Socio-economic statistics for Washington, West Sussex

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

Washington 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 Horsham.

Area	Unemployed	Yearly Change
Horsham	1.9%	-0.2%
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 Washington 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 Washington.

Economic Status	Proportion
In Employment	49.24%
In Part-Time Work	32.74%
Unemployed	3.81%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

67.26% of the people in work, are in full-time employment in Washington

What are the occupations of the residents of Washington?

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

Sector	Proportion
Professional Occupations	20.51%
Managers, Directors & Senior Officials	20.21%
Associate Professional & Technical	13.03%
Skilled Trades	10.42%
Administrative & Secretarial	9.66%
Caring, leisure & Other Services	8.1%
Elementary Occupations	6.87%
Process Plant & Machine Operatives	4.48%

Source: Office for National Statistics (30 June 2020)

Washington Age Distribution Statistics

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

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 Washington and Horsham

We have taken the raw data from the 2021 census and calculated what proportion of people in Washington either own or rent their home. All percentages have been rounded to two decimal places. 73.22 of residents own their home either outright or mortgaged. 26.78 of Washington residents rent their home either privately or through a social landlord.

Area	Owned	Rented
Storrington & Washington	73.22%	26.78%
Horsham	72.25%	27.75%
South East	65.66%	34.34%
England	61.31%	38.69%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

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

Washington compared to other wards in Horsham

#	Ward	Owned	Rented
1	West Chiltington, Thakeham & Ashington	84.2%	15.8%
2	Nuthurst & Lower Beeding	81.66%	18.34%
3	Southwater North	80.57%	19.43%
4	Rudgwick	79.86%	20.14%
5	Bramber, Upper Beeding & Woodmancote	79.78%	20.22%
6	Cowfold, Shermanbury & West Grinstead	79.27%	20.73%
7	Roffey North	78.03%	21.97%
8	Steyning & Ashurst	76.72%	23.28%
9	Itchingfield, Slinfold & Warnham	75.48%	24.52%
10	Trafalgar	74.97%	25.03%
11	Holbrook East	74.27%	25.73%
12	Storrington & Washington	73.22%	26.78%
13	Holbrook West	71.68%	28.32%
14	Billingshurst	70.74%	29.26%
15	Southwater South & Shipley	70.46%	29.54%
16	Pulborough, Coldwaltham & Amberley	70.06%	29.94%
17	Henfield	69.89%	30.11%
18	Broadbridge Heath	68.74%	31.26%
19	Forest (Horsham)	68.11%	31.89%
20	Colgate & Rusper	65.06%	34.94%
21	Roffey South	60.98%	39.02%
22	Denne	58.98%	41.02%

Washington is ranked 12 out of 22 wards in Horsham for the percentage of home owners.

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Washington Health Statistics

Storrington & Washington has a lower proportion of residents (very_good_pc-$ward_health->very_good_pc, 2)%) describing their health as very good than the national average for England.

Area	VG	G	F	B	VB
Storrington & Washington	47.42%	35.36%	13.11%	3.29%	0.82%
Horsham	51.47%	33.95%	11.05%	2.77%	0.76%
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 Horsham changed since 2011?

Horsham residents who describe their health as either good or very good has increased by 0.06% between the 2011 and 2021 census.

Year	VG	G	F	B	VB
2011	50.57%	34.79%	11.1%	2.71%	0.82%
2021	51.47%	33.95%	11.05%	2.77%	0.76%

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

Source: Census 2011/2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Washington & Horsham 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 Washington in the Horsham local area district.

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

Area	Born in UK	Born outside UK
Storrington & Washington	93.04%	6.96%
Horsham	89.71%	10.29%
South East	84.24%	15.76%
England	82.65%	17.35%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Washington compared to other wards in Horsham

#	Ward	Born in UK	Born outside UK
1	Colgate & Rusper	82.22%	17.78%
2	Denne	82.38%	17.62%
3	Roffey South	86.3%	13.7%
4	Forest	86.96%	13.04%
5	Broadbridge Heath	87.29%	12.71%
6	Trafalgar	87.6%	12.4%
7	Rudgwick	87.97%	12.03%
8	Holbrook East	88%	12%
9	Holbrook West	88.39%	11.61%
10	Roffey North	89.48%	10.52%
11	Nuthurst & Lower Beeding	90.31%	9.69%
12	Itchingfield, Slinfold & Warnham	91.64%	8.36%
13	Henfield	91.74%	8.26%
14	Billingshurst	91.78%	8.22%
15	Southwater North	91.81%	8.19%
16	Southwater South & Shipley	92.21%	7.79%
17	Pulborough, Coldwaltham & Amberley	92.84%	7.16%
18	Storrington & Washington	93.04%	6.96%
19	Bramber, Upper Beeding & Woodmancote	93.05%	6.95%
20	Steyning & Ashurst	93.08%	6.92%
21	West Chiltington, Thakeham & Ashington	93.28%	6.72%
22	Cowfold, Shermanbury & West Grinstead	93.38%	6.62%

';Washington is ranked 18 out of 22 wards in Horsham for the number of residents born outside of the UK.

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Washington Education Statistics

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

Level	Storrington & Washington	England
No Qualifications	14.99%	18.08%
Level 1	9.42%	9.69%
Level 2	15.13%	13.32%
Apprenticeship	4.95%	5.32%
Level 3	16.32%	16.92%
Level 4	35.8%	33.92%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

What is the population of Washington and Horsham?

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

Ward	Population
Billingshurst	9881
Bramber, Upper Beeding & Woodmancote	5403
Broadbridge Heath	6187
Colgate & Rusper	4872
Cowfold, Shermanbury & West Grinstead	5567
Denne	10501
Forest	8911
Henfield	5821
Holbrook East	5921
Holbrook West	6582
Itchingfield, Slinfold & Warnham	5995
Nuthurst & Lower Beeding	2932
Pulborough, Coldwaltham & Amberley	7363
Roffey North	6272
Roffey South	6902
Rudgwick	3026
Southwater North	7135
Southwater South & Shipley	5803
Steyning & Ashurst	6294
Storrington & Washington	9354
Trafalgar	6277
West Chiltington, Thakeham & Ashington	8475
Horsham Total	145474

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

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

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