Sexual orientation and gender identity : Overview

On 6 January 2023, as part of our topic summaries releases for Census 2021, we published data about sexual orientation and gender identity in England and Wales.

This was the first time that we've collected and published census information about sexual orientation and gender identity.

What's included in the Census 2021 results about sexual orientation

The Census 2021 results included data about the self-reported sexual orientation of people in England and Wales.

This answered questions like:

• how many people chose to answer the question on sexual orientation?
• how does sexual orientation vary across England and Wales?
• what proportion of the population identified as lesbian, gay, bisexual or other minority sexual orientations (LGB+)?
• how many people identified as pansexual, asexual or queer?

What's included in the Census 2021 results about gender identity

The Census 2021 results included data about the gender identity of people in England and Wales.

This answered questions like:

• how many people chose to answer the question on gender identity?
• how many people reported that their gender identity was different to their sex registered at birth?
• how does gender identity vary across England and Wales?
• how many people identified as a trans woman, a trans man or non-binary?

You can find out more about the Census 2021 results about sexual orientation and gender identity in England and Wales (opens in a new tab)  on the Office for National Statistics (ONS) website.