About the Digest and Rural Definitions
Updated 20 April 2023
Applies to England
© Crown copyright 2023
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About the Statistical Digest of Rural England
The Statistical Digest of Rural England (hereafter the Digest) is a collection of statistics on a range of social and economic topics and provides broad comparisons between Rural and Urban areas by settlement type. For more information on our classifications, including maps and diagrams explaining the classification, see below.
The Digest has been restructured into thematic reports and incorporates the previously separate publication the Rural Economic Bulletin.
The Digest consists of the following thematic reports:
- Population
- Housing
- Health and Wellbeing
- Communities and Households
- Connectivity and Accessibility
- Education, Qualifications and Training
- Rural Economic Bulletin
All of the content previously found within the Digest has been clustered into sub-themes. There is a lookup table which shows how the new structure maps to the previous publication structure. The Digest will continue to be updated regularly when new material is available. Thematic reports will be updated individually and not every report with be updated every month.
Official Statistics
The statistics within the Digest have been produced to the high professional standards set out in the Code of Practice for Official Statistics, which sets out eight principles including meeting user needs, impartiality and objectivity, integrity, sound methods and assured quality, frankness and accessibility.
More information on the Official Statistics Code of Practice can be found at the code of practice for statistics page.
This publication has been compiled by the Rural Statistics Team within the Rural and Place Team in Defra:
Stephen Hall
Sarah Harriss
Beth Kerwin
Martin Fowell
rural.statistics@defra.gov.uk
There is a 2011 Census version of the Digest which looks at the data from the 2011 Census and where possible makes comparisons to the 2001 Census results.
This can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/2011-census-results-for-rural-england.
Analysis of the 2021 Census will follow the release of a 2021-based Rural-Urban Classification.
Defining Rural areas
Wherever possible, the Rural-Urban Classification is used to distinguish Rural and Urban areas. The Classification defines areas as Rural if they fall outside of settlements with more than 10,000 resident population.
Census Output Areas are the smallest areas for which data are available from Censuses. These Census Output Areas are assigned to one of four Urban or six Rural categories (Figure X-1) based on dwelling densities. Those described as “in a sparse setting” reflect where the wider area is sparsely populated (again based on dwelling densities). From Census Output Areas, other small area geographies can be classified based on how they map to Census Output Areas (such as Lower Super Output Areas (LSOAs), Wards, and postcodes – Note 1)
Figure X-1: Classifying Rural and Urban areas for small geographical areas
A map showing the distribution of the Rural and Urban Census Output Areas is shown in Figure X-2.
When data are not available at a small geographical scale, it may be possible to apply the RuralUrban Local Authority Classification or a similar classification for other larger geographies. This classification categorises districts and unitary authorities on a six-point scale from Rural to Urban. It is underpinned by Rural and Urban populations as defined by the Census Output Area Classification. A map of the geographical distribution of the Rural and Urban Local Authorities is shown in Figure X-3.
However, the Local Authority Classification also considers some Urban areas as Hub Towns (with populations of between 10,000 and 30,000). These Hub Towns have met statistical criteria (based on dwelling and business premise densities) to be considered hubs for services and businesses for a wider rural hinterland and their populations are therefore classified as effectively Rural for the purposes of determining the classification of the authority.
Figure X-2: Map of the 2011 Rural-Urban Classification for Census Output Areas in England
Figure X-3: Map of the 2011 Rural-Urban Classification for Local Authority Districts and Unitary Authorities in England
Under the classification, which is shown in Figure X-4, each Local Authority is assigned to one of six categories on the basis of the percentage of the total resident population accounted for by the combined Rural and Hub Town components of its population and its ‘conurbation context’. The Local Authority Classification categories are frequently aggregated to ‘Predominantly Rural’, ‘Urban with Significant Rural’ and ‘Predominantly Urban’ as shown on Figure X-4.
Figure X-4: 2011 Rural-Urban Classification for Local Authority Districts and Unitary Authorities in England
It should be noted that the Local Authority Rural-Urban Classification is based on populations and settlement patterns, not on how much countryside there is. Authorities classified as Urban may have wide areas of countryside and may have sizeable Rural populations. The classification has been made according to the proportions of the population residing in Urban settlements and outside Urban settlements. More information on the classifications can be found at: The Rural-Urban Definition.
Defining Rural areas explanatory notes
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Note 1: Defining Super Output Areas and Wards
Census Output Areas (OAs) were created for publication of the results of the recent Censuses. They cover around 125 households. In practice few datasets are produced at OA level. However, other larger geographies can be built up from OAs. These include Lower Layer Super Output Areas (LSOAs) which typically contain 5 OAs, so contain approximately 625 households or a population of approximately 1,500 and a minimum 1,000. Their Rural-Urban Classification is based on the majority category of OAs they contain. Some other geographies, for example postcodes are classified based on the location of their central point and the classification of respective OA.
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Note 2: Accessibility of Figure X-2
We accept that this map might not be accessible for all users, but it is difficult to develop a map containing six colours that will provide enough contrast between all colours to enable every user to see them, especially when the shaded areas are small. Separate maps (showing only three levels of shading) for Rural and Urban areas are available on request from: rural.statistics@defra.gov.uk
Seven new thematic reports
1. Population
A. Population level and change
B. Population age profile
C. Ethnicity
D. Internal migration
E. Local Authority population data
2. Housing
A. Housing stock: age and type
B. Housing stock: additions
C. House prices
D. Housing stock: affordable housing
E. Second and empty homes
F. Homelessness
G. Energy Performance Certificates
3. Health and Wellbeing
A. Life expectancy
B. Wellbeing
C. Loneliness
D. Volunteering and charity
E. Childcare provision
4. Communities and Households
A. Deprivation
B. Poverty due to low income
C. Fuel poverty
D. Household expenditure
E. Crime
F. Feelings about the local neighbourhood
5. Connectivity and Accessibility
A. Broadband
B. Transport and travel
C. Access to services
D. Home working
6. Education, Qualifications and Training
A. Secondary education – GCSE Maths and English attainment
B. School inspections
C. Higher education
D. Apprenticeships and on-the-job training
E. Workforce education level
7. Rural Economic Bulletin
A. Employment
B. Earnings
C. Redundancies
D. Claimant count - Jobseeker’s Allowance
E. Output and productivity measured by Gross Value Added (GVA)
F. Businesses - status, structure and composition
G. Innovation and investment
Each of the 7 themes also has their own set of supplementary data tables that include the larger source data that could not be included in the presented document. The chapter headings above are hyperlinked to the home page for that specific digest theme. The supplementary tables can be accessed from these home pages. There is a further document including the individual Local Authority data tables, which have been separated for ease of use.
The A-Z index can also be used to navigate between topics/sections.
Mapping the old digest sections to the 7 new themes
| Old Digest section | New Digest Theme |
|---|---|
| Rural population and migration | |
| Mid-year population 2020 | Population |
| Population by age | Population |
| Average age of the population | Population |
| Population change | Population |
| Ethnicity | Population |
| Population at local authority level | Population |
| Internal migration | Population |
| Internal migration by age | Population |
| Rural economy | |
| Employment and earnings | |
| Employment rate | Rural Economic Bulletin |
| Unemployment rate | Rural Economic Bulletin |
| Economic inactivity | Rural Economic Bulletin |
| Earnings | Rural Economic Bulletin |
| Home working | Connectivity and Accessibility |
| Productivity measured by Gross Value Added (GVA) | |
| Contribution to England’s Gross Value Added (GVA) | Rural Economic Bulletin |
| Gross Value Added (GVA) per Workforce Job | Rural Economic Bulletin |
| Contribution to England’s Gross Value Added (GVA) by Industry | Rural Economic Bulletin |
| Businesses | |
| Business composition | Rural Economic Bulletin |
| Businesses by industry type | Rural Economic Bulletin |
| Employment by industry type | Rural Economic Bulletin |
| Businesses by size band | Rural Economic Bulletin |
| Small and medium businesses | Rural Economic Bulletin |
| Business count | Rural Economic Bulletin |
| Business start-ups | Rural Economic Bulletin |
| Innovation and investment | |
| Businesses engaged in innovation | Rural Economic Bulletin |
| Capital investment per employee | Rural Economic Bulletin |
| Rural accessibility | |
| Transport and travel | |
| Distance travelled | Connectivity and Accessibility |
| Trips made | Connectivity and Accessibility |
| Journey to School | Connectivity and Accessibility |
| Accessibility to services | |
| Average minimum travel times | Connectivity and Accessibility |
| Access to key services | Connectivity and Accessibility |
| Average number of key services available | Connectivity and Accessibility |
| Overall measure of accessibility of services | Connectivity and Accessibility |
| Broadband | |
| Broadband speed | Connectivity and Accessibility |
| Broadband coverage | Connectivity and Accessibility |
| Tourism | |
| Gross Value Added (GVA) from Tourism | Rural Economic Bulletin |
| Tourism: business counts and employment | Rural Economic Bulletin |
| Rural living | |
| Housing | |
| Housing completions | Housing |
| Net additions to housing stock | Housing |
| Second and empty homes | Housing |
| Residential housing transactions | Housing |
| Additions to affordable housing stock | Housing |
| Housing and accommodation affordability | Housing |
| Housing affordability | Housing |
| Homelessness and temporary accommodation | Housing |
| Household expenditure | |
| Nominal expenditure and disposable income | Communities and Households |
| Expenditure on commodity or service groups | Communities and Households |
| Deprivation | Communities and Households |
| Poverty | Communities and Households |
| Fuel poverty | Communities and Households |
| Education and skills | |
| Childcare provision | Health and Wellbeing |
| Secondary education | |
| Pupils leaving school with English and Maths at A* to C grades or equivalent at GCSE level, based on residency of pupils | Education, Qualifications and Training |
| Pupils leaving school with English and Maths at A* to C grades or equivalent at GCSE level, based on Income Deprivation Affecting Children Indices (IDACI) decile and residency of pupils | Education, Qualifications and Training |
| Pupils leaving school with English and Maths at GCSE level, by geographical residency of pupils | Education, Qualifications and Training |
| Pupils leaving school with English and Maths at A* to C grades or equivalent at GCSE level, based on school location | Education, Qualifications and Training |
| School inspection outcomes, based on school location | Education, Qualifications and Training |
| Higher education | |
| Full-time entrants to higher education | Education, Qualifications and Training |
| Part-time entrants to higher education | Education, Qualifications and Training |
| Skills | |
| Workplace based skills | Education, Qualifications and Training |
| Residence based skills | Education, Qualifications and Training |
| Apprenticeships | Education, Qualifications and Training |
| Health and Wellbeing | |
| Life expectancy | Health and Wellbeing |
| Potential years of life lost (PYLL) | Health and Wellbeing |
| Infant mortality rate | Health and Wellbeing |
| Wellbeing | Health and Wellbeing |
| Loneliness | Health and Wellbeing |
| Feelings about the local neighbourhood | Communities and Households |
| Volunteering and charity | Health and Wellbeing |
| Crime | |
| Commercial Victimisation Survey | Communities and Households |
| Crime Survey for England & Wales | Communities and Households |