Gridded population data for the UK – redistribution models and applications

This paper will review the methodology developed for the production of grid-based population estimates for the UK a country where the national statistical organization has only once before experimented with this form of output, in 1971. It has therefore been necessary for researchers to use ancillary information from census area centroids and boundaries in order to redistribute published census totals onto regular grid geographies. The paper will consider the way in which gridded models have been produced from published aggregate census data examine the applications in which these data models have been used, demonstrating several areas in which they offer unique analysis opportunities which cannot be addressed using irregular area-based demographic data. This work is placed in the context of current plans by the Office for National Statistics to create a new grid square product using unpublished small area population estimates.