This analysis includes differences in unpaid care by protected characteristics across England and Wales, also includes changes since the 2011 Census.
Counts have been rounded to the nearest 5, and these rounded counts were used to calculate age-standardised and age-specific percentages; this a statistical disclosure control method.
Country and region are based on 2021 boundaries.
All figures are individually rounded; totals may not sum exactly because of this rounding.
Data represent usual residents aged 16 years and over. The data used to create these tables have been adjusted to avoid the release of confidential data.
Age-specific percentage
Age-specific percentages are used to allow comparisons between specified age groups.
Age-standardised percentage
Age-standardised percentages (ASPs) allow for comparison between populations over time and across geographies, as they account for differences in the population size and age structure. The 2013 European Standard Population is used to standardise percentages.
Confidence interval
The lower and upper 95% confidence limits form a confidence interval (CI), which is a measure of the statistical precision of an estimate and shows the range of uncertainty around the figure. As a general rule, if the CI around one figure overlaps with the interval around another, we cannot say with certainty that there is more than a chance difference between the two figures.
Unpaid carer
In 2021: A person is a provider of unpaid care if they look after or give help or support to anyone because of long-term physical or mental health conditions or illnesses, or problems related to old age.
In 2011: A person is a provider of unpaid care if they look after, give help or support to family members, friends, neighbours or others because of long-term physical or mental ill-health/disability, or problems related to old age.
In 2011 and 2021, this does not include any activities as part of paid employment. No distinction is made about whether any care that a person provides is within their own household or outside the household. A person can only be classified as an unpaid carer if they are aged 5 years or over.
More details can be found here
Usual resident
For Census 2021, a usual resident of the UK is anyone who, on Census Day, was in the UK and had stayed or intended to stay in the UK for a period of 12 months or more or had a permanent UK address and was outside the UK and intended to be outside the UK for less than 12 months.
Legal partnership status
Classifies a person according to their legal marital or registered civil partnership status on Census Day 21 March 2021.
It is the same as the 2011 census variable "Marital status" but has been updated for Census 2021 to reflect the revised Civil Partnership Act that came into force in 2019.
In Census 2021 results, "single" refers only to someone who has never been married or in a registered civil partnership.
More details can be found here
Sexual orientation
Sexual orientation is an umbrella term covering sexual identity, attraction, and behaviour. For an individual respondent, these may not be the same. For example, someone in an opposite-sex relationship may also experience same-sex attraction, and vice versa. This means the statistics should be interpreted purely as showing how people responded to the question, rather than being about whom they are attracted to or their actual relationships.
Ethnic group
The ethnic group that the person completing the census feels they belong to. This could be based on their culture, family background, identity or physical appearance.
In 2011, respondents could choose 1 out of 18 tick-box response categories. In 2021 respondents could choose 1 out of 19 tick-box response categories as a new Roma category was added next to the Gypsy or Irish Traveller tick-box within the White category.
Disability
The definition of disability used in the 2021 Census is aligned with the definition of disability under the Equality Act (2010). A person is considered disabled if they self-report having a physical or mental health condition or illness that has lasted or is expected to last 12 months or more, and that this reduces their ability to carry out day-to-day activities. The measures of disability in each Census (2021, 2011 and 2001) enable different categorisations of responses to the question. These provide different levels of detail from the responses provided. Details can be found here
Religion
The religion people connect or identify with (their religious affiliation), whether or not they practise or have belief in it.
This question was voluntary, and the variable includes people who answered the question, including "No religion", alongside those who chose not to answer this question.
This variable classifies responses into the eight tick-box response options. Write-in responses are classified by their "parent" religious affiliation, including "No religion", where applicable.
