Socio-economic statistics for Birkenhead, Wirral

Is Birkenhead in Wirral 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 Birkenhead older than the national average or younger? What is the population of Birkenhead and Wirral? What is the claimant count in Birkenhead and how many residents are unemployed? This page should provide you with the answers.

How many residents own or rent their home in Birkenhead and Wirral

We have taken the raw data from the 2021 census and calculated what proportion of people in Birkenhead either own or rent their home. All percentages have been rounded to two decimal places. 67.77 of residents own their home either outright or mortgaged. 32.23 of Birkenhead residents rent their home either privately or through a social landlord.

Area	Owned	Rented
Oxton	67.77%	32.23%
Wirral	65%	35%
North West	62.33%	37.67%
England	61.31%	38.69%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Birkenhead has a higher level of home ownership than than the national average.

Birkenhead compared to other wards in Wirral

#	Ward	Owned	Rented
1	Greasby, Frankby and Irby	87.77%	12.23%
2	Heswall	87.47%	12.53%
3	Clatterbridge	86.37%	13.63%
4	West Kirby and Thurstaston	80.49%	19.51%
5	Pensby and Thingwall	80.32%	19.69%
6	Wallasey	79.28%	20.72%
7	Eastham	79.05%	20.95%
8	Hoylake and Meols	78.76%	21.24%
9	Moreton West and Saughall Massie	76.94%	23.06%
10	Bebington	74.16%	25.84%
11	Prenton	72.81%	27.19%
12	Oxton	67.77%	32.23%
13	Claughton	64.87%	35.13%
14	New Brighton	61.8%	38.2%
15	Bromborough	61.76%	38.24%
16	Liscard	58.51%	41.49%
17	Leasowe and Moreton East	58.06%	41.94%
18	Upton (Wirral)	57.8%	42.2%
19	Seacombe	40.87%	59.13%
20	Rock Ferry	37.6%	62.4%
21	Bidston and St James	35.73%	64.27%
22	Birkenhead and Tranmere	30.29%	69.71%

Birkenhead is ranked 12 out of 22 wards in Wirral for the percentage of home owners.

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Birkenhead & Wirral 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 Birkenhead in the Wirral local area district.

Area	Born in UK	Born outside UK
Oxton	93.64%	6.36%
Wirral	94.56%	5.44%
North West	88.33%	11.67%
England	82.65%	17.35%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Birkenhead compared to other wards in Wirral

#	Ward	Born in UK	Born outside UK
1	Birkenhead and Tranmere	87.68%	12.32%
2	Rock Ferry	92.22%	7.78%
3	Bidston and St James	93.23%	6.77%
4	Oxton	93.64%	6.36%
5	Claughton	94.01%	5.99%
6	West Kirby and Thurstaston	94.04%	5.96%
7	Hoylake and Meols	94.25%	5.76%
8	Seacombe	94.28%	5.72%
9	Bromborough	94.44%	5.56%
10	Heswall	94.68%	5.32%
11	Prenton	94.94%	5.06%
12	New Brighton	95.06%	4.94%
13	Liscard	95.09%	4.91%
14	Leasowe and Moreton East	95.58%	4.42%
15	Bebington	95.6%	4.4%
16	Clatterbridge	95.64%	4.36%
17	Upton	95.65%	4.35%
18	Wallasey	96.11%	3.89%
19	Pensby and Thingwall	96.16%	3.84%
20	Moreton West and Saughall Massie	96.16%	3.84%
21	Greasby, Frankby and Irby	96.27%	3.73%
22	Eastham	96.72%	3.28%

';Birkenhead is ranked 4 out of 22 wards in Wirral for the number of residents born outside of the UK.

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Birkenhead Age Distribution Statistics

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

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)

Birkenhead 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 Wirral.

Area	Unemployed	Yearly Change
Wirral	3.8%	-0.3%
North West	4.3%	-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 Birkenhead 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 Birkenhead.

Economic Status	Proportion
In Employment	54.15%
In Part-Time Work	25.69%
Unemployed	4.14%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

74.31% of the people in work, are in full-time employment in Birkenhead

Birkenhead Health Statistics

Oxton has a lower proportion of residents (very_good_pc-$ward_health->very_good_pc, 2)%) describing their health as very good than the national average for England.

Area	VG	G	F	B	VB
Oxton	46.37%	32.74%	14.43%	5.22%	1.25%
Wirral	46.49%	32.07%	14.17%	5.57%	1.69%
North West	47.73%	32.71%	13.36%	4.77%	1.43%
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)

How has the health of residents in Wirral changed since 2011?

Wirral residents who describe their health as either good or very good has increased by 0.35% between the 2011 and 2021 census.

Year	VG	G	F	B	VB
2011	46.29%	31.92%	14.29%	5.77%	1.73%
2021	46.49%	32.07%	14.17%	5.57%	1.69%

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

Source: Census 2011/2021 (Nomis/ONS)

What are the occupations of the residents of Birkenhead?

The largest employment sector in Birkenhead is Professional Occupations. The smallest employment sector is Process Plant & Machine Operatives.

Sector	Proportion
Professional Occupations	23.59%
Associate Professional & Technical	13.95%
Managers, Directors & Senior Officials	11.56%
Administrative & Secretarial	11.17%
Skilled Trades	9.39%
Caring, leisure & Other Services	8.91%
Elementary Occupations	7.45%
Process Plant & Machine Operatives	6.98%

Source: Office for National Statistics (30 June 2020)

Birkenhead Education Statistics

We have taken the raw data from the 2021 census to found of the level of education Birkenhead 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 Birkenhead to the national average for England.

Level	Oxton	England
No Qualifications	15.82%	18.08%
Level 1	8.63%	9.69%
Level 2	13.2%	13.32%
Apprenticeship	6.52%	5.32%
Level 3	17.95%	16.92%
Level 4	35.59%	33.92%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

What is the population of Birkenhead and Wirral?

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

Ward	Population
Bebington	15669
Bidston and St James	16256
Birkenhead and Tranmere	16926
Bromborough	16427
Clatterbridge	13986
Claughton	14201
Eastham	14195
Greasby, Frankby and Irby	13728
Heswall	13126
Hoylake and Meols	13451
Leasowe and Moreton East	15086
Liscard	16086
Moreton West and Saughall Massie	13958
New Brighton	15162
Oxton	13784
Pensby and Thingwall	13024
Prenton	14786
Rock Ferry	14751
Seacombe	15609
Upton	16924
Wallasey	14658
West Kirby and Thurstaston	12543
Wirral Total	324336

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

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

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