Who we are. How we live. What we do.
What the 2011 Census tells us about society
What were you doing on 27 March 2011? Hopefully, filling in the 10-yearly census questionnaire that went to every household in England and Wales.
Now the numbers have been crunched and a steady stream of data from the Office for National Statistics covers everything from the number, sex and ages and ethnicity of the population, the languages we speak, to our living conditions, health, occupations, education, housing and how we travel to work.
How can census statistics help you?
Our population’s characteristics are always changing and the census shares facts about the society’s make-up. As a journalist and academic recently put it “The 2011 Census revealed a treasure-trove of facts we did not know about Britain”.
For community journalists the census is an unrivalled source of information and it’s free. You can research your target audiences or get a better feel for an area – and you don’t have to be a statistician. Census data is available down to very small geographical areas. So, as well as information about the population at national level, you can also drill down to individual local authorities and even to postcodes.
So how do we measure up in Wales?
The last decade has been one of profound change. On census day the population in Wales was 3.1 million. This was the largest the population had ever been. We grew by 5.3 per cent and this was the largest growth in the population, between censuses, since 1921. While the difference between births and deaths led to a small increase in the population, migration accounted for over 90 per cent of the population increase between 2001 and 2011. This includes both international migration and migration from elsewhere within the UK.
It comes as no surprise that we live in an ageing society. The 2011 Census reveals that nearly one in five people in Wales (19 per cent, 563,000) is aged 65 or over; the number of over-65s has increased by 57,000 over the decade. Even more striking, the number of people aged over 90 increased by more than 31 per cent from 19,000 in 2001 to 25,000 in 2011. This has huge implications for the state, say for health care and pensions, but also for families and individuals. Some 370,230 (12.1 per cent) of us provided unpaid care for someone with an illness or disability.
The 2011 Census also explored the diversity of UK society in much more detail with new questions on national identity, passports held, immigrants’ intended length of stay and main languages spoken. This information now provides one of the most detailed pictures of the true nature of diversity across the country.
Nearly one fifth (19 per cent, 562,000) of people in Wales aged three and over reported that they could speak Welsh. And nearly two thirds (66 per cent, 2.0 million) of people expressed their national identity as Welsh in 2011; of these 218,000 also reported that they considered themselves to be British. You might have seen it in the news. Other than English or Welsh, Polish is now the second most reported main language in Wales (0.6 per cent, 17,000), followed by Arabic (0.2 per cent, 7,000).
But there is so much more and now is the perfect time to take advantage of the 2011 Census data. All the latest census information – on ethnicity, languages and religious affiliations, changing family structures, educational qualifications or types of housing and ownership – can only be a good thing for community journalists.
Getting the latest census statistics is easy
While dozens of statistical tables are derived from the census, help is available when it comes to finding the information that you need. Alongside the statistics themselves, ONS publishes Statistical Bulletins that summarise the key issues for each set of figures published. There are also a number of ‘stories’ that offer some analysis of some themes such as ethnicity, national identity, languages and religion or labour market, housing and qualifications. There is even a selection of interactive maps and graphics that make finding the data you need easier and more interesting.
To explore the range of census data, visit the Office for National Statistics website at www.ons.gov.uk/census, or contact Census Customer Services (01329 444972 or [email protected])
Some useful statistics
2011 Census, Population and Household Estimates for Wales
2011 Census, Key Statistics for Unitary Authorities in Wales
2011 Census, Key Statistics and Quick Statistics for Electoral Divisions and Output Areas in Wales
Data for your neighbourhood: Enter your postcode in the NEIGHBOURHOOD SUMMARY box to see the data summary for your local area
http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/
