Ethnicity

Over half of Tower Hamlets’ population are from non-white British ethnic groups. A third of these are Bangladeshi, of whom over a third are 15 years or less old.

According to Office for National Statistics (ONS) 2006 population estimates:

• fifty six per cent of the population in Tower Hamlets belonged to an ethnic group other than white British
• thirty per cent are Bangladeshi
• eight per cent are from other white backgrounds

The 2001 National Census recorded 153,893 people of Bangladeshi origin living in London and just over two fifths as living in Tower Hamlets. Bangladeshi’s were also more likely to have large families. For London as a whole the percentage of Bangladeshi households with two or more dependent children was 57 per cent, more than three times the London average of 17 per cent.

Only eight per cent of Bangladeshi households were single person households as compared to 35 per cent for London.

These factors still echo in the population today. Just over 170,000 people of Bangladeshi origin are estimated to live in London and just under two fifths live in Tower Hamlets. Children make up a much larger proportion of the Bangladeshi population than they do the white British population. Whereas under 14 per cent of the borough’s white British residents fall in the 0-15 age group, 35 per cent of Bangladeshi residents fall in this age group (ONS 2006 population estimates).

View graphs of the percentage of ethnic groups in Tower Hamlets and London, and of the Bangladeshi and white British population falling into given age groups (PDF, 19k).

Another view of the same data reveals that the 0 – 15 age group in the borough comprises 50 per cent children of Bangladeshi origin as compared to 30 per cent children of white British origin.

In contrast, people of white British origin comprise nearly 50 per cent of the 16 plus population whereas 25 per cent are Bangladeshi in origin. Most Bangladeshi children in London were born in the UK, while most adults were born in Bangladesh.