23/01/2023 - Permalink

Census 2021 data: General health, disabilities and unpaid care

Related topics: Adult social care / Corporate / Health / Partner organisations

The ONS (Office for National Statistics) has published the next phase of the Census 2021 topic summaries for England and Wales, focused on health, disabilities and unpaid care.

The 2021 Census took place across England and Wales in March 2021. The results are available from national level down to small areas called census output areas.

The Census 2021 results about health, disabilities and unpaid care include data about people’s general health across England and Wales.

This data answers questions like:

  • How many people in England and Wales described their general health as “Very good” or “Good”?
  • Which areas had the highest numbers of people with “Bad” and “Very bad” health?
  • How many people were identified as having disabilities?
  • How many unpaid carers were there in England and Wales?

In Shropshire numbers reporting very good health remained almost the same as in 2011.

The census data on general health in Shropshire shows:-

  • The proportion of people reporting their health as very good stayed virtually the same but the number increased: 46.6% (150,900) in 2021 (46.5%, 142,300 people, in 2011)
  • A slightly smaller proportion, but larger number of people, reporting their health as good, 34.7% (112,300) in 2021 (from 34.9%, 106,900 in 2011)
  • An increase in the proportion of people reporting their health as fair, to 13.6% (43,900) in 2021 (from 13.5%, 41,500 in 2011)
  • A slightly higher proportion, and number of people, reporting their health as bad, to 4.0% (12,800) in 2021 (from 3.9%, 12,000 in 2011)
  • The same proportion, and similar number of people, reporting their health as very bad, 1.1% (3,600) in 2021 (from 1.1%, 3,500 in 2011).

In Shropshire, numbers reporting that their day-to-day activities were limited show:-

  • 5% (24,400 people) said that their day-to-day activities were limited a lot; while a further 11.0% (35,600 people) said they were limited a little. This is similar to the proportion in England.
  • 4% of people (23,900) said that they had a long term physical or mental health condition, but that their day-to-day activities were not limited. This is slightly higher than in England (6.8%).

In Shropshire, numbers reporting providing unpaid care show:-

  • In Shropshire, almost one in 10 people provided some form of unpaid care (9.6%). Of these:
  • 15,700 (5.1% of the population) provided 19 hours or less unpaid care a week, down from 22,800 people (7.5% of the population) in 2011
  • 5,500 (1.8% of the population) provided 20 to 49 hours, up from 4,000 people (1.3%) in 2011
  • 8,500 (2.8%) provided 50 or more hours unpaid care compared to 7,400 (2.4%) in 2011.

Cecelia Motley, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for adult social care, public health and communities, said:-

“This data will help to improve our understanding of the Shropshire population, the wider determinants of health and inform views on health and health inequalities. This is particularly important in Shropshire, where our population is ageing rapidly and where social care accounts for such a large proportion of our budget.”

James Walton, Shropshire Council’s executive director for resources, added:-

“The release of this data is very much welcomed, to help us understand the health of the Shropshire population and how it is changing. It also helps us understand how many people are providing unpaid care. It is important that we can use this data to forward plan and make sure our policies and services meet the differing needs of a diverse population and to tackle health inequality.”

Please note that Census 2021 took place when Lockdown #3 restrictions were in place. This may have impacted upon the results, especially those relating to the provision of unpaid care.

For further information, including an interactive map, and to find out more about the Census 2021 results, people can visit the ONS website.

Further information and analysis for Shropshire will be added to the Shropshire Council 2021 Census webpages, as further results become available. It is important that the results and analysis are widely accessible to all. The council is aiming to publish the early headlines and infographics, followed by the development of area profiles, interactive tools and topic-based analysis.

Please note all figures have been rounded.