There are 277,800 people living in Newcastle. The annual Office for National Statistics (ONS) population estimates indicate that population decline was halted in 2001 and that the population grew in 2005, 2006, and 2007 and is projected to continue growing.
About 12% of the Newcastle population is aged between 20 and 24 reflecting the large student population at the cities universities.
Along with the rest of England, the population in Newcastle is ageing with 83,800 people aged 50+ and according to ONS projections, the number of people aged 65-74 will grow by a third between 2008-2028. But the biggest percentage increase is in the oldest people. There are currently 5,400 people living in Newcastle aged over 85. By 2029 this will increase by over two thirds to 9,000.
Since 2003 however, there has been a recent and unexplained return to an excess of births over deaths. The number of births leapt from 2,920 in 2005, to 3,150 in 2006 and from this 2006 baseline, Newcastle is projected to experience a 12.8% rise in the number of births by 2016.
The latest estimates show 6.9% of the population as being from BME groups; an increase from 4.1% in 1991.
In 2005/06, 15,300 children were living in out of work families – approximately 30% of all children living in Newcastle, compared with 20% in England. Of these 10,000 live with out of work lone parents – approximately 20% of all children living in Newcastle.