We know these numbers because of the results of censuses taken almost every ten years in the intervening years.

Census data can be an interesting snapshot that has the potential to tell us something about the times in which we live.

More than 24 million households across England and Wales completed census questionnaires in the spring of last year, with a record 89% of responses completed online.

The first results of this census, carried out on March 21, came out this week, and show that the population of England and Wales has increased by 3.5 million over the last decade.

This despite the count in the context of both Brexit, which saw new restrictions on immigration, and the coronavirus pandemic.

Indeed, the census was taken at a time when coronavirus restrictions were still in place across the UK, with people only allowed to leave their homes in England for leisure and exercise at outside with their household or support bubble, or with someone outside their household, and the rule of six on outdoor gatherings does not come into effect until the end of March.

Assessing what’s driving the upside is tricky, and not just because things are constantly changing.

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Pete Benton, ONS deputy national statistician, said the figures “start to paint a rich and detailed picture of the nation and how we were living during the pandemic”.

He said: “Since Census Day, the world has continued to change.

“People keep moving, some will have left the country, others will have arrived.

“People will have changed jobs, some of us working in offices again, while others continue to work from home.

“We need to understand all of this and more.”

The reasons for population fluctuations are complex to guess, but it will be interesting to see if they continue as longer-term trends.

And what seems to be the case is that although the population continues to grow rapidly, the growth rate – the percentage increase – is lower from 2011 to 2021 (6.3%) than it was over the previous ten years (7.8%).

So maybe immigration curbs, economic downturns and global pandemics are starting to have an effect.

Carlisle’s population is growing. Photo: Stuart Walker

Locally, the numbers may bring more questions than answers.

Population has increased in North Cumbria – although slightly less than the national rate. Carlisle saw a 2.3% increase; Eden of 4.1%.

But in West Cumbria the population has fallen.

In Copeland, for example, it fell 5%. In Allerdale, it fell 0.3% from around 96,400 in 2011 to 96,100 in 2021.

And the age profiles of these areas are also changing.

Carlisle’s population is aging; a bump moves in the “pyramid” of the population.

Ten years ago Carlisle’s population was 10.8% children under 10 and 18.5% over 65, but that had dropped to 10.5% and 21.7 % respectively by 2021.

The largest age bracket for both men and women is 55-59 years old, while there are fewer people in their late teens and early twenties.

In Eden, the least populated area of ​​England, the population grew by 4.1% from around 52,600 in 2011 to 54,700 in 2021.

In the green district, each has five football pitches.

By contrast, in Tower Hamlets, London, the most densely populated part of the country, there are 112 people “per location”.

Gender data has been released and it shows that the country is more female than male. Women and girls outnumber men and boys in all but 13 local authorities.

The gender balance in the area has changed in Carlisle – the town’s population is now 49% male and 51% female, meaning there is now a slightly higher proportion men in the region than 10 years ago.

The population of the country is constantly increasing. Photo: Michal Jarmoluk from Pixabay

The data released this week covers population, age and gender data, but there is more to come from the ONS.

The 2021 census data for England and Wales will be released in stages over the next two years, the ONS said.

Upcoming releases will include figures on ethnicity, religion, labor market, education and housing as well as, for the first time, information on veterans of the British Armed Forces, sexual orientation and gender. gender identity.

It will be fascinating to delve into these numbers and attempt to explain what they tell us about the way we live now.

Census results are used by a range of organisations, including governments, councils and businesses, and underpin everything from calculating economic growth and unemployment to planning for schools, health services and transport links.

Responding to the opportunities of fluctuating populations in the short and long term will be the job of our elected officials over the next few years.

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