People identifying as white Irish are among the ethnic groups with the oldest average age in England and Wales, according to the latest census data.
By contrast, people identifying as mixed south Asian or mixed Pakistani/British Pakistani are among the groups with the lowest averages, at below 18 years.
More than half a million (507,465) people in England and Wales identify as white Irish, with a median age of 54 years, one of the highest for any groups.
Nearly a third (32 per cent) of the white Irish population are aged 65 or over, compared with nearly a fifth (19 per cent) of the total population in England and Wales.
A total of 287 ethnic groups in England and Wales were recorded in the census, which took place on March 21st, 2021.
The median age – or exact midpoint – for the overall population was 40 years.
But across the 287 groups, the median ranges from 65 years to just six, according to new analysis from the UK's Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Other groups with a high median age include white: Cornish (47), white: Danish (47) and white: Maltese (56), as well as those in the “other ethnic group” category identifying as Caribbean (46), Greek Cypriot (47) and Japanese (49).
Top of the list are people in the “Asian, Asian British or Asian Welsh: Anglo Indian” group, comprising 2,070 residents whose median age is 65 years.
We’ve published analysis on the sex and age characteristics of ethnic groups using #Census2021 data.
The average age increased for all high-level ethnic groups between 2011 and 2021.
➡️ https://t.co/KbHClXDUba pic.twitter.com/CiRihhfpz3— Office for National Statistics (ONS) (@ONS) January 23, 2023
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Some of the lowest median ages are in the “mixed or multiple ethnic groups” category, including black British (16 years), mixed white (15) and mixed black (13).
The category “mixed or multiple ethnic groups: Pakistani or British Pakistani” has a median age of just 11 years, as does “Asian, Asian British or Asian Welsh: mixed South Asian”.
The lowest median age of all is six years, for “mixed or multiple ethnic groups: mixed south Asian”.
Some 2,000 residents of England and Wales identified their ethnicity this way, the ONS said.
