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Resources &
Archived Articles
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1911 England/Wales Census Available Soon!
Column published: 04 January 2007
By: Rick Roberts, Biography & Archived Articles
There is exciting news for those who have been impatiently waiting for the 1911 England and Wales census to become available to researchers. A recent decision, made under the Freedom of Information Act, provides for access to most of the 1911 Census
 information as soon as January 2007. There are some fields of information reported on original census documents that will not be available until 2011. Those fields are described further on in this article.
 Census-taker at work - early 20th century
Public access will come in two stages. The first stage will begin in 2007, with 1911 Census
information made available by using a National Archives user-pay service. The fee structure is significant and researchers must know the exact address of the person that they are looking for.
By 2009, the National Archives hope to have the census completely digitized and available online, probably using a very similar commercial model to that used in their 1901 online census offering. As mentioned earlier, not all information fields will be available on the initial online resource.
Under English law, the complete 1911 cesus cannot be made public until 2011, 100 years after the information was taken.
The following is information provided by the National Archives (United Kingdom) website:
Is the 1911 Census
open?
Will there be an online service?
In response to great public demand The National Archives is developing an online 1911 Census
service, covering most parts of the census. A partner will be selected, and the contract awarded in the spring 2007, to develop an online census. The National Archives hopes to start to offer a searchable service in early 2009, with key sensitive information withheld until 2012. Over two kilometres of census records, containing the details of 35 million people living in England and Wales, will be digitised. This will provide an online service, across most fields of the census, enabling researchers anywhere in the world to search and download digital scans of images from the census. As with the 1901 online service it will be both address and name searchable. It will offer a much cheaper and speedier access to the census returns than the planned FOI service. The full 1911 Census
won’t be released until 2012.
Can I get any information from the census now?
In response to the Information Commissioners decision we shall respond to individual requests for some information from the 1911 Census
through our existing Paid Research service. This service is more limited, and almost certainly a lot more expensive to you, than the online service will be. Our recommendation is that you will get much more value out of the 1911 Census
if you are able to wait until the online service is launched.
What is the service that you are providing now?
- A basic research service to enable you to request information from specific addresses in the 1911 Census
- The 1911 Census
does not have a surname index so we cannot conduct searches for names in the original documents – when it goes online this will be easy to do
- We cannot provide personally sensitive information from the 1911 census
How do I make a request now?
We will advise you how to make a request using this service prior to its launch
Will I have to pay for this information?
- This will be a charged service in line with The National Archives Paid Research service - currently £45 per address search
- The fee is for the research work and we will endeavour to do all we can to find the information you want
- Unfortunately we will not be able to offer refunds on unsuccessful searches
What information remains closed in the 1911 census?
- Information on the face of the document that is personally sensitive
- Most of this information could be found in the Infirmity column - this will be redacted (blocked out)
- Personally sensitive information in other areas will be redacted on a case-by-case basis
Why will the Infirmity column be redacted for everyone?
- If we redacted the personally sensitive information only where it existed, it would undermine the confidentiality being protected
- The Infirmity column will remain closed by refusing to confirm or deny the existence of any entries in the Infirmity column (section 41(2) of the Freedom of Information Act)
When will this service start?
- The service has not been launched yet but we are working hard to deliver a service to you as soon as possible
- Please do not apply yet as we will not be able to process your request
- Please monitor this [The National Archives'] website for updates
Are the documents in good condition?
- All of these records are stored in good environmental conditions in the Kew repositories, in accordance with British archival standards
- The records have been subjected to rigorous inspections by skilled Conservation staff and although creases or folds were estimated to occur in nearly 50% of records, this will not materially affect the legibility or scanning
- A much smaller percentage, about 5% of the census schedules, has required more extensive Conservation work in order for them to be scanned safely
- This may affect the legibility of some information and there may be rare occasions when we cannot provide the information you have requested
- The enumerator summary books are all in excellent condition
Will I now be able to make FOI requests to see information held on the 1921 census?
- The 1921 census is not held by The National Archives and remains, like all post 1921 census, in the custody of the Office for National Statistics (ONS). To make enquiries about the 1921 census please contact ONS
- Government policy is that the 1921 and subsequent census should remain closed for 100 years. Unlike the 1911 Census
the 1921 census was conducted under the 1920 Census Act, which is still in force and which contains a statutory prohibition on disclosure. This means that if any FOI requests are received by ONS for the 1921 census, the exemption found in S44 of the FOI Act will be invoked to maintain census confidentiality
More information Read the National Archives press release for further information
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