Census shows large population growth in Horsham district

The population size of the district has increased by 11.8 per cent, from around 131,300 in 2011 to 146,800 in 2021.This is higher than the overall increase for England (6.6 per cent), where the population grew by nearly 3.5 million to 56,489,800 and higher than the increase for the South East (7.5 per cent).

This will come as no surprise to many given the scale of housebuilding over the past few years, which has ramped up significantly since the industry’s recovery from the 2008 recession.

Jonathan Chowen, Horsham District Council leader and cabinet member for the local economy, said: “Whilst these results show that Horsham district is a great place to live, it also highlights that we are building more houses than the national average.

“This is unsustainable as it causes environmental and water stress issues, highlighted by both the council and Natural England’s ‘pause’ on all development currently until an answer to these climate change challenges can be found.

“The results come as no surprise really as the area continues to be recognised as a great place to live, work and spend valuable leisure time, and is often voted as one of the best places to live in the UK.

“But as a council we will strive to put the environment at the top of our agenda, whilst working with our communities and parishes to deliver excellent services in parks, recycling, sport, leisure and culture.”

Commenting on the numbers, the Office for National Statistics’ deputy national statistician Pete Benton said: “Today’s census statistics begin to paint a rich and detailed snapshot of the nation and how we were living during the pandemic. They show the population of England and Wales continued to grow across the decade, albeit at different rates across the regions.

“Ultimately, the full suite of census results, based on the information we all gave, will ensure decisions about how the billions of pounds we spend each year as a nation are made using the best possible evidence."

You can find more information about the Census on the Office for National Statistics website at www.ons.gov.uk