For the first time, the 2021 Census revealed numbers of armed forces veterans in the population, with 2,474 armed force veterans living in Oxford.
Veterans make up 2% of the usual resident population of the city, lower than both the county and national averages, (both at 4%).
The data released comes as the country gets ready to mark Armistice Day and Remembrance Sunday this weekend. This will see the annual service at St Giles’ to remember the Armed Forces, and their families, from Britain and the Commonwealth, the vital role played by the emergency services and those who have lost their lives as a result of conflict or terrorism.
The Census data released also captures other key findings for the city such as:
- Compared to the rural districts, Oxford City has the lowest number of veterans living in Oxfordshire.
- In terms of living arrangements, 93% of veterans (2,303) live in households while the remaining 7% (171) live in communal establishments.
- Oxford has a higher proportion of veterans living in communal establishments (7%) compared to county (3%) and national averages (2%).
- There were 2,210 households with at least one resident who previously served in the UK armed forces. This represents 4% of the total households in the city. This is lower than the county (8%) and national averages (7%).
- In terms of household reference person, there were 1,655 households (3%) where the household reference person served either in regular UK armed forces, UK reserve armed forces or both. This is a lot lower than the county (6%) and national (5%) averages.
Oxford City Council uses census to understand the lives and needs of people who live in the city, so that we are providing the rights services, infrastructure and support. We will be able to add this new insight to our data on the city.
To find out more information about the UK armed forces veterans Census 2021 data visit the ONS website.
“This is the first time we’ve been able to see how many UK armed forces veterans live in the City. We will think of them particularly this weekend, and thank them for their service and the sacrifices they and their families have made.”
Councillor Shaista Aziz, Cabinet Member for Inclusion Communities and Culture
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