I'm a census researcher ask me anything

[censusresearch]

I work for a local authority as a census research officer so use the information you put on your census forms.

@secretskillrelationships

Why is relationship status still defined by marriage? My mum was divorced 50 years ago, never remarried so still goes down as divorced. Seems anachronistic and I'm not sure how it helps with planning.

Because they have never seen fit to change it. I think if you are divorced then you should be able to put single if that's how you see yourself. I would want to if it was relevant to me.

@JuniperBeer

I was born abroad (military) the questions that followed were more relavant to someone who had immigrated to the UK, not dipped in and out all my life due to postings and couldn’t access accurately. On every other questionnnaire there is generally a recognition of MOD births, but not the case with the census?

You'd put Germany as your country of birth and the whatever your nationality is. The guidance for MOD related families is mainly to do with recording your occupation, as with other areas of government or public records there are measures in place to protect occupation details.

Why is there no option for cohabiting? DP and I live together and have a DS together but had to both put single down.

I'm really struggling with the questions and we haven't been able to get through to the helpline for days...

One of my DC is a student who normally lives away during term time so I filled in the form to say that and there were no questions for him (as he isn't here at his main home, the one used for student finance etc). However, he is currently on a placement and staying at his dad's for a few months so doesn't actually have a term time address (he ended his contract early to save money). How does he categorise himself on the census for that address? He doesn't have another address so he needs to be included somewhere. Two of his classmates are also staying there rent free while they work on the same project. They don't have another address in the UK either until their new house contract starts in the summer.

Also, I've just started a new company in the past few months - I haven't drawn a salary yet, just one dividend, because payments are only just starting to come in, so there is no PAYE yet and I am not registered as self employed with HMRC although I do self assessment (this is correct for tax according to my accountant). I know for my tax return for this year any dividends don't count as money from employment or self employment but if I don't say that I am employed or unemployed there are no questions about work, it assumes I don't work at all.

@AlohaMolly

Why is there no option for cohabiting? DP and I live together and have a DS together but had to both put single down.

Same here. I'm perfectly happy to put never married down as its true. But our relationship shows in the bit where you list the relationship between person 1 and person 2 (and then person 3 to persons 1 and 2 etc). So you can see that we're not married but are partners and parents.

Surely your DS will be listed at his dad's if thats where he is today @littlewhitestar , as long as it's not in Scotland. Same for his friends.

What do you think has been the biggest change in demography in your area over the past 30 years?

As a fellow researcher, do you think the questions were well designed and will they actually yield much useful information for “planning public services”?

More specifically, why is the form so heavily focused on “identity politics”, with absolutely no questions relevant to living standards or poverty? What use is that to the real world?

What do you hope to learn from the question about where people are working now? I ticked the employed box and it did NOT ask for my employer postcode or how I travel to work. It asked me to write where I’m working now even if it’s different because of Covid. I ticked home - I’m assuming that’s why it didn’t ask me for my employers address. Not exactly very valid data given we are in a national lockdown and several million people are still furloughed?

How will you account for people who identify as “European” on their form? I have heard of many people who want to do this.

How will you treat people who identify as Scottish but not British, British but not Welsh... etc? British and English? This was a very ambiguous question, I identify as one or the other depending on the circumstances.

Have the questions about unpaid care been added recently or always been there? I know this is a big gap in data at the moment. Why didn’t the form ask about people’s care NEEDS rather than just care GIVING?

Thanks for being so open about this, very interesting.

One last bit - the reason I ask about care needs as well as care giving is that currently we have no idea how many people have needs that are not being adequately met by either paid or unpaid care. This would have been a very good chance to find out this vitally important information

And it is something which COULD have contributed to planning public services better. Unlike identity politics and where people are working during the pandemic....

Yes, he should be @Taswama but the problem seems to be that the first question asks whether they are full time students who usually live at a term time address and that ends the questionnaire. So does he say he is living there (not true, he is on the electoral register here) and doesn't usually live away during term time (which is not true) or is he a guest? Ditto his friends.

@ArosGartref

What do you think has been the biggest change in demography in your area over the past 30 years?

More families with both adults working and a change in the nationalities of local residents, many more Eastern European people. That's changed the diversity of the area and I think that's a good thing but has also changed the age profile of the area. It's not changed the political make up of the area though, put up a donkey.....

Which colour rosette is on the donkey? Sounds a lot like where I live. Although I'm sure those trends won't be surprising to most people in the UK.

@ConiferGate

As a fellow researcher, do you think the questions were well designed and will they actually yield much useful information for “planning public services”?

More specifically, why is the form so heavily focused on “identity politics”, with absolutely no questions relevant to living standards or poverty? What use is that to the real world?

What do you hope to learn from the question about where people are working now? I ticked the employed box and it did NOT ask for my employer postcode or how I travel to work. It asked me to write where I’m working now even if it’s different because of Covid. I ticked home - I’m assuming that’s why it didn’t ask me for my employers address. Not exactly very valid data given we are in a national lockdown and several million people are still furloughed?

How will you account for people who identify as “European” on their form? I have heard of many people who want to do this.

How will you treat people who identify as Scottish but not British, British but not Welsh... etc? British and English? This was a very ambiguous question, I identify as one or the other depending on the circumstances.

Have the questions about unpaid care been added recently or always been there? I know this is a big gap in data at the moment. Why didn’t the form ask about people’s care NEEDS rather than just care GIVING?

Thanks for being so open about this, very interesting.

There are questions relating to living standards - number of bedrooms, number of people will show overcrowding, number of cars available, what form of heating has an option for no central heating, home ownership type or rental type all deal with that.

I do think the questions could be more specific in terms of identifying poverty.

@ArosGartref

Which colour rosette is on the donkey? Sounds a lot like where I live. Although I'm sure those trends won't be surprising to most people in the UK.

Red.

Just done mine. Annoyed about no single option just never married. It should be positive as opposed to something I’ve not done.

Agree about care question. I’m disabled because of covid my care had been hugely impacted. Didn’t ask a single question about who was giving me care or if I was getting enough.

Yes that's definitely where I live. Can we have more investment in children's play areas in the south of the borough please?

@ArosGartref

Yes that's definitely where I live. Can we have more investment in children's play areas in the south of the borough please?

It's not where you live then because there are loads in the south and it's not a borough

Why do they not ask about if anyone in the house hold is pregnant, surely this would help with what services are needed in certain areas.
Why do they want to know about Qualifications.

What’s the weirdest or funniest response to a question you’ve come across?

Is it possible to change incorrect information on previous censuses? Ten years ago I was staying with my parents and they wrote my name incorrectly They wrote the name I had at birth rather than the name I had at that time. It still bugs me a decade later that I'm incorrectly recorded