Leicestershire demographics.
Leicestershire · Census 2023 · latest available data
A data-driven statistical profile of Leicestershire — town populations, census figures, and key demographic indicators drawn from the latest available official data.
Population
67,736,802
World share: 0.84 %
Median age
40.1
Global rank: #21
Urban population
85.5 %
57,900,076 people
Density
280 / km²
People per km²
Fertility rate
1.57
Births per woman
- 01 / Population
Who lives here, and how that is changing.
Headline population counts, density and household structure, with the six-year growth trend.
- Population basics
- Total population
- 67,736,8022023
- Population density
- 280 / km²UK average
- Yearly change
- 0.34 %227,866
- Urban population
- 85.5 %57,900,076
- Net migration
- 165,790Annual net
- World population
- 0.84 %8,045,311,447
- Population trend
Total resident population in thousands. A rising line means net growth from births and inward migration.
- 02 / Age & gender
The shape of the population pyramid.
Age band distribution split by gender, with dependency and vital statistics.
- Age pyramid
Share of the total population in each age band, split by gender - wide middle bands indicate a strong working-age base.
- Vital statistics
- Median age
- 39.4 yrs40.2 yrs
- Dependency ratio
- 58.456.9
- Male
- 49.3%49.0%
- Female
- 50.7%51.0%
- Aged 65+
- 16.4%18.4%
- 03 / Housing & households
Tenure, dwelling type and household composition.
Census 2021 housing indicators for the area, benchmarked against England.
- Tenure & conditions
- Home ownership
- 61.0%62.5%
- Social rented
- 17.0%17.1%
- Private rented
- 22.0%20.4%
- Overcrowded households
- 6.1%8.4%
- No central heating
- 1.3%1.5%
- Property type mix
Composition of the housing stock by build type, as a share of all dwellings.
- Tenure split
How households occupy their homes - the owned versus rented balance drives local market liquidity.
- 04 / Employment & economy
Where the jobs and the output are.
Labour market headlines and the sector composition of local employment.
- Labour market
- Economically active
- 76.2%75.7%
- Unemployed
- 3.4%3.5%
- Full-time employees
- 42.1%41.6%
- Self-employed
- 11.8%12.4%
- Students (economically active)
- 5.6%5.2%
- Retired
- 20.9%21.6%
- Top employment sectors
Share of total employment by industry - a concentrated profile signals exposure to one sector's cycle.
- 05 / Education & qualifications
Attainment and the local skills base.
School performance and the qualification profile of working-age residents.
- Attainment & schools
- Level 4+ qualification
- 40.2%33.9%
- No qualifications
- 16.0%18.1%
- Apprenticeship
- 5.1%5.3%
- Full-time students 16+
- 8.4%7.9%
- Schoolchildren aged 5–15
- 12.6%12.4%
- Qualification levels
Highest qualification held by residents aged 16+. Level 4+ covers degree-level and above.
- 06 / Health & wellbeing
Life expectancy, access and deprivation.
Population health outcomes alongside primary care capacity and deprivation ranking.
- Health indicators
- Very good health
- 48.6%48.5%
- Good health
- 33.1%33.7%
- Bad or very bad health
- 5.8%5.2%
- Disabled (day-to-day limited)
- 18.2%17.3%
- Provides unpaid care
- 9.1%8.9%
- Life expectancy (male)
- 79.1 yrs79.4 yrs
- Life expectancy (female)
- 82.9 yrs83.1 yrs
- Healthy life expectancy
- 62.4 yrs63.1 yrs
- IMD decile
- 5 of 10-
- Deprivation
5
IMD decile out of 10 (1 = most deprived). The United Kingdom shows variation across regions, with pockets of both high affluence and concentrated deprivation.
- 07 / Ethnicity, language & religion
The cultural make-up of the area.
Census-based breakdowns of ethnic group, country of birth, language and religion.
- Ethnic group
Share of residents by broad census ethnic group.
- Religion
Stated religion at the last census, as a share of residents.
- Origin & language
- Born in the UK
- 83.6%83.2%
- Born outside the UK
- 16.4%16.8%
- English as main language
- 94.2%91.1%
- Cannot speak English well
- 1.4%1.9%
- 08 / Transport & commuting
How people move around.
Commuting modes, journey times, car ownership and network connectivity.
- Mode of travel to work
Primary commute mode for working residents, including those who mainly work from home.
- Network & journey times
- Average commute
- 29 min28 min
- No car or van
- 24.0%23.5%
- 2+ cars or vans
- 34.0%33.1%
- Work mainly from home
- 17.0%21.0%
- Car ownership
Households by number of cars or vans available.
— 09 / Political & administrative
Who governs, and how engaged residents are.
Administrative structure, council tax levels, political control and turnout.
— Governance
- Parliamentary constituencies
- 12
- Council type
- Metropolitan / two-tier
- Council tax (Band D)
- £2,148
- Political control
- Labour majority
- General election turnout
- 62.4%
- Local election turnout
- 31.8%
— 10 / Crime & safety
Recorded crime and its composition.
Police.uk recorded offences, normalised per 1,000 residents and split by offence type.
— Headline rates
- Crime rate per 1,000
- 94.689.7
- Police force
- West Yorkshire Police—
- Year-on-year change
- -2.8%-1.4%
— Crime type breakdown
Share of all recorded offences by category over the last 12 months.
— 11 / Environment & climate
Green space, air quality and climate risk.
Environmental quality indicators and exposure to flooding across the area.
— Environmental indicators
- Green space coverage
- 38.4%40.1%
- NO₂ (annual mean)
- 21 µg/m³18 µg/m³
- PM2.5 (annual mean)
- 9.4 µg/m³9.1 µg/m³
- Area at flood risk
- 6.2%8.0%
- Annual rainfall
- 812 mm838 mm
- Sunshine hours
- 1,4101,493
— 12 / UK Cities
Population of major UK cities.
Top 10 UK cities by population, sourced from the latest available census and administrative data.
| # | City | Population |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | London | 7,556,900 |
| 2 | Birmingham | 984,333 |
| 3 | Liverpool | 864,122 |
| 4 | Nottingham | 729,977 |
| 5 | Sheffield | 685,368 |
| 6 | Bristol | 617,280 |
| 7 | Glasgow | 591,620 |
| 8 | Leicester | 508,916 |
| 9 | Edinburgh | 464,990 |
| 10 | Leeds | 455,123 |
— 12b / County Towns
Town populations within the county.
Built-up area populations across the 2001, 2011 and 2021 census years.
| # | Town | 2001 | 2011 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leicester | 313,066 | 365,287 | 406,588 |
| 2 | Loughborough | 54,922 | 59,627 | 64,884 |
| 3 | Hinckley | 43,249 | 45,249 | 50,712 |
| 4 | Wigston | 34,053 | 33,289 | 34,738 |
| 5 | Melton Mowbray | 25,249 | 26,824 | 27,457 |
| 6 | Market Harborough | 19,043 | 21,969 | 24,171 |
| 7 | Oadby | 22,679 | 23,849 | 24,040 |
| 8 | Coalville | 17,213 | 19,940 | 21,988 |
| 9 | Ashby-de-la-Zouch | 11,577 | 12,530 | 15,120 |
| 10 | Shepshed | 12,882 | 13,505 | 14,875 |
| 11 | Birstall | 11,639 | 12,521 | 14,313 |
| 12 | Blaby (/ Whetstone) | 12,263 | 12,760 | 14,088 |
| 13 | Leicester Forest East (/ Kirby Muxloe) | 11,271 | 11,710 | 13,846 |
| 14 | Syston | 11,608 | 12,804 | 13,619 |
| 15 | Enderby (/ Narborough) | 12,144 | 12,725 | 13,190 |
| 16 | Mountsorrel | 10,066 | 10,890 | 12,885 |
| 17 | Earl Shilton | 9,266 | 10,245 | 10,879 |
| 18 | Lutterworth | 8,181 | 9,211 | 10,521 |
| 19 | Whitwick | 10,181 | 10,552 | 10,451 |
| 20 | Broughton Astley | 8,289 | 8,940 | 9,647 |
| 21 | Thurmaston | 8,649 | 9,365 | 9,508 |
| 22 | Barwell | 8,782 | 9,022 | 9,148 |
| 23 | Sileby | 6,875 | 7,835 | 8,959 |
| 24 | Countesthorpe | 6,393 | 6,377 | 7,675 |
| 25 | Castle Donington | 5,977 | 6,416 | 7,346 |
| 26 | Kibworth Beauchamp (/ Kibworth Harcourt) | 4,787 | 5,433 | 7,325 |
| 27 | Anstey | 5,414 | 6,103 | 7,038 |
| 28 | Barrow upon Soar | 5,082 | 5,956 | 6,825 |
| 29 | Ibstock | 5,372 | 5,803 | 6,806 |
| 30 | Groby | 6,498 | 6,543 | 6,560 |
| 31 | Quorndon (Quorn) | 4,778 | 5,002 | 5,574 |
| 32 | Measham | 4,850 | 5,209 | 5,374 |
| 33 | Fleckney | 4,613 | 4,894 | 4,924 |
| 34 | Markfield | 4,682 | 4,699 | 4,759 |
| 35 | Hugglescote | 3,546 | 3,659 | 4,633 |
| 36 | Kegworth | 3,338 | 3,601 | 4,290 |
| 37 | Ratby | 3,561 | 4,174 | 4,264 |
| 38 | Stoney Stanton | 3,312 | 3,654 | 4,088 |
| 39 | Great Glen | 2,999 | 2,977 | 4,058 |
| 40 | Desford | 3,150 | 3,179 | 3,814 |
| 41 | Cosby | 3,647 | 3,506 | 3,517 |
| 42 | Sapcote | 2,404 | 2,442 | 3,260 |
| 43 | Moira | 2,836 | 2,945 | 3,199 |
| 44 | Queniborough | 2,257 | 2,326 | 3,093 |
| 45 | Newbold Verdon | 3,056 | 2,850 | 3,092 |
| 46 | Bottesford | 2,858 | 2,987 | 3,046 |
| 47 | Ellistown | 2,208 | 2,738 | 2,966 |
| 48 | East Goscote | 2,810 | 2,866 | 2,894 |
| 49 | Asfordby | 2,351 | 2,446 | 2,758 |
| 50 | Barlestone | 2,608 | 2,607 | 2,563 |
| 51 | Hathern | 1,924 | 1,866 | 2,351 |
| 52 | Huncote | 1,774 | 1,756 | 2,165 |
| 53 | Market Bosworth | 1,906 | 2,097 | 2,104 |
| 54 | Stoke Golding | 1,704 | 1,684 | 2,007 |
| 55 | Littlethorpe | 1,675 | 1,766 | 1,917 |
| 56 | Ravenstone | 1,235 | 1,368 | 1,882 |
| 57 | Bagworth | 615 | 1,472 | 1,872 |
| 58 | Croft | 1,731 | 1,639 | 1,746 |
| 59 | Houghton on the Hill | 1,548 | 1,524 | 1,735 |
| 60 | Thurcaston | 1,440 | 1,433 | 1,652 |
| 61 | Woodhouse Eaves | 1,679 | 1,568 | 1,616 |
| 62 | Great Bowden | 954 | 1,017 | 1,511 |
| 63 | Wymeswold | 1,085 | 1,296 | 1,367 |
| 64 | Appleby Magna | 1,076 | 1,084 | 1,301 |
| 65 | Burton on the Wolds | 1,067 | 1,218 | 1,261 |
| 66 | Gilmorton | 1,017 | 976 | 1,237 |
| 67 | Husbands Bosworth | 837 | 1,027 | 1,218 |
| 68 | Donisthorpe | 958 | 1,203 | 1,204 |
| 69 | Rearsby | 1,047 | 1,097 | 1,181 |
| 70 | Ullesthorpe | 832 | 903 | 1,161 |
| 71 | Long Whatton | 952 | 1,124 | 1,156 |
| 72 | Cropston | 1,220 | 1,197 | 1,119 |
| 73 | Blackfordby | 877 | 865 | 1,070 |
| 74 | Heather | 949 | 920 | 1,068 |
| 75 | Sharnford | 1,038 | 985 | 1,065 |
| 76 | Waltham on the Wolds | 841 | 836 | 1,034 |
| 77 | Thornton | 1,076 | 991 | 1,031 |
| 78 | Harby | 849 | 931 | 965 |
| 79 | Gartree | 436 | 558 | 964 |
| 80 | Sheepy Magna | 819 | 781 | 922 |
| 81 | Billesdon | 745 | 901 | 913 |
| 82 | Stanton under Bardon | 633 | 634 | 907 |
| 83 | Newbold | 700 | 777 | 880 |
| 84 | Lubenham | 703 | 781 | 860 |
| 85 | Packington | 738 | 734 | 851 |
| 86 | Swannington | 762 | 731 | 789 |
| 87 | Rothley | 690 | 629 | 770 |
| 88 | North Kilworth | 478 | 597 | 765 |
| 89 | Thurlaston | 777 | 807 | 762 |
| 90 | Great Easton | 558 | 671 | 751 |
| 91 | Belton | 743 | 734 | 746 |
| 92 | Oakthorpe | 625 | 623 | 743 |
| 93 | Breedon on the Hill | 690 | 686 | 740 |
| 94 | Stathern | 672 | 728 | 721 |
| 95 | Claybrooke Magna | 578 | 616 | 688 |
| 96 | Frisby on the Wreake | 556 | 557 | 686 |
| 97 | Wymondham | 623 | 632 | 675 |
| 98 | Diseworth | 611 | 636 | 671 |
| 99 | Long Clawson | 635 | 705 | 662 |
| 100 | Swinford | 496 | 586 | 642 |
| 101 | Asfordby Hill | 508 | 578 | 638 |
| 102 | Leire | 600 | 587 | 636 |
| 103 | Hallaton | 523 | 594 | 624 |
| 104 | Woodhouse | 334 | 751 | 606 |
| 105 | Hose | 560 | 580 | 579 |
| 106 | South Kilworth | 430 | 513 | 579 |
| 107 | Great Dalby | 521 | 562 | 568 |
| 108 | Thrussington | 546 | 581 | 568 |
| 109 | Seagrave | 488 | 546 | 567 |
| 110 | Nailstone | 521 | 514 | 566 |
| 111 | Cossington | 583 | 598 | 544 |
| 112 | Dunton Bassett | 537 | 530 | 540 |
| 113 | Bitteswell | 459 | 554 | 531 |
| 114 | Fenny Drayton | 531 | 517 | 527 |
| 115 | Newtown Linford | 493 | 537 | 526 |
| 116 | Elmesthorpe | 318 | 311 | 509 |
— 13 / English Regions
Regional population comparison.
Population figures for English regions across the 2001, 2011 and 2021 census years.
| Region | 2001 | 2011 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|
| East Midlands | 4,172,174 | 4,533,222 | 4,880,054 |
| East of England | 5,388,140 | 5,846,965 | 6,335,074 |
| North East England | 2,515,442 | 2,596,886 | 2,647,013 |
| North West England | 6,729,764 | 7,052,177 | 7,417,397 |
| South East England | 8,000,645 | 8,634,750 | 9,278,065 |
| South West England | 4,928,434 | 5,288,935 | 5,701,186 |
| West Midlands | 5,267,308 | 5,601,847 | 5,950,757 |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | 4,964,833 | 5,283,733 | 5,480,777 |
— Data sources
- ONS — population, age, ethnicity, housing
- Nomis — employment, earnings, qualifications
- Census 2021 (Nomis) — area vs England comparisons
- Police.uk — crime data
- MHCLG — Index of Multiple Deprivation
- Postcodes.io / GeoNames — boundary mapping