Age Structure
Last updated: April 2018
In mid-2017, 17% of the population were aged under 16, 64% were aged 16 to 64 and the remaining 19% were aged 65 and over.The increase in the population of olderage groups has been much higher than younger age groups over the last decade.
Estimated population by age and sex, mid-2007 and mid-2017
Sources: Community Health Index (CHI) patient movements, National Health Service Central Register (NHSCR) patient movements, Personal Demographic Service (PDS) patient movements, Long-Term International Migration estimates from the Office for National Statistics, Armed Forces data from the Ministry of Defense (MoD), Prisons data from Scottish Government Prision Statistics, Asylum Seeker and Refugee data from the Home Office, Scotland’s Census 2011.
Between mid-2007 and mid-2017 the age structure of the population has changed The most significant change was in the 65-74 year old age group which increased by 23% over the past decade. There were also large increases in the 75+ and 45-64 age groups (up 16% and 10% respectively). In contrast, there were small decreases in all of the younger age groups. This reflects the ageing population and falling birth rate of the last ten years.
The changing age structure of Scotland's population, mid-2007 to mid-2017
Sources: Community Health Index (CHI) patient movements, National Health Service Central Register (NHSCR) patient movements, Personal Demographic Service (PDS) patient movements, Long-Term International Migration estimates from the Office for National Statistics, Armed Forces data from the Ministry of Defense (MoD), Prisons data from Scottish Government Prision Statistics, Asylum Seeker and Refugee data from the Home Office, Scotland’s Census 2011.
Link
Mid-2017 Population Estimates Scotland (National Records of Scotland website)