Alternative and small population data

What alternative and small populations are for Census 2021 and what information they contain.

Last updated:
17 November 2023

Alternative populations

Alternative population bases are different geographical locations where individuals could have been counted for Census 2021, other than their usual residence. We have published data on five types of alternative populations.

Short-term

The short-term resident population are those who were not born in the UK and who intend to stay in the UK for less than 12 months.

Workplace

The workplace population is an estimate of the usually resident population aged 16 years and over, working in an area. It includes people who work mainly at or from home, or do not have a fixed place of work, in their area of usual residence.

Workday

The workday population is an estimate of the population during the working day. It includes everybody who works in an area, wherever they usually live, and all respondents who live in the area but do not work.

Out-of-term

The out-of-term population is the usually resident population, redistributed to their out-of-term address if they have one. As a result, the difference relates to the location of some students and schoolchildren.

Second address

The second address population looks at the characteristics of the population with a second address, including the characteristics of the second address itself. When producing datasets on the characteristics of the population with a second address, we count them at the location of their second address rather than at the address where they are usually resident.

Small populations

Small populations are groups that are defined by their cultural background, including characteristics such as: 

  • ethnic group 

  • country of birth 

  • religion 

  • national identity 

  • main language 

Because of the small size of the total population in the groups, confidentiality constraints limit the release of more detailed standard statistics. 

Instead, we will create bespoke datasets for specific small populations, at all geographies where the number of that population exceeds a set threshold. 

Small population 2021 datasets – part 1

We have produced small population datasets for a total of 36 ethnic group, religion, or country of birth populations by five-year age bands, by sex. We produce these data for England and Wales, regions, and Lower tier local authorities (LTLAs) where there are 200 or more usual residents in that population group. The small population part 1 data include six new populations by five-year age bands, by sex:  

  • Eritrean – ethnic group – National, Region and LTLA 

  • Romanian – ethnic group – National, Region and LTLA  

  • Latin and Central South American – ethnic group – National, Region and LTLA 

  • Alevi – religion group – National, Region and LTLA 

  • Jewish – Religion and ethnic group – National  

  • Valmiki – Religion and ethnic group – National and LTLA 

Small population 2021 datasets – part 2

We have also produced datasets for separate small populations based on:

  • ethnic group

  • religion

  • national identity

  • main language

These cover the main characteristics such as:

  • age

  • sex 

  • economic activity status

  • highest qualification 

  • provision of unpaid care

  • disability

We produce data for England and Wales, Lower tier local authorities (LTLAs), or Middle layer Super Output areas (MSOAs) where there are 100 or more usual residents in the population group. Each small population group and their geographies available are:

  • British Sign Language (BSL) – Main language – National and LTLA  

  • Caribbean – Ethnic group – National, LTLA and MSOA  

  • Cornish – National identity – National and MSOA  

  • Jain – Religion, ethnic group and both religion and ethnic group – National and MSOA 

  • Kashmiri – Ethnic group – National and MSOA 

  • Nepali (includes Gurkha) – Ethnic group – National and MSOA 

  • Ravidassia – Religion, ethnic group and both religion and ethnic group – National and MSOA  

  • Sikh – Religion, ethnic group and both religion and ethnic group – National and MSOA

Where and when to find the data

We released data on alternative population bases and small populations during phase three of the Census 2021 outputs release schedule.  

Users can find and download data on the workplace population, workday population, out-of-term population and the second address population on the Nomis website.

Users can also find and download data on small populations on the Nomis website. 

Following user feedback, we brought forward the release of data on the short-term population from phase three, into phase two. Get information on the datasets that we have produced for non-UK born short-term residents on the Nomis website.

More information

If you need more information about our plans for Census 2021 alternative population bases or small populations, please contact us at census.customer.services@ons.gov.uk.

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