Ethnicity
Introduction
The number of people living in Bracknell Forest who are from minority ethnic groups has shown a steady increase over time, although it remains lower than the national context. Greater diversity in the local population may mean that services have to be delivered in a different way to ensure all people have access to services appropriate to their needs.
The main and most reliable indicator of the ethnic background of residents in an area is the national Census which is conducted every 10 years, the most recent in 2011.
Ethnicity data is also gathered by the Department for Education as part of the annual School Census. It is not directly comparable with the national Census as it includes pupils attending Bracknell Forest schools who live outside the borough and does not include pupils who live in Bracknell Forest who attend schools outside the borough. Nevertheless, the School Census provides an up-to-date guide to trends in ethnicity in the school-age population.
Facts, figures and trends
Ethnicity data from the 2011 Census indicates that the majority of people living in Bracknell Forest are White British (84.9%), compared with 90.6% in the 2001 Census. The BME (Black and Minority Ethnic) population has increased over the past decade.
The largest BME group is Asian or Asian British (5%). There is also a large number of people (4.7%) who classify themselves as ‘Other White’. The proportion of people from this ethnic group living in Bracknell Forest is greater than there is nationally and within the South East region as a whole:
Nomis ethnicity data (based on Census 2011 data) shows the percentage of the BME population living in Bracknell Forest by ward in 2011:
In 2011, College Town showed the highest percentage of BME residents, with Little Sandhurst and Wellington showing the lowest:
|
2011 ward |
White |
English/Welsh/Scottish/ |
Mixed/multiple ethnic groups |
Asian/ |
Black/African/Caribbean/ |
Other ethnic group |
All BME |
|
Ascot |
90.4 |
83.5 |
3.1 |
4.9 |
0.8 |
0.9 |
9.7 |
|
Binfield with Warfield |
92.2 |
85.2 |
1.7 |
3.3 |
2.3 |
0.5 |
7.8 |
|
Bullbrook |
87.8 |
81.0 |
2.2 |
6.7 |
2.4 |
0.8 |
12.1 |
|
Central Sandhurst |
92.3 |
88.7 |
2.0 |
4.5 |
0.8 |
0.5 |
7.8 |
|
College Town |
84.3 |
80.1 |
1.7 |
11.8 |
1.4 |
0.8 |
15.7 |
|
Crown Wood |
91.5 |
84.6 |
1.8 |
4.5 |
1.7 |
0.4 |
8.4 |
|
Crowthorne |
91.6 |
87.1 |
1.4 |
3.8 |
2.8 |
0.4 |
8.4 |
|
Great Hollands North |
90.0 |
85.1 |
2.1 |
4.6 |
2.9 |
0.4 |
10.0 |
|
Great Hollands South |
88.6 |
83.7 |
1.9 |
5.3 |
3.8 |
0.4 |
11.4 |
|
Hanworth |
92.3 |
86.1 |
2.1 |
3.1 |
2.2 |
0.3 |
7.7 |
|
Harmans Water |
88.6 |
82.5 |
2.4 |
6.0 |
2.4 |
0.5 |
11.3 |
|
Little Sandhurst and Wellington |
94.8 |
90.3 |
1.6 |
2.7 |
0.7 |
0.2 |
5.2 |
|
Old Bracknell |
89.0 |
82.6 |
2.7 |
4.7 |
3.3 |
0.3 |
11.0 |
|
Owlsmoor |
91.4 |
88.5 |
2.0 |
5.6 |
0.8 |
0.3 |
8.7 |
|
Priestwood and Garth |
91.8 |
85.3 |
1.9 |
3.9 |
2.1 |
0.2 |
8.1 |
|
Warfield Harvest Ride |
90.5 |
84.2 |
2.2 |
6.0 |
0.9 |
0.3 |
9.4 |
|
Wildridings and Central |
88.4 |
82.0 |
2.1 |
6.4 |
2.7 |
0.4 |
11.6 |
|
Winkfield and Cranbourne |
94.5 |
89.3 |
2.0 |
2.5 |
0.6 |
0.4 |
5.5 |
Source: Census 2011
People from minority ethnic groups mainly live around the more urbanised areas near Bracknell Town. Much smaller numbers of people from ethnic minority groups live in the more rural areas of Bracknell Forest as the following map shows:
Source: 2011 Census, Office for National Statistics.
The chart below shows the largest population change in terms of ethnicity between 2001 and 2011 in Bracknell Forest has been Asian. This has increased by over 3,000, while the white population has decreased by over 1,500:
Source: Census 2001 and 2011, Office for National Statistics
School age population
The proportion of school pupils from minority ethnic groups has increased steadily from 6% in 2001 to 18% in 2013.
The number of ethnic minority pupils in Bracknell Forest primary and secondary schools (state-funded) in January 2015 (accessed 24 May 2015) is as follows:
Languages other than English
More detailed information on ethnicity sub-classifications can be found in the Department of Education local authority local and regional tables.
According to the Bracknell Forest school census 2015, 11.3% (1,903) of the 17,022 pupils in Bracknell Forest schools have English as an Additional Language (EAL). This is an increase of 0.5% on the previous census. There are 81 known first languages other than English spoken in our schools, up from 79 in 2014. Polish ranks equally with Nepalese for the first time in 2015, each with 214 (1.3%) recorded speakers. Most other first languages are spoken in very small numbers.
Recommendations and considerations
Trend data demonstrates changing numbers of people from different minority ethnic groups living in Bracknell Forest and the changing needs of particular populations should be considered in future provision of services and support.
This page was created on 27 February 2014. It was last updated on 25 May 2016.
Cite this page:
Bracknell Forest Council. (2016). JSNA – Ethnicity. Available at: jsna.bracknell-forest.gov.uk/bracknell-forest-profile/demography/ethnicity (Accessed: dd Mmmm yyyy)
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