More of us and older
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has revealed population figures compiled from the 2021 national census. They show that, whereas in England as a whole the population grew by 6.6% to nearly 56.5 million, in the borough of Hastings the increase was only by 0.9%: from around 90,300 in 2011 to 91,100 in 2021.
There has been an actual decrease of 3.0% in people aged 15 to 64 years, and a decrease of 2.3% in children aged under 15 years. But a rise in the number of over-65s has more than compensated: up by 19.5% in the last ten years.
The pattern is similar for Rother: decreases of 2.7% in ages 15-64 and of 3.9% in under-15s, but an increase of 17.2% of over-65s, resulting in a rise in the overall population size by 2.8%, from around 90,600 in 2011 to 93,100 in 2021. The district features as the third least densely populated of the South East’s 64 local authority areas, with the area of land per resident equating on average to approximately one football pitch.
Ashford and Wealden have meanwhile experienced much larger population increases – by around 12.5% and 7.5% respectively
The ONS adds a cautionary note, pointing out that the geographical figures may be a little skewed by the Covid-19 pandemic. In March 2021, the day of the census, some people were preferring to taking up temporary residence in less urban areas; students, for instance, were more likely to be studying at home than in a ‘normal’ year. The figures for a seaside town like Hastings would surely also be affected by seasonal variations.
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