The 2021 Census
Members will be aware that there is a Census of the UK
population taken every ten years. The next one will be taken on 21 March and
will enable local and central government to make informed decisions (as against
making assumptions which could be wildly wrong). These decisions will be about
the need for housing, hospitals, schools, jobs – where, how soon, for how many
people?
You must complete the Census by law. If you
do not, or if you supply false information, you could be fined up to £1,000.
Some questions are clearly labelled as voluntary. It is not an offence if you
do not answer these.
Please beware of conspiracy myths-spreaders who will tell
you that this is all a plot by the gang who rule the world and are all lizards
disguised as humans and that you should decline to complete the Census.
For official information about the Census, please visit www.census.gov.uk
What follows is taken directly
from that website
Keep in touch:
- Register
for email updates about Census 2021 and/or other areas of ONS
- Access
census information for community partners and local authorities
- Follow
@Census2021 on Twitter and Facebook
The importance of the census in 2021
The census gives us information about households across England and
Wales.
At the Office for National Statistics (ONS), we’ve used past census
information to help us understand how the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has
affected people in different ways.
Census 2021 will give us fresh information to improve our understanding
of the pandemic. It will also help to make sure that the services you use meet
the needs of our changing society. This could include hospitals, schools,
universities and job centres.
Census Day is Sunday 21 March 2021 and will continue to happen on that
date.
Keeping the public and census staff
safe
At the ONS, our main concern is the safety of the public and our staff.
We want everyone to be safely counted during the census. To do this, we’re
making sure that our plans are always in line with the latest government safety
guidelines.
Census 2021 is a digital-first census, which means that we will be
encouraging people to respond online if they can. You will be able to complete
the census using any device, including your mobile phone or tablet.
If you need help, we’ve got it covered. We will have an online help area
on our website and offer help by phone, webchat, email, social media or text
message.
We’re also encouraging people to get help from friends and family to
complete their census.
If it’s safe and within government guidelines, we will also be opening
Census Support Centres to help people fill in their online questionnaire.
Census 2021 will be the first digital-first census. It’s easy to do and
can be done on any device. You’ll get an access code from us at the Office for
National Statistics. Simply go online and enter the code into our secure
website to get started. We’ll be in contact nearer the time to let you know
what you need to do.
Help available
We’re aiming to make it easy for everyone to take part in Census 2021.
But, if you need help, we’ve got it covered. We’ll have an online help area and
offer help by phone, webchat, email, social media or text message.
If you can’t get online or need help completing the census online,
there’ll be Census Support Centres across England and Wales.
We’ll also have guidance in a range of languages and accessible formats.