Ethnic diversification and neighbourhood mixing: A rapid response analysis of the 2021 Census of England and Wales

This paper provides a rapid response analysis of the changing geographies of ethnic diversity and segregation in England and Wales using Census data covering the last 30 years (1991, 2001, 2011 and 2021), a period of significant social, economic and political change. Presenting the first detailed analysis of 2021 Census small area ethnic group data, we find that the growth of ethnic diversity at the national level is mirrored across residential neighbourhoods. Increasing numbers of neighbourhoods are home to a substantial mix of people from different ethnic groups, and this growing neighbourhood ethnic diversity has been spatially diffusing across all regions of England and Wales. We argue that to understand the ethnic mosaic across England and Wales, it is more illuminating to consider mix than majority: places labelled as 'minority-majority' are, in fact, ethnically diverse spaces, home to sizable proportions of people from many ethnic groups. Increasing ethnic diversity is matched by decreasing residential segregation, for all ethnic groups-majority and minority.

Automated summary

This paper presents a rapid response analysis of the changing geographies of ethnic diversity and segregation in England and Wales using Census data from 1991 to 2021. The study finds that ethnic diversity has been increasing at both the national and neighborhood levels, with growing spatial diffusion across the regions. The research also highlights that places labeled as 'minority-majority' are actually ethnically diverse spaces. Additionally, the study shows that residential segregation is decreasing for all ethnic groups.