The phrase ‘2.4 children’ refers to the stereotypical family size in this country. But does it still hold true? As the ONS publishes its first analysis of births that took place in England and Wales in 2018, Nick Stripe considers whether it’s time to change that number.
Read more on Whatever happened to 2 Point 4 children?
A year ago, the Office for National Statistics produced its first estimates of Higher Education student suicides. Here Professor Louis Appleby, Chair of England’s National Suicide Prevention Strategy Advisory Group, looks back on the past 12 months and the impact the ONS’ work has had.
Read more on How a better understanding of student suicide numbers can help prevent more
The ONS’ Population and Public Policy team has delivered many new insights over the past two years on the key issues facing our society today. Here, Deputy National Statistician Iain Bell reflects on some of the progress made and sets out his priorities for the coming months, which includes important work on towns and cities, further analysis of our ageing population and the continued modernisation of surveys.
Read more on How ONS plans to provide new analysis on the core issues facing our society
A new cross-government policy initiative aims to tackle the ‘burning injustice’ of disability discrimination. To support this ambition ONS has pledged to develop a new data dashboard, bringing the key data into one location where the disparities affecting disabled people can be easily interpreted and monitored. Here, Helen Colvin discusses the project and invites interested parties to help in its development.
Read more on Ending a ‘burning injustice’: How the ONS will inform the drive against disability discrimination
People living longer lives combined with fewer children being born means that the UK population is ageing. This means that there is likely to be a growing number of pensioners compared to those of working age. The ONS is exploring what this means for the UK population, old-age dependency and the role of international migration.
Read more on The UK’s ageing population – what role does international migration play?
