West Hampstead: Smarter than the average neighbourhood

I’ve already done some analysis of the census results locally, but it’s interesting to see them presented in an easy-to-digest form. Camden produces ward profiles, and although West Hampstead covers more than the West Hampstead and Fortune Green wards, this is a good starting point.

What these profiles also give us are the changes from 2001 (see this article from Tim Harford on how hard it can be to dig up government data).

Demographically, the two wards are very similar although West Hampstead is (slightly) better qualified, with 61% of adults holding a degree, compared to 58% in Fortune Green.

The profile documents are below, but here are the other stand-out stats:

The 60-74 year age group saw the largest increase in both wards from 2001 (from 3% to 9% in West Hampstead and 3% to 10% in Fortune Green.

The percentage of residents that were born in the UK decreased from 64% in 2001 to 57% in 2011 in both wards. The percentage of people born in EU countries (including the most recent accession countries) other than the UK and Ireland increased from 6% in 2001 to 11% in West Hampstead and 12% in Fortune Green in 2011.

Just under a quarter of Fortune Green and West Hampstead households met two or more of the ONS’ deprivation conditions in 2011, lower than Camden’s average of 29%. Deprivation conditions are when any household member is unemployed or long-term sick; no household member has at least a level 2 education and none are full-time students; any household member has long-term health problem or rates their health as bad or very bad; household is overcrowded, shared, or lacks central heating.

Car ownership fell in both wards (which could be seen as a measure of falling wealth, or rising dependence on public transport): 54% of households in Fortune Green had no access to a car or van in 2011 compared to 46% in 2001. In West Hampstead, 59% of  households didnt have access to a vehicle, up from 53% in 2001.

Ward Profile West Hampstead 2011 by WHampstead

Ward Profile Fortune Green 2011 by WHampstead