On Sunday the 21st March this year every household in England and Wales will be expected to complete their census questionnaire. Just because you live on a boat and are possibly continuously cruising without a fixed location, you should still be counted.
Since current Covid-19 regulations restrict overnight stays away from home on this date it will mainly be those who are primarily resident on their boats who will be recording themselves as boat dwellers.
Once every ten years a Census helps build the most complete picture of England and Wales. The whole population has the chance to provide the information that ensures all communities are represented in decisions on funding and services. This could mean things like doctors’ surgeries, housing or new bus routes.
Most householders should now have had a letter through the post explaining how to get involved.
If you live on your boat you should also have had a letter, either delivered by hand by a census officer or in the post, with details of how to take part.
If you are registered with Royal Mail you should receive a letter containing a unique access code to allow you to complete your online census form. If you are not on the Royal Mail mailing list but are moored in a marina (or similar) an attempt will be made by a census officer to deliver a letter or questionnaire by hand before 20 March.
If you live on a permanent or visitor mooring a form should be hand delivered to you by census officers tasked with getting forms to any unlisted households they can find. The census will also use GP registers, so any boater who is registered with a GP should be contacted.
This could obviously create problems for continuous cruisers who are not registered with a GP and not on a visitor mooring when the census officer calls, although given the Covid restrictions on cruising most boaters should not be moving much. If you have not received a letter or questionnaire with an access code by 23 March, then you are asked to visit the census website census.gov.uk or call the Public Contact Centre on 0800 141 2021 for England, 0800 169 2021 for Wales, where you can request to receive a text to a UK mobile phone, which contains an access code to complete the census online.
If you don’t have a computer or don’t feel confident to fill in forms online there will be Census Support Centres set up locally to help. Ring the above number to find your nearest centre.
Thanks to IWA, CRT and The Office for National Statistics official Census 21 website for this information.
