Coincident full
censuses have taken place in the different jurisdictions of the
United Kingdom every ten years since 1801, with the exceptions of 1941 (during the
Second World War) and both
Northern Ireland and the
Irish Free State in 1921. Simultaneous censuses were taken in the
Channel Islands and the
Isle of Man, with the returns being archived with those of
England. In addition to providing detailed information about national
demographics, the results of the census play an important part in the calculation of resource allocation to regional and local service providers by the governments of both the UK and the
European Union. The most recent UK census took place
in 2011.