Population Trends 136 Summer 2009 in brief Sedgefield, Teesdale and Wear Valley Population Local Authority District Councils. ● Northumberland UA was formed from Alnwick, Berwick-upon-Tweed, Blyth Trends and Boundary Valley, Castle Morpeth, Tynedale and Health Statistics Changes from Wansbeck District Councils. ● Shropshire UA was formed from Bridgnorth, North Shropshire, Oswestry, Quarterly 1 April 2009 Shrewsbury & Atcham and South ONS are considering a possible merger of On 1 April 2009 a reorganisation of local Shropshire District Councils. Population Trends and its sister journal Health government created nine new unitary authorities Statistics Quarterly (HSQ) into one larger and (UAs) in England. Five of these were created ● Wiltshire UA was formed from Kennet, more comprehensive quarterly journal at the from county councils and their district councils. North Wiltshire, Salisbury and West start of 2010. The remaining four were created by splitting Wiltshire District Councils. Cheshire and Bedfordshire respectively into two HSQ has been published for more than 10 each along district council boundaries. The nine As a result of these boundary changes, years, shares similar values to Population unitary authorities are, therefore, all aggregates Cornwall UA with a population of around Trends, but concentrates on topical of former local authorities. Further details of the 530,000 is now the fourth largest local authority health-related issues. For example, the most reorganisation are: in terms of population, behind Birmingham, recent issue (No 42, Summer 2009) explores Leeds and Sheffield. social inequalities in adult female mortality ● Bedford UA was formed from Bedford and updates the measurement of chronic District Council This reorganisation has implications for statistics illness. for the former local authorities, as well as creating ● Central Bedfordshire UA was formed from the need to support the new administrative bodies. Mid Bedfordshire and South Bedfordshire The intention is that for statistical publications The new combined title would offer a broader District Councils. and releases, where practically possible, and more complementary cross section of statistics will be available for the new UAs and news items, articles and data covering both key ● Cheshire East UA was formed from former district councils until the 2011 Census demographic/population and health issues. All Congleton, Crewe & Nantwich and results are released in 2013. material on fertility, mortality, migration and Macclesfield District Councils. other population themes currently found in this volume would be retained. ● Cheshire West and Chester UA was formed from Chester, Ellesmere Port & Neston, The proposed title of a new journal is and Vale Royal District Councils. Population and Health Review. Social Trends 39 ● Cornwall UA was formed from Caradon, This annual publication draws together statistics Comments from readers of both journals are Carrick, Kerrier, North Cornwall, Penwith from a wide range of government departments welcomed. Further details will be published and Restormel District Councils (note the and other organisations to paint a broad picture later in the year. Isles of Scilly remains separate). of contemporary UK society, and how it has changed over the years. The underlying theme Email: [email protected] or ● Durham UA was formed from Chester-le- of Social Trends 39 is households, families and [email protected] Street, Derwentside, Durham, Easington, children. 3 Office for National Statistics Population Trends 136 Summer 2009 This year’s edition, published on 15 April government departments, as well as academics, ● the effect of population ageing on family 2009, shows how demographic patterns in the representatives from local government, and and household structures including trends UK continue to change. In 2007 there were voluntary organisations concerned with ageing. in living arrangements of older people 61.0 million people resident in the UK. Key and the factors associated with these, points in the population chapter include: The main aims of the day were: including transitions into communal establishment. Falls in birth rates and decreases in mortality ● To share ideas and information on ageing mean that the growing UK population is research ● informal and formal care provision, in becoming ever more skewed towards the older particular the implications of trends in age groups. Population projections indicate that ● To raise awareness of ONS work on ageing family and household structures and living by 2031 there will be more than 1.1 million arrangements on informal care provision people aged 90 and over in Great Britain. ● To ensure that our research is well targeted and the role of grandparents in the care for and meeting changing needs their grand-children. Population change is not just affected by births and deaths. Migration plays a key role A number of presentations were given in the ● the effects of caring on different aspects of in population growth and in 2007 around morning by ONS and external speakers and older carers’ lives, including employment 577,000 people arrived to live in the UK for group discussions took place in the afternoon. and retirement decisions, income, social at least 12 months, while around 340,000 networks, health, well being and quality left the country with the intention of living ONS speakers presented: of life, older workers and retirement, abroad for a year or more. Estimates show motivation to stay in work, exploring that around 243,000 people moved to the UK ● an overview of population change in the non-monetary benefits to working at older for work-related reasons in 2007, compared UK, focussing on Ageing and Mortality ages and examining barriers to employment with just over 100,000 in 1997. On the other based on the National Statistician’s article at older ages, refining predictors of hand, in 2007 more than 170,000 people left published in Population Trends nr 134 in retirement, affording retirement, and effects the UK to work, or look for work, abroad. The December 2008. of retirement on health, well being and most popular destinations for UK nationals quality of life. moving abroad in 2007 were Australia and ● completed, current and regular ageing New Zealand, followed by Spain and France. related research and outputs produced by Other important themes the ONS. This included work previously Other themes that emerged from the seminar The chapter also takes a look at key published in Population Trends (for were the need to: demographic indicators of other countries example, analysis of the ‘oldest old’ around the world, including seven countries, population, and Internal migration ● ensure ageing research is informed by key other than the UK, that sit on the Greenwich trends at older ages); estimates of life policy changes (for example, changes to Meridian Line. For this set of countries, the expectancy and healthy life expectancy; State Pensionable Age (SPA)) highest rates of infant mortality and fertility and and the recent analysis of subnational lowest life expectancies are found in countries ageing appearing in this edition of ● provide ageing information at local near the equator. Population Trends. authority level and for different sub-groups of the population, particularly for different In its entirety Social Trends takes a wide look at ● future areas of ONS work on ageing ethnic groups society with further chapters covering subjects including the development of a sub- as diverse as Education, Health, Transport, national data visualisation tool; the ● recognise the importance of longitudinal Lifestyles and more. production of a regular Ageing newsletter analysis, in particular sources like the and reporting on the demographic drivers English Longitudinal Study of Ageing The report can be accessed at: of ageing. (ELSA) www.statistics.gov.uk/socialtrends39 ● a specific example of current ONS ageing ● undertake more qualitative research to Social Trends 39 research on older workers. Further analysis further understanding of what older people Palgrave Macmillan, £52.00 will be published in Population Trends later really think about their lives and old age, ISBN 978-0-230-22050-8 in the year. and what makes older people happy. Available by calling 01256 302611 or online at: In addition speakers from the Department Collaborative working www.palgrave.com/ons of Work and Pensions (DWP) presented the Collaborative working on ageing by government policy response to population researchers, policy makers and practitioners ageing. The new strategy for an ageing society both across and outside of government was is to be released later this year, building considered to be an important issue. on the existing Opportunity Age strategy. Additional information was presented by Suggestions to facilitate and encourage Ageing – DWP on extending working lives policies collaborative working included improving designed to retain and re-skill older workers access to ageing data sources and research by ensuring and encourage people back to work. There were establishing a dedicated Ageing webpage on further presentations from the Oxford Institute the NS website which would link to all ageing research and of Ageing, University College London and related outputs and provide links to non-ONS Southampton University. ageing research on the NS website. statistics meet The afternoon was given over to group Outputs discussions. The main focus of these was to There was positive feedback on the different