England and Wales Census 2021 - RM139: Tenure by number of people per room in household by accommodation type

This dataset provides Census 2021 estimates that classify households in England and Wales by tenure, by number of people per room in household, and by accommodation type. The estimates are as at Census Day, 21 March 2021.

There is evidence of people incorrectly identifying their type of landlord as ”Council or local authority” or “Housing association”. You should add these two categories together when analysing data that uses this variable. Read more about this quality notice.

It is inappropriate to measure change in number of persons per room from 2011 to 2021, as Census 2021 used Valuation Office Agency data for the number of rooms variable. Instead use Census 2021 estimates for number of persons per bedroom for comparisons over time. Read more about this quality notice.

We have made changes to housing definitions since the 2011 Census. Take care if you compare Census 2021 results for this topic with those from the 2011 Census. Read more about this quality notice.

Area type

Census 2021 statistics are published for a number of different geographies. These can be large, for example the whole of England, or small, for example an output area (OA), the lowest level of geography for which statistics are produced.

For higher levels of geography, more detailed statistics can be produced. When a lower level of geography is used, such as output areas (which have a minimum of 100 persons), the statistics produced have less detail. This is to protect the confidentiality of people and ensure that individuals or their characteristics cannot be identified.

Lower tier local authorities

Lower tier local authorities provide a range of local services. There are 309 lower tier local authorities in England made up of 181 non-metropolitan districts, 59 unitary authorities, 36 metropolitan districts and 33 London boroughs (including City of London). In Wales there are 22 local authorities made up of 22 unitary authorities.

Coverage

Census 2021 statistics are published for the whole of England and Wales. However, you can choose to filter areas by:

  • country - for example, Wales
  • region - for example, London
  • local authority - for example, Cornwall
  • health area – for example, Clinical Commissioning Group
  • statistical area - for example, MSOA or LSOA

Tenure of household

Whether a household owns or rents the accommodation that it occupies.

Owner-occupied accommodation can be:

  • owned outright, which is where the household owns all of the accommodation
  • with a mortgage or loan
  • part-owned on a shared ownership scheme

Rented accommodation can be:

  • private rented, for example, rented through a private landlord or letting agent
  • social rented through a local council or housing association

This information is not available for household spaces with no usual residents.

Number of people per room in household

The number of household members is divided by the number of rooms in the household.

Accommodation type

The type of building or structure used or available by an individual or household.

This could be:

  • the whole house or bungalow
  • a flat, maisonette or apartment
  • a temporary or mobile structure, such as a caravan

More information about accommodation types

Whole house or bungalow:

This property type is not divided into flats or other living accommodation. There are three types of whole houses or bungalows.

Detached:

None of the living accommodation is attached to another property but can be attached to a garage.

Semi-detached:

The living accommodation is joined to another house or bungalow by a common wall that they share.

Terraced:

A mid-terraced house is located between two other houses and shares two common walls. An end-of-terrace house is part of a terraced development but only shares one common wall.

Flats (Apartments) and maisonettes:

An apartment is another word for a flat. A maisonette is a 2-storey flat.

Data and Resources

Additional Info

Field Value
Last Updated April 17, 2023, 12:29 (BST)
Created April 17, 2023, 12:29 (BST)
Visibility Public
Year 2021
Topics Accommodation and housing
Units Households
Geographic Layer Census Electoral Divisions
Census Wards
Countries
Integrated Care Boards
Local Health Boards
Lower Super Output Areas
Lower Tier Local Authorities
Middle Super Output Areas
NHS England Regions
Output Areas
Regions
Sub Integrated Care Board Locations
Upper Tier Local Authorities
Westminster Parliamentary Constituencies
Frequency Decennial
DOI https://doi.org/10.5257/census/aggregate-2021-1
Citation Office for National Statistics; National Records of Scotland; Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency; UK Data Service. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5257/census/aggregate-2021-1
Geographical Coverage Location England and Wales
Granularity Country down to output areas
Geographic Spatial data {"geo_type": "polygon", "lat": "52.4036", "lon": "-1.93872", "left": "-6.53687", "top": "55.8275", "right": "1.98853", "bottom": "49.6694", "srid": null, "accuracy": null, "source": null}