What's Changed Since 2001?
The main differences between proposals for the 2011 Census and the arrangements/questions for 2001 are:
- Most householders will have the option to complete their questionnaire online for the first time
- There will be four pages of questions per person, instead of three pages. This will allow space for six new questions and better tick box options for people to choose from - for example, extended response options for ethnicity, marital status, qualifications and time spent caring for other people
- The six new questions are: nature of illness/disability, language (two new questions in addition to the question on ability in Scottish Gaelic taken from 2001, which has been expanded) household income, national identity and month/ year of arrival in the UK
- The question on ethnic group has been extensively reviewed and the number of response options expanded
- Civil partnership options are also included in the marital status question and relationship matrix for the first time
- Basic information on visitors will also be collected for the first time
These improvements will give people more choice about how they complete the questionnaire and clearer choices to select from. It will also give census data users better evidence of what people need from future public services.
