Scotland's Census 2011

Have your say on how the census results look

Users of census data and the general public now have the opportunity to influence how results from Scotland’s 2011 Census will be presented.

The General Register Office for Scotland (GROS) has published a paper outlining the ways that Scotland’s 2011 Census results could be provided and is seeking views on its plans.

GROS published the results of the last census as tables, graphs and charts, on paper and electronically (online and CDs). It now asks people to consider what they need from the 2011 Census including:

• Are additional tables or amendments to existing tables required?
• What type of information do census users want to be available first?
• Are there any disadvantages to the approach being taken to geography and are there any additional suggestions on this?

Census statistics are used by governments, local authorities, heath boards and many other organisations to plan and provide future public services. It is a unique survey because it counts everyone on the same day and asks the same questions of us all. This allows data to be combined to provide detailed information such as the number of elderly living alone and the types of accommodation that they live in, or the number of lone parent families without a car in rural or urban areas. Results can also be compared with other parts of the UK and to previous censuses.

Census Director Peter Scrimgeour said:

“Census users expect to access the statistics quickly and easily. We want to meet their needs because it means public services can be properly planned to support those who most need them and provide value for the taxpayer.

“To achieve this the 2011 Census will be required to deliver a wider range and more complex set of requirements than ever before.

“The census produces statistics from national to neighbourhood level and we have a legal requirement to protect individuals’ private information for 100 years. That means that we have to build in measures to keep such details confidential, especially when we produce the results for small areas.

“Analysing and anonymising the results from more than 2.4 million households takes time and we want to publish accurate information, so we want people to tell us what kinds of results they think they will need and when.”

GROS developed its proposed statistical outputs through user feedback and consultation following the 2001 Census. Key features of the plan are:

• A set of pre-defined tables containing different combinations of all the information gathered through the census questionnaire
• The ability for census users to devise and generate their own tables online
• The ability to look at information from a Scotland-wide to neighbourhood level (not less than 50 households or 100 individuals)
• The ability to review information at local authority or health board level, and for Westminster and Scottish Parliament constituencies
• The ability to make comparisons with 2001 Census results and with the other UK censuses
• Fewer printed reports and greater use of electronic media.

The first set of census statistics is provisionally set to be available from September 2012 with more detailed results released over the following 15 months.

2001 printed reports included: a population report, a report to Parliament, key statistics by council and health board areas, a reference volume and a Gaelic report. The results of the 2001 Census are available on SCROL (www.scrol.gov.uk)

The “2011 Census Consultation on Statistical Outputs” is open to everyone and closes on Friday 14 May 2010. Full details are available on the GROS website.

A similar census outputs consultation for England and Wales is being held by the Office for National Statistics.