The first UK census was carried out in 1801 and since then has been held at regular ten-yearly (decennial) intervals. The only exception to this was in 1941, the Census being abandoned due to World War II. In 1966 an additional 10% Sample Census was held but was not repeated in 1976 due to the cost.
The 2001 Census was the twentieth full national Census of population. It marked 200 years since the first census in modern times was carried out in Great Britain. See Ten Facts about 200 Years of the Census, [Note: This link opens in a new window] produced by the Office of National Statistics, to give a quick but overall look at census taking over the last centuries. Some of these facts are strange or amusing but they are all true.
You can find out more about the history of the census [Note: This link opens in a new window] from the National Statistics web site.
Learning and teaching resources about the historical census data are also available at British History and the Census website. [Note: This link opens in a new window]