The 2011 Census Programme

The latest census for England and Wales was taken on 27 March 2011. Northern Ireland and Scotland also took their censuses on the same day, to enable the production of harmonised outputs for the whole of the UK from 2012. Under new regulations, census outputs from member states will be similarly harmonised to produce a consistent picture of the population across the European Union.

The 2011 Census for England and Wales was the first to post out all household questionnaires based on a specially developed national address register. It was also the first to offer people a choice to either complete online or fill in and post back a paper questionnaire. Completed questionnaires from people living in communal establishments were collected by special enumerators. Everyone in the country was legally obliged to complete a census questionnaire. Those who did not risked a fine of up to £1,000.

The household questionnaire asked about household accommodation, relationship, demographic characteristics (such as sex, age, marital status), migration, cultural characteristics, health and provision of care, qualifications, employment, workplace and journey to work. Households in Wales received both an English and Welsh questionnaire, each containing an extra question on the Welsh language.

A national publicity campaign helped raise awareness of the census and its importance, which included direct engagement with local authorities and communities representing minority ethnic groups and people with disabilities.

All questionnaires (online or on paper) were tracked and processed at the secure Manchester processing centre. Non-returning households were identified by the tracking system for targeted follow-up by census collectors.

Headline population estimates are expected to be released in mid-2012, with more detailed estimates to follow in 2013