Mnemonic: hh_adults_and_children
Applicability: Household
Type: Derived variable
Definition
Classifies households by the age of the people in them. In this classification, an “adult” is any person aged 16 years and over and a “child” is any person aged under 16 years. It does not take into account the relationships between people in households.
Classification
Total number of categories: 13
| Code | Name |
|---|---|
| 1 | One-person household: One adult aged 66 years or over |
| 2 | One-person household: One adult aged 65 years or under |
| 3 | One-person household: One child |
| 4 | No adults |
| 5 | One adult: One or more children |
| 6 | Two adults: One adult aged 65 years or under and one adult aged 66 years or over: No children |
| 7 | Two adults: Both adults aged 66 years or over: No children |
| 8 | Two adults: Both adults aged 65 years or under: No children |
| 9 | Two adults: One or two children |
| 10 | Two adults: Three or more children |
| 11 | Three or more adults: One or more children |
| 12 | Three or more adults: No children |
| -8 | Does not apply* |
*Households with no usual residents.
View all adults and children in household classifications.
Quality information
We have made methodological adjustments to the data for children aged 0 to 2 years. This is because people often forget to add their babies to their Census return. In some places the data shows a higher-than-expected number of child-only households.
Read more in our Demography and migration quality information for Census 2021 methodology.
Background
Read about how we developed and tested the questions for Census 2021.
Comparability with the 2011 Census
Broadly comparable
We have added a new category “Two adults of any age and one or two children” to this derived variable. We have also increased the upper age limit to 66 years and over.
What does broadly comparable mean?
A variable that is broadly comparable means that it can be generally compared with the same variable used in the 2011 Census. However, changes may have been made to the question or options that people could choose from or how write-in answers are classified.
England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland comparisons
Broadly comparable
The variable produced for England and Wales outputs some different categories to the variables produced by Scotland and Northern Ireland.
What does broadly comparable mean?
A variable that is broadly comparable means that outputs from Census 2021 in England and Wales can generally be compared with Scotland and Northern Ireland. Differences in how the data were collected or presented may reduce the ability to fully harmonise on outputs, but some harmonisation is still expected.
Find out more about variables produced for Census 2021 in Northern Ireland and Census 2022 in Scotland.
Census 2021 data that uses this variable
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