Census report in East Lancashire (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Census report in East Lancashire

4:00pm Thursday 13th December 2012 in News By Bill Jacobs , Local government reporter

•BLACKBURN with Darwen is a young, growing and ethnically diverse borough, analysis of the latest figures from the 2011 census shows.

It contributed 9,000 of the 11,000 total East Lancashire population growth since the last national headcount a decade ago. While its growth of 6.5 per cent was matched by Ribble Valley, the good news is its booming population of under fives and teenagers was the reason for the rise.

While Blackburn with Darwen’s rich rural neighbour, is predominantly white, married, ageing, middle class and possessed of at least one car, it also has the highest number of pensioners, especially over-90s.

With a mean age of 39, Blackburn with Darwen appears to be a model of multi-cultural Britain with a wider range of ethnic minorities than the rest of East Lancashire, as its steady growth in the last ten years bucks the trend of falling populations in neighbouring Burnley and Hyndburn.

One result is a thriving religious life where the 27 per cent of Muslims add to the half of the community professing Christianity to give one of the lowest percentages of atheists in England and Wales. Hyndburn and Burnley are also religious towns – although there Christianity remains the dominant force.

The only borough with the standard quarter of the population following no religion is Rossendale. Burnley boasts a thriving Bangladeshi community – one of the nation’s biggest in percentage terms – and Pendle has a large, devout Pakistani Muslim population.

Across East Lancashire the high number of households without a car – over 25 per cent in Blackburn with Darwen, Burnley, Hyndburn and Pendle – indicates problems of poverty and deprivation still need to be tackled, as do low numbers of residents over 65 compared to much of the nation.

Singles looking for love are best heading to the urban centres of Blackburn with Darwen and Burnley although divorce rates across East Lancashire are generally higher than the national average.

• WHILE Burnley’s depopulation problems seem to have eased in the last ten years, it remains in the shadow of its growing neighbour Blackburn with Darwen.

This is what analysis of the latest figures from the 2011 census shows. The borough saw a drop in residents from 89,500 to 87,000 since the last national headcount a decade ago, but at just 2,8 per cent is was significantly lower than the government’s projection that it would fall to 85,153 by last year. This and a growing number of under-fives and teenagers, above the national average, give Burnley council leader Julie Cooper heart for the future.

Neighbour Hyndburn also saw a population drop of one per cent while Pendle at the other side of the borough increased by 0.2 per cent. Rossendale saw a 5.5 per cent increase in numbers from 54,1000 to 57,100 but that is still dwarfed by Blackburn with Darwen’s 6.5 per cent increase which contributed 9.000 of the 11,000 total East Lancashire population growth since 2001.

While Ribble Valley’s population grew by 6.5 per cent it remains predominantly white, married, ageing, and middle class with the highest number of pensioners, especially over-90s. Burnley remains a religious town with Christianity the dominant force. Sixty-three per cent of the population follow the traditional faith.

Just under ten per cent register as Muslims and 19.7 per cent profess to be atheists. The only local borough with the standard quarter of the population following no religion is Rossendale.

Burnley boasts a thriving Bangladeshi community – one of the nation’s biggest in percentage terms – and Pendle has a large, devout Pakistani Muslim population. More than half its residents claim to be Christians.

The high number of households without a car – over 25 per cent in Burnley, and Pendle – indicate that problems of poverty and deprivation still need to be tackled, as do low numbers of residents over 65 compared to much of the nation.

Singles looking for love are best heading to Burnley where a third of borough residents are single although divorce rates locally are generally higher than nationally.