Census 2021 Disability

This page includes the Surrey-specific data from the national 2021 Census release which has been prepared by the SCC Population Insight team. A summary of the disability data from the 2021 Census has also been produced and is available on Surrey-i.

As stated by the Office for National Statistics: 'To identify disability in England and Wales, [the Census] asked people "Do you have any physical or mental health conditions or illnesses lasting or expected to last 12 months or more?". If they answered yes, a further question "Do any of your conditions or illnesses reduce your ability to carry out day-to-day activities?" was presented. The identification of disability differs from the 2011 Census question used, which asked "Are your day-to-day activities limited because of a health problem or disability which has lasted, or expected to last, at least 12 months?".'

'The question changed in order to collect data that more closely aligned with the definition of disability in the Equality Act (2010). The Equality Act defines an individual as disabled if they have a physical or mental impairment that has a substantial and long-term negative effect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. The way we identify disabled people has therefore changed between 2011 and 2021 and this may have had an impact on the number of people identified as disabled.'

Source: Health, disability, and unpaid care: Census 2021 in England and Wales - Office for National Statistics (ons.gov.uk)