Socio-economic statistics for South Kirkby, Wakefield

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

South Kirkby & Wakefield 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 South Kirkby in the Wakefield local area district.

South Kirkby has a lower rate of immigrants than Wakefield, the Yorkshire and The Humber region and England as a whole.

Area	Born in UK	Born outside UK
South Elmsall and South Kirkby	91.79%	8.21%
Wakefield	91.49%	8.51%
Yorkshire and The Humber	88.65%	11.35%
England	82.65%	17.35%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

South Kirkby compared to other wards in Wakefield

#	Ward	Born in UK	Born outside UK
1	Wakefield East	69.94%	30.06%
2	Wakefield North	80.05%	19.95%
3	Wakefield South	83.79%	16.21%
4	Wakefield West	86.73%	13.27%
5	Normanton	88.97%	11.03%
6	South Elmsall and South Kirkby	91.79%	8.21%
7	Stanley and Outwood East	92.6%	7.4%
8	Castleford Central and Glasshoughton	93.25%	6.75%
9	Pontefract North	93.48%	6.52%
10	Airedale and Ferry Fryston	93.76%	6.24%
11	Wrenthorpe and Outwood West	93.89%	6.11%
12	Altofts and Whitwood	94.16%	5.84%
13	Featherstone	94.63%	5.37%
14	Knottingley	94.68%	5.32%
15	Hemsworth	95.06%	4.94%
16	Crofton, Ryhill and Walton	95.31%	4.69%
17	Ackworth, North Elmsall and Upton	95.42%	4.58%
18	Wakefield Rural	95.86%	4.14%
19	Pontefract South	95.94%	4.06%
20	Ossett	96.21%	3.79%
21	Horbury and South Ossett	96.53%	3.47%

';South Kirkby is ranked 6 out of 21 wards in Wakefield for the number of residents born outside of the UK.

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

How many residents own or rent their home in South Kirkby and Wakefield

We have taken the raw data from the 2021 census and calculated what proportion of people in South Kirkby either own or rent their home. All percentages have been rounded to two decimal places. 56.61 of residents own their home either outright or mortgaged. 43.39 of South Kirkby residents rent their home either privately or through a social landlord.

Area	Owned	Rented
South Elmsall and South Kirkby	56.61%	43.39%
Wakefield	62.6%	37.4%
Yorkshire and The Humber	62.58%	37.42%
England	61.31%	38.69%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

South Kirkby has a lower level of home ownership than than the national average.

South Kirkby compared to other wards in Wakefield

#	Ward	Owned	Rented
1	Wakefield Rural	77.04%	22.96%
2	Stanley and Outwood East	74.61%	25.39%
3	Wrenthorpe and Outwood West	74.49%	25.51%
4	Ackworth, North Elmsall and Upton	71.97%	28.03%
5	Crofton, Ryhill and Walton	71.84%	28.16%
6	Horbury and South Ossett	68.67%	31.33%
7	Pontefract South	67.08%	32.92%
8	Altofts and Whitwood	66.55%	33.45%
9	Ossett	66.45%	33.55%
10	Castleford Central and Glasshoughton	66.16%	33.84%
11	Wakefield South	64.42%	35.58%
12	Pontefract North	62.96%	37.04%
13	Featherstone	60.14%	39.86%
14	Normanton (Wakefield)	59.14%	40.86%
15	Hemsworth	57.9%	42.1%
16	Knottingley	57.3%	42.7%
17	South Elmsall and South Kirkby	56.61%	43.39%
18	Airedale and Ferry Fryston	54.53%	45.47%
19	Wakefield West	48.77%	51.23%
20	Wakefield North	47.57%	52.43%
21	Wakefield East	38.57%	61.43%

South Kirkby is ranked 17 out of 21 wards in Wakefield for the percentage of home owners.

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

South Kirkby Age Distribution Statistics

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

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)

South Kirkby 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 Wakefield.

Area	Unemployed	Yearly Change
Wakefield	3.7%	-0.3%
Yorkshire and The Humber	4.2%	-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 South Kirkby 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 South Kirkby.

Economic Status	Proportion
In Employment	54.65%
In Part-Time Work	25.56%
Unemployed	4.4%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

74.44% of the people in work, are in full-time employment in South Kirkby

South Kirkby Education Statistics

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

Level	South Elmsall and South Kirkby	England
No Qualifications	31%	18.08%
Level 1	11.53%	9.69%
Level 2	15.53%	13.32%
Apprenticeship	6.08%	5.32%
Level 3	15.24%	16.92%
Level 4	17.5%	33.92%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

What are the occupations of the residents of South Kirkby?

The largest employment sector in South Kirkby is Elementary Occupations. The smallest employment sector is Administrative & Secretarial.

Sector	Proportion
Elementary Occupations	24.34%
Process Plant & Machine Operatives	11.79%
Skilled Trades	10.99%
Caring, leisure & Other Services	9.8%
Professional Occupations	9.68%
Associate Professional & Technical	9.6%
Managers, Directors & Senior Officials	8.48%
Administrative & Secretarial	8.1%

Source: Office for National Statistics (30 June 2020)

South Kirkby Health Statistics

South Elmsall and South Kirkby 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
South Elmsall and South Kirkby	42.9%	32.92%	15.86%	6.23%	2.09%
Wakefield	44.71%	34.29%	14.46%	5.07%	1.48%
Yorkshire and The Humber	46.18%	34.31%	13.7%	4.49%	1.32%
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 Wakefield changed since 2011?

Wakefield residents who describe their health as either good or very good has increased by 2.21% between the 2011 and 2021 census.

Year	VG	G	F	B	VB
2011	42.75%	34.04%	15.53%	5.99%	1.7%
2021	44.71%	34.29%	14.46%	5.07%	1.48%

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

Source: Census 2011/2021 (Nomis/ONS)

What is the population of South Kirkby and Wakefield?

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

Ward	Population
Ackworth, North Elmsall and Upton	17746
Airedale and Ferry Fryston	15892
Altofts and Whitwood	18398
Castleford Central and Glasshoughton	16843
Crofton, Ryhill and Walton	15875
Featherstone	17299
Hemsworth	15979
Horbury and South Ossett	15513
Knottingley	14363
Normanton	17334
Ossett	16678
Pontefract North	18035
Pontefract South	15238
South Elmsall and South Kirkby	19279
Stanley and Outwood East	16568
Wakefield East	17232
Wakefield North	17647
Wakefield Rural	17736
Wakefield South	14906
Wakefield West	16555
Wrenthorpe and Outwood West	16476
Wakefield Total	351592

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

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

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