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(a) Population
Once again, the Registrar-General's estimate of our population shows a decrease, the figure for 1972
of 181,880 being 2,870 less than the previous year. The actual decrease since 1955 is now 51,420 amounting
to 22% The estimated population of children aged under 15 years is made up as follows:
Under 1 year 2,740
1 - 4 years 8,460
5-14 years 22,300
The estimated number of people over 65 years is 25,200; of this group 9,300 are given as being over 75
years.

(b) Births
The corrected number of births was 1,312 males, 1,302 females giving a total of 2,614 compared with
2,992 in 1971. This gives an annual rate of 14.4 per thousand of the population. The actual decrease in
numbers of 378 comprised a decrease of 309 legitimate births and a decrease of 69 illegitimate births.
The illegitimate birth rate is just over double that for England and Wales as a whole.
(c) Deaths
Deaths registered during the year numbered 2,478. From this figure must be deducted 963 in respect of nonresidents
transferred to their home towns. To counter-balance this must be added a total of 816 residents of the
Borough who died in other parts of England. This gives a corrected figure of deaths as 2,331 comprising 1,197
males and 1,134 females. Of the outward transferrable deaths, 951 occurred in hospitals within the
Borough.

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