small towns and rural districts.

This file contains the National Statistics Postcode Lookup (NSPL) for the United Kingdom as at November 2024 in Comma Separated Variable (CSV) and ASCII text (TXT) formats. To download the zip file click the Download button. The NSPL relates both current and terminated postcodes to a range of current statutory geographies via ‘best-fit’ allocation from the 2021 Census Output Areas (national parks and Workplace Zones are exempt from ‘best-fit’ and use ‘exact-fit’ allocations) for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. It supports the production of area-based statistics from postcoded data. The NSPL is produced by ONS Geography, who provide geographic support to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and geographic services used by other organisations. The NSPL is issued quarterly. (File size - 191 MB).N.B. From the next release (February 2025) this will be known simply as the National Statistics Postcode Lookup (NSPL).[10/12/2024: Updated to correct county codes for all UAs in England to pseudo code E99999999.]

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).

Office for National Statistics’ national and subnational mid-year population estimates for England and Wales for a selection of administrative and census areas by age (in 5 year age brackets) for 2012 to 2020. The data is source is from ONS Population Estimates. Find out more about this dataset here.This data is issued at (BGC) Generalised (20m) boundary type for:Country,Region,Upper Tier Local Authority (2021),Lower Tier Local Authority (2021),Middle Super Output Area (2011), andLower Super Output Area (2011).If you require the data at full resolution boundaries, or if you are interested in the range of statistical data that Esri UK make available in ArcGIS Online please enquire at content@esriuk.com.The Office for National Statistics (ONS) produces annual estimates of the resident population of England and Wales at 30 June every year. The most authoritative population estimates come from the census, which takes place every 10 years in the UK. Population estimates from a census are updated each year to produce mid-year population estimates (MYEs), which are broken down by local authority, sex and age. More detailed information on the methods used to generate the mid-year population estimates can be found here.For further information on the usefulness of the data and guidance on small area geographies please see here.The currency of this data is 2021.MethodologyThe total and 5-year breakdown population counts are reproduced directly from the source data. The age range estimates have been calculated from the published estimates by single year of age. The percentages are calculated using the gender specific (total, female or male) total population count as a denominator except in the case of the male and female total population where the total population is used to give female and male proportions.This dataset will be updated annually, in two releases.Creator: Office for National Statistics. Aggregated age groupings and percentages calculated by Esri UK._The data services available from this page are derived from the National Data Service. The NDS delivers thousands of open national statistical indicators for the UK as data-as-a-service. Data are sourced from major providers such as the Office for National Statistics, Public Health England and Police UK and made available for your area at standard geographies such as counties, districts and wards and census output areas. This premium service can be consumed as online web services or on-premise for use throughout the ArcGIS system.Read more about the NDS.

The census is undertaken by the Office for National Statistics every 10 years and gives us a picture of all the people and households in England and Wales. The most recent census took place in March of 2021.The census asks every household questions about the people who live there and the type of home they live in. In doing so, it helps to build a detailed snapshot of society. Information from the census helps the government and local authorities to plan and fund local services, such as education, doctors' surgeries and roads.Key census statistics for Leicester are published on the open data platform to make information accessible to local services, voluntary and community groups, and residents. There is also a dashboard published showcasing various datasets from the census allowing users to view data for all MSOAs and compare this with Leicester overall statistics.Further information about the census and full datasets can be found on the ONS website - https://www.ons.gov.uk/census/aboutcensus/censusproductsProficiency in EnglishThis dataset provides Census 2021 estimates that classify usual residents in England and Wales by their proficiency in English. The estimates are as at Census Day, 21 March 2021.Definition: How well people whose main language is not English (English or Welsh in Wales) speak English.This dataset provides details for the MSOAs of Leicester city.

In 2023, the population of the United Kingdom reached 68.3 million, compared with 67.6 million in 2022. The UK population has more than doubled since 1871 when just under 31.5 million lived in the UK and has grown by around 8.2 million since the start of the twenty-first century. For most of the twentieth century, the UK population steadily increased, with two noticeable drops in population occurring during World War One (1914-1918) and in World War Two (1939-1945). Demographic trends in postwar Britain After World War Two, Britain and many other countries in the Western world experienced a 'baby boom,' with a postwar peak of 1.02 million live births in 1947. Although the number of births fell between 1948 and 1955, they increased again between the mid-1950s and mid-1960s, with more than one million people born in 1964. Since 1964, however, the UK birth rate has fallen from 18.8 births per 1,000 people to a low of just 10.2 in 2020. As a result, the UK population has gotten significantly older, with the country's median age increasing from 37.9 years in 2001 to 40.7 years in 2022. What are the most populated areas of the UK? The vast majority of people in the UK live in England, which had a population of 57.7 million people in 2023. By comparison, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland had populations of 5.44 million, 3.13 million, and 1.9 million, respectively. Within England, South East England had the largest population, at over 9.38 million, followed by the UK's vast capital city of London, at 8.8 million. London is far larger than any other UK city in terms of urban agglomeration, with just four other cities; Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, and Glasgow, boasting populations that exceed one million people.

Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.

The aggregate data produced as outputs from censuses in Great Britain provide information on a wide range of demographic and socio-economic characteristics. They are predominantly a collection of aggregated or summary counts of the numbers of people or households resident in specific geographical areas possessing particular characteristics.

Data can be accessed through Data Explorer (to subset data) and CKAN (to bulk download data).

Citation: Registrar General for England and Wales; General Register Office Scotland (2002): 1971 Census aggregate data (Edition: 2002). UK Data Service. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5257/census/aggregate-1971-1

Main Topics:

The 100% Sample files contain information about: total population, private households and communal establishments, immigrants, country of birth, economic activity, numbers of children, parental origin, visitors present, car availability, housing occupation density, household tenure, household amenities, household types and related topics.

The 10% Sample files contain information about: socio-economic composition, migrants, working women, dependent children, travel to work, and related topics.

Mid-year (30 June) estimates of the usual resident population for 2011 Census Output Areas (OAs) in the East Midlands region of England.