Census 2021: Who lives in the East?

The population of the East of England has increased by over 8% in the past 10 years... but who lives here?

Author: Matt SoanesPublished 30th Jun 2022

The first data from the 2021 Census is out - and it shows the East of England is one of the fastest growing regions in the UK.

More than 6.3 million people now live in Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire, an increase of roughly 488,000, or 8.3%, in 10 years.

There are around 3.2 million women in the east, with around 3.1 million men according to data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Like the rest of England and Wales, the east is also growing older. The number of people aged between 70 and 74 is up by more than 41% since 2011. There are now 28% more people in the region aged 90 or over.

What is the picture like in Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex? Find out below:

Norfolk

Norfolk's population is up by almost 7% in a decade, with 916,200 people now calling Nelson's County their home.

Breckland, Norwich and South Norfolk have seen some of the largest changes in population over the previous 10 years. The most populated district in the county remains King's Lynn and West Norfolk.

ONS data shows that North Norfolk has the highest proportion of people aged over 65 in the country, with people at or within a year of retirement age accounting for around 33% of the population.

Elsewhere, Norwich and South Norfolk have seen a marked increase in the number of younger people. The number of children between the ages of 5 and 9 has increased by 21% and 27% respectively.

Suffolk

'Sleepy Suffolk' remains one of the least populated parts of the east, with a modest 4.4% change in population since 2011. Around 32,000 more people are now living in the county.

Babergh and Mid Suffolk have grown the most, with the number of Ipswich residents growing by about 5% over the decade.

Suffolk is also growing noticeably older. The number of people aged over 90 has increased by 35%, while the proportion of those aged between 70 and 74 is up by almost 50%.

At the other end of the scale - there's been a decline in the number of people in younger age groups, with 15-19 year olds down by 9.1% and the number of 20 to 24 year olds declining by 6.7%.

Last year's census picked up around 12% fewer babies and toddlers under the age of four compared with the results gathered in 2011.

Essex

Essex continues to benefit from its proximity to London as one of the most densely populated parts of the East of England.

Around 1.86 million people now call the county their home, a 7.8% change from 1.72 million in 2011.

Four districts of the county have seen double digit percentage growth in the number of residents: Colchester, Harlow, Thurrock and Uttlesford.

The new city of Southend-on-Sea is the most densely populated part of Essex, with 31 people per football pitch sized section of land in the district.

Essex as a whole is also aging with the 25% rise in the number of people over 90 and a 44% jump in people aged 70 to 74.

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