Where can I get census area data and microdata?

Where can I get census area data?

There are two main sources of census area data:

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) who have the overall responsibility for collection and dissemination of the UK Census of population
The CASWEB internet user interface devised and supported by MIMAS at the University of Manchester, see Accessing Census Data Using CASWEB

There are two main sources of census-based microdata:

Samples of Anonymised Records (SARs) were extracted from the 1991 Census in both Great Britain and Northern Ireland, with modified coding of sensitive variables and without any identifying names and addresses. The microdata are available as two public use samples:
- A 2% sample containing individuals (including those in communal establishments, rarely covered in household surveys)
- A separate 1% sample of households and their members
Researchers can access these data online or can transfer them to their own computer. Geography coding in the household SAR being at regional level is much coarser than the individual SAR which has information for local authority districts or grouped districts. This is due to the greater risks of disclosure of linked individuals in a household since their combined characteristics are much more likely to be unique within a subnational population
More information about this census output can be found on the SARs website, which is housed at the Cathie Marsh Centre for Census and Survey Research (CCSR)
CCSR have developed a set of CHCC learning and teaching units that cover introductory data analysis as well as more discipline-specific topics

The LS contains linked decennial census and vital events data (e.g. births, deaths) and cancer registrations for a 1% sample of the population of England and Wales (Hattersley and Creeser, 1995)
The LS was initiated following the UK's 1971 Census when the original LS sample was drawn using individuals born on one of four secret birth dates. This provided an initial sample of approximately 500,000 LS members. The study was designed as a continuous, multi-cohort study with subsequent samples drawn at the 1981 and 1991 Censuses using the same selection criteria
Information is included about the other residents in households where a member of the LS lives, although the records for these individuals are not linked through time
In due course linkages will be made to the 2001 Census
Academic user support for the LS is provided by CeLSIUS