The first data from the 2021 census provide a vivid picture of the population of England and Wales, but also of the dynamic changes affecting different cities. Here are some highlights:
-
If youth is the future, then the best places to see it include Barking and Dagenham, Slough, Luton and Birmingham, which have the highest share of 0-19 year olds in the population, ranging from 31.5% for Lai to 28.5% for Birmingham, compared to 23.1% in England and Wales combined.
-
One in three people in North Norfolk is now 65 or older, making it the oldest place in England and Wales in terms of people of retirement age.
-
Between 1981 and 2021, South Staffordshire had the largest increase in the proportion of people over 65 in England or Wales. This age group made up only 10.1% of the population four decades ago. It is now 25.2%. Between 2011 and 2021, Richmondshire in North Yorkshire had the largest increase in the share of people aged 65 and over, rising from 17.5% of the population in 2011 to 23.5% in 2021.
-
The populations of Sunderland, Blackpool and Swansea have shrunk over the past decade, and there have also been declines in London’s central Westminster, Camden and Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC) districts. Sunderland shrank by 0.6%, while Westminster and RBKC shrank by 6.8% and 9.5% respectively, although Westminster City Council estimates that this may be due to the fact that around 100,000 residents of London may not have been registered, as the census was done during the blockade and residents may have lived elsewhere.
-
The population of the largest city in the United Kingdom, London, grew by 7.7%, from 8.2 million to 8.8 million – slightly larger than Kuala Lumpur, but smaller than Tehran.
-
Outside London, the most densely populated areas are Luton, Portsmouth and Leicester. More than 5,000 people are crammed into every square kilometer in these cities.
-
RBKC has the highest proportion of women anywhere in England and Wales – 53.3%, and the City of London has the highest percentage of men – 55.8%. Males outnumber females in only 11 municipalities, including Rutland, Richmondshire and Salford. Rushmore and East Staffordshire offer a precise even division of the sexes.
Add Comment