Socio-economic statistics for Southend, Berkshire

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

Southend & West Berkshire 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 Southend in the West Berkshire local area district.

Southend has a lower rate of immigrants than West Berkshire, the South East region and England as a whole.

Area	Born in UK	Born outside UK
Downlands	93.16%	6.84%
West Berkshire	87.95%	12.05%
South East	84.24%	15.76%
England	82.65%	17.35%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Southend compared to other wards in West Berkshire

#	Ward	Born in UK	Born outside UK
1	Newbury Central	76.49%	23.51%
2	Newbury Clay Hill	81.32%	18.68%
3	Tilehurst South & Holybrook	82.77%	17.23%
4	Newbury Greenham	82.96%	17.04%
5	Newbury Speen	85.59%	14.41%
6	Theale	87.95%	12.05%
7	Pangbourne	88.09%	11.91%
8	Tilehurst Birch Copse	88.72%	11.28%
9	Thatcham Central	88.84%	11.16%
10	Basildon	89.14%	10.86%
11	Bucklebury	89.53%	10.47%
12	Tilehurst & Purley	89.72%	10.28%
13	Bradfield	89.89%	10.11%
14	Burghfield & Mortimer	89.98%	10.02%
15	Newbury Wash Common	90.05%	9.95%
16	Chieveley & Cold Ash	90.31%	9.69%
17	Thatcham North East	90.37%	9.63%
18	Lambourn	90.39%	9.61%
19	Aldermaston	90.52%	9.48%
20	Ridgeway	90.66%	9.34%
21	Hungerford & Kintbury	91%	9%
22	Thatcham West	91.48%	8.52%
23	Thatcham Colthrop	92.04%	7.96%
24	Downlands	93.16%	6.84%

';Southend is ranked 24 out of 24 wards in West Berkshire for the number of residents born outside of the UK.

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

How many residents own or rent their home in Southend and West Berkshire

We have taken the raw data from the 2021 census and calculated what proportion of people in Southend either own or rent their home. All percentages have been rounded to two decimal places. 64.76 of residents own their home either outright or mortgaged. 35.24 of Southend residents rent their home either privately or through a social landlord.

Area	Owned	Rented
Downlands	64.76%	35.24%
West Berkshire	67.56%	32.44%
South East	65.66%	34.34%
England	61.31%	38.69%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

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

Southend compared to other wards in West Berkshire

#	Ward	Owned	Rented
1	Tilehurst & Purley	86.77%	13.23%
2	Thatcham Colthrop & Crookham	82.13%	17.87%
3	Tilehurst Birch Copse	79.65%	20.35%
4	Basildon	78.02%	21.98%
5	Newbury Wash Common	77.79%	22.21%
6	Chieveley & Cold Ash	76.69%	23.31%
7	Bucklebury	74.62%	25.38%
8	Tilehurst South & Holybrook	74.01%	25.99%
9	Thatcham West	73.62%	26.38%
10	Pangbourne	71.88%	28.13%
11	Burghfield & Mortimer	71.49%	28.51%
12	Aldermaston	71.31%	28.69%
13	Thatcham North East	66.1%	33.9%
14	Thatcham Central	65.16%	34.84%
15	Downlands	64.76%	35.24%
16	Hungerford & Kintbury	64.02%	35.98%
17	Bradfield	63.88%	36.12%
18	Newbury Speen	59.68%	40.32%
19	Ridgeway (West Berkshire)	59.67%	40.33%
20	Theale	58.74%	41.26%
21	Lambourn	58.32%	41.68%
22	Newbury Clay Hill	57.29%	42.71%
23	Newbury Greenham	54.98%	45.02%
24	Newbury Central	45.64%	54.36%

Southend is ranked 15 out of 24 wards in West Berkshire for the percentage of home owners.

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Southend Age Distribution Statistics

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

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)

Southend Education Statistics

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

Level	Downlands	England
No Qualifications	11.9%	18.08%
Level 1	9.13%	9.69%
Level 2	14.7%	13.32%
Apprenticeship	4.66%	5.32%
Level 3	19.11%	16.92%
Level 4	37.92%	33.92%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

What are the occupations of the residents of Southend?

The largest employment sector in Southend is Managers, Directors & Senior Officials. The smallest employment sector is Process Plant & Machine Operatives.

Sector	Proportion
Managers, Directors & Senior Officials	22.55%
Professional Occupations	18.33%
Associate Professional & Technical	13.51%
Skilled Trades	12.49%
Administrative & Secretarial	8.99%
Caring, leisure & Other Services	7.67%
Elementary Occupations	6.86%
Process Plant & Machine Operatives	4.16%

Source: Office for National Statistics (30 June 2020)

Southend 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 West Berkshire.

Area	Unemployed	Yearly Change
West Berkshire	2.1%	-0.3%
South East	2.9%	-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 Southend 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 Southend.

Economic Status	Proportion
In Employment	61.94%
In Part-Time Work	26.81%
Unemployed	3.17%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

73.19% of the people in work, are in full-time employment in Southend

Southend Health Statistics

Downlands 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
Downlands	52.61%	33.92%	9.93%	2.87%	0.68%
West Berkshire	51.05%	34.65%	10.95%	2.68%	0.67%
South East	49.98%	34.01%	11.77%	3.31%	0.93%
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 West Berkshire changed since 2011?

West Berkshire residents who describe their health as either good or very good has decreased by 0.44% between the 2011 and 2021 census.

Year	VG	G	F	B	VB
2011	51.64%	34.5%	10.7%	2.48%	0.68%
2021	51.05%	34.65%	10.95%	2.68%	0.67%

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

Source: Census 2011/2021 (Nomis/ONS)

What is the population of Southend and West Berkshire?

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

Ward	Population
Aldermaston	3828
Basildon	3539
Bradfield	4408
Bucklebury	3606
Burghfield & Mortimer	10429
Chieveley & Cold Ash	8188
Downlands	3647
Hungerford & Kintbury	11361
Lambourn	4237
Newbury Central	7803
Newbury Clay Hill	7323
Newbury Greenham	12213
Newbury Speen	7266
Newbury Wash Common	8849
Pangbourne	3801
Ridgeway	4191
Thatcham Central	7959
Thatcham Colthrop & Crookham	2747
Thatcham North East	7898
Thatcham West	7209
Theale	2946
Tilehurst & Purley	10336
Tilehurst Birch Copse	7654
Tilehurst South & Holybrook	7027
West Berkshire Total	158465

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

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

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