Mnemonic: living_arrangements
Applicability: Person
Type: Derived variable
Definition
The “living arrangements” classification combines responses to the question on marital and civil partnership status with information about whether or not a person is living in a couple. This topic is only applicable to people in households. Living arrangements differs from marital and civil partnership status because cohabiting takes priority over other categories. For example, if a person is divorced and cohabiting, then in results for living arrangements they are classified as cohabiting.
Classification
Total number of categories: 11
| Code | Name |
|---|---|
| 1 | Living in an opposite-sex couple: Married or in a civil partnership |
| 2 | Living in a same-sex couple: Married or in a civil partnership |
| 3 | Living in a couple: Separated, but still married or in a civil partnership |
| 4 | Living in an opposite-sex couple: Cohabiting |
| 5 | Living in a same-sex couple: Cohabiting |
| 6 | Not living in a couple: Single (never married and never registered a civil partnership) |
| 7 | Not living in a couple: Married or in a registered civil partnership |
| 8 | Not living in a couple: Separated (including those who are married and those who are in civil partnerships) |
| 9 | Not living in a couple: Divorced or formerly in a civil partnership which is now legally dissolved |
| 10 | Not living in a couple: Widowed or surviving partner from a civil partnership |
| -8 | Does not apply* |
*students and schoolchildren at their non term-time address, short-term migrants, people living in communal establishments, and children aged 15 years and under.
View all living arrangements classifications.
Background
Read about how we developed and tested the questions for Census 2021.
Comparability with the 2011 Census
Broadly comparable
This is derived from the legal partnership status derived variable. We have included new categories to reflect that people can now marry someone of the same-sex and people of the opposite-sex can be in a civil partnership. In the 2011 Census people who were married or separated were grouped in one category, in Census 2021 it has been split into two categories.
What does broadly comparable mean?
A variable that is broadly comparable means that it can be generally compared with the same variable used in the 2011 Census. However, changes may have been made to the question or options that people could choose from or how write-in answers are classified.
England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland comparisons
Broadly comparable
The variable produced for England and Wales distinguishes between same-sex and opposite-sex couples living together.
What does broadly comparable mean?
A variable that is broadly comparable means that outputs from Census 2021 in England and Wales can generally be compared with Scotland and Northern Ireland. Differences in how the data were collected or presented may reduce the ability to fully harmonise on outputs, but some harmonisation is still expected.
Find out more about variables produced for Census 2021 in Northern Ireland and Census 2022 in Scotland.
Census 2021 data that uses this variable
We use variables from Census 2021 data to show findings in different ways.
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Alternatively, you can also create a custom dataset.