Since 1841, the UK government has surveyed the whole population ever ten years. It means that we have an inexhaustible resource of information about our community and its development. The most recent of these decadal surveys was held on 27 March 2011 and the results from that census have continued to be released well into 2013. Recently, the London Borough of Southwark has produced a summary of the key results for each of the Community Council areas including the one in which SE16 sits: Bermondsey and Rotherhithe. The Community Council area covers six wards of which most is in SE16 and SE1: Grange, Riverside, South Bermondsey, Surrey Docks, Rotherhithe and Livesey wards.

Some of the key findings about this area:

  • The total estimated population of the area was 70,710
  • A higher proportion of residents in Bermondsey and Rotherhithe than anywhere else in the Borough are aged 25-29 (16%) and 30-34 (13%). This is higher than the national average which is 7% for each of these categories.
  • The proportion of White residents in Bermondsey and Rotherhithe (63%) is higher than the Borough average of 54% but lower than the England average of 85%. The proportion of Asian / Asian British residents (12%) is second highest in the Borough and above the national average of 8%. The proportion of Black residents is 10% lower than the Borough average.
  • 0cff9462c64841b65678f843292bcf49.jpgThe majority of residents in Bermondsey and Rotherhithe identify as Christian (53%) and the area has the highest proportion of residents in the Borough identifying as Buddhist (2%) and Hindu (2%).
  • The proportion of residents in Bermondsey and Rotherhithe that live in a flat, maisonette or apartment (82%) is 8% higher than the Borough average and 61% higher than the national average.
  • The majority of Bermondsey and Rotherhithe residents either have English as their main language (78%) or speak English well (20%), however the proportion of those with English as their main language is lower than both the Borough average of 80% and the national average of 92%.
  • Bermondsey and Rotherhithe has the highest proportion of obese 10-11 year olds in the Borough (30%) and this is significantly higher than the national average of 19%.
  • In Bermondsey and Rotherhithe, 30% own or share ownership of their property, 40% live in social housing and 30% live rent free or in private rented homes.

Most of these statistics are drawn from the Borough’s summary available here: http://bit.ly/1qGluAy

If you want to delve deeper into the findings from the Census 2011 for our area try the Office for National Statistics Neighbourhood Statistics site: http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk

Easier to read and understand is the UK Data Explorer site: http://ukdataexplorer.com/census/london/

What else do you want to know about our area’s demographics? What do you think are the key figures to understand the area’s direction of change?