SINePost newsletter - May 2023

In this issue:

1. Local Community Network profiles
2. Child Benefit statistics
3. Housing affordability estimates
4. Collected waste statistics
5. Crime statistics
6. Educational attainment at 19
7. Food bank usage
8. Electoral statistics
9. Bus passenger journey statistics
10. Census 2021: Topic summaries

1. Local Community Network profiles

Demographic profiles have been published for the 18 newly formed Local Community Networks (LCNs). LCNS have been created as part of the move to a single unitary authority in Somerset and are formed of groups of parishes. They are designed to be ‘the voice of the community’ to help with setting local priorities and raising local issues.

LCNs vary in size and population, with the Taunton LCN having the largest population – at 74,000 people – and Exmoor LCN having the smallest population – at 7,900 people.

The profiles – which are based on recently published results from the 2021 census – can be accessed here, or by following the Local Community Networks link from the menu.

2. Child Benefit statistics

Figures released by HM Revenue & Customs show that there were 99,050 children (aged 0-19) in Somerset for which Child Benefit was being received in August 2022. An additional 6,465 children had been ‘opted out’ due to the High Income Child Benefit Charge (HIBC).

Of the families in Somerset receiving Child Benefit, 47% are currently one-child families; 40% have two children; and 14% have three or more children.

For the full dataset, see: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/child-benefit-statistics-annual-release-august-2022

3. Housing affordability estimates

The latest house price affordability estimates from the Office for National Statistics show that relative to earnings, house prices in Somerset remain high. The ratio of median house price to median gross annual earnings provides a measure of how affordable it is to get on the property ladder.

On average, full time workers in Somerset in 2022 could expect to pay 9.1 times their annual workplace-based earnings on purchasing a home. This is marginally lower than the 2021 ratio of 9.4 but is the second highest figure on record. The housing affordability ratio for Somerset remains higher than the national ratio of 8.2. It is however slightly lower than the South West regional ratio of 9.4. Between the former Somerset district areas the affordability ratio ranged from 8.2 in South Somerset to 10.4 in Mendip.

The analysis uses earnings data based on ‘place of work’ rather than ‘place of residence’ to indicate the extent to which employees can afford to live where they work.

For the full dataset, see:

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/housing/

4.  Collected waste statistics

Somerset Waste Partnership collected a total of 266,471 tonnes of household waste in the 2021/22 financial year, a 2% increase from the previous year.

56% of all waste collected from households was either recycled, composted or reused, up from 52% in 2020/21. This is higher than the figure for the whole of England, where 44% of all waste is recycled, composted or reused.

For the full dataset, see: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/env18-local-authority-collected-waste-annual-results-tables-202122

5. Crime statistics

There were 40,274 recorded crimes in Somerset in the year to December 2022 according to the latest crime data from the Office for National Statistics. This represents a rate of 70 crimes per 1,000 residents in Somerset. For comparison, crime rates in the wider Avon and Somerset Constabulary area range from 61 per 1,000 residents in South Gloucestershire to 114 per 1,000 in the City of Bristol.

The 2022 figure shows an increase of 8.1% from the previous year’s figure of 37,269. The biggest changes from the previous 12 months were in shoplifting offences – which increased by 72% to a total of 3,019. Recorded crimes for many offences had dropped significantly during the years affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, with numbers subsequently increasing again. For shoplifting, the latest figure is 9% higher than the pre-covid figure of 2,771 offences for the 12 months to the end of March 2020.

When comparing the latest recorded crime data with that from the pre-COVID period ending March 2022, there are increases in the numbers of violent crimes (+23%) and sexual offences (+25%), whilst numbers of theft offences (-20%) and criminal damage and arson offences (-15%) have decreased.

It is too early to say whether recent changes in numbers of recorded crimes will come to represent a sustained change in long-term trends.

As always with police recorded crime statistics it must be kept in mind that statistics may be influenced by changes in recording practices, police activity, and public propensity to report crimes. Changes in reported crime levels therefore do not necessarily indicate a change in levels of criminal behaviour.

For the full dataset, see: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/ 

6. Educational attainment by 19

Latest annual figures from the Department for Education (DfE) show an increase in the number of young people in Somerset achieving level 3 qualifications. Meanwhile, the rate of level 2 attainment in Somerset decreased. The data records the attainment at age 19 of those who were in the mainstream state sector at the time of their final year of secondary school.

At the end of the 2021/22 academic year:

• 73% of young people in Somerset had achieved level 2.
• 42% had achieved level 3.

Both figures for Somerset are below the equivalent national figures (81.69% and 60.68%).

The figures also show that the attainment gap for disadvantaged pupils widened in 2021/22. The gap in level 2 attainment between those eligible for Free School Meals (FSM) and those not eligible for FSM was 26.18 percentage points (ppts) – up from 24.77 ppts in 2020/21. At level 3 the gap was 30.95 ppts, up from 29.7 ppts in 2020/21.

It should be remembered that the COVID-19 pandemic saw the cancellation of summer 2020 and 2021 exams and grades awarded through teacher assessment. Given these circumstances, caution should be taken when comparing data for recent years. The impact of the alternate method for awarding grades is likely to be reflected in the latest figures for level 3 attainment, but may not yet be apparent in level 2 attainment figures; most people who achieve level 2 do so at age 16 and those in this age group during the pandemic years would not have reached age 19 at the time of the most recent data.

For the full dataset, see:

https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/level-2-and-3-attainment-by-young-people-aged-19/

7. Food bank usage

The Trussell Trust has reported a 42% increase in the number of food parcels it distributed in the South West region in the 2022/23 financial year compared to 2021/22. The most recent figure is 22% higher than in 2020/21 – an exceptional year for foodbank usage due to the impacts of COVID-19.

During 2022/23, the Trust distributed a total of 247,850 emergency food supplies to people in the region, of which 62% went to adults and 38% to children. The Trussell Trust operates seven foodbanks within Somerset. Locally, Trussell Trust foodbanks in Somerset distributed 19,426 emergency food supplies during 2022/23, an increase of 28.5% from 2021/22.

The Trussell Trust estimates that their network of foodbanks accounts for approximately two-thirds of all foodbank provision in the country.

For the full dataset, see: https://www.trusselltrust.org/news-and-blog/latest-stats/end-year-stats/

8. Electoral statistics

The number of local government electors in Somerset increased during 2022. In December 2022 there were 437,457 local government electors registered in Somerset, a 0.8% increase on the previous year’s figure of 433,855. Nationally the number of local government electors dropped slightly over this period.

The number of parliamentary electors across Somerset’s five parliamentary constituencies four Districts rose by a similar amount in the same period, from 421,440 in December 2021 to 424,306 in December 2022, with the national figure again dropping over the same period.

For the full dataset, see: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/elections/electoralregistration

9. Bus passenger journey statistics

Numbers of passenger journeys on local bus services in Somerset increased to an estimated 3.2 million in 2021/22, in figures published by the Department for Transport. This figure follows a huge decrease in 2020/21 associated with the COVID-19 pandemic where the number of bus journeys dropped by 78%. The latest figure – although a significant year-on-year increases – remains 46.5% lower than the pre-pandemic figure of 5.9 million journeys in 2019/20.

Numbers of journeys on local bus services in Somerset have decreased considerably over the past 11 years, from nearly 10 million in 2009/10.

At 5.5 journeys per head of population, Somerset continues to have the lowest rate of local bus passenger journeys in the South West region. The rate is also the 3rd lowest of any local authority in England, behind only Rutland and Windsor & Maidenhead. In the South West region there were 24.1 passenger journeys per head of population in 2021/22.

For the full dataset, see: www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/bus01-local-bus-passenger-journeys

8. Census 2021: Topic summaries

New topic summaries for the 2021 census have been published covering data on education, health, disability, and unpaid care in Somerset.

Census results show:

• A greater proportion of Somerset residents with level 3 and level 4 qualifications compared to 2011.
• More than 80% of Somerset residents report being in good health.
• Nearly 1 in 5 somerset residents have a disability or long-term health condition which limits their day-to-day activity.
• The number of Somerset residents providing unpaid care for family or friends appears to have decreased, although this may be related to the timing of the census during COVID-19.

More info can be found on these topics, here:

• Education
• Health, disability, and unpaid care

And finally...