London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
London County Council 1961
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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5
VITAL STATISTICS*
Population
Table (i)—
| Year | Mid-year estimate of population by the Registrar General, by age groups | Average age (years) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 0-4 | 5-14 | 15-24 | 25-44 | 45-64 | 65+ | ||
| 1952 | 3,363 | 256 | 400 | 416 | 1,091 | 822 | 378 | 36.7 |
| 1953 | 3,343 | 244 | 413 | 410 | 1,072 | 826 | 378 | 36.7 |
| 1954 | 3,322 | 234 | 425 | 394 | 1,056 | 827 | 386 | 36.9 |
| 1955 | 3,295 | 230 | 421 | 391 | 1,037 | 829 | 387 | 37.1 |
| 1956 | 3,273 | 229 | 427 | 384 | 1,018 | 829 | 386 | 37.1 |
| 1957 | 3,254 | 230 | 425 | 383 | 974 | 843 | 399 | 37.4 |
| 1958 | 3,225 | 231 | 418 | 387 | 949 | 843 | 397 | 37.5 |
| 1959 | 3,204 | 236 | 409 | 394 | 925 | 842 | 398 | 37.5 |
| 1960 | 3,194 | 241 | 403 | 398 | 905 | 846 | 401 | 37.6 |
| 1961 M | 1,494 | 127 | 202 | 190 | 444 | 388 | 143 | 35.7 |
| F | ||||||||
| 3,180 | 247 | 396 | 404 | 893 | 839 | 401 | 3.5 | |
(a) Resident civilian population, plus any British, Commonwealth or Foreign Armed Forces stationed in the
area.
There was a net loss of 14,000 in the population from the previous year's figure; in detail
there was a rise of 6,000 at ages 0.4, a fall of 7,000 at ages 5.14, a rise of 6,000 at ages
15.24, falls of 12,000 and 7,000 at ages 25.44 and 45.64 respectively, whilst the population
aged 65 and over remained constant.
The rise in the number of pre-school children stems from the increased birth rate—see
table (ii) below; the changes at ages 5.14 and 15.24 are linked with the movement out of
the former age group of children born in the years of high fertility following the war—
migration of young people into London also affects the 15.24 age group. The losses at
ages 25.64 are probably due in the main to outward migration and the net effect of this
loss in conjunction with the increased birth rate has been a marginal change towards a
younger population—the average age having fallen by 0.1 year.
Fertility
Table (ii)—
| Year | Live births | Stillbirths | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Rate per 1,000 population | No. | Rate per 1,000 total births (live and still) | |
| 1952 | 51,443 | 15.3 | 1,000 | 19.1 |
| 1953 | 50,992 | 15.3 | 1,088 | 20.9 |
| 1954 | 50,745 | 15.3 | 1,029 | 19.9 |
| 1955 | 49,826 | 15.1 | 1,034 | 20.3 |
| 1956 | 52,171 | 15.9 | 1,070 | 20.1 |
| 1957 | 52,733 | 16.2 | 1,083 | 20.1 |
| 1958 | 54,152 | 16.8 | 1,102 | 19.9 |
| 1959 | 55,191 | 17.2 | 1,085 | 19.3 |
| 1960 | 57,368 | 18.0 | 1,052 | 18.0 |
| 1961 | 60,052 | 18.9 | 1,103 | 18.0 |
* The statistics given are based on the latest information available from the Registrar General: instances have
occurred in the past in which figures have been subsequently corrected so that data for a previous year may
differ from that published in the Annual Report for that year.