Reading population statistics

On this page
Reading Borough profile
Census and ward profiles
Measuring deprivation in Reading
Tackling social exclusion in Reading
Health, social care and wellbeing in Reading

Reading Borough profile

The profile provides an overview of Reading, including statistics on: population, ethnicity, housing, economy, deprivation, health, crime and transport.

Census

In 2021, the Reading population was 174,200, an increase of 11.9% since 2011. There were 67,700 households.

The full results are available from the Office of National Statistics.

In addition, we have produced a number of briefing notes on the following topics:

• Population by age and number of households
• Demography and migration
• Ethnic group, national identity, language, and religion
• Housing
• Labour market, travel to work and education
• Health, disability and unpaid care

Ward profiles

Reading has 16 wards, areas that are used to help organise services and local elections. You can check your ward using the My Reading website.

To find population and demographic details about each ward, visit the Office for National Statistics (ONS) interactive area profile tool.

Measuring deprivation in Reading

The most widely used way to measure deprivation (or poverty) is the Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) 2019. The IMD combines information across seven areas (also known as domains):

• income
• employment
• health
• education
• barriers to housing and services
• living environment
• crime

There are also two extra measures: income deprivation affecting children and income deprivation affecting older people. Each of these has its own score.

The IMD was last updated in 2019, and the next update is expected in 2025.

According to the IMD, Reading ranks as the 141st most deprived area out of 317 local authorities in England. Five small neighbourhoods (called Lower Super Output Areas, each with about 650 households) are among the 10% most deprived areas in the country.

Download our IMD deprivation map for an overview or use the following links to view maps for each of the domains listed above:

• Income deprivation affecting children index map
• Income deprivation affecting older people index map
• Income domain map
• Education skills and training domain map
• Employment domain map
• Barriers to housing and services map
• Health domain map
• Crime domain map
• Living environment map

Tackling social exclusion in Reading

The social exclusion analysis outlines the essential data on poverty and social exclusion in Reading. It helps to show where people may be missing out on resources, opportunities or social connections.

Social exclusion analysis 2022 – PDF

Health, social care and wellbeing in Reading

The Reading Observatory provides lots of useful information and data about Reading. It also includes our Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA), which looks at the health and wellbeing needs of people in Reading.

Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA)