Census 2011 - ONS Briefing

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The 2011 Census first release containing population and household estimates for England and Wales by sex and single years of age, and figures by sex and five-year age groups for local authorities is now available.

Key Findings:

• On census night the population in England and Wales was 56.1 million, 53.0 million in England and 3.1 million in Wales. This was the largest the population had ever been.
• There were 27.6 million men and 28.5 million women in England and Wales.
• The census population estimate for England and Wales was just under 0.5 million higher than the population estimate rolled forward from 2001.
• The population of England and Wales has grown by 3.7 million in the 10 years since the last census, rising from 52.4 million in 2001, an increase of 7.1 per cent. This was the largest growth in the population in England and Wales in any 10-year period since census taking began, in 1801. It compares with a rise in population of 1.6 million between 1991 and 2001.
• The median age of the population in England and Wales was 39. For men, the median age was 38 and for women it was 40. In 1911, the median age was 25.
• The percentage of the population aged 65 and over was the highest seen in any census at 16.4 per cent, that is one in six people in the population was 65 and over.
• There were 430,000 residents aged 90 and over in 2011 compared with 340,000 in 2001 and 13,000 in 1911.
• In 2011, there were 3.5 million children under five in England and Wales, 406,000 more than in 2001.
• In England and Wales the average population density was 371 people per square kilometre; however in London this figure was 5,200. If the London figures were excluded, the average population density for the rest of England and Wales was 321 people per square kilometre.
• There were 23.4 million households in England and Wales on census night. The average household size was 2.4 people per household in 2011, just over half of the 4.3 residents per household in 1911.
• All regions saw population growth between 2001 and 2011, with the highest growth in London, the East of England and the East Midlands.
• In terms of percentage increases, the local authorities with the largest growth in population were Tower Hamlets and Newham in London. Manchester showed the third highest percentage growth in population since 2001.