Socio-economic statistics for Sharples, Bolton

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

Sharples 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 Bolton.

Area	Unemployed	Yearly Change
Bolton	5.7%	-0.2%
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 Sharples 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 Sharples.

Economic Status	Proportion
In Employment	55.63%
In Part-Time Work	27.86%
Unemployed	5.14%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

72.14% of the people in work, are in full-time employment in Sharples

Sharples Education Statistics

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

Level	Smithills	England
No Qualifications	18.64%	18.08%
Level 1	10.25%	9.69%
Level 2	13.56%	13.32%
Apprenticeship	6.16%	5.32%
Level 3	17.21%	16.92%
Level 4	31.59%	33.92%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Sharples & Bolton 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 Sharples in the Bolton local area district.

Area	Born in UK	Born outside UK
Smithills	86.77%	13.23%
Bolton	83.09%	16.91%
North West	88.33%	11.67%
England	82.65%	17.35%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Sharples compared to other wards in Bolton

#	Ward	Born in UK	Born outside UK
1	Rumworth	54.83%	45.17%
2	Great Lever	60.56%	39.44%
3	Halliwell	61.8%	38.2%
4	Crompton	72.68%	27.32%
5	Harper Green	74.79%	25.21%
6	Hulton	80.93%	19.07%
7	Tonge with the Haulgh	84.3%	15.7%
8	Heaton and Lostock	84.53%	15.47%
9	Farnworth	84.74%	15.26%
10	Smithills	86.77%	13.23%
11	Astley Bridge	90.84%	9.16%
12	Breightmet	90.96%	9.04%
13	Kearsley	93.38%	6.62%
14	Horwich and Blackrod	94.55%	5.45%
15	Westhoughton North and Chew Moor	94.65%	5.35%
16	Horwich North East	94.69%	5.31%
17	Little Lever and Darcy Lever	95.08%	4.92%
18	Bradshaw	95.28%	4.72%
19	Westhoughton South	95.3%	4.7%
20	Bromley Cross	96.75%	3.25%

';Sharples is ranked 10 out of 20 wards in Bolton for the number of residents born outside of the UK.

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

How many residents own or rent their home in Sharples and Bolton

We have taken the raw data from the 2021 census and calculated what proportion of people in Sharples either own or rent their home. All percentages have been rounded to two decimal places. 67.98 of residents own their home either outright or mortgaged. 32.02 of Sharples residents rent their home either privately or through a social landlord.

Area	Owned	Rented
Smithills	67.98%	32.02%
Bolton	61.52%	38.48%
North West	62.33%	37.67%
England	61.31%	38.69%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

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

Sharples compared to other wards in Bolton

#	Ward	Owned	Rented
1	Heaton and Lostock	84.65%	15.35%
2	Bromley Cross	82.39%	17.61%
3	Bradshaw	78.66%	21.34%
4	Westhoughton North and Chew Moor	75.5%	24.5%
5	Little Lever and Darcy Lever	72.72%	27.28%
6	Westhoughton South	71.93%	28.07%
7	Astley Bridge	71.45%	28.55%
8	Horwich and Blackrod	69.2%	30.8%
9	Horwich North East	68.54%	31.46%
10	Smithills	67.98%	32.02%
11	Hulton	64.44%	35.56%
12	Kearsley	62.58%	37.42%
13	Harper Green	56.34%	43.66%
14	Breightmet	54.42%	45.58%
15	Crompton (Bolton)	48.38%	51.62%
16	Tonge with the Haulgh	47.09%	52.91%
17	Farnworth (Bolton)	46.83%	53.17%
18	Rumworth	44.26%	55.74%
19	Great Lever	40.34%	59.66%
20	Halliwell	30.93%	69.07%

Sharples is ranked 10 out of 20 wards in Bolton for the percentage of home owners.

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Sharples Age Distribution Statistics

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

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)

What are the occupations of the residents of Sharples?

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

Sector	Proportion
Professional Occupations	19.14%
Associate Professional & Technical	12.27%
Managers, Directors & Senior Officials	11.12%
Elementary Occupations	10.34%
Caring, leisure & Other Services	10.1%
Skilled Trades	10.07%
Administrative & Secretarial	10.05%
Process Plant & Machine Operatives	7.67%

Source: Office for National Statistics (30 June 2020)

Sharples Health Statistics

Smithills has more residents (very_good_pc-$country_health->very_good_pc, 2)%) describing their health as very good than the national average for England.

Area	VG	G	F	B	VB
Smithills	49.08%	33.17%	12.5%	4.05%	1.21%
Bolton	48%	32.7%	13.15%	4.72%	1.43%
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 Bolton changed since 2011?

Bolton residents who describe their health as either good or very good has increased by 1.46% between the 2011 and 2021 census.

Year	VG	G	F	B	VB
2011	45.36%	33.88%	14.14%	5.23%	1.4%
2021	48%	32.7%	13.15%	4.72%	1.43%

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

Source: Census 2011/2021 (Nomis/ONS)

What is the population of Sharples and Bolton?

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

Ward	Population
Astley Bridge	14133
Bradshaw	11331
Breightmet	14078
Bromley Cross	13503
Crompton	16828
Farnworth	16586
Great Lever	16402
Halliwell	15257
Harper Green	15275
Heaton and Lostock	14290
Horwich and Blackrod	13389
Horwich North East	12024
Hulton	14602
Kearsley	14497
Little Lever and Darcy Lever	12593
Rumworth	17707
Smithills	14595
Tonge with the Haulgh	14406
Westhoughton North and Chew Moor	13897
Westhoughton South	12855
Bolton Total	288248

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

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

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