Also see the Older, Paper Sources section of this guide.
Some basic sources, first, followed by an alphabetical list.
Annual Abstract of Statistics [British] Main HA 1122 .A33 1840-
Annual Abstract of Statistics contains statistics on the United Kingdom's economy, industry, society and demography presented in easy to read tables and backed up with explanatory notes and definitions. It covers the following areas: area; parliamentary elections; overseas aid; defence; population and vital statistics; education; labour market; personal income, expenditure and wealth; health; social protection; crime and justice; lifestyles; environment, housing; transport and communications; national accounts; prices; government finance; external trade and investment; research and development; agriculture, fisheries and food; production; banking and insurance etc...
British Historical Statistics Main HA 1134 .M58 1988
Provides statistics on population, labour force, agriculture, fuel and energy, metals, textiles, building, "industrial statistics,", external trade, transportation and communications, public finance, financial institutions, consumption, prices, "miscellaneous statistics," and national accounts. Some on education and schools and some on crime. Most stats are about the 19th and 20th centuries.
Official History of Britain, Our Story in Numbers as Told by the Office for National Statistics Main DA 530 .S73 2022
Narrative chapters on who we are, what we do, where we live, 1921 Census, 2121 back to the future. Provides sources and further reading suggestions.
UK Data Archive (UKDA) is a centre of expertise in data acquisition, preservation, dissemination and promotion and is curator of the largest collection of digital data in the social sciences and humanities in the U.K. It is a designated Place of Deposit by The National Archives allowing it to ingest and preserve public records. UKDA is based at the University of Essex. Among its family of services are the History Data Service, Economic and Social Data Service, and UK Census Portal. The History Data Service collects, preserves, and promotes the use of digital resources, which result from or support historical research, learning, and teaching.
Alphabetical list begins here.
Hosted by University of Manchester. Data sets and opinion surveys from Britain on religious affiliation, public knowledge about the life of Jesus, public attitudes about the truthworthiness of the clergy, etc. Also historical data about religion in Great Britain.
British Social Attitudes Information System
British Social Attitudes survey asks over 3,000 people what it's like to live in Britain and how they think Britain is run. Since 1983 the survey has been tracking people's changing social, political and moral attitudes. It informs the development of public policy and is an important barometer of public attitudes used by opinion leaders and social commentators.The surveys are carried out by NatCen Social Research who also publish the Annual Reports. The current British Social Attitudes Report is the 39th. Analyse the responses to over 20,000 survey questions with results shown in time-series tables and charts. You must register to use this site, but there is no charge for the information.
Census 2021 web site contains the data and supporting commentary on the population and households in England and Wales from Census 2021. Office of National Statistics is publishing the results in phases.
Consortium of European Social Science Data Archives (CESSDA)
Three menu items: About CESSDA, Data Catalogue, and Resources. Home page has a map indicating member countries. Click on a country to get to that country's data archive site. CESSDA's data catalogue may be browsed by topic, keyword, or data publisher. Search box above folder tree. Goals of CESSDA are to encourage standardization of data and metadata, data sharing, and providing access across repositories, nations, language, and research; it's a legal entity.
Focus on London-Housing
Focus on London Housing 2011, by James Gleeson in the Housing unit looks at housing trends from the demand/supply imbalance to the consequences for affordability and housing need. On this page there is a PDF link to click on to access this report. For older volumes, see same the title Focus on London, Remote Storage HA 1139 .L8 F63.
Great Britain Historical Database Online 1841-1939
Large database of British nineteenth and twentieth-century statistics. It contains: Statistics from the 1861 Census and the Registrar General's reports, 1851-1861; Employment statistics from the census, 1841-1931; Demographic statistics from the census, 1841-1931; Mortality statistics from the Registrar General's reports, 1861-1920; Marriage statistics from the Registrar General's reports, 1841-1870; Trade union statistics for the Amalgamated Society of Engineers (ASE), 1851-1918; Official poor law statistics, 1859-1915 and 1919-1939; Small debt statistics from county courts, 1847-1913." Free but registration is required.
"The London Datastore has been created by the Greater London Authority (GLA) as a first step towards freeing London’s data. We want everyone to be able access the data that the GLA and other public sector organisations hold, and to use that data however they see fit – for free. The GLA is committed to using its connections and influence to request and cajole other public sector organisations into releasing their data here too, and it’s an objective backed strongly by Boris Johnson, Mayor of London."
Monthly Digest of Statistics [British]
An important reference work containing the latest monthly and quarterly business, economic and social data. Twenty chapters of tables, covering the following topics: National accounts, including Gross Domestic Product (GDP); Population and vital statistics; Labour market; Social services, Law enforcement; Agriculture, food, drinks and tobacco; Production, output and costs; Energy; Chemicals; Metals, engineering and vehicles; Textiles and other manufactures; Construction; Transport; Retailing; External trade in goods; UK balance of payments; Government finance; Prices and wages i.e. Retail Prices Index (RPI); Leisure; and Weather. For older volumes see same title, Remote Storage, HA 1122 .A332
National Statistics Online [British]
This is the U.K.'s home of official statistics, reflecting Britain's economy, population, and society at the national and local level. Summary stories and detailed data releases are published here free of charge.
Has some Office of National Statistics (ONS) series: labour-market surveys, business surveys, births, marriages, and censuses back to 1981.
Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA)
NISRA is the principal source of official information on Northern Irelandﾴs population and socio-economic conditions. Statistics are offered here thematically: on agriculture, fishing, forestry; commerce, energy, industry; crime and justice; economy; education and training; health and care; labour market; natural and built environment; population and migration; social and welfare; transportation, travel, tourism. The site also offers links to other U.K. and Irish stats sites.
[Official statistics of various government depts]
Goals of the UK's Office of National Statistics Data Science Campus are to: investigate the use of new data sources, including administrative data and big data for public good and help build data science capability for the benefit of the UK. They apply data science, and build skills, for public good across the UK and internationally.
Regional Trends Archive [British]
Regional Trends is a comprehensive regular source of official statistics for the Statistical Regions of the United Kingdom (Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Government Office Regions within England). It includes a wide range of demographic, social, industrial and economic statistics, covering aspects of life in the regions. The publication is available to download free as a PDF file. The PDF is linked to Excel spreadsheets containing data for each table and figure provided. To access the data, either click on the tables and figures in the PDF or download the Zip file. For older volumes, see Regional Trends and Abstract of Regional Statistics in Remote Storage, HA 1122 .A2
Routledge Handbook of Census Resources, Methods and Applications: Unlocking the UK 2011 Census Remote Storage HA 1124 2011.R68 2018
Info about the 2011 UK Census and how to use the associated data outputs. Chapters by individual scholars are about this census, the history of census taking in the UK, the quality of the data, how users access the data, visualizing the data, and using the 2011 census for research.
The aim of the statistical service in the Scottish Executive is to provide relevant and reliable statistical information, analysis and advice that meets the needs of government, business and the people of Scotland. For older Scottish statistics, see Scottish Abstract of Statistics, Remote Storage, HA 1153 .A22. We have 1-26, dated 1971-1998; Statistical Account of Scotland Murray and Hong Special Collections HC 257 .S4 S48 v. 1-10, published 1791-1799; New Statistical Account of Scotland, published 1845.
Sources of Non-Official UK Statistics Reference HA 37 .G7 M665 2006
Published statistical series and marketing data play an important role in provision of information for business, industry, economic analysis, academic, and other research. In the United Kingdom, as in most major economies, central government and its departments are the main suppliers of statistical information. Their statistics are referred to as "official statistics"; the entries above point to "official statistics." However, many other organizations do compile and disseminate statistics. These include trade associations, market research organizations, banks, other financial companies, chambers of commerce, economic research and forecasting organizations, consultants, academic institutions, and commercial publishers. Their data is called "non-official" statistics. This book provides details of almost 900 non-official titles and services in the UK. The book is arranged alphabetically by the title of the organization issuing the statistics. It is indexed by subject and by title of document. Entries describe the contents of the publication briefly, provide frequency of issue, cost, and directions for obtaining the information (address, telephone, web site, etc.)
Statistical Accounts of Scotland, 1791-1845
The ‘Old’ and ‘New’ Statistical Accounts of Scotland are vitally important reference sources for a critical half century spanning the Agricultural and Industrial Revolutions, and they offer invaluable insights into local and national life in Scotland in this period. Click on the link near top left, There is a help button in blue, near top right, to get started.
Statistics and the Public Sphere, Numbers and the People in Modern Britain, c1800-2000 Reference HA 1134 .S727 2011
Anthology of individually authored chapters about governing by the numbers, picturing the public, numbers and public trust, and the politics of statistics.
The Statistical Directorate collects, processes, interprets and publishes information about the economic and social condition of Wales; and promotes the use of that information in decision making within government and beyond. They cover a wide range of topics including demography, health, housing, education, training, agriculture, industry, the economy, local government, transport, the environment and the Welsh language. For older material see: Digest of Welsh Statistics in Remote Storage HA 1161 .D5 and Statistical Focus on Wales Remote Storage HA 1161 .S73. Also, Digest of Welsh Historical Statistics Remote Storage HA 1166 .W544 1985 v. 1 and Digest of Welsh Historical Statistics: 1974-1996 Remote Storage HA 1165 .W55 1998.
[Sustainable Development Goals] government info
2021 Census England and Wales; Northern Ireland 2021 Census; Scottish 2021 Census
For help with older census records see UK National Archives web guide
United Kingdom National Accounts, the Blue Book Remote Storage HC 260 .I5 A3 1984-2022 and DMC 4 West 2017-2022
Available online through ProQuest and EBSCO Open Access. "The Blue Book was first published in August, 1952 and presents a full set of economic accounts (national accounts) for the UK. These accounts are compiled by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). They record and describe economic activity in the UK and, as such, are used to support the formulation and monitoring of economic and social policies."
United Kingdom Statistics Authority
Office of National Statistics is the executive office of it, an independent body at arm's length from government. Has statutory objective of promoting and safeguarding the production and publication of official stats that serve the public good. It has a regulatory arm called Office for Statistics Regulation, which assesses official stats for compliance with Code of Practice for Statistics and reports on system-wide issues and on how stats are used.
U.K. 2005 the Official Yearbook of the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland
Definitive overview of the United Kingdom in text, tables, maps, charts. Latest edition includes chapters on government, international relations, defence; education and training, labour market, social protection, health, crime and justice, religion, culture, communications and media, sport, environment, housing, planning and regeneration, transport, sustainable development, the economy, public finance, international trade and investment, science, engineering and technology, agriculture, fishing and forestry, manufacturing and construction, energy and natural resources, and financial services. Information on England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland.
[Well-being Indicators Dashboard] government info