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

This file contains the National Statistics Postcode Lookup (NSPL) for the United Kingdom as at February 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 and Northern Ireland. Scotland has the 2011 Census Output Areas

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 - 176 MB).Updated 26/02/2024 to remove the BUASD11 field included in error.

This dataset provides Census 2021 estimates that classify households with usual residents in England and Wales by various household characteristics, including variations in tenure by household size, household family composition, multi-generational households, and household level information on the age, ethnic group, religion, employment status and occupation of household members. The estimates are as at Census Day, 21 March 2021.

These datasets are part of Household characteristics by tenure, England and Wales: Census 2021, a release of results from the 2021 Census for England and Wales. Figures may differ slightly in future releases because of the impact of removing rounding and applying further statistical processes.

Total counts for some household groups may not match between published tables. This is to protect the confidentiality of households' data. Household counts have been rounded to the nearest 5 and any counts below 10 were suppressed; this is signified by a 'c' in the data tables.

This dataset uses middle layer super output area (MSOA) and lower layer super output area (LSOA) geography boundaries as of 2021 and local authority district geography boundaries as of 2022.

In this dataset, the number of households in an area is broken down by different variables and categories. If you were to sum the counts of households by each variable and category, it may not sum to the total of households in that area. This is because of rounding, suppression and that some tables only include data for certain household groups.

In this dataset, variables may have different categories for different geography levels. When variables are broken down by more categories, they may not sum to the total of the higher level categories due to rounding and suppression.

Social rent is not separated into “housing association, housing co-operative, charitable trust, registered social landlord” and “council or local authority districts” because of respondent error in identifying the type of landlord. This is particularly clear in results for areas which have no local authority districts housing stock, but there are households responding as having a “council or local authority districts” landlord type. Estimates are likely to be accurate when the social rent category is combined.

The Census Quality and Methodology Information report contains important information on:

• the uses and users of the census data
• the strengths and limitations of the census data
• the quality characteristics of the census data
• the methods used to produce the census data

Quality notes can be found here

Housing quality information for Census 2021 can be found here

Household

A household is defined as one person living alone, or a group of people (not necessarily related) living at the same address who share cooking facilities and a living room, sitting room or dining area. This includes all sheltered accommodation units in an establishment (irrespective of whether there are other communal facilities) and all people living in caravans on any type of site that is their usual residence; this will include anyone who has no other usual residence elsewhere in the UK. A household must contain at least one person whose place of usual residence is at the address. A group of short-term residents living together is not classified as a household, and neither is a group of people at an address where only visitors are staying.

Usual resident

For Census 2021, a usual resident of the UK is anyone who, on Census Day, 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.

Household reference person (HRP)

A person who serves as a reference point, mainly based on economic activity and age, to characterize a whole household. The person is not necessarily the member of the household in whose name the accommodation is owned or rented.

Tenure

Whether a household owns or rents the accommodation that it occupies. Owner-occupied accommodation can be: owned outright, which is where the household owns all of the accommodation; owned with a mortgage or loan; or part owned on a shared ownership scheme. Rented accommodation can be private rented, for example, rented through a private landlord or letting agent; social rented through a local council or housing association; or lived in rent free, which is where the household does not own the accommodation and does not pay rent to live there, for example living in a relative or friend’s property or live-in carers or nannies. This information is not available for household spaces with no usual residents.

_Household size _

The number of usual residents in the household.

Household family composition

Households according to the relationships between members. Single-family households are classified by the number of dependent children and family type (married, civil partnership or cohabiting couple family, or lone parent family). Other households are classified by the number of people, the number of dependent children and whether the household consists only of students or only of people aged 66 years and over.

Multi-generational households

Households where people from across more than two generations of the same family live together. This includes households with grandparents and grandchildren whether or not the intervening generation also live in the household.

_Household combination of resident age _

Classifies households by the ages of household members on 21 March 2021. Households could be made up of residents aged 15 years and under; residents aged 16 to 64 years; residents aged 65 years and over; or a combination of these.

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 one out of 19 tick-box response categories, including write-in response options. For more information, see ONS's Ethnic group, England and Wales: Census 2021 bulletin

Household combination of resident ethnic group

Classifies households by the ethnic groups household members identified with.

Religion

The religion people connect or identify with (their religious affiliation), whether or not they practice or have belief in it. This question was voluntary and includes people who identified with one of 8 tick-box response options, including 'No religion', alongside those who chose not to answer this question. For more information, see ONS's Religion, England and Wales: Census 2021 bulletin

Household combination of resident religion

Classifies households by the religious affiliation of household members who chose to answer the religion question. The classifications may include residents who did not answer the religion question.

Household combination of resident employment status

Classifies households by the employment status of household members aged 16 years and over between 15 and 21 March 2021. Households could be made up of employed residents (employee or self-employed); unemployed residents (looking for work and could start within two weeks, or waiting to start a job that had been offered and accepted); economically inactive residents (unemployed and had not looked for work between 22 February to 21 March 2021, or could not start work within two weeks); or a combination of these.

Occupation

"Classifies what people aged 16 years and over do as their main job. Their job title or details of activities they do in their job and any supervisory or management responsibilities form this classification. This information is used to code responses to an occupation using the Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) 2020. It classifies people who were in employment between 15 March and 21 March 2021, by the SOC code that represents their current occupation. The lowest level of detail available is the four-digit SOC code which includes all codes in three, two and one digit SOC code levels. Occupation classifications include :

• manager, director or senior official occupations (such as Elected Representatives and Senior Police Officers)
• professional occupations (such as Doctors and Teachers)
• associate professional and technical occupations (such as Police Officers and Counsellors)
• administrative or secretarial occupations (such as Office Managers and Receptionists)
• skilled trade occupations (such as Electricians and Chefs)
• caring, leisure or other service occupations (such as Teaching Assistants and Home Carers)
• sales and customer service occupations (such as Cashiers and Shopkeepers)
• process, plant and machine operatives (such as Bus Drivers and Scaffolders)
• elementary occupations (such as Postal Workers and Waiters)"

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.

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/censusproductsEthnicityThis 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.Definition: 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.This dataset includes data relating to Leicester City and England overall.

These datasets are part of "What life looked like for different groups in England and Wales Census 2021", a release of results from the 2021 Census for England and Wales.

Census 2021 occupation data for people aged 16 years and older and in employment, by age and sex, is part of The occupations and industries most dependent on older and younger workers: March 2021, a release of results from the 2021 Census for England and Wales. Figures may differ slightly in future releases because of the impact of removing rounding and applying further statistical processes.

Some shorthand may be used in this workbook. Individual estimates suppressed with "[c]" relate to statistics based on a small number of respondents (< 10). Such values have been suppressed on quality grounds and to maintain confidentiality.

Armed forces personnel and defence employees are included in the census and recorded as usually resident using the standard definitions. The instructions given to personnel on how to respond to the census mean that this group cannot be reliably identified in census data on industry and occupation. Information on the size and characteristics of the UK armed forces population is produced by the Ministry of Defence (MOD).

Quality assurance information can be found here

Occupation

Occupation is classified using the Standard Occupation Classification 2020 version. Details can be found here.

Industry

Industry is classified using the Standard Industrial Classifications 2007 version. Details can be found here.

Age

This is someone’s age on their last birthday on Census Day, 21 March 2021 in England and Wales.

On 28 June 2022 ONS released the first results from the 2011 Census of England and Wales comprising for each local authority the estimated population at census day (21 March 2021) and the number of households. Population estimates are by five-year age band and sex. Estimates of responses rates for each local authority were also published. Read our blog post which describes how the census data relates to other population estimates and some of the pitfalls to avoid when interpreting the numbers.

Decomposition analysis of changes in self-reported health between 2011 and 2021, including counts, crude rates and results from logistic regression models.

This dataset provides Census 2021 estimates that classify household spaces in England and Wales by accommodation type and by household size. The estimates are as at Census Day, 21 March 2021.

The ONS have made changes to housing definitions since the 2011 Census. Take care if you compare Census 2021 results for this topic with those from the 2011 Census. 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

Accommodation type

The type of building or structure used or available by an individual or household.

This could be:

• the whole house or bungalow
• a flat, maisonette or apartment
• a temporary or mobile structure, such as a caravan

More information about accommodation types

Whole house or bungalow:

This property type is not divided into flats or other living accommodation. There are three types of whole houses or bungalows.

Detached:

None of the living accommodation is attached to another property but can be attached to a garage.

Semi-detached:

The living accommodation is joined to another house or bungalow by a common wall that they share.

Terraced:

A mid-terraced house is located between two other houses and shares two common walls. An end-of-terrace house is part of a terraced development but only shares one common wall.

Flats (Apartments) and maisonettes:

An apartment is another word for a flat. A maisonette is a 2-storey flat.

Household size

The number of people in the household.

Visitors staying at an address do not count to that household’s size.

Census 2021 data on the highest qualification levels of the economically active population, by region and local authority. These tables also include a composite index score used to compare the qualification levels of the workforces in different areas, and the most similar local authorities in terms of qualification level profile.

Figures are individually rounded to the nearest 5. Figures may not add exactly due to this rounding. The composite index score is based on unrounded counts, so when calculated based on rounded counts will not be exactly the same.

Figures are for economically active usual residents aged 16 and above. The current workforce are economically active people who are employed and unemployed (including those who are looking for work and could start in the next two weeks, and those who are waiting to start a job that has been offered and accepted).

Figures are based on geography boundaries as of 1 April 2022.

Quality notes can be found here

Economically Active (referred to as ‘total workforce’ in data tables)

People aged 16 years and over are economically active if, between 15 March and 21 March 2021, they were

• in employment (an employee or self-employed)
• unemployed, but looking for work and could start within two weeks
• unemployed, but waiting to start a job that had been offered and accepted

Highest Level of Qualification

The highest level of qualification is derived from the question asking people to indicate all qualifications held, or their nearest equivalent This may include foreign qualifications where they were matched to the closest UK equivalent.

See a more detailed description here

Highest Level of Qualification Index Score

For Census 2021, we use a qualification rank index score to compare how highly qualified population groups are. It converts a person's highest qualification into a single metric and creates an average rank score for the population.

See more details here

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

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).

Headline results for Cheshire East, North West, England and other councils in England & Wales. This dataset is from the 2021 Census first release by the Office for National Statistics, more details are available on the council's website. Also includes the numbers of new dwellings, taken from national government flow indicators - live table 122. Estimates of census population change for 2011 to 2021 are included for Cheshire East, our nearest statistical neighbours (CIPFA), the North West and National. CIPFA Group is the fifteen most similar councils, across a range of demographic and place characteristics, also known as our CIPFA nearest neighbours.

This analysis uses Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation (WIMD) 2019 and Census 2021 data to estimate the proportions of population groups living in areas within each WIMD 2019 deprivation grouping. It identifies where people from various groups are most likely to live in terms of small area (Lower Super Output Area or LSOA) relative deprivation and whether this varies across groups. This analysis presents an overview of how different populations were distributed across Wales at the time of the 2021 Census. It does not take into account the interaction of different characteristics with each other or with deprivation. For example, older age groups have a smaller likelihood of living in the most deprived areas, which may affect populations with different age profiles such as certain ethnic groups, veterans or those in poor health. Results should be interpreted in simple terms of how likely the population was to live in the various deprivation areas of Wales at the time of the 2021 Census, rather than attempting to establish a relationship between specific characteristics and deprivation.