Census figures show shift in family life

The latest Census shows that families in Gibraltar are getting smaller and fewer people are becoming parents.

The figures, collected in 2022, showed only 31% of households included dependent children, with an average of 1.7 children across those families.

Children also made up a smaller share of the overall population than at any point in recorded modern census history - down from around 23% in 1970 to under 17% in 2022. 

As well as fewer children and smaller households, the Census also shows more people living alone.

There has also been a rise in women working full-time, continuing a long-term trend in which the proportion of women aged 25-54 in work, rose from around 50% in 1970 to over 80%.

Meanwhile, the number of adults who have never married rose by 35.5 percent between 2012 and 2022. The biggest increase was among those between 25 and 49, the age group that historically started families.

The latest Census recorded 7,940 dependent children across 4,543 households. This works out to an average of 1.7 child per family with children.

Almost 70% of these children lived in households with couples - whether married, in a civil partnership or co-habiting. Around 17% lived in single-parent households. 

And, while the latest census shows fewer children in Gibraltar's population, the number of older adults is on the rise. 

In 2022, children made up around 17% of the population, while almost 19% of people were aged 65 and over.

The 65-plus group grew faster than any other, rising by just over a third - an increase of around 1900 people - since the previous Census.

Meanwhile, the number of people aged 80 and above rose more than four-fold since 1970.