FOI reference: FOI-2024-1729
You asked
Please can you tell me when the baby name data for 2022 will be published and why there has been a delay from the Q4 2023 release date as previously stated in a previous FOI request response?
We said
Thank you for your enquiry.
The next publication of our Births Characteristics bulletin will include an additional table of names of babies born in 2022 in England and Wales. This is planned for publication in April 2024.
Our annual publications follow a yearly cycle, where certain statistical bulletins need to be published before others. For example, our headline Births in England and Wales bulletin includes the first release of annual births data. It is published before more in-depth Births Characteristics bulletin and Baby Names statistics. They all use the same data, and this ensures an orderly release of statistics, relying on a proportionate number of statisticians, as per the statistics code of practice.
Last year, mid-year population estimates, which are needed for producing some of our statistics, were not published until 23 November 2023. This was later than the usual summer release, and a result, all the dependent births publications have been delayed too.