Equality, diversity and inclusion

The census is a survey taken of all usual residents of England and Wales every 10 years, planned, and run by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). It asks questions about individuals and households with the aim of providing a snapshot of society that can be used by national and local government in the planning of services.

Local authorities such as Southwark Council can use this data in a number of ways, to help develop policies, plan and run local services and allocate public funds to where they are most needed.

The data in this section is gathered from the Census 2021 results, particularly focusing on the ‘protected characteristics’ covered under the Equality Act 2010. Specifically, the profile includes data on:

• age
• sex
• race
• pregnancy and maternity
• disability
• religion and belief
• sexual orientation
• marriage and civil partnership
• gender reassignment

Key summary 

• despite Southwark’s young population, older resident numbers have increased by one-sixth since 2011
• women substantially outnumber men among 20 to 25-year-olds and over 65-year-olds
• over 1 in 6 (16%) of residents report African ethnicity, over 1 in 20 Caribbean, 1 in 30 Chinese, and one in 30 Hispanic or Latin American.
• two fifths of residents are Christian, one tenth are Muslim, and one third have no religion
• 1 in 6 residents is disabled (about 42,000 people), over two fifths have their daily lives greatly affected and 1 in 4 Southwark households has someone with a disability
• the proportion of residents who are new parents is probably much higher in south-central Southwark
• substantially higher proportions of Southwark residents have never married, compared with London and England
• at least 1 in 80 Southwark residents (about 3,200) has a gender identity different from their birth sex registration
• at least 1 in 12 Southwark residents (about 20,700) identifies as lesbian, gay, bisexual or another non-heterosexual identity