Stats

Question 1

Overview

Answer 1

The UK census has been used to detail the social
and economic characteristics of the population of the
country for over 200 years. Smaller geographical units
can reveal basic information about places such as:
• age and gender structure
• ethnicity
• levels of economic deprivation.

Question 2

Positives

Answer 2

The census provides large-scale, quantitative data,
which has been used by national agencies to better
understand and plan for population growth and
other demographic changes. The Office for National
Statistics (ONS) is the UK’s largest independent
producer of official statistics. It is responsible for:
• collecting and publishing statistics related to the
economy, population and society at national,
regional and local levels
conducting the census in England and Wales every
ten years.

Question 3

Negatives

Answer 3

The use of quantifiable data such as statistics is not
as objective as it may first appear. This is because
people selectively choose the data they wish to use for
their particular purpose. Their use therefore becomes
subjective.

Another criticism of using statistics is that they tell us very little about the human experience of a place and whag it’s like to live there