SINePost newsletter - July 2014

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In this issue ...

1. Fuel Poverty
   
2. Latest Population estimates
   
3. Internal Migration
   
4. Somerset Road Casualty Review
   
5. Road Traffic Volumes
   
6. New Transport Connectivity indicators
   
7. Economic Factsheets - Spring 2014
   
8. Well-being Map Explorer
   
9. University take-up
   
10. Traveller Caravan Count
    
11. Online Census Completion rates
    
12. Forthcoming Statistical Releases
    

1.  Fuel Poverty

An estimated 21,521 households in Somerset are in fuel poverty according to latest (2012) estimates released by the Department for Energy and Climate Change. The proportion of fuel poor households ranges from 8.7% in Sedgemoor to 11.6% of households in West Somerset.

A household is considered to be fuel poor if:

• they have required fuel costs that are above average (the national median level)
• were they to spend that amount, they would be left with a residual income below the official poverty line.

Overall, private rented households are most likely to be in fuel poverty, with just under 20% classified as fuel poor nationally. This compares to 8% of all owner occupiers and 10% of social renters.

Note that this definition of fuel poverty (the ‘Low Income High Costs’ indicator) has replaced the existing definition (the ‘10% indicator’) as government’s preferred methodology for assessing fuel poverty. Previously, households were considered fuel poor if they were required to spend more than 10% of their income on fuel to maintain and adequate standard of warmth. Under the old measure, the number of fuel poor households in Somerset would have risen from 36,141 in 2011 to 42,217 in 2012.

The full fuel poverty datasets are available at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/2012-sub-regional-fuel-poverty-data-low-income-high-costs-indicator

2.  Latest Population Estimates

Somerset’s population is estimated at 538,104 in the latest set of annual figures from the Office for National Statistics. The figure is an estimate of the population in mid-2013 and represents an increase of 3,154 people from a year earlier, mirroring the rate of increase seen nationally. See: www.ons.gov.uk/ons/publications/re-reference-tables.html?edition=tcm%3A77-322718

All Somerset districts, with the exception of West Somerset, saw increases in estimated population over the year. Sedgemoor saw the biggest rise in population, with 1,473 additional residents, an increase of 1.3%.

3.  Internal Migration

The Office for National Statistics has published estimates for internal migration between all local authorities in the UK, including people’s age and gender: www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/migration1/internal-migration-by-local-authorities-in-england-and-wales/year-ending-june-2013/index.html

The majority of the recent increase in Somerset’s population is due to internal migration (i.e. migration from within the UK), with a net ‘inflow’ to Somerset of 2,915 people in the year to June 2013. By comparison, net international inflow (i.e. people from outside the UK) was 561 people.

There are also notable numbers of people moving between Somerset districts. In the last two years the estimates indicate that there have been significant net flows of people to: Taunton Deane from West Somerset and South Somerset; to Mendip and Sedgemoor from Taunton Deane; and to South Somerset from Mendip. (Correction - please note that these flows were inadvertently transposed in a previous version of this newsletter.)

4.  Somerset Road Casualty Review

The overall number of casualties on Somerset’s roads continues to decline according to the latest annual Somerset Road Casualty Review.

There were 1,608 road casualties recorded in Somerset in 2013. Of these, 28 were fatal, 190 ‘serious’ and 1,390 ‘slight’. The Casualty Review looks at latest trends for different types of road user. Findings include:

• KSI (killed or seriously injured) statistics amongst most age groups have been declining, but serious and slight casualties in the 16–24 years age group have increased.
• In 2013, the number of accidents involving motorcyclists was the highest since 2008, and two in five of all fatal casualties in 2013 were motorcyclists.
• For the second year running, no children were killed on Somerset roads.

A more detailed summary is available on the Somerset Intelligence website, at: www.somersetintelligence.org.uk/road-safety.html

The full report is available at: www.somersetintelligence.org.uk/somerset-road-safety-casualty-review-2013.html

5.  Road Traffic Volumes

The volume of traffic on Somerset’s roads has increased for the first time in five years according to the latest estimate from the Department for Transport: www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/tra89-traffic-by-local-authority

An estimated 3,863 million vehicle miles were travelled in Somerset in 2013, an increase of 25 million vehicle miles on the previous year. Historically, traffic volumes in the county rose steadily between 1993 and 2008, before declining through to 2012. In 2013, traffic volumes were an estimated 6% up on the figure a decade earlier, and 31% higher than twenty years earlier.

6.  New Transport Connectivity indicators

The Department for Transport has released experimental ‘travel time’ statistics to measure connectivity from each area of England to selected transport destinations – major airports, stations, and road junctions – by car and by public transport. Representative travel times are available for each LSOA (Lower-layer Super Output Area): www.gov.uk/government/publications/transport-connectivity-statistics-england-2011-data

For Somerset, the selected ‘major’ road junctions are typically the motorway junctions serving Bristol or Exeter; the major train station is Taunton; and the major airport is Bristol. As an example, residents of Milbourne Port have the longest travel time to a ‘major’ road junction (average of 75 minutes), while residents of Porlock have the longest travel time to a major airport (91 minutes).

7.  Economic Factsheets - Spring 2014

Four new factsheets with updated data and analysis on Somerset’s economy and labour market are now available on the Somerset Intelligence website, at the following links:

• Employment and Economic Activity: www.somersetintelligence.org.uk/employment-and-economic-activity-april-2014/
• Unemployment and Economic Inactivity: www.somersetintelligence.org.uk/unemployment-and-economic-inactivity-april-2014/
• Workforce Skills: www.somersetintelligence.org.uk/workforce-skills-april-2014/
• Occupation and Earnings: www.somersetintelligence.org.uk/occupation-and-earnings-april-2014/

The factsheets are updated on a quarterly basis, or as appropriate.

8.  Well-being Map Explorer

A tool to illustrate how people in different areas rate their subjective well-being has been developed by the Department for Communities and Local Government: http://opendatacommunities.org/wellbeing/map

The data is based on results from the government’s Measuring National Well-being programme, which is administered through the Annual Population Survey (APS). Data at local authority level is taken directly from the APS results, while the likely degree of variation in well-being between neighbourhoods (at LSOA level) is modelled using ACORN geodemographic segmentation.

9.  University take-up

According to latest (2011/12) figures from the Department for Education, 44% of students attending state-funded schools or colleges in Somerset went to a UK higher education institution the year after taking an A level or equivalent qualification.

The proportion of Somerset students going into higher education continues to be well below the national average (of 53% in 2011/12) and remains broadly in line with the South West region average (46%). The South West has the lowest proportion of students going to university of any region in England.

See: www.gov.uk/government/publications/destinations-of-key-stage-4-and-key-stage-5-pupils-2011-to-2012

10.  Traveller Caravan Count

Somerset is home to 497 traveller caravans according to the latest snapshot (as at January 2014) published by Department for Communities and Local Government. Just over half of traveller caravans in Somerset are in Mendip.

The latest overall count is the same as the previous count in July 2013, although there have been some variations at a district level; Taunton Deane and Mendip districts have seen some increases in numbers, while counts have fallen elsewhere.

The full data is available at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/traveller-caravan-count-january-2014

This dataset was previously referred to as the ‘Gypsy or Irish Traveller Caravan Count’.

11.  Online Census Completion rates

As part of its ongoing evaluation of the 2011 Census operation, ONS have published tables giving the percentage of census questionnaire returns that were completed online, giving a proxy measure of local propensity for internet usage: www.ons.gov.uk/ons/guide-method/census/2011/how-our-census-works/how-did-we-do-in-2011-/internet-take-up-rates--final-.xls

Within Somerset, Ilchester had the highest proportion of residents completing Census returns online, at 30%. Lowest internet completion was in (East) Alcombe in West Somerset, at 8.7%. As may be anticipated, highest take-up rates were generally in those areas with higher proportions of younger adults.

12.  Forthcoming Statistical Releases

The following are due for release at sub-regional geographies during July:

• Local Health Profiles - Health Profiles - 2014 Results (PHE)
• Accessibility statistics – 2013 (DfT)
• Total Migration To Or From An Area - mid 2013 update (ONS)
• Permanent and Fixed Period Exclusions from Schools in England - - 2012 to 2013 (DfE)
• Special Educational Needs in England - - January 2014 (DfE)
• Adult Social Care Survey, England - 2013-14, Provisional release (HSCIC)
• Homelessness Prevention and Relief - 2013/14 (DCLG)

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