Impacts of the UK’s
changing population
Geography
Unit: The UK: who are we?
Outcome
I can begin to explain some of the benefits that migrants
have brought to the UK, and how they have contributed to
its culture.
Keywords
census
data
inhabitants
population
Keywords
census A census is the official collection of data
about a whole population.
data Data is a collection of information that can be
analysed to help us answer a question.
inhabitants Inhabitants are the people who live in a defined
area.
population The population is the total number of people
living in a particular area.
Lesson outline
Impacts of the UK’s changing population
How do we find out about the UK's population?
How is the UK's population changing?
Looking at some of the changes migration causes
How do we find out about the UK's population?
Explanation
A census is an official count of the
inhabitants of an area.
It is carried out every ten years. The
most recent census took place in 2021.
There are quite a lot of questions on the
census.
Data is collected from each household.
Everyone in the family has to be added,
and it is against the law to lie on the
form.
How do we find out about the UK's population?
Explanation
The census is carried out on a
particular date.
Everyone has to say where they lived
on that date.
The census in 2021 took place on the
21st March 2021.
This would have been the first time you
appeared on a census if you were born
after 2011.
How do we find out about the UK's population?
Check
True or false?
People do not have to fill in the census form.
T True F False
Justify your answer
a People need to fill in the form or they can be fined.
If people did not fill in the form, the results would not be
b
complete.
How do we find out about the UK's population?
Check
True or false?
People do not have to fill in the census form.
T True F False
Justify your answer
a People need to fill in the form or they can be fined.
If people did not fill in the form, the results would not be
b
complete.
How do we find out about the UK's population?
Explanation
The census tells us how
the population is
changing.
The graph shows how
the population of the
UK has increased since
1801. This is using data
from each census.
How do we find out about the UK's population?
Explanation
No census was held in
1941 because of the
Second World War.
How do we find out about the UK's population?
Explanation
Over ten years, we might expect
some changes to the population:
● The number of inhabitants will
have risen.
● There are likely to be more
older people in the population.
● Some people will have moved
house: some into the
countryside and others will
have moved into cities.
How do we find out about the UK's population?
Explanation
What other changes might we see?
● Some people will have left
school and started a job.
● Some people will have finished
working and retired.
● Some people will have started
work in a new location or now
work from home.
● Some people’s health will have
changed.
How do we find out about the UK's population?
Check
True or false?
We can use a census to find out about changes to the UK’s
population every year.
T True F False
Justify your answer
a The census records changes to the UK’s population.
b The census shows changes to the UK’s population every
ten years.
How do we find out about the UK's population?
Check
True or false?
We can use a census to find out about changes to the UK’s
population every year.
T True F False
Justify your answer
a The census records changes to the UK’s population.
b The census shows changes to the UK’s population every
ten years.
Task A How do we find out about the UK’s population?
Practice
Imagine you are working for
the census. Your friend asks
why they need to fill it out.
Can you explain what type of
information the census collects
and what it will tell us?
Task A How do we find out about the UK’s population?
Feedback
You might say something like this:
The census is carried out every ten years and tells us how the
population has changed over the last ten years. For example, it tells
us how the number of old and young people changes, where people
are moving from and to and what jobs people have.
Lesson outline
Impacts of the UK’s changing population
How do we find out about the UK's population?
How is the UK's population changing?
Looking at some of the changes migration causes
How is the UK's population changing?
Explanation
There are several important changes to the
UK’s population which the census reveals each
time it takes place.
The changes are important as they guide
decisions on what the government will spend
money on.
E.g., if more children are being born we will
need more primary schools and to train more
primary school teachers.
How is the UK's population changing?
Explanation
The first important change is that the
population of the UK is getting older.
Of course we are all getting older every
day, but there are now more old people
staying alive than ever before.
This means we need to provide more
support for people who are older, such as
care home places, medical facilities and
suitable housing.
How is the UK's population changing?
Explanation
Another important change is that there
are fewer young people.
The birth rate is going down, which
means that fewer children are being
born.
Meanwhile, as people get older they
have fewer children than in the past.
Families are a lot smaller than they
were fifty years ago.
How is the UK's population changing?
Check
True or false?
There are fewer old people in the UK’s population than in the past.
T True F False
Justify your answer
a People live longer than they did in the past so there are more old
people.
b People don’t live as long as before, which means fewer old people.
How is the UK's population changing?
Check
True or false?
There are fewer old people in the UK’s population than in the past.
T True F False
Justify your answer
a People live longer than they did in the past so there are more old
people.
b People don’t live as long as before, which means fewer old people.
Task B How is the UK's population changing?
Practice
The census tells us some of the things that
change over ten years.
The next census will be in 2031.
What do you expect you will be doing then?
What might have changed for members of
your family? For example, where they live or
work, or if there may have been babies born
to increase your family population.
Task B How is the UK's population changing?
Feedback
At the next census in 2031 I will be 15 years old. I will be doing
my GCSEs at secondary school! I hope we live in the same house as we do now
but we might have more neighbours because there are lots of houses being built
near us.
My step-dad will be 68 so I think he will not be working any more. My mum will
be 59 so she will probably still work.
My brother will be 26. He will have finished university and will have a job. He
will probably live in a different house of his own, which will be good because I
won’t have to share the Playstation with him!
My step-sister will be 31. She has a boyfriend so she might have a baby by then,
which would make me an uncle!
Lesson outline
Impacts of the UK’s changing population
How do we find out about the UK's population?
How is the UK's population changing?
Looking at some of the changes migration causes
Looking at some of the changes migration causes
Explanation
Migration has led to changes in
cities.
Migrants tend to live in cities
because this is where there are
more jobs available.
Migrants to cities tend to be
adults of working age.
Looking at some of the changes migration causes
Explanation
An ageing population needs
looking after. Older people are
more likely to need medical
care, so there are lots of people
needed to look after them.
Many immigrants find work in
the care and health sectors.
Looking at some of the changes migration causes
Explanation
Migration has also brought
changes to rural areas.
Although there is a lot of
machinery used in farming,
some crops still have to be
picked and processed by
hand.
This is often done by migrant
workers from the EU and
elsewhere.
Looking at some of the changes migration causes
Explanation
Migration has brought a need for more
school places for the children of
immigrants.
New schools take a lot of time to build, so
some schools have seen more pupils
joining, which may mean larger class sizes.
Looking at some of the changes migration causes
Explanation
There are also changes in the
creative industries, as music, poetry
and other arts attract young people
from different backgrounds and the
culture they bring influences UK
culture.
For example, Caribbean musicians
introduced styles such as ska and
reggae into UK culture.
Looking at some of the changes migration causes
Check
Which of these is not a benefit of migration into the UK?
a There are bigger class sizes in schools.
b There are more people available to fill important jobs that
need doing.
c Our culture becomes more varied, with more music styles
and food to enjoy.
Looking at some of the changes migration causes
Check
Which of these is not a benefit of migration into the UK?
a There are bigger class sizes in schools.
b There are more people available to fill important jobs that
need doing.
c Our culture becomes more varied, with more music styles
and food to enjoy.
Task C Looking at some of the changes migration causes
Practice
Describe some possible
effects of increasing
migration on a city near to
you.
Mention some of the changes
that you might notice if you
walked down the main street
in that city.
Task C Looking at some of the changes migration causes
Feedback
There will be more people needing work and houses and things
like doctors and schools. We might see more children in our
class at school.
Migrants will not be obvious, because people who were born in the UK may
also have all of these characteristics. It’s really difficult to say for certain
that someone is a migrant.
However, we might notice people wearing different clothes or hear more
different languages being spoken than before. We may see more shops and
cafes opening which cater for other nationalities, because the number of
potential customers is increasing.
Summary Impacts of the UK's changing population
● The census tells us about the changes that happen in the
population. It happens every ten years.
● The most recent census told us that the UK’s population is
getting older, and that a higher number of inhabitants were born
outside of the UK.
● These people bring many benefits to the country, and help its
population to grow.
