Analysis of population characteristics by area deprivation (Census 2021)

This analysis uses Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation (WIMD) 2019 and Census 2021 data to estimate the proportions of population groups living in areas within each WIMD 2019 deprivation grouping. It identifies where people from various groups are most likely to live in terms of small area (Lower Super Output Area or LSOA) relative deprivation and whether this varies across groups.

Although WIMD identifies concentrations of deprivation, it’s important to remember that there are people living in deprived areas who would not be considered deprived, and there are also people who would be considered to be deprived living in the least deprived areas.

The characteristics covered in this release were collected as part of Census 2021. Some of these characteristics are protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010. Comparisons should not be made to the estimates produced in Analysis of protected characteristics by area deprivation: 2017 to 2019, as this previous analysis sourced protected characteristic data from the Annual Population Survey (APS).

This analysis presents an overview of how different populations were distributed across Wales at the time of the 2021 Census. It does not take into account the interaction of different characteristics with each other or with deprivation. For example, older age groups have a lower likelihood of living in the most deprived areas, which may affect the likelihood of populations with different age profiles such as certain ethnic groups, veterans or those in poor health living in such areas. Results should be interpreted in simple terms of how likely the population was to live in the various deprivation areas of Wales at the time of the 2021 Census, rather than attempting to establish a relationship between specific characteristics and deprivation.

• Younger age groups were more likely than older age groups to live in the 10% most deprived LSOAs.
• Females were slightly more likely than males to live in the most deprived areas, with this gap being more pronounced for females between the ages of 16 and 34 years old.
• Disabled people with conditions that limited their day-to-day activities “a lot” were the most likely to live in the most deprived areas. Non-disabled people who had long term non-limiting conditions were the least likely to live in these areas.
• People who were in bad or very bad health were more likely to live in the 10% most deprived LSOAs than those in fair health or good or very good health.
• Unpaid care provision of at least 20 hours a week was associated with a greater likelihood of living in the most deprived areas. However, those who provided 19 or less hours of unpaid care per week were less likely to live in these areas than those who had no unpaid care responsibilities.
• People who identified as “African” or “Other Black” (within the high level ethnic group category “Black, Black Welsh, Black British, Caribbean or African”) or as  “Bangladeshi” (within the high level ethnic group category “Asian, Asian Welsh or Asian British”) were the most likely to live in the 10% most deprived LSOAs.
• Females were more likely than males to live in the most deprived areas for most ethnic groups, with relatively larger gaps between females and males for ethnic groups within the “Black, Black Welsh, Black British, African or Caribbean” and “Mixed or Multiple ethnic groups” high level categories.
• Those who were “married or in a civil partnership” were the least likely to live in the most deprived areas, while those who were “separated but still legally married or in a civil partnership” were the most likely.
• Those who identified as “Muslim” were notably more likely to live in the most deprived areas than those with other religious identities or those who identified with “no religion”. Nearly 3 in 10 females who identified as “Muslim” were living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs.
• People who did not identify with any UK national identity were more likely to live in the most deprived areas than those who identified with at least one UK national identity.
• Other characteristics associated with a higher likelihood of living in the most deprived areas include having never served as a member of the UK armed forces and having no Welsh language skills.

In general, the likelihood of living in the most deprived LSOAs is higher for younger age groups, with 12.6% of those aged 15 and under living in the 10% most deprived areas compared to 6.6% of those aged 65 and over. However, those aged between 25 and 34 (11.6%) were more likely to live in the 10% most deprived LSOAs than those aged 16 to 24 (10.7%).

Almost a quarter of those aged 15 and under (23.8%) and aged between 25 and 34 (23.1%) lived in the 20% most deprived LSOAs, compared to 14.6% of those aged 65 and over.

Nearly three fifths (57.4%) of those aged 65 and over lived in the 50% least deprived LSOAs. This proportion is lowest for those aged 25 to 34 (45.3%).

Figure 1: The likelihood of living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs by age and sex

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Description of Figure 1: A bar chart showing that older age groups were less likely to live in the 10% most deprived LSOAs. While the proportions of males and females living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs were generally equal, females aged 16 to 34 were more likely than males in this age group to live in these areas.

Source: Census 2021 and WIMD 2019 data from the Welsh Government

Analysis of population characteristics by area deprivation (Census 2021) by sex and age (StatsWales)

Females (9.7%) were slightly more likely than males (9.5%) to live in the 10% most deprived LSOAs, and this difference was more pronounced between the ages of 16 and 34. While the proportions of female and males aged 15 and under who lived in the 10% most deprived LSOAs were approximately equal (12.6% and 12.5% respectively), females aged between 16 and 24 (11.1%) and between 25 and 34 (12.2%) were more likely to live in these areas than their male counterparts (10.4%, and 11.0% respectively). However, there was little difference between sexes for older age groups, with the proportions of males and females in the 10% most deprived areas being equal for those aged between 50 and 64 (8.3%) and aged 65 and over (6.6%).

As set out in the question development report (Office for National Statistics), the question used in Census 2021 was split into two parts in order to align with the definition of disability in the Equality Act 2010 (Gov.UK). The definition of disability used in the act follows the medical model of disability, which defines people as disabled by their impairment. Individuals were firstly asked whether they had a long-term physical or mental health condition or illness (lasting or expecting to last 12 months or more), and secondly the extent to which this limited their day-to-day activities. Respondents who reported a long-term physical or mental health condition and whose day-to-day activities are limited (either by “a little” or “a lot”) have been defined as disabled. Those who reported a having a condition that doesn't affect day-to-day activities, or reported having no condition are defined as non-disabled.

The Welsh Government has adopted the social model of disability. This model sets out a different way to view disability – rather than defining people as disabled by their impairment (as in the medical model of disability), people with impairments are instead considered to be disabled by physical, attitudinal and organisational barriers created by society. The data included in this section uses the Equality Act (2010) definition of disability, and therefore reflects the medical model of disability. However, where possible, we have used language that aligns with the social model of disability.

Disabled people whose day-to-day activities were limited “a lot” were the most likely to live in the 10% most deprived LSOAs (13.8%). This compares to 10.6% of disabled people whose day-to-day activities were “limited a little” and 9.1% of those who do not have a long-term physical or mental health condition. Those who are not disabled but who have a long-term non-limiting condition were the least likely (7.2%) to live in the 10% most deprived LSOAs.

Just over a quarter (26.7%) of disabled people whose day-to-day activities were limited “a lot” and over 1 in 5 (21.2%) disabled people whose day-to-day activities were limited “a little” lived in the 20% most deprived LSOAs. Disabled people with a condition that limits their activities “a lot” were the least likely to live in the 50% least deprived LSOAs (40.8%), compared to 56.4% of non-disabled people with long-term non-limiting conditions.

Figure 2: The likelihood of disabled and non-disabled people living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs by age

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Description of Figure 2: A clustered bar chart showing that disabled people whose day-to-day activities were limited “a lot” were the most likely to live in the most deprived areas for all age groups, while those who were not disabled but had long term non-limiting conditions were the least likely for all age groups.

Source: Census 2021 and WIMD 2019 data from the Welsh Government

Analysis of population characteristics by area deprivation (Census 2021) by disability, age, sex (StatsWales)

For disabled people whose day-to-day activities were limited “a lot”, the proportions of people aged between 16 and 64 (16.9%) and aged 65 and over (9.8%) living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs were more than double the percentages of the same age groups for non-disabled people with long-term non-limiting conditions (7.8% and 4.5% respectively). Disabled people aged 15 or under whose day-to-day activities were limited “a lot” were also more likely to live in these areas (17.5%) than non-disabled people with long term non-limiting conditions in this age group (10.6%). 

Amongst disabled people whose day-to-day activities were limited “a lot”, males were more likely to be living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs than females (14.1% and 13.5% respectively). However, for non-disabled people, females (7.3% of those with a long-term non-limiting condition and 9.2% without) were slightly more likely to live in the 10% most deprived LSOAs than males (7.0% and 9.1% respectively). For disabled people whose day-to-day activities were limited “a little”, females and males were equally likely to be living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs (10.6%).

Disabled males whose day-to-day activities were limited “a lot” were the most likely group (14.1%) to live in the 10% most deprived areas, while non-disabled males who had a long-term non-limiting condition were the least likely (7.0%).

People who identified as “Black, Black Welsh, Black British, African or Caribbean: African” were the ethnic group most likely to be living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs with nearly a third (32.7%) of this group living in these areas. People who identified as “Asian, Asian Welsh or Asian British: Bangladeshi” (30.7%) and “Black, Black Welsh, Black British, African or Caribbean: Other Black” (30.5%) were also amongst the most likely ethnic groups to live in the 10% most deprived LSOAs. Around a quarter of those who identified as “Asian, Asian Welsh or Asian British: Pakistani” (25.0%), “White: Roma” (23.9%) and “Other Ethnic Group: Arab” (23.6%) lived in these areas.

People who identified as “White: Irish” were the least likely to be living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs (8.3%) followed by people who identified as “White: Welsh, English, Scottish, Northern Irish, or British” (8.8%) and “Asian, Asian Welsh or Asian British: Chinese” (9.5%).

People who identified as “Asian, Asian Welsh or Asian British: Bangladeshi” were the least likely to be living in the 50% least deprived areas, with less than 1 in 5 (19.2%) doing so. Around a quarter of those who identified as “Black, Black Welsh, Black British, African or Caribbean: African” (24.8%) and “White: Gypsy or Irish Traveller” (26.2%) lived in the 50% least deprived areas.

People who identified as “White: Irish” (57.2%) were the most likely to be living in the 50% least deprived LSOAs, followed by “White: Welsh, English, Scottish, Northern Irish, or British” (52.0%) and “Mixed or Multiple ethnic groups: White and Asian” (51.8%).

Figure 3: Proportion of females and males living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs by ethnic group

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Description of Figure 3: A bar chart showing that some ethnic groups were more likely to live in the most deprived areas than others, and for most ethnic groups, females were more likely to live in these areas than males. The only ethnic groups for which males were more likely to live in these areas were “White: Irish”, “White: Gypsy or Irish Traveller”, “White: Other White”, “Asian, Asian Welsh or Asian British: Other Asian” and “Other ethnic group: Any other ethnic group”.

Source: Census 2021 and WIMD 2019 data from the Welsh Government

Analysis of population characteristics by area deprivation (Census 2021) by ethnic group, sex (StatsWales)

The gap between females and males was largest for those who identified as:

• “White: Roma” (26.4% of females compared to 22.8% of males)
• “Black, Black Welsh, Black British, African or Caribbean: Other Black” (32.0% of females compared to 29.0% of males)
• “Black, Black Welsh, Black British, African or Caribbean: African” (34.0% of females compared to 31.4% of males)
• “Mixed or multiple ethnic groups: White and Black Caribbean” (20.9% of females compared to 18.9% of males).

Females who identified as “Black, Black Welsh, Black British, African or Caribbean: African” were the most likely combination of sex and ethnic group to live in the most deprived areas, with more than a third (34.0%) living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs.

For some ethnic groups males were more likely than females to live in the 10% most deprived LSOAs. The gap between the proportions of males and females living in these areas was largest for those who identified as “White: Gypsy or Irish Traveller” (18.8% of males compared to 16.4% of females) and “Asian, Asian Welsh or Asian British: Other Asian” (17.6% of males compared to 15.5% of females).

Figure 4: Percentage of people living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs by general health status

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Description of Figure 4: A bar chart showing that those who were in bad or very bad health (14.9%) were more likely to live in the 10% most deprived LSOAs than those in fair health (11.3%) or good or very good health (8.9%).

Source: Census 2021 and WIMD 2019 data from the Welsh Government

Analysis of population characteristics by area deprivation (Census 2021) by health status, age, sex (StatsWales)

Nearly 3 in 10 (28.4%) people in bad or very bad health lived in the 20% most deprived LSOAs, compared to less than a fifth (18.2%) of those in good or very good health.

Less than 2 in 5 (38.6%) people in bad or very bad health lived in the 50% least deprived LSOAs compared to just over half (52.8%) of people in good or very good health.

For all health statuses the likelihood of living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs generally decreased with age. However, the proportion of those aged between 25 and 34 living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs was higher than the proportion of those aged between 16 and 24 for all health categories.

Generally, differences between proportions of females and males living in the most deprived areas were small for all health statuses. The greatest difference was in those in fair health, with females (11.4%) being slightly more likely to live in the 10% most deprived LSOAs than males (11.1%). The proportions of females and males in bad or very bad health living in the 10% most deprived areas were similar (14.8% and 15.0% respectively), as were those for females and males in good or very good health (8.9% and 8.8% respectively).

Those who were “separated but still legally married or in a civil partnership” were the most likely to be living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs (12.7%), followed by those who “had never been married or in a registered a civil partnership” (11.5%) and those who were “divorced or had a dissolved civil partnership” (10.1%). Those who were “married or in a registered civil partnership” were the least likely to live in the 10% most deprived LSOAs (6.6%), followed by those who were “widowed or the surviving member of a civil partnership” (8.1%).

Those who were “married or in a civil partnership” were the most likely to live in the 50% least deprived LSOAs (58.4%), while those who were “separated but still legally married or in a civil partnership” (43.1%) were the least likely to live in these areas.

For those who were “married or in a civil partnership”, “divorced or had a civil partnership dissolved”, or “separated but still legally married or in a civil partnership”, the proportion of people living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs decreased steadily as age increased. Those aged 16 to 24 with these marital statuses were notably more likely than other age groups to live in the 10% most deprived LSOAs, with those who were “married or in a civil partnership” in the 16 to 24 age group (18.9%) being more than three times as likely than those aged 65 or over to live in these areas (5.2%). While the numbers of people aged 16 to 24 who were “separated but still legally married or in a civil partnership” or “divorced or had a dissolved civil partnership” were small, more than a fifth of these groups (22.8% and 22.5% respectively) lived in the 10% most deprived areas.

The 16 to 24 age group is the only age group in which those who were “married or in a civil partnership” were more likely to live in the 10% most deprived LSOAs (18.9%) than those who had never been married or registered a civil partnership (10.6%).

Figure 5: Proportion of females and males who lived in the 10% most deprived LSOAs by marital and civil partnership status

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Description of Figure 5: A clustered bar chart showing that females who were “”, “never married or registered in a civil partnership” divorced or had a civil partnership dissolved” were more likely to live in the most deprived areas of Wales than males in the same categories. Male widows or surviving civil partners (9.0%) were more likely to live in these areas than females (7.8%), while the proportions of females and males who were “married or in registered civil partnerships” living in these areas were equal (6.6%).

Source: Census 2021 and WIMD 2019 data from the Welsh Government

Analysis of population characteristics by area deprivation (Census 2021) by marital and civil partnership status (StatsWales)

The difference between females and males was largest for those who were “separated but still legally married or in a civil partnership”, with 13.9% of such females living in the 10% most deprived areas compared to 11.1% of males.

Those who only identified with one or more non-UK national identities (16.6%) were more likely to live in the 10% most deprived LSOAs than those who only identified with UK identities (9.3%) or at least one UK and non-UK identity (10.8%). More than half of those with at least one UK identity lived in the 50% least deprived LSOAs, compared to around 2 in 5 people with only non-UK identities (39.8%).

Figure 6: The proportion of people living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs by response to religion question

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Description of Figure 6: A bar chart showing that those who identified as “Muslim” were the most likely to be living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs, with over one in four (27.7%) doing so. This was a substantially higher proportion than the religion with the next highest proportion (“Sikh”, 15.6%).

Source: Census 2021 and WIMD 2019 data from the Welsh Government

Analysis of population characteristics by area deprivation (Census 2021) by religion, sex (StatsWales)

Those who identified as “Jewish” were the least likely to be living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs (7.0%), closely followed by those that identified as “Christian” (7.4%). Around 1 in 10 of those who identified as “Buddhist” (9.5%), “Hindu” (9.5%), who chose to write in another religion (9.6%) or who identified with “No religion” (10.9%) were living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs.

Around 3 in 10 people (29.0%) who identified as “Muslim” lived in the 50% least deprived LSOAs, which was substantially lower than other groups. The lowest proportions living in the least deprived areas after those who identified as “Muslim” were those who identified as “Sikh” (44.0%) and identified with “No Religion” (46.6%), while those who identified as “Jewish” (61.6%) had the highest proportion living in these areas.

Amongst people who identified as “Jewish”, those of working age (between 16 and 64) were more likely to live in the 10% most deprived LSOAs (9.2%) than those aged 15 and under (5.4%). While the latter was a relatively small population, it contrasts to those aged 15 and under for all other religious identities who were more likely to live in these areas than those of working age.

Almost a third (31.1%) of people aged 15 or under who identified as “Muslim” lived in the 10% most deprived LSOAs, while 1 in 5 (20.7%) of those in the same age group who identified as “Sikh” were living in these LSOAs.

The difference between sexes in the likelihood of living in the most deprived areas varied by religious identity. Females who identified as “Muslim” (28.6%), “Hindu” (9.6%) or with “No religion” (11.5%) were more likely to be living in these areas than their male counterparts (26.9%, 9.2% and 10.4% respectively). However, males who identified as “Sikh”, “Jewish”, “Christian”, “Buddhist”, or who chose to write in another religion were more likely to be living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs than their female counterparts, with the greatest difference observed for those that identified as “Buddhist” (10.3% for males compared to 8.9% for females).

Those who provided 20 or more hours of unpaid care a week were the most likely to live in the most deprived areas, with 12.5% of those providing 20 to 49 hours a week and 11.9% of those providing 50 or more hours a week living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs. In contrast, 9.4% of those with no unpaid caring responsibilities and 6.8% of those who provide 19 hours or less of unpaid care a week lived in these areas.

Figure 7: Proportions of each age group living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs by level of unpaid care provision

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Description of Figure 7: A clustered bar chart showing that, for all age groups, those who provided at least 20 hours of unpaid care a week were more likely to live in the most deprived areas than those who provided less than 20 hours or had no unpaid caring responsibilities.

Source: Census 2021 and WIMD 2019 data from the Welsh Government

Analysis of population characteristics by area deprivation (Census 2021) by unpaid care provision, age, sex (StatsWales)

While in general the likelihood of living in the most deprived areas decreased as age increased for all levels of unpaid care provision, those aged between 25 and 34 were the most likely to live in the 10% most deprived LSOAs for higher levels of unpaid care provision (20 or more hours a week). The proportion of this age group living in these areas was highest for those providing 50 or more hours of unpaid care a week, with more than a fifth (21.3%) of such people doing so (the highest of any combination of unpaid care provision and age group).

Except for those aged 65 or over, the likelihood of living in the 10% most deprived areas was highest for those who provide 50 or more hours of unpaid care a week. For those up to the age of 34, the likelihood of living in the most deprived areas generally increased with the number of unpaid hours of care provided. However, of those aged 35 and over, those who do not provide any hours of unpaid care were more likely to live in the most deprived areas than those who provide 19 hours or less.

Excluding those providing 19 hours or less unpaid care a week, females are more likely to be living in the 10% most deprived LSOAs than males, with the greatest difference being in those that provide 50 hours or more unpaid care (12.2% of females compared to 11.6% of males).

Those aged 16 and over who had previously served in the UK armed forces, whether in the regular or reserve armed forces, were less likely to live in the 10% most deprived areas than those who had never served.

Around 1 in 10 (9.1%) people with no previous service lived in the 10% most deprived LSOAs, compared to 7.5% of those who had served in the regular forces, 7.9% of those who served in the reserve forces and 8.4% of those who served in both.

People with no skills in Welsh were more likely to live in the most deprived areas than those who could speak Welsh or those who could not speak Welsh but had some Welsh language skills (reading, writing or understanding spoken Welsh). 1 in 10 people (10.8%) with no skills in Welsh lived in the 10% most deprived LSOAs, higher than those with some Welsh language skills (7.1%) and more than double the proportion of those who could speak Welsh (5.1%). Nearly three fifths (58.2%) of those who could speak Welsh lived in the 50% least deprived LSOAs, compared to just under half (49.0%) of those with no Welsh skills.

Analysis on deprivation by sexual orientation and gender identity have not been included in this statistical release. Census 2021 data on these characteristics were not published at LSOA level due to disclosure and privacy concerns. We hope to produce analysis on deprivation by these characteristics following ONS’s decisions with regards to the future publication of gender identity data. More information on the ongoing review of gender identity data collected in the 2021 Census can be found in the ONS methodology for collecting and processing data on gender identity report and the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR) interim report.

The Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation (WIMD) is the official measure of relative deprivation for small areas in Wales. WIMD is designed to identify small areas in Wales where there are the highest concentrations of several different types of deprivation. WIMD 2019 is the most recent index and ranks all small areas in Wales from 1 (most deprived) to 1,909 (least deprived). The small areas are otherwise known as Lower Layer Super Output Areas (LSOAs). This geography is built from Census 2011 data and represents small areas each with a population of around 1,600 people. The index is calculated from eight types or domains of deprivation, each compiled from a range of different indicators (or measures). See Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation for more information including index and indicator guidance.

Note that one of the deprivation domains in WIMD is Health, and the Census characteristics of health and disability may have a somewhat circular relationship with deprivation. This is because areas which include people with relatively poor health are likely to have higher Health deprivation and thus higher deprivation overall. However, the Health domain forms a relatively small proportion of the overall WIMD deprivation ranking and is closely aligned with other forms of deprivation, and thus we believe the overall impact of this circular relationship to be small.

Census 2021 was conducted in Wales and England on 21 March 2021. For full Census 2021 quality and methodology information, including a glossary of terms, please visit the ONS’s quality and methodology information report. 

The estimates in this article have been produced by linking Census 2021 LSOA data from the Office for National Statistics’ create a custom dataset tool to WIMD 2019 LSOA overall deprivation rankings. Due to statistical disclosure control methods employed by the ONS for this tool, percentages for the breakdowns presented in this article may not sum to 100.0%. It has not been possible to analyse breakdowns by age group or sex for all characteristics in this article due to the tool’s built in statistical disclosure controls at the small area level.

In this analysis, small areas have been grouped based on WIMD 2019 overall deprivation ranks.  The groupings are designed to have smaller groups at the more deprived end of the distribution, where the difference between areas is greater than at the less deprived end. Most of the analysis in this article focusses on the 10% most deprived LSOAs of Wales, that is deprivation decile 1. LSOAs in deprivation deciles 4 to 10 have been aggregated into two larger groups (4 to 5 and 6 to 10). The latter group is referred to in this analysis as the 50% least deprived LSOAs.

Changes in LSOA geography occurred between Census 2011 (upon which WIMD 2019 LSOAs are based) and Census 2021, with some 2011 LSOAs being split or merged into new 2021 LSOAs. These LSOAs were assigned to deprivation decile groups for the purpose of this analysis as follows:

• If a 2011 LSOA was split into multiple 2021 LSOAs, these new LSOAs were assigned to the same WIMD 2019 overall deprivation decile as the original 2011 LSOA.

Example: the 2011 LSOA W01000568 (Pembrokeshire: Haverford West) was in the 3^rd decile in the WIMD 2019 overall deprivation ranking. It was split into two LSOAs between 2011 and 2021 (W01002009 and W01002010), both of which were assigned deprivation decile 3.

• If multiple 2011 LSOAs were merged into a single 2021 LSOA, and each component LSOA belonged to the same WIMD 2019 deprivation group, then the resulting 2021 LSOA was assigned this WIMD 2019 deprivation group.

Example: 2011 LSOAs W0100726 and W0100727 (Carmarthenshire: Swiss Valley 1 and Swiss Valley 2 respectively) were in WIMD 2019 overall deprivation deciles 9 and 8 respectively, and so were grouped into deprivation decile group 6 to 10. These were merged into the 2021 LSOA W01001999, which was assigned to deprivation decile group 6 to 10.

• If multiple 2011 LSOAs were merged into a single 2021 LSOA, and the component LSOAs belonged to different WIMD 2019 deprivation groups, then the resulting 2021 LSOA was discarded from the analysis.

Example: 2011 LSOAs W01000048 and W01000049 (Gwynedd: Abermaw 1 and Abermaw 2 respectively) were in WIMD 2019 overall deprivation deciles 5 and 6 respectively, and thus grouped into deprivation decile groups 4 to 5 and 6 to 10 respectively. These LSOAs were merged into the 2021 LSOA W01002004, which could not be assigned to either deprivation decile group and was discarded from the analysis.

After this process, 1,903 of the 1,917 current LSOAs have been included in this analysis. These accounted for around 99% of the usual resident population of Wales in 2021. Coverage varies by combination of characteristics but is generally high for all groups – for example, the lowest proportion of any ethnic group and sex combination was for females who identified as “Arab”, of whom 94.9% of the 2021 population lived in the 1,903 LSOAs included in this analysis.

Well-being of Future Generations Act (WFG)

The Well-being of Future Generations Act 2015 is about improving the social, economic, environmental and cultural wellbeing of Wales. The Act puts in place seven wellbeing goals for Wales. These are for a more equal, prosperous, resilient, healthier and globally responsible Wales, with cohesive communities and a vibrant culture and thriving Welsh language. Under section (10)(1) of the Act, the Welsh Ministers must (a) publish indicators (“national indicators”) that must be applied for the purpose of measuring progress towards the achievement of the wellbeing goals, and (b) lay a copy of the national indicators before Senedd Cymru. Under section 10(8) of the Well-being of Future Generations Act, where the Welsh Ministers revise the national indicators, they must as soon as reasonably practicable (a) publish the indicators as revised and (b) lay a copy of them before the Senedd. These national indicators were laid before the Senedd in 2021. The indicators laid on 14 December 2021 replace the set laid on 16 March 2016.

Information on the indicators, along with narratives for each of the wellbeing goals and associated technical information is available in the Wellbeing of Wales report.

Further information on the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015.

The statistics included in this release could also provide supporting narrative to the national indicators and be used by public services boards in relation to their local wellbeing assessments and local wellbeing plans.

Statistician: Andy O’Rourke
Email: stats.inclusion@gov.wales
Media: 0300 025 8099

SB: 38/2023