2. Demography
Population:
• According to the 1991 Census there were 156,900
Chinese people in Britain, representing 0.28% of the
population.
• By 2001, the figure had risen to 247,403 Chinese
people making up 0.4% of the total population and
5.3% of the overall ethnic minority figure.
Regional Distribution:
• Approximately 81,000 Chinese people live either
in London or the South-East of England. That makes
up over half of the total figure.
• The 2001 Census revealed that the Chinese
form about 2 % of the population in Westminster, Cambridge,
the City of London and Barnet in N London.
• Around 17,300 are residing in the North-West,
especially concentrated in Manchester and the Merseyside.
• The remaining figure of almost 58,700 are
scattered throughout Britain.
Age distribution: by ethnic group,
2001/02
[Source: Government Statistics Office]
• The Chinese people are youthful on the whole,
with almost three-fifths falling into the twenty to
forty age brackets.
• This is largely due to the fact that many
immigrants came over later than a number of other
ethnic minority communities, and have younger offspring.
• Out of those aged between 16-24, 86% of Chinese
youths are students which is an outstandingly large
figure compared to only 25.8% of whites and even 47.6%
for the entire ethnic minority group.
