Geography for collection
Complete, accurate and definitive address information is critical to the success of the post-out methodology planned for the next census. In planning for the 2011 Census, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) will test related innovative technology, systems and principles.
The census will enumerate at the household level and therefore requires a complete and accurate household address register. A 2005 Small Scale Test (SST) was therefore designed to investigate the feasibility of performing a pre-delivery household address check.
There is currently no single national definitive source for address information. ONS is therefore evaluating both Ordnance Survey’s MasterMap Address Layer 2 and the National Land and Property Gazetteer as potential key address sources for the census.
Ordnance Survey's MasterMap Address Layer 2 was used for the production of address lists for the 2007 Census Test enumeration. No undue significance should be inferred from this decision which was taken for operational rather than strategic reasons.
The 2007 Census Test was carried out in five Local Authorities (Bath, Camden, Liverpool, Stoke-on-Trent and Carmarthen). As part of the Census Test, ONS undertook a prior address checking exercise. The results of this exercise have been evaluated by ONS and can be viewed in the report: Coverage of address registers for 2007 Census Test - Phase 1.
This report is an initial evaluation. ONS is carrying out further research in order to determine the best approach for ensuring that the 2011 Census is supported by the most complete and up-to-date address information.
A good address register is vital to a successful census and ONS committed to a thorough and transparent test of all the options prior to the full census in 2011.
