Compiled by the Analysis Team at Brighton & Hove City Council
Brighton & Hove State of the City Report Summary
June 2011
State of the City Report – June 2011
About this summary report
This summary report aims to provide an accessible overview of our city, its characteristics & key issues for our residents with an ultimate aim of creating a shared sense of priorities. It draws on a wealth of information from different sources. A full report is also available. This provides more detail about the issues and also references all the sources used so that readers can investigate topics in more depth if they wish to. This summary aims to provide a snapshot of the big picture.
About our city
Our city, Brighton & Hove, is nestled between the South Downs, with our newly designated national park, & the sea. Back in the eighteenth century Brighthelmstone, as Brighton was then known, was a small fishing village, with a population of 2,000. Now home to more than a quarter of a million people, our city is renowned for its vibrancy, culture of tolerance, its independent shops, historic lanes, vast array of pubs, restaurants & clubs, its festivals, stunning architecture & 11 kilometres of coastline.
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State of the City Report – June 2011
Our population Our population is growing
• Our population is growing. The resident population of Brighton & Hove is estimated to be 256,300. It’s predicted to increase to 269,000 by 2019, a five per cent increase, compared to a national increase of 7.4 per cent. • Our city has an unusual age distribution with a bulge of residents aged 20-44 years and relatively high numbers of residents aged 85 years or more. 22 per cent (55,000) are estimated to be aged 19 or under, 65 per cent (165,100) are estimated to be aged between 20 & 64, 14 per cent (35,900) are estimated to be aged 65 or over. The population aged 90 years or more is expected to increase from 2,400 to 3,400 people, an increase of 42 per cent, over the next decade. • With two universities we have a large student population. Our student population was 33,340 in 2008/9, and is estimated to be close to 40,000 in 2011. We also have a large number of foreign language students, around 35,000 per year, although some may only be here for a very short period of time. The largest student populations are found in Hollingdean & Stanmer. • It’s difficult to estimate the number of refugees and other migrants in the city, but 3,890 economic migrants registered for national insurance numbers in the city in 2009/10 compared to 4,660 in 2008/09. • At the time of the census we had the smallest average household size in the South East. 40 per cent of our households (44,990) had just one person, compared to the national average of 30 per cent.
age
65+
under
Age distribution age
19
20-64
With two universities we have a large student population
• Brighton & Hove’s population profile differs considerably to the national profile: • 48 per cent of our residents are described as young, well educated city dwellers.
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State of the City Report – June 2011
• Eight per cent of our residents are described as middle income families living in moderate suburban semis. • 13 per cent of our residents are described as older families, living in suburbia. • Five per cent are young people renting flats in high density social housing.
Our diversity
• We have a relatively even gender balance. 51 per cent of the resident population are female, 49 per cent are male. • We have the largest proportion of same sex couples of any area in England. It’s estimated that at least 14 per cent (35,000) of Brighton & Hove’s adult residents are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. Whilst the transgender population is thought to be small, transgender people face particularly acute issues. • The proportion of our population who are from Black and minority ethnic backgrounds is increasing. In 2001, 12 per cent of our residents were recorded as
