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United Kingdom - 2011 Census data

In the UK, since 1801, the Census has collected information on the population every 10 years, with the exception of 1941 due to the Second World War. Recently, the first set of data from the 2011 Census has been made available.

Towards the end of 2012 the first set of data from the 2011 Census was released to the public and provided detailed information on the population and household estimates for the UK.

What the 2011 data tells us:

United Kingdom

  • The population of the UK was estimated to be 63.2 million.
  • There were 31 million men and 32.2 million women in the UK.
  • The estimated populations of the four constituent countries of the UK are 53 million people in England, 5.3 million in Scotland, 3.1 million in Wales, and 1.8 million people in Northern Ireland.
  • The population of the UK increased by 4.1 million (7 per cent) between 2001 and 2011.

Scotland

  • The population of Scotland was estimated to be 5,295,000 – the highest ever recorded.
  • Of the population 48.48 per cent (2,567,000) were male and 51.52 per cent (2,728,000) were female.
  • The population growth rate between the 2001 and 2011 Census was the fastest growth ever recorded between two census years in the last century.

Edinburgh

  • The estimated population (rounded to the nearest thousand) for the City of Edinburgh was 477,000 (up from 448,624 in 2001).
  • The City of Edinburgh population is estimated to represent approximately 9.0 per cent of Scotland’s total 2011 population.

Future releases

Planned releases from the Census 2011 covering England and Wales are due on 30 January and end of February 2013.

The second release from Scotland’s Census 2011 is due in March 2013. This will include population estimates by five-year age bands and sex for Scotland and each council area along with household estimates for Scotland and each council area. Further updates/releases are planned:

  • May 2013 – population estimates (unrounded) by single year of age and sex for Scotland and each council area.
  • Summer 2013 – Key and Quick statistics tables; Census Profiles; Population and Household estimates by postcode and Geography products.
  • Autumn 2013 – Local Characteristics tables.
  • Winter 2013 – Detailed Characteristics tables.
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