Socio-economic statistics for Shirley, Solihull

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

Shirley & Solihull 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 Shirley in the Solihull local area district.

Area	Born in UK	Born outside UK
Shirley West	88.94%	11.06%
Solihull	89.71%	10.29%
West Midlands	84.84%	15.17%
England	82.65%	17.35%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Shirley compared to other wards in Solihull

#	Ward	Born in UK	Born outside UK
1	Silhill	81.23%	18.77%
2	St Alphege	84.98%	15.02%
3	Shirley East	85.64%	14.36%
4	Olton	86.08%	13.92%
5	Lyndon	87.63%	12.37%
6	Shirley South	87.99%	12.01%
7	Elmdon	88.27%	11.73%
8	Blythe	88.82%	11.18%
9	Shirley West	88.94%	11.06%
10	Kingshurst and Fordbridge	92.28%	7.72%
11	Bickenhill	92.72%	7.28%
12	Smith's Wood	92.96%	7.04%
13	Knowle	93.14%	6.86%
14	Dorridge and Hockley Heath	93.43%	6.57%
15	Chelmsley Wood	93.52%	6.48%
16	Castle Bromwich	94.08%	5.92%
17	Meriden	94.35%	5.65%

';Shirley is ranked 9 out of 17 wards in Solihull for the number of residents born outside of the UK.

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Shirley Health Statistics

Shirley West 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
Shirley West	48.71%	34.68%	12.25%	3.32%	1.04%
Solihull	49.25%	33.38%	12.4%	3.84%	1.12%
West Midlands	46.4%	34.38%	13.54%	4.37%	1.31%
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 Solihull changed since 2011?

Solihull residents who describe their health as either good or very good has increased by 0.92% between the 2011 and 2021 census.

Year	VG	G	F	B	VB
2011	47.51%	34.2%	13.09%	3.99%	1.21%
2021	49.25%	33.38%	12.4%	3.84%	1.12%

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

Source: Census 2011/2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Shirley Education Statistics

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

Level	Shirley West	England
No Qualifications	18.01%	18.08%
Level 1	9.64%	9.69%
Level 2	14.4%	13.32%
Apprenticeship	5.01%	5.32%
Level 3	17.68%	16.92%
Level 4	32.89%	33.92%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

What are the occupations of the residents of Shirley?

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

Sector	Proportion
Professional Occupations	24.71%
Associate Professional & Technical	13.82%
Managers, Directors & Senior Officials	12.15%
Administrative & Secretarial	11.29%
Skilled Trades	10.53%
Elementary Occupations	8.19%
Caring, leisure & Other Services	7.49%
Process Plant & Machine Operatives	5.07%

Source: Office for National Statistics (30 June 2020)

Shirley 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 Solihull.

Area	Unemployed	Yearly Change
Solihull	3.3%	-0.5%
West Midlands	5%	-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 Shirley 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 Shirley.

Economic Status	Proportion
In Employment	58.63%
In Part-Time Work	25.51%
Unemployed	4.13%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

74.49% of the people in work, are in full-time employment in Shirley

Shirley Age Distribution Statistics

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

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)

How many residents own or rent their home in Shirley and Solihull

We have taken the raw data from the 2021 census and calculated what proportion of people in Shirley either own or rent their home. All percentages have been rounded to two decimal places. 76.19 of residents own their home either outright or mortgaged. 23.81 of Shirley residents rent their home either privately or through a social landlord.

Area	Owned	Rented
Shirley West	76.19%	23.81%
Solihull	72.24%	27.76%
West Midlands	62.8%	37.2%
England	61.31%	38.69%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

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

Shirley compared to other wards in Solihull

#	Ward	Owned	Rented
1	St Alphege	86.65%	13.35%
2	Dorridge and Hockley Heath	85.74%	14.26%
3	Knowle (Solihull)	83.05%	16.95%
4	Castle Bromwich	81.93%	18.07%
5	Meriden (Solihull)	80.46%	19.54%
6	Shirley South (Solihull)	78.86%	21.14%
7	Shirley East	78.84%	21.16%
8	Blythe	76.28%	23.72%
9	Shirley West	76.19%	23.81%
10	Elmdon	76.03%	23.97%
11	Olton	75.83%	24.17%
12	Lyndon	74.8%	25.2%
13	Silhill	71.27%	28.73%
14	Bickenhill	70.69%	29.31%
15	Kingshurst and Fordbridge	49.08%	50.92%
16	Smith's Wood	49.05%	50.95%
17	Chelmsley Wood	41.16%	58.84%

Shirley is ranked 9 out of 17 wards in Solihull for the percentage of home owners.

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

What is the population of Shirley and Solihull?

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

Ward	Population
Bickenhill	12847
Blythe	14738
Castle Bromwich	11280
Chelmsley Wood	13308
Dorridge and Hockley Heath	11465
Elmdon	12747
Kingshurst and Fordbridge	13575
Knowle	11276
Lyndon	13886
Meriden	12752
Olton	12837
Shirley East	12123
Shirley South	12537
Shirley West	12895
Silhill	12446
Smith's Wood	12929
St Alphege	13846
Solihull Total	217487

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

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

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