What are boundaries?

The census boundary data set allows users to map census data for geographic areas using cartographic or geographic information system (GIS) software. Each area or polygon is represented by a set of geographic coordinates (grid references or latitude, longitude) as shown in the figure below.

The UK digital boundary data are created and supplied by a variety of organisations. The academic community (through the ESRC/JISC purchase) has acquired 1991 Census boundary data for Scottish Census areas from GROS, and for English and Welsh areas from the ED-line Consortium. This consortium consists of MVA Systemtatica, the London Research Centre (now part of the Greater London Authority), Ordnance Survey Great Britain, and the Data Consultancy. Boundary data for Northern Ireland are supplied by OSNI direct to users under an annual licence.

Census boundaries can be downloaded with census data through CASWEB. More information is provided in CHCC CAS Unit 2: An Introduction to CASWEB. [Note: This link opens in a new window]