Demography of the United Kingdom

Population pyramid in 2010

According to the 2011 census, the total population of the United Kingdom is around 63,182,000. It is the third-largest in the European Union (behind Germany and France) and the 22nd-largest in the world. Its overall population density is one of the highest in the world at 674 people per square mile, due to the particularly high population density in England (currently over 1000 people per square mile). Almost one-third of the population lives in England's southeast which is predominantly urban and suburban, with about 8 million in the capital city of London, the population density of which is just over 13,400 per square mile.

The United Kingdom's extremely high literacy rate (99%) is attributable^{[citation needed]} to universal public education introduced for the primary level in 1870 (Scotland 1872, free 1890) and secondary level in 1900. Parents are obliged to have their children educated from the ages of 5 to 16 (with legislation passed to raise this to 18), and can continue education free of charge in the form of A-Levels, vocational training or apprenticeship to age 18. About 40% of British students go on to post-secondary education (18+). The Church of England and the Church of Scotland function as the national churches in their respective countries, but all the major religions found in the world are represented in the United Kingdom.

The UK's population is predominantly White British. Being located close to continental Europe, the countries that formed the United Kingdom were subject to many invasions and migrations, especially from Scandinavia and the continent, including Roman occupation for several centuries. Historically, British people were thought to be descended mainly from the different ethnic stocks that settled there before the 11th century; pre-Celtic, Celtic, Anglo-Saxon, Viking and Norman. The geneticist Stephen Oppenheimer carried out an extensive research of the British Isles, finding that the Celtic and Anglo-Saxon influx had little effect, with the majority of British ethnicity tracing back from an ancient Palaeolithic Iberian migration, now represented by the Basques so that 75% of the modern British population could (in theory) trace their ancestry back 15,000 years. Although Celtic languages are partially spoken in Scotland, Cornwall, and Northern Ireland, the predominant language overall is English. In North and West Wales, Welsh is widely spoken as a first language, but much less so in the more English dominated South East of the country.

History

Three sets of demographic statistics are useful to governments and others concerned with their nations’ political and economic stability. The first is an enumeration of the number of inhabitants distinguished by age, sex, and occupation. The second involves a continuous record of population trends from the registration of births, marriages, and burials. The third is documentation of the extent of internal and external migration.

England and Wales

Main articles: Demography of England and Demography of Wales

Before 1801, England had none of these except for the civil registration of births, marriages, and burials briefly attempted under the Commonwealth (1653–1660) and an even more short-lived initiative of the same kind in 1694 in connection with the attempt to raise a tax on the occasion of every birth, marriage, and death—paupers excepted. At that time, the chief source of information on the demography was provided by parish registration of baptisms, marriages, and burials that had occurred in the parish churches, supplemented by information on mortality in the Bills of Mortality that were published for certain large towns and by inferences drawn from various counts of taxpayers.

The article focuses on the reliability of the parochial registration system and the way in which it was exploited by the state as measured against the state’s objectives for establishing it in 1538. These objectives were rarely achieved. By the end of the 18th century, the parish registers were falling short of providing a national system of registration. Neither had the registers at any time provided the requisite detail to allow the verification of age, lineal descent, or right of inheritance. They had not been used as a way of raising revenue except briefly between 1694 and 1705. Moreover, the Anglican Church was extremely lax about the enforcement of its own regulations regarding the appropriate time for registering baptisms, burials, and marriages.

The ability of the registration system to fulfil these original objectives can be measured in terms of the breadth of its coverage and the quality of the information provided. Each category can be further subdivided. For example, the breadth of coverage can be defined to include the speed with which parishes throughout the country commenced the registration of baptisms, marriages, and burials; the percentage of the population whose vital events went unrecorded even in the parishes that established registers; and the success of the incumbents and churchwardens in preserving the registers completed by their predecessors.

The quality of the recording can be assessed based on the amount of information offered about individuals mentioned in the registers, the extent to which that information was provided in a standard form across the country, and the clarity of the presentation (whether separate registers for baptisms, marriages, and burials were maintained). The accuracy of the work undertaken by the parochial clergy as unpaid servants of the state in providing Rickman with the totals of baptisms, marriages, and burials can also be assessed. Each of these aspects will now be considered in turn before an assessment of the overall effectiveness of the registration system is attempted.

Cromwell’s brief instructions establishing the registration system did not specify what sort of register book was to be provided. Not unnaturally, most parishes chose to use paper rather than the dearer, but more durable, parchment. In 1597, the Convocation of the clergy, bishops, and archbishop of the province of Canterbury found it necessary to order parchment copies of all entries from old paper registers, instructions that were soon reissued in 1603.

The first census held throughout the UK was organised in 1801. England and Wales started the civil registration of births, marriages, and deaths in 1837. The first attempt by the state to compile statistics on migration was included in the census of 1841.

United Kingdom

During the Industrial Revolution, the life expectancy of children increased dramatically. The proportion of the children born in London who died before the age of five decreased from 74.5 per thousand in 1730–1749 to 31.8 per thousand in 1810–1829. According to Robert Hughes in The Fatal Shore, the population of England and Wales, which had remained steady at 6 million from 1700 to 1740, rose dramatically after 1740.

The first Census in 1801 revealed that the population of Great Britain was 10.5 million. In 1800 the population of Ireland was between 4.5 and 5.5 million.

The 1841 UK Census counted the population of England and Wales to be 15.9 million. Ireland's population was 8.2 million in 1841. The population of Scotland was 2.6 million.

The Great Irish Famine, which began in the 1840s, caused the deaths of one million Irish people, and caused over a million to emigrate. Mass emigration became entrenched as a result of the famine and the population continued to decline until the mid-20th century.

The population of England had almost doubled from 16.8 million in 1851 to 30.5 million in 1901. Ireland’s population decreased rapidly, from 8.2 million in 1841 to less than 4.5 million in 1901.

Population

See also: Population of the countries of the United Kingdom

The estimated population of the United Kingdom in the 2011 census was 63.182 million of whom 31.029m were men and 32.153m women.

Based on the 2011 census the population of England was 53.012m (84% of the UK), Scotland was estimated at 5.295m (8.4%), Wales was 3.063m (4.8%) and Northern Ireland 1,811m (2.9%).

Part	Population (2011)	Percentage (2011)
England	53,012,456	83.9	83.9
Scotland	5,295,000	8.4	8.4
Wales	3,063,456	4.8	4.8
Northern Ireland	1,810,863	2.9	2.9
United Kingdom	63,182,000	100	100

There are 11 urban areas which exceed 500,000 inhabitants, these being centred on London, Birmingham, Glasgow, Leeds and Bradford, Sheffield, Liverpool, Manchester, Belfast, Bristol, Newcastle upon Tyne and Nottingham.

Age structure

The key features of the age distribution profile for the UK were summarised in December 2012 by the Office for National Statistics in terms of peaks and wide bands of the pyramid reflecting high numbers of births in previous years particularly for people aged 60–64 born following the Second World War and those aged 40–49, born during the 1960s baby boom. There is a smaller number ofchildren aged five to nine years than ten years ago which is a consequence of low numbers of births at the beginning of the 20th century, and the broadening of the pyramid in the 0–4 years category is due to a higher numbers of births in recent years. At older ages, females outnumber males, reflecting the higher life expectancy of females. At younger ages there are more males than females, reflecting that there are slightly more boys than girls born each year.

Age structure for each five year band

Ages attained (years)	Population	% of total
0–4	3,914,000	6.2
5–9	3,517,000	5.6
10–14	3,670,000	5.8
15–19	3,997,000	6.3
20–24	4,297,000	6.8
25–29	4,307,000	6.8
30–34	4,126,000	6.5
35–39	4,194,000	6.6
40–44	4,626,000	7.3
45–49	4,643,000	7.3
50–54	4,095,000	6.5
55–59	3,614,000	5.7
60–64	3,807,000	6.0
65–69	3,017,000	4.8
70–74	2,463,000	3.9
75–79	2,006,000	3.2
80–84	1,496,000	2.4
85–89	918,000	1.5
90+	476,000	0.8

Source: 2011 Census: Usual resident population by five-year age group and sex, local authorities in the United Kingdom, Accessed 23 December 2012

Age structure for men and women in 2011

Age group	Population			%
	Male (million)	Female (million)	Total (million)
0–14	5.681	5.419	11.100	17.6
15–64	20.751	20.953	41.704	66.0
65+	4.597	5.781	10.378	16.4
All ages	31.029	32.153	63.182	100

Source: Table 1 2011 Census: Usual resident population by five-year age group and sex, United Kingdom and constituent countries, Accessed 20 December 2012]

UK Population change over time

Population levels at census dates and average adjustments annually (thousands)

United Kingdom	Population at start of period	Overall annual change	Births	Deaths	Natural change	Net migration and other changes
1901 – 1911	38,237	385	1,091	624	467	-82
1911 – 1921	42,082	195	975	689	286	-92
1921 – 1931	44,027	201	824	555	268	-67
1931 – 1951	46,038	213	793	603	190	22
1951 – 1961	50,225	258	839	593	246	12
1961 – 1971	52,807	312	962	638	324	-12
1971 – 1981	55,928	42	736	666	69	-27
1981 – 1991	56,357	108	757	655	103	5
1991 – 2001	57,439	161	731	631	100	61
2001 – 2008	59,113	324	722	588	134	191

Population changes 1960 - 2012

	Average population (in thousands)	Live births	Deaths	Natural change	Crude birth rate (per 1,000)	Crude death rate (per 1,000)	Natural change (per 1,000)	Fertility rates
1960	52,164	918,286	604,592	313,694	17.5	11.5	6.0	2.71
1961	52,589	944,365	635,507	308,858	17.9	12.0	5.9	2.80
1962	53,049	975,635	632,951	342,684	18.3	11.9	6.4	2.88
1963	53,458	990,160	654,300	335,860	18.5	12.2	6.3	2.91
1964	53,807	1,014,672	610,508	404,164	18.8	11.3	7.5	2.95
1965	54,170	992,275	627,567	369,708	18.3	11.5	6.8	2.86
1966	54,496	979,587	644,193	335,394	17.9	11.8	6.1	2.77
1967	54,800	961,700	620,385	341,315	17.5	11.3	6.2	2.68
1968	55,086	947,231	652,135	295,099	17.2	11.8	5.4	2.61
1969	55,337	920,258	661,509	258,749	16.6	11.9	4.7	2.50
1970	55,546	903,907	652,817	251,090	16.2	11.7	4.5	2.43
1971	55,780	901,650	644,042	257,608	16.1	11.5	4.6	2.41
1972	56,012	833,993	679,211	154,782	14.9	12.1	2.8	2.20
1973	56,159	779,545	664,722	114,823	13.9	11.8	2.1	2.04
1974	56,229	737,138	666,393	70,745	13.1	11.9	1.2	1.92
1975	56,230	697,518	661,803	35,715	12.4	11.8	0.6	1.81
1976	56,220	675,526	680,096	-4,570	12.0	12.3	-0.3	1.74
1977	56,203	657,038	656,042	996	11.7	11.7	0.0	1.68
1978	56,183	686,952	668,747	18,205	12.2	11.9	0.3	1.75
1979	56,209	734,572	672,641	61,931	13.1	12.0	1.1	1.86
1980	56,284	753,708	659,862	93,846	13.4	11.7	1.7	1.89
1981	56,343	730,836	658,524	72,312	13.0	11.7	1.3	1.82
1982	56,324	719,155	662,801	56,354	12.8	11.8	1.0	1.78
1983	56,301	721,467	659,101	62,366	12.8	11.7	1.1	1.77
1984	56,362	729,617	644,918	84,699	12.9	11.4	1.5	1.76
1985	56,481	750,728	670,656	80,072	13.2	11.8	1.4	1.79
1986	56,618	754,982	660,465	94,517	13.3	11.6	1.7	1.78
1987	56,743	775,617	644,342	131,275	13.6	11.3	2.3	1.81
1988	56,860	787,556	649,185	138,371	13.8	11.4	2.4	1.82
1989	56,996	777,825	657,733	119,552	13.6	11.5	2.1	1.79
1990	57,156	798,612	641,799	156,813	13.9	11.2	2.7	1.83
1991	57,338	792,506	646,181	146,325	13.7	11.2	2.5	1.82
1992	57,511	780,799	634,288	146,561	13.5	10.9	2.6	1.79
1993	57,649	761,526	657,852	103,674	13.1	11.3	1.8	1.76
1994	57,788	750,480	627,637	122,843	12.9	10.7	2.2	1.74
1995	57,943	731,882	645,493	86,389	12.5	11.0	1.5	1.71
1996	58,094	733,163	636,024	97,139	12.6	10.9	1.7	1.73
1997	58,239	726,622	629,746	96,876	12.5	10.8	1.7	1.73
1998	58,394	716,889	629,172	87,717	12.8	10.8	1.8	1.71
1999	58,579	699,979	632,062	67,917	11.9	10.8	1.1	1.68
2000	58,785	679,029	608,366	70,663	11.5	10.3	1.2	1.64
2001	58,999	669,123	602,268	66,855	11.3	10.2	1.1	1.63
2002	59,217	668,777	606,214	62,563	11.3	10.2	1.5	1.65
2003	59,437	695,549	611,185	84,364	11.7	10.3	1.4	1.71
2004	59,699	715,996	583,082	132,914	12.0	9.7	2.3	1.77
2005	60,059	722,549	582,663	139,886	12.0	9.7	2.3	1.79
2006	60,409	748,563	572,224	176,339	12.4	9.4	3.0	1.85
2007	60,781	772,245	574,687	197,558	12.7	9.4	3.3	1.90
2008	61,191	794,383	579,697	214,686	12.9	9.4	3.5	1.96
2009	61,595	790,204	559,617	230,587	12.8	9.1	3.7	1.94
2010	62,027	807,272	561,666	245,606	13.0	9.0	4.0	1.98
2011	62,499	807,776	552,232	255,544	12.8	8.8	4.0	1.91
2012	62,990

Social issues

Fertility

In 2008 the UK's total fertility rate (TFR) was 1.96 children per woman, below the replacement rate, which in the UK is 2.075. In 2001, the TFR was at a record low of 1.63, but it has increased each year since. The TFR was considerably higher during the 1960s 'baby boom', peaking at 2.95 children per woman in 1964.

In 2010, England and Wales TFR rose to 2.00. TFR in England in 2009 was 1.96. In Scotland however TFR is lower: in 2009 it was 1.77. Northern Ireland had the highest TFR in 2009, at 2.04; in Wales TFR was 1.93.

The TFR for British residents also varies by country of birth. In England and Wales in 1996, people born in the UK had a TFR of 1.67, India 2.21 and Pakistan and Bangladesh 4.90, for example.

Statistics for 2011 live births in England and Wales:

• total fertility rate was 1.98

• 47.2% of children were born to un-married women

• average (mean) age of mother at birth was 29.7 years

• 25.5% of children were born to mothers born outside the UK

Other statistics:

• 64.4% of children born in England and Wales in 2005 were recorded as White British.

• in Scotland, in 2007, 78.4% of live births were to mothers born in Scotland, 9.2% to mothers born in England, 1.6% in Poland, 1.1% in Pakistan, 0.9% Northern Ireland, 0.7% Germany, 0.6% India, 0.5% Ireland, and 6.9% other countries

• in 2009, in England and Wales, 25% of births were to women under 25, while 20% of births were to women 35 and over

• 52% of babies born in 2012 in Northern Ireland were to mothers aged 30 or over
• 6% of babies born in Scotland in 2010 were to mothers under 20; 18% to mothers 20-24; 27% to mothers 25-29; 28% to mothers 30-34; 16% to mothers 35-39; 4% to mothers 40 and over

• 51.3% of babies born in Scotland in 2012 were born to unmarried mothers

• in England and Wales, in 2009, of the women born in 1964: 20% did not have any children; 12% had 1 child; 38% had 2 children; 19% had 3 children; 10% had 4+ children

LGBT

A British journal published in 2004 that approximately 5% of the British population is gay. A government figure estimated in 2005 that there are 3.6 million gay people in Britain comprising 6 percent of the population.

The Gender Identity Research and Education Society (GIRES) estimated in 2009 that "56,000 might potentially be transsexual people". They note that it's very difficult to make a reliable estimate. This would be 0.09% of the population at the time.

Main article: Demographics of sexual orientation: United Kingdom

The UK Census of 2011 gives the following figures

• 1.1 per cent of the surveyed UK population, approximately 545,000 adults, identified themselves as Gay or Lesbian,

• 0.4 per cent of the surveyed UK population, approximately 220,000 adults, identified themselves as Bisexual,

• 0.3 per cent identified themselves as ‘Other’,

• 3.6 per cent of adults stated ‘Don’t know’ or refused to answer the question,

• 0.6 per cent of respondents provided ‘No response’ to the question.

• 2.7 per cent of 16 to 24 year olds in the UK identified themselves as Gay, Lesbian or Bisexual compared with 0.4 per cent of 65 year olds and over.

Ethnicity

Main articles: Ethnic groups in the United Kingdom, Foreign-born population of the United Kingdom, and Classification of ethnicity in the United Kingdom

Estimated foreign-born population by country of birth, April 2007 – March 2008.

Estimated foreign-nationals population by country of nationality, April 2007 – March 2008.

From the United Kingdom Census 2001:

Ethnic group	Population	% of total*
White British	50,366,497	85.67%
White (other)	3,096,169	5.27%
Indian	1,053,411	1.8%
Pakistani	977,285	1.6%
White Irish	691,232	1.2%
Mixed race	677,117	1.2%
Black Caribbean	7005565876000000000565,876	1.0%
Black African	485,277	0.8%
Bangladeshi	283,063	0.5%
Other Asian (non-Chinese)	247,644	0.4%
Chinese	247,403	0.4%
Other	230,615	0.4%
Black (others)	97,585	0.2%
* Percentage of total UK population

Religion

Main article: Religion in the United Kingdom

The traditional religion in the United Kingdom is Christianity. In England the established church is the Church of England (Anglican). In Scotland, the Church of Scotland (a Presbyterian Church) is regarded as the 'national church' but there is not an established church.

In Wales there is no established church, with the Church in Wales having been disestablished in 1920. Likewise, in Ireland the Church of Ireland was disestablished in 1871. In Northern Ireland and similarly in parts of Scotland, there is a sectarian divide between Roman Catholic and Protestant communities.

The table below shows the most recent census data (2001) regarding religion:

The pie chart shows the religions of the United Kingdom.

Religion	Number	%
Christian	42,079,000	71.6%
No religion	9,104,000	15.5%
Muslim	1,591,000	2.7%
Hindu	559,000	1.0%
Sikh	336,000	0.6%
Jewish	267,000	0.5%
Buddhist	152,000	0.3%
Other religion	179,000	0.3%
Not stated	4,289,000	7.3%
Total religious	45,163,000	76.8%

Rather than select one of the specified religions offered on the 2001 Census form, many people chose to write in their own religion. Some of these religions were reassigned to one of the main religions offered, predominantly within the Christian group.

In England and Wales, 151,000 people belonged to religious groups which did not fall into any of the main religions. The largest of these were Spiritualists (32,000) and Pagans (31,000), followed by Jain (15,000), Wicca (7,000), Rastafarian (5,000), Bahà'ì (5,000) and Zoroastrian (4,000).

Although the Census 2001 also recorded 390,000 Jedi Knights, making Jedi the fourth-largest "religion" in the UK, this does not confer them any official recognition. In fact, all returns with "Jedi Knight" were classified as "No religion", along with Atheist, Agnostic, Heathen and those who ticked "Other" but did not write in any religion.

An Office for National Statistics survey of 450,000 Britons in 2010 confirmed that 71% are Christian, 4% are Muslim and 21% lack a religious affiliation.

Languages

Main article: Languages of the United Kingdom

The United Kingdom has no official language. The dominant language, spoken as a first language by 95% of the population, is English. Scots is spoken by around 500,000 people in Scotland and 30,000 in Northern Ireland, where it is called Ulster Scots. Welsh is spoken by around 600,000 people. Scottish Gaelic is spoken by about 60,000 speakers, mostly in Scotland. Cornish is spoken by around 2,500 people. Irish is spoken by about 106,844 speakers in Northern Ireland.

The Polish minority in the United Kingdom estimated over 600,000 people speak mostly Polish at home, Poles are mainly Polish-born immigrants to the UK, although many are those who settled in Britain after the second world war and their descendants. The French language is spoken in the Channel Islands. British Sign Language is also common.

Education

Main articles: Education in England, Education in Northern Ireland, Education in Scotland, and Education in Wales

King's College, University of Cambridge

Each country of the United Kingdom has a separate education system, with power over education matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland being devolved.

The Secretary of State for Education and the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills are responsible to the UK Parliament for education in England, though the day to day administration and funding of state schools is the responsibility of Local Education Authorities. Universal state education in England and Wales was introduced for primary level in 1870 and secondary level in 1900. Education is mandatory from ages five to sixteen (15 if born in late July or August). The majority of children are educated in state-sector schools, only a small proportion of which select on the grounds of academic ability. Despite a fall in actual numbers, the proportion of children in England attending private schools has risen to over 7%.

Just over half of students at the leading universities of Cambridge and Oxford had attended state schools. State schools which are allowed to select pupils according to intelligence and academic ability can achieve comparable results to the most selective private schools: out of the top ten performing schools in terms of GCSE results in 2006 two were state-run grammar schools. England has 4 Universities ranked amongst the top 10 in the 2011 THES - QS World University Rankings.

Marischal College, University of Aberdeen

In Scotland, the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning is responsible to the Scottish Parliament for education, with day to day administration and funding of state schools being the responsibility of Local Authorities. Scotland first legislated for universal provision of education in 1696. The proportion of children in Scotland attending private schools is just over 4% though it has been rising slowly in recent years. Scottish students who attend Scottish universities pay neither tuition fees nor graduate endowment charges as the fees were abolished in 2001 and the graduate endowment scheme was abolished in 2008.

The National Assembly for Wales has responsibility for education in Wales. A significant number of students in Wales are educated either wholly or largely through the medium of Welsh and lessons in the language are compulsory for all until the age of 16. There are plans to increase the provision of Welsh Medium schools as part of the policy of having a fully bi-lingual Wales.

The Northern Ireland Assembly is responsible for education in Northern Ireland though responsibility at a local level is administered by 5 Education and Library Boards covering different geographical areas.

The UK has some of the top universities in the world with Cambridge, Oxford, London and Edinburgh ranked amongst the top 20 in the 2011 THES - QS World University Rankings.

Forecast

Further information: Immigration to the United Kingdom

By 2050, the UK's population is expected to reach 77 million people according to forecasts set in 2010. In 2012, reports show that by 2035, 23% of the population will be above 65, and that the average age will be 42.2 years, an increase from the current 39.7 years. This figure would place the UK as the fifth lowest average population age in the EU, despite currently being one of the fastest ageing populations in the world. The change into being one of the youngest populations in Europe Is largely based on high immigration levels and the recent baby boom.^{[citation needed]}

Year	Total Population	Population Aged 75+	Percentage Aged 75+
2015	64.8 million	5.4 million	8.33%
2020	67.2 million	6.1 million	9.08%
2025	69.4 million	7.3 million	10.52%
2030	71.4 million	8.1 million	11.34%
2035	73.2 million	8.9 million	12.16%
2050	77 million	9 million	11.69%
2070	82 million	11-12 million	13.41 to 14.63%

^{[citation needed]}

See also

• Demography of Scotland
• Demography of Northern Ireland
• Lists of UK locations with large ethnic minority populations
• Genetic history of Britain

Bibliography

• "Census 2001". Religion in Britain. Retrieved 6 September 2005. 
• "Census 2001". 390,000 Jedis There Are. Retrieved 6 September 2005. 
• Census 2001 website
• Abstract (1833). Abstract of the Answers and Returns made pursuant to an act passed in the eleventh year of the reign of His Majesty King George IV intituled an act for taking an account of the population of Great Britain, and the increase and diminution thereof. Population Register Abstract 1831. British Parliamentary Papers, 38.
• Arkell, T. (1992). An Examination of the Poll Taxes of the late Seventeenth Century, the Marriage Duty Act and Gregory King.
• K. Schürer, & T. Arkell (eds.), Surveying the People: the interpretation and use of document sources for the study of population in the late seventeenth century (pp. 142–177). Oxford: Leopard’s Hill Press.
• Boulton, J. (1992). "The Marriage Duty Act and parochial registration in London, 1695–1706". In: K. Schürer, & T. Arkell (eds.), Surveying the People: the interpretation and use of document sources for the study of population in the late seventeenth century; pp. 222–252. Oxford: Leopard’s Hill Press.
• Boulton, J. (1993). "Clandestine marriage in London: an examination of the neglected urban variable", in: Urban History; 20, pp. 191–210.