Self Defined Ethnicity
Encyclopedia
Self Defined Ethnicity codes are a set of codes used by the Home Office
in the United Kingdom
to classify an individual's ethnicity according to that person's self-definition.
The codes are also called "16 + 1" codes, as there are 16 of them, plus one code (NS) for "Not Stated".
The code system originated in the United Kingdom Census 2001
.
British police forces are required to use the SDE 16+1 codes (as opposed to the commonly-used radio shorthand IC codes
) when spoken contact has taken place and an individual has been given an opportunity to state their self-perceived ethnicity.
Asian or Asian British
Black or Black British
Home Office
The Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security, and order. As such it is responsible for the police, UK Border Agency, and the Security Service . It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs,...
in 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...
to classify an individual's ethnicity according to that person's self-definition.
The codes are also called "16 + 1" codes, as there are 16 of them, plus one code (NS) for "Not Stated".
The code system originated in the United Kingdom 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....
.
British police forces are required to use the SDE 16+1 codes (as opposed to the commonly-used radio shorthand IC codes
IC codes
IC codes are shorthand terms used by the British police in radio communications to describe the apparent ethnicity of a suspect. The codes are based on a police officer's perceived view of an individual's ethnicity, as opposed to that individual's self-definition.In most circumstances where an...
) when spoken contact has taken place and an individual has been given an opportunity to state their self-perceived ethnicity.
Asian or Asian BritishBritish AsianBritish Asian is a term used to describe British citizens who descended from mainly South Asia, also known as South Asians in the United Kingdom...
- A1 – IndiaIndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n - A2 – PakistanPakistanPakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
i - A3 – BangladeshBangladeshBangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
i - A9 – Any other Asian background
Black or Black BritishBlack BritishBlack 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...
- B1 – Caribbean
- B2 – African
- B9 – Any other Black background
Mixed
- M1 – White and Black Caribbean
- M2 – White and Black African
- M3 – White and Asian
- M9 – Any other Mixed background
Chinese or other ethnic group
- O1 – ChineseBritish ChineseBritish 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...
- O9 – Any other ethnic group
White
- W1 – BritishUnited KingdomThe 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...
- W2 – IrishIrelandIreland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
- W9 – Any other White background