Demographics of the United Kingdom
Encyclopedia
This article is about the demographic
features of the population of the United Kingdom
, including population density
, ethnicity
, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.
According to the 2001 census, the total population of the United Kingdom was 58,789,194—the third-largest in the European Union (behind Germany and metropolitan France) and the 21st-largest in the world. Its overall population density is one of the highest in the world, due to the particularly high population density in England. Almost one-third of the population lives in England's southeast and is predominantly urban and suburban, with about 8.2 million in the capital city of London
. The United Kingdom's extremely high literacy
rate (99%) is attributable 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.
(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 baptism
s, 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.
, 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 England, Scotland and Wales 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 late in the 19th 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.
was 58,789,194. This has since risen to 60,587,300 according to mid-2006 estimates by the Office for National Statistics. Current estimates (mid 2010) put the country's population at closer to 63 million.
(1 July 2006 population estimates by UK National Statistics)
There are 11 cities which exceed 300,000 inhabitants, these being London
, Birmingham
, Glasgow
, Leeds
, Sheffield
, Liverpool
, Manchester
, Edinburgh
, Bristol
, Cardiff
and Coventry
. Cities with urban areas in excess of 300,000 inhabitants include Nottingham
, Leicester
, Brighton
, Belfast
, Southampton
, Portsmouth
and Newcastle Upon Tyne
.
Population levels at census dates and average adjustments annually
(thousands)
The age groups are not evenly distributed around the country, with some areas having many young adults and children and some areas having large numbers of older people.
(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. Norther 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 2010 live births in England and Wales:
Other statistics:
and choose not to reveal their sexuality. Furthermore they may actually be in heterosexual relationships or even in heterosexual marriages. Gay dating website Gaydar
also contested this statistic, stating in an article in Pink News
that they have 2.2 million members with Trevor Martin, managing director at Gaydar saying; “The Office for National Statistics figures don’t add up. With 2.2 million Gaydar profiles in the UK either there are a lot of straight guys playing away from girlfriends or every single gay and lesbian in the country tunes into GaydarRadio – or the ONS have got it terribly wrong.” Furthermore nearly four per cent of those asked on the ONS survey refused to answer, said they did not know or described themselves as “other".
From the United Kingdom Census 2001
:
(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 Northern 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:
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 Knight
s, 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.
. 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, Polish Britons are mainly Polish-born immigrants to the UK, although many are those who settled in Britain after the second world war and their descendants.
French language
is spoken in the Channel Islands.
British Sign Language
is also common.
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 school
s 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 some of the top universities in the world with Cambridge, Oxford, and London
ranked amongst the top 20 in the 2007 THES - QS World University Rankings
.
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.
Demographics
Demographics are the most recent statistical characteristics of a population. These types of data are used widely in sociology , public policy, and marketing. Commonly examined demographics include gender, race, age, disabilities, mobility, home ownership, employment status, and even location...
features of the population of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, including population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
, ethnicity
Ethnic group
An ethnic group is a group of people whose members identify with each other, through a common heritage, often consisting of a common language, a common culture and/or an ideology that stresses common ancestry or endogamy...
, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.
According to the 2001 census, the total population of the United Kingdom was 58,789,194—the third-largest in the European Union (behind Germany and metropolitan France) and the 21st-largest in the world. Its overall population density is one of the highest in the world, due to the particularly high population density in England. Almost one-third of the population lives in England's southeast and is predominantly urban and suburban, with about 8.2 million in the capital city of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. The United Kingdom's extremely high literacy
Literacy
Literacy has traditionally been described as the ability to read for knowledge, write coherently and think critically about printed material.Literacy represents the lifelong, intellectual process of gaining meaning from print...
rate (99%) is attributable to universal public education
Education in the United Kingdom
Education in the United Kingdom is a devolved matter with each of the countries of the United Kingdom having separate systems under separate governments: the UK Government is responsible for England, and the Scottish Government, the Welsh Government and the Northern Ireland Executive are...
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
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
and the Church of Scotland
Church of Scotland
The Church of Scotland, known informally by its Scots language name, the Kirk, is a Presbyterian church, decisively shaped by the Scottish Reformation....
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
White British
White British was an ethnicity classification used in the 2001 United Kingdom Census. As a result of the census, 50,366,497 people in the United Kingdom were classified as White British. In Scotland the classification was broken down into two different categories: White Scottish and Other White...
. Being located close to continental Europe, the countries that formed the United Kingdom were subject to many invasions and migrations, especially from Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
and the continent, including Roman
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
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
Normans
The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
. The geneticist Stephen Oppenheimer
Stephen Oppenheimer
Stephen Oppenheimer is a British paediatrician, geneticist, and writer. He is a member of Green Templeton College, Oxford and an honorary fellow of Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, and carries out and publishes research in the fields of genetics and human prehistory.-Career: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
Basque people
The Basques as an ethnic group, primarily inhabit an area traditionally known as the Basque Country , a region that is located around the western end of the Pyrenees on the coast of the Bay of Biscay and straddles parts of north-central Spain and south-western France.The Basques are known in the...
so that 75% of the modern British population could (in theory) trace their ancestry back 15,000 years. Although Celtic languages
Celtic languages
The Celtic languages are descended from Proto-Celtic, or "Common Celtic"; a branch of the greater Indo-European language family...
are partially spoken in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, and Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
, the predominant language overall is English. In North
North Wales
North Wales is the northernmost unofficial region of Wales. It is bordered to the south by the counties of Ceredigion and Powys in Mid Wales and to the east by the counties of Shropshire in the West Midlands and Cheshire in North West England...
and West Wales
West Wales
West Wales is the western area of Wales.Some definitions of West Wales include only Pembrokeshire, Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire, an area which historically comprised the Welsh principality of Deheubarth., an area called "South West Wales" in the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics....
, Welsh
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
is widely spoken as a first language, but much less so in the more English dominated South East
South East Wales
South East Wales is a loosely-defined region of Wales generally corresponding to the former counties of South Glamorgan, Mid Glamorgan and Monmouthshire...
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
Before 1800, England had none of these except for the civil registration of births, marriages, and burials briefly attempted under the CommonwealthCommonwealth of England
The Commonwealth of England was the republic which ruled first England, and then Ireland and Scotland from 1649 to 1660. Between 1653–1659 it was known as the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland...
(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
Bills of Mortality
The London Bills of Mortality were the main source of mortality statistics, designed to monitor deaths from the plague from the 17th century-1830s. They were used mainly as a way of warning about plague epidemics....
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 baptism
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
s, 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
Rickman
Rickman may refer to:People with the surname Rickman:* Alan Rickman , English film, television and stage actor* John Rickman , English statistician and government official...
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
Thomas Cromwell, 1st Earl of Essex
Thomas Cromwell, 1st Earl of Essex, , was an English statesman who served as chief minister of King Henry VIII of England from 1532 to 1540....
’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
Convocation
A Convocation is a group of people formally assembled for a special purpose.- University use :....
of the clergy, bishops, and archbishop of the province of Canterbury
Canterbury
Canterbury is a historic English cathedral city, which lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a district of Kent in South East England. It lies on the River Stour....
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
England and Wales
England and Wales is a jurisdiction within the United Kingdom. It consists of England and Wales, two of the four countries of the United Kingdom...
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 RevolutionIndustrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
, the life expectancy
Life expectancy
Life expectancy is the expected number of years of life remaining at a given age. It is denoted by ex, which means the average number of subsequent years of life for someone now aged x, according to a particular mortality experience...
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
Census Act 1800
The Census Act 1800 also known as the Population Act 1800 was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain which enabled the first Census of England, Scotland and Wales to be undertaken. The census was carried out in 1801 and every ten years thereafter...
revealed that the population of England, Scotland and Wales was 10.5 million. In 1800 the population of Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
was between 4.5 and 5.5 million.
The 1841 UK Census
United Kingdom Census 1841
The United Kingdom Census of 1841 recorded the occupants of every UK household on the night of 6 June, 1841. It was described as the "first modern census" in that it was the first to record information about every member of the household and because it was administered as a single event, under...
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
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
, and caused over a million to emigrate. Mass emigration became entrenched as a result of the famine and the population continued to decline until late in the 19th 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
The population of the United Kingdom in the 2001 censusUnited Kingdom Census 2001
A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194....
was 58,789,194. This has since risen to 60,587,300 according to mid-2006 estimates by the Office for National Statistics. Current estimates (mid 2010) put the country's population at closer to 63 million.
| Part | Population (2010) | England England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental... | 51,809,700 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scotland Scotland Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the... |
5,222,100 | |||
| Wales Wales Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²... |
3,006,400 | |||
| Northern Ireland Northern Ireland Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west... |
1,789,000 | |||
| United Kingdom United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages... |
61,827,200 |
(1 July 2006 population estimates by UK National Statistics)
There are 11 cities which exceed 300,000 inhabitants, these being London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
, Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
, Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
and Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
. Cities with urban areas in excess of 300,000 inhabitants include Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
, Leicester
Leicester
Leicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest...
, Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
, Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
, Southampton
Southampton
Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
, Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
and Newcastle Upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
.
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 | 1091 | 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 |
Age structure
The most numerous five year age groups (at the 2001 census) were the 5-year group born in the years 1946–51 (the post–World War II baby boom); the baby boom born a generation later in 1966–71 (the largest group of all); and a more modest boom a generation after that, born in 1986–91. The 1946–51 group reaches retirement age from 2006 onwards (women from 2006 and men from 2011), and the sudden increase in the number of people claiming the state pension has led politicians and political commentators to fear a "pensions crisis".The age groups are not evenly distributed around the country, with some areas having many young adults and children and some areas having large numbers of older people.
| Age group | | Population | | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Male | Female | ||
| 0–14 | 5,560,489 | 5,293,871 | 18.0 |
| 15–64 | 20,193,876 | 19,736,516 | 66.3 |
| 65+ | 4,027,721 | 5,458,235 | 15.7 |
Fertility
In 2008 the UK's total fertility rateTotal Fertility Rate
The total fertility rate of a population is the average number of children that would be born to a woman over her lifetime if she were to experience the exact current age-specific fertility rates through her lifetime, and she...
(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. Norther 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 2010 live births in England and Wales:
- total fertility rate was 2.00
- 46.8% of children were born to un-married women
- average (mean) age of mother at birth was 29.5 years
- 48% of all babies were born to mothers aged 30 and over
- 25.1% 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
- 51% of babies born in 2010 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
- 50.2% of babies born in Scotland in 2010 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
Sexual orientation
A 2010 survey from the Office of National Statistics found that 1.5% of Britons identify as either homosexual or bisexual—far lower than previous estimates of 5–7%. Although this survey has been regarded as a false estimate by many for many reasons. One being that many people who engage in homosexual activities may not identify themselves as homosexuals. Another being that many gay individuals are still in the closetCloseted
Closeted and in the closet are metaphors used to describe lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning and intersex people who have not disclosed their sexual orientation or gender identity and aspects thereof, including sexual identity and sexual behavior.-Background:In late 20th...
and choose not to reveal their sexuality. Furthermore they may actually be in heterosexual relationships or even in heterosexual marriages. Gay dating website Gaydar
Gaydar (website)
Gaydar is a worldwide, profile-based dating website for gay and bisexual men, women and couples over the age of 18. Although many of the individual profiles are publicly accessible on the Internet, to gain more functionality and interact with other users, a registration is required and a guest...
also contested this statistic, stating in an article in Pink News
Pink News
Pink News is a United Kingdom-based online gay newspaper.The paper version, The Pink News, officially launched at the Law Society on 28 June 2006 by Francis Maude, Chairman of the Conservative Party, Meg Munn, Minister for Equality, Simon Hughes, President of the Liberal Democrats and Meg Hillier,...
that they have 2.2 million members with Trevor Martin, managing director at Gaydar saying; “The Office for National Statistics figures don’t add up. With 2.2 million Gaydar profiles in the UK either there are a lot of straight guys playing away from girlfriends or every single gay and lesbian in the country tunes into GaydarRadio – or the ONS have got it terribly wrong.” Furthermore nearly four per cent of those asked on the ONS survey refused to answer, said they did not know or described themselves as “other".
Ethnicity
United Kingdom Census 2001
A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194....
:
| Ethnic group Ethnic group An ethnic group is a group of people whose members identify with each other, through a common heritage, often consisting of a common language, a common culture and/or an ideology that stresses common ancestry or endogamy... | Population | % of total* |
|---|---|---|
| White British White British White British was an ethnicity classification used in the 2001 United Kingdom Census. As a result of the census, 50,366,497 people in the United Kingdom were classified as White British. In Scotland the classification was broken down into two different categories: White Scottish and Other White... |
50,366,497 | 85.67% |
| White (other) White Other (United Kingdom Census) The term Other White is used in the UK census to describe people who self-identify as white persons who are not British nor Irish. The category does not comprise a single ethnic group but is instead a method of identification for white people who are not represented by other white census categories... |
3,096,169 | 5.27% |
| Indian British Indian The term British Indian refers to citizens of the United Kingdom whose ancestral roots lie in India. This includes people born in the UK who are of Indian descent, and Indian-born people who have migrated to the UK... |
1,053,411 | 1.8% |
| Pakistani | 977,285 | 1.6% |
| White Irish | 691,232 | 1.2% |
| Mixed race | 677,117 | 1.2% |
| Black Caribbean British African-Caribbean community The British African Caribbean communities are residents of the United Kingdom who are of West Indian background and whose ancestors were primarily indigenous to Africa... |
1.0% | |
| Black African Black British Black British is a term used to describe British people of Black African descent, especially those of Afro-Caribbean background. The term has been used from the 1950s to refer to Black people from former British colonies in the West Indies and Africa, who are residents of the United Kingdom and... |
485,277 | 0.8% |
| Bangladeshi British Bangladeshi A British Bangladeshi is a person of Bangladeshi origin who resides in the United Kingdom having emigrated to the UK and attained citizenship through naturalisation or whose parents did so; they are also known as British Bengalis... |
283,063 | 0.5% |
| Other Asian (non-Chinese) British Asian British Asian is a term used to describe British citizens who descended from mainly South Asia, also known as South Asians in the United Kingdom... |
247,644 | 0.4% |
| Chinese British Chinese British Chinese , including British-born Chinese are people of Chinese ancestry who were born in, or have migrated to, the United Kingdom. They are part of the Chinese diaspora, or overseas Chinese... |
247,403 | 0.4% |
| Other | 230,615 | 0.4% |
| Black (others) Black British Black British is a term used to describe British people of Black African descent, especially those of Afro-Caribbean background. The term has been used from the 1950s to refer to Black people from former British colonies in the West Indies and Africa, who are residents of the United Kingdom and... |
97,585 | 0.2% |
Religion
The traditional religion in the United Kingdom is Christianity. In England the established church is the Church of EnglandChurch of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
(Anglican
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
). In Scotland, the Church of Scotland
Church of Scotland
The Church of Scotland, known informally by its Scots language name, the Kirk, is a Presbyterian church, decisively shaped by the Scottish Reformation....
(a Presbyterian Church) is regarded as the 'national church' but there is not an established church. In Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
there is no established church, with the Church in Wales
Church in Wales
The Church in Wales is the Anglican church in Wales, composed of six dioceses.As with the primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church, the Archbishop of Wales serves concurrently as one of the six diocesan bishops. The current archbishop is Barry Morgan, the Bishop of Llandaff.In contrast to the...
having been disestablished in 1920. Likewise, in Northern Ireland the Church of Ireland
Church of Ireland
The Church of Ireland is an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. The church operates in all parts of Ireland and is the second largest religious body on the island after the Roman Catholic Church...
was disestablished in 1871. In Northern Ireland and similarly in parts of Scotland, there is a sectarian divide
Sectarianism
Sectarianism, according to one definition, is bigotry, discrimination or hatred arising from attaching importance to perceived differences between subdivisions within a group, such as between different denominations of a religion, class, regional or factions of a political movement.The ideological...
between Roman Catholic and Protestant communities.
The table below shows the most recent census data (2001) regarding religion:
| Religion | Number | % |
|---|---|---|
| Christian Christianity Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings... |
42,079,000 | 71.6% |
| No religion | 9,104,000 | 15.5% |
| Muslim Islam Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~... |
1,591,000 | 2.7% |
| Hindu Hinduism Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions... |
559,000 | 1.0% |
| Sikh Sikhism Sikhism is a monotheistic religion founded during the 15th century in the Punjab region, by Guru Nanak Dev and continued to progress with ten successive Sikh Gurus . It is the fifth-largest organized religion in the world and one of the fastest-growing... |
336,000 | 0.6% |
| Jewish Judaism Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people... |
267,000 | 0.5% |
| Buddhist Buddhism Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th... |
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
United Kingdom Census 2001
A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194....
also recorded 390,000 Jedi Knight
Jedi census phenomenon
The Jedi census phenomenon is a grassroots movement that was initiated in 2001 for residents of a number of English-speaking countries, urging them to record their religion as "Jedi" or "Jedi Knight" on the national census.It is believed the majority of self-reported Jedi claimed the religion for...
s, making Jedi
Jedi
The Jedi are characters in the Star Wars universe and the series's main protagonists. The Jedi use a power called the Force and weapons called lightsabers, which emit a controlled energy flow in the shape of a sword, in order to serve and protect the Republic and the galaxy at large from conflict...
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
Office for National Statistics
The Office for National Statistics is the executive office of the UK Statistics Authority, a non-ministerial department which reports directly to the Parliament of the United Kingdom.- Overview :...
survey of 450,000 Britons in 2010 confirmed that 71% are Christian, 4% are Muslim and 21% lack a religious affiliation.
Languages
The United Kingdom has no official languageOfficial language
An official language is a language that is given a special legal status in a particular country, state, or other jurisdiction. Typically a nation's official language will be the one used in that nation's courts, parliament and administration. However, official status can also be used to give a...
. The dominant language, spoken as a first language
First language
A first language is the language a person has learned from birth or within the critical period, or that a person speaks the best and so is often the basis for sociolinguistic identity...
by 95% of the population, is English. Scots
Scots language
Scots is the Germanic language variety spoken in Lowland Scotland and parts of Ulster . It is sometimes called Lowland Scots to distinguish it from Scottish Gaelic, the Celtic language variety spoken in most of the western Highlands and in the Hebrides.Since there are no universally accepted...
is spoken by around 500,000 people in Scotland and 30,000 in Northern Ireland, where it is called Ulster Scots
Ulster Scots language
Ulster Scots or Ulster-Scots generally refers to the dialects of Scots spoken in parts of Ulster in Ireland. Some definitions of Ulster Scots may also include Standard English spoken with an Ulster Scots accent...
. Welsh
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
is spoken by around 600,000 people. Scottish Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic language
Scottish Gaelic is a Celtic language native to Scotland. A member of the Goidelic branch of the Celtic languages, Scottish Gaelic, like Modern Irish and Manx, developed out of Middle Irish, and thus descends ultimately from Primitive Irish....
is spoken by about 60,000 speakers, mostly in Scotland. Cornish
Cornish language
Cornish is a Brythonic Celtic language and a recognised minority language of the United Kingdom. Along with Welsh and Breton, it is directly descended from the ancient British language spoken throughout much of Britain before the English language came to dominate...
is spoken by around 2,500 people. Irish
Irish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
is spoken by about 106,844 speakers in Northern Ireland. The Polish minority in the United Kingdom
Polish British
Polish migration to the United Kingdom describes the temporary or permanent migration of Poles to the United Kingdom . Most Polish migrants to the UK emigrated after two major events, the Polish Resettlement Act 1947 and the 2004 enlargement of the European Union...
estimated over 600,000 people speak mostly Polish at home, Polish Britons are mainly Polish-born immigrants to the UK, although many are those who settled in Britain after the second world war and their descendants.
French language
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
is spoken in the Channel Islands.
British Sign Language
British Sign Language
British Sign Language is the sign language used in the United Kingdom , and is the first or preferred language of some deaf people in the UK; there are 125,000 deaf adults in the UK who use BSL plus an estimated 20,000 children. The language makes use of space and involves movement of the hands,...
is also common.
Education
The Secretary of State for Education and the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills
Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills
The Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills was a Cabinet minister in the United Kingdom, heading the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills . The post was created on 28 June 2007 from parts of the Department for Education and Skills and the Department of Trade and...
are responsible to the UK Parliament for education in England
Education in England
Education in England is overseen by the Department for Education and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. Local authorities take responsibility for implementing policy for public education and state schools at a regional level....
, though the day to day administration and funding of state schools is the responsibility of Local Education Authorities
Local Education Authority
A local education authority is a local authority in England and Wales that has responsibility for education within its jurisdiction...
. 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 school
Private school
Private schools, also known as independent schools or nonstate schools, are not administered by local, state or national governments; thus, they retain the right to select their students and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students' tuition, rather than relying on mandatory...
s 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 some of the top universities in the world with Cambridge, Oxford, and London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
ranked amongst the top 20 in the 2007 THES - QS World University Rankings
THES - QS World University Rankings
The term Times Higher Education–QS World University Rankings refers to rankings published jointly between 2004 and 2009 by Times Higher Education and Quacquarelli Symonds . After QS and Times Higher Education had ended their collaboration, the methodology for these rankings continues to be used by...
.
Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning
The Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning is a position in the Scottish Government cabinet responsible for the Education department...
is responsible to the Scottish Parliament
Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood", is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of 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
National Assembly for Wales
The National Assembly for Wales is a devolved assembly with power to make legislation in Wales. The Assembly comprises 60 members, who are known as Assembly Members, or AMs...
has responsibility for education in Wales
Education in Wales
Education in Wales differs in certain respects from education elsewhere in the United Kingdom. For example, a significant number of students all over Wales are educated either wholly or largely through the medium of Welsh: in 2008/09, 22 per cent of classes in maintained primary schools used Welsh...
. A significant number of students in Wales are educated either wholly or largely through the medium of Welsh
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
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
Northern Ireland Assembly
The Northern Ireland Assembly is the devolved legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and to appoint the Northern Ireland Executive...
is responsible for education in Northern Ireland
Education in Northern Ireland
Education in Northern Ireland differs slightly from systems used elsewhere in the United Kingdom, though it is more similar to that used in England and Wales than it is to Scotland. A child's age on 1 July determines the point of entry into the relevant stage of education unlike England and Wales...
though responsibility at a local level is administered by 5 Education and Library Boards covering different geographical areas.
See also
- Demography of England
- English peopleEnglish peopleThe English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
- Cornish peopleCornish peopleThe Cornish are a people associated with Cornwall, a county and Duchy in the south-west of the United Kingdom that is seen in some respects as distinct from England, having more in common with the other Celtic parts of the United Kingdom such as Wales, as well as with other Celtic nations in Europe...
- English people
- Demography of Scotland
- Scottish peopleScottish peopleThe Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
- Scottish people
- Demography of Wales
- Welsh peopleWelsh peopleThe Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
- Welsh people
- Demography of Northern IrelandDemography of Northern IrelandPopulationThe population of Northern Ireland has increased annually since 1978.-Summary of vital statistics since 1900 :Place of birth*UK:**Northern Ireland: 1,534,268 **England: 61,609 **Scotland: 16,772...
- Northern Irish people
- Genetic history of Britain
- Geography of the United KingdomGeography of the United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, or UK, is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. With a total area of approximately , the UK occupies the major part of the British Isles archipelago and includes the island of Great Britain, the...
- Census in the United KingdomCensus in the United KingdomCoincident full censuses have taken place in the different jurisdictions of the United Kingdom every ten years since 1801, with the exceptions of 1941 and in both Northern Ireland and the Irish Free State in 1921; simultaneous censuses were taken in the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, with...
- Office for National StatisticsOffice for National StatisticsThe Office for National Statistics is the executive office of the UK Statistics Authority, a non-ministerial department which reports directly to the Parliament of the United Kingdom.- Overview :...
- Lists of UK locations with large ethnic minority populations