Socio-economic statistics for Southwold, Suffolk

Is Southwold in East Suffolk a nice place to live or is it a bit rough? We have collated a series of socio-economic statistics and demographics from UK government sources such as the 2021 Census and the Index of Multiple Deprivation. They should give you a broad snapshot of the area and the surrounding locations. Are the residents of Southwold older than the national average or younger? What is the population of Southwold and East Suffolk? What is the claimant count in Southwold and how many residents are unemployed? This page should provide you with the answers.

Southwold Unemployment Statistics

Since the introduction of Universal Credit, The Department for Work & Pensions have not issued any statistics (in our view) that can be used to ascertain the levels of unemployment or under employment in the UK, just meaningless geographic counts. However, the Office of National Statistics does publish claimant counts of people receiving out of work benefits, be that legacy Jobseeker’s Allowance or Universal Credit as a proportion of people over 16. These figures are usually updated once a month and are for Local Authority Districts and Unitary Authority Districts. So below are the figures of East Suffolk.

Area	Unemployed	Yearly Change
East Suffolk	2.7%	-0.5%
East of England	3%	-0.3%
England	3.8%	-0.3%
UK	3.7%	-0.3%

Source: Office for National Statistics (ONS), Last Retrieved: March 2023

The 2021 census had data on people who were economically active (seeking work) yet unemployed on Census day (Sunday March 21st 2021). These statitics do cover Southwold on a ward level. However, it has to be noted that the Census day was during the height of the Covid19 pandemic and therefore are not reflective of normal levels of unemployment. For example, between March 2020 and June 2020 people claiming Universal Credit doubled in most areas of the United Kingdom and then steadily declined up to the day of the Census and beyond. This data also contains the proportion of people in part-time work (working between 1-35 hours per week), which maybe an indicator of under employment in Southwold.

Economic Status	Proportion
In Employment	39.46%
In Part-Time Work	38.11%
Unemployed	4.58%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

61.89% of the people in work, are in full-time employment in Southwold

Southwold Age Distribution Statistics

We have taken the raw data from the 2021 Census and the calculated the proportion of age groups in Southwold.

Age Band	Proportion
4 & under
5 - 9 years
10 - 15 years
16 - 19 years
20 - 24 years
25 - 34 years
35 - 49 years
50 - 64 years
65 - 74 years
75 - 84 years
85 years & over

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Southwold Health Statistics

Southwold has a significantly lower proportion of residents (>5%) describing their health as very good than the national average for England.

Area	VG	G	F	B	VB
Southwold	41.12%	37.3%	16.68%	3.85%	1.04%
East Suffolk	43.33%	35.97%	14.98%	4.53%	1.2%
East	48.28%	34.64%	12.5%	3.58%	1%
England	48.49%	33.71%	12.65%	3.98%	1.17%

VG = Very Good, G = Good, F = Fair, B = Bad & VB = Very Bad

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Southwold Education Statistics

We have taken the raw data from the 2021 census to found of the level of education Southwold residents have in terms of formal qualifications as a percentage. The UK government breaks qualifications down into 7 levels. A detailed explanation of these levels can be found here. However, the Census groups these into just 4 \'levels\'. Here are some examples of the qualifications each census level represents when not stated;

Level 1 - GCSE grades D, E, F, or G & below
Level 2 - GCSE A*, A, B, C or O Level grades A, B or C
Level 3 - A or AS qualification at any grade
Level 4 - HNC, Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree or Phd

In this first table we have compared Southwold to the national average for England.

Level	Southwold	England
No Qualifications	18.75%	18.08%
Level 1	9.3%	9.69%
Level 2	14.07%	13.32%
Apprenticeship	6.81%	5.32%
Level 3	14.1%	16.92%
Level 4	33.83%	33.92%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Southwold & East Suffolk Immigration Statistics

We have analysed the Census 2021 raw data on country of birth and compiled immigration statistics as percentages of the population. All percentages have been rounded to two decimal places. Below are the figures for Southwold in the East Suffolk local area district.

Southwold has a lower rate of immigrants than East Suffolk, the East of England region and England as a whole.

Area	Born in UK	Born outside UK
Southwold	94.3%	5.7%
East Suffolk	94.04%	5.96%
East	85.09%	14.91%
England	82.65%	17.35%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Southwold compared to other wards in East Suffolk

#	Ward	Born in UK	Born outside UK
1	Eastern Felixstowe	90.6%	9.4%
2	Kesgrave	91.38%	8.62%
3	Western Felixstowe	91.73%	8.27%
4	Rushmere St Andrew	91.92%	8.08%
5	Deben	91.95%	8.05%
6	Martlesham & Purdis Farm	92.06%	7.94%
7	Rendlesham & Orford	92.42%	7.58%
8	Woodbridge	92.51%	7.49%
9	Harbour & Normanston	93.05%	6.95%
10	Bungay & Wainford	93.39%	6.61%
11	Aldeburgh & Leiston	93.66%	6.34%
12	Framlingham	93.76%	6.24%
13	Melton	94.03%	5.97%
14	Saxmundham	94.07%	5.93%
15	Kirkley & Pakefield	94.13%	5.87%
16	Orwell & Villages	94.29%	5.71%
17	Southwold	94.3%	5.7%
18	Wrentham, Wangford & Westleton	94.81%	5.19%
19	Carlford & Fynn Valley	95.01%	4.99%
20	Kelsale & Yoxford	95.17%	4.83%
21	Wickham Market	95.2%	4.8%
22	Lothingland	95.63%	4.37%
23	Halesworth & Blything	95.9%	4.1%
24	Beccles & Worlingham	95.98%	4.02%
25	Carlton & Whitton	96.42%	3.58%
26	Gunton & St Margarets	96.48%	3.52%
27	Oulton Broad	96.49%	3.51%
28	Kessingland	96.86%	3.14%
29	Carlton Colville	96.88%	3.12%

';Southwold is ranked 17 out of 29 wards in East Suffolk for the number of residents born outside of the UK.

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

How many residents own or rent their home in Southwold and East Suffolk

We have taken the raw data from the 2021 census and calculated what proportion of people in Southwold either own or rent their home. All percentages have been rounded to two decimal places. 71.98 of residents own their home either outright or mortgaged. 28.02 of Southwold residents rent their home either privately or through a social landlord.

Area	Owned	Rented
Southwold	71.98%	28.02%
East Suffolk	68.88%	31.12%
East	65.23%	34.77%
England	61.31%	38.69%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Southwold has a significantly higher level of home ownership than the national average. This is indicative or an economically wealthy area.

Southwold compared to other wards in East Suffolk

#	Ward	Owned	Rented
1	Rushmere St Andrew	92.42%	7.58%
2	Carlford & Fynn Valley	80.59%	19.41%
3	Martlesham & Purdis Farm	80.3%	19.7%
4	Carlton Colville	78.08%	21.92%
5	Orwell & Villages	77.17%	22.83%
6	Kesgrave	76.68%	23.32%
7	Oulton Broad	76.65%	23.35%
8	Lothingland (East Suffolk)	76.54%	23.46%
9	Southwold	71.98%	28.02%
10	Wrentham, Wangford & Westleton	71.66%	28.34%
11	Melton	71.45%	28.55%
12	Eastern Felixstowe	71.26%	28.74%
13	Framlingham	71.11%	28.89%
14	Kessingland	70.93%	29.07%
15	Carlton & Whitton	70.43%	29.57%
16	Halesworth & Blything	70.23%	29.77%
17	Kelsale & Yoxford	70.19%	29.81%
18	Rendlesham & Orford	69.83%	30.17%
19	Wickham Market	69.07%	30.93%
20	Deben	68.73%	31.27%
21	Bungay & Wainford	68.13%	31.87%
22	Beccles & Worlingham	67.82%	32.18%
23	Woodbridge	67.76%	32.24%
24	Gunton & St Margarets	67.19%	32.81%
25	Aldeburgh & Leiston	66.59%	33.41%
26	Kirkley & Pakefield	59.96%	40.04%
27	Saxmundham	59.27%	40.73%
28	Western Felixstowe	57.16%	42.84%
29	Harbour & Normanston	43.31%	56.69%

Southwold is ranked 9 out of 29 wards in East Suffolk for the percentage of home owners.

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

What are the occupations of the residents of Southwold?

The largest employment sector in Southwold is Managers, Directors & Senior Officials. The smallest employment sector is Process Plant & Machine Operatives.

Sector	Proportion
Managers, Directors & Senior Officials	17.87%
Professional Occupations	15.21%
Skilled Trades	15.07%
Associate Professional & Technical	13.15%
Elementary Occupations	10.56%
Caring, leisure & Other Services	8.94%
Administrative & Secretarial	6.57%
Process Plant & Machine Operatives	4.43%

Source: Office for National Statistics (30 June 2020)

What is the population of Southwold and East Suffolk?

The table below contains the populations figures for each ward in East Suffolk including Southwold. These population ONS figures are estimated are dated Mid 2020.

Ward	Population
East Suffolk Total	0

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Last updated: 20/02/2024, Additional Sources: Office for National Statistics & Department for Work & Pensions.

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