Socio-economic statistics for Highfields, Cambridgeshire

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

Highfields Health Statistics

Caldecote has significantly more residents (>5%) describing their health as very good than the national average for England.

Area	VG	G	F	B	VB
Caldecote	53.54%	33.59%	9.4%	2.84%	0.63%
South Cambridgeshire	52.21%	33.62%	10.74%	2.66%	0.77%
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)

How has the health of residents in South Cambridgeshire changed since 2011?

South Cambridgeshire residents who describe their health as either good or very good has decreased by 0.34% between the 2011 and 2021 census.

Year	VG	G	F	B	VB
2011	52.46%	33.71%	10.62%	2.51%	0.7%
2021	52.21%	33.62%	10.74%	2.66%	0.77%

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

Source: Census 2011/2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Highfields Age Distribution Statistics

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

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)

Highfields 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 South Cambridgeshire.

Area	Unemployed	Yearly Change
South Cambridgeshire	1.8%	-0.1%
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 Highfields 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 Highfields.

Economic Status	Proportion
In Employment	62.18%
In Part-Time Work	26.93%
Unemployed	3.21%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

73.07% of the people in work, are in full-time employment in Highfields

Highfields Education Statistics

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

Level	Caldecote	England
No Qualifications	9.43%	18.08%
Level 1	7.18%	9.69%
Level 2	12.55%	13.32%
Apprenticeship	3.52%	5.32%
Level 3	15.12%	16.92%
Level 4	50.69%	33.92%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

How many residents own or rent their home in Highfields and South Cambridgeshire

We have taken the raw data from the 2021 census and calculated what proportion of people in Highfields either own or rent their home. All percentages have been rounded to two decimal places. 72.46 of residents own their home either outright or mortgaged. 27.54 of Highfields residents rent their home either privately or through a social landlord.

Area	Owned	Rented
Caldecote	72.46%	27.54%
South Cambridgeshire	68.9%	31.1%
East	65.23%	34.77%
England	61.31%	38.69%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

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

Highfields compared to other wards in South Cambridgeshire

#	Ward	Owned	Rented
1	Hardwick	78.92%	21.08%
2	Foxton	77.73%	22.27%
3	The Mordens	75.36%	24.64%
4	Bar Hill	75.19%	24.81%
5	Gamlingay	74.83%	25.17%
6	Cottenham	73.9%	26.1%
7	Balsham	73.87%	26.13%
8	Swavesey	73.45%	26.55%
9	Whittlesford	73.12%	26.88%
10	Caldecote	72.46%	27.54%
11	Girton	71.92%	28.08%
12	Harston & Comberton	71.26%	28.74%
13	Linton (South Cambridgeshire)	70.8%	29.2%
14	Barrington	70.2%	29.8%
15	Bassingbourn	70.05%	29.95%
16	Shelford	69.68%	30.32%
17	Melbourn	68.09%	31.91%
18	Milton & Waterbeach	65.65%	34.35%
19	Fen Ditton & Fulbourn	61.03%	38.97%
20	Histon & Impington	60.55%	39.45%

Highfields is ranked 10 out of 20 wards in South Cambridgeshire for the percentage of home owners.

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Highfields & South Cambridgeshire 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 Highfields in the South Cambridgeshire local area district.

Highfields has a lower rate of immigrants than South Cambridgeshire, the East of England region and England as a whole.

Area	Born in UK	Born outside UK
Caldecote	86%	14%
South Cambridgeshire	83.84%	16.16%
East	85.09%	14.91%
England	82.65%	17.35%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Highfields compared to other wards in South Cambridgeshire

#	Ward	Born in UK	Born outside UK
1	Fen Ditton & Fulbourn	75.11%	24.89%
2	Bar Hill	78%	22%
3	Histon & Impington	79.31%	20.69%
4	Girton	79.48%	20.52%
5	Milton & Waterbeach	79.63%	20.37%
6	Harston & Comberton	80.63%	19.37%
7	Shelford	81.56%	18.44%
8	Hardwick	84.89%	15.11%
9	Caldecote	86%	14%
10	Whittlesford	87.53%	12.47%
11	Cottenham	87.64%	12.36%
12	Swavesey	89.08%	10.92%
13	Linton	90.64%	9.36%
14	Foxton	91.44%	8.56%
15	Melbourn	91.64%	8.36%
16	Bassingbourn	91.79%	8.21%
17	Balsham	92.24%	7.76%
18	Barrington	92.37%	7.63%
19	The Mordens	92.73%	7.27%
20	Gamlingay	95.04%	4.96%

';Highfields is ranked 9 out of 20 wards in South Cambridgeshire for the number of residents born outside of the UK.

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

What are the occupations of the residents of Highfields?

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

Sector	Proportion
Professional Occupations	29.13%
Managers, Directors & Senior Officials	17.5%
Associate Professional & Technical	12.31%
Skilled Trades	9.29%
Administrative & Secretarial	9.12%
Caring, leisure & Other Services	7.7%
Elementary Occupations	7.13%
Process Plant & Machine Operatives	3.65%

Source: Office for National Statistics (30 June 2020)

What is the population of Highfields and South Cambridgeshire?

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

Ward	Population
Balsham	3558
Bar Hill	4045
Barrington	3237
Bassingbourn	3869
Caldecote	4831
Cambourne	10544
Caxton & Papworth	6166
Cottenham	6660
Duxford	3953
Fen Ditton & Fulbourn	10809
Foxton	3381
Gamlingay	3678
Girton	5981
Hardwick	3053
Harston & Comberton	10203
Histon & Impington	12066
Linton	7361
Longstanton	6129
Melbourn	8298
Milton & Waterbeach	11360
Over & Willingham	6958
Sawston	7260
Shelford	7546
Swavesey	3625
The Mordens	3257
Whittlesford	3076
South Cambridgeshire Total	160904

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

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

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