Key Statistics for the Government's recently issued definition and classification of rural and urban areas were released on 31 March 2005. The new information is available on CD from Census Customer Services and from the ONS website, and is presented for each county (including Metropolitan Counties and Greater London) or Unitary Authority in England and for each Unitary Authority in Wales. A link to the news release is HERE.

The new information complements the 2001 Census reports on urban areas released in 2004 [more details...], the further summary statistics [more details...], and the results for small settlements [more details...]. These in the main provided results for specific named urban areas with 1,500 or more residents in 2001, and for remaining populations within a local authority, or for specific named settlements below the threshold. The new Key Statistics provide results for categories of rural and urban populations within each area, in particular for use with other information defined on the same basis.

The main Census results on urban areas were prepared before the new definition and classification was finalised, and, whilst all urban areas and settlements with fewer than 10,000 residents in 2001 are included in the rural category of the new definition, all results are compatible through the use of Output Areas as building bricks, and users may compile more detailed information for the new categories from the Census Area Statistics for Output Areas. An introductory guide to the new definition which classifies each Output Area is available HERE.

This page last revised: 06 April 2005