Canley place based profile

Canley is a neighbourhood in the west of Coventry, Charter Avenue runs through the area east to west. Canley is bounded to the north with the railway line and the neighbourhood of Tile Hill South, and to the south with the Westwood Heath area. The University of Warwick is nearby. Torrington Avenue is a mainly industrial, and residential road, to the north of the area. The map below illustrates the Canley neighbourhood, the area bounded by the red line is the area used for most of the statistics described in this profile.

Population

It is important to understand how Coventry’s population and demographics is changing so that local communities and organisations can ensure that the city has the right services to meet the needs of its people.

What is the local picture? How does it compare?

Canley experienced one of the fastest rates of population growth of all Coventry neighbourhoods over the 10 years between 2011 and 2021. An estimated 5,600 people live in Canley, a growth of 1,500 additional residents since 2011. This means that the population has grown by 37.3%, a much faster growth rate than the Coventry average (8.9%) and the national average (6.6%), and amongst the fastest growth rates of all neighbourhoods in Coventry. This will be partly related to housing developments in the area.

The population of Canley is relatively young, home to relatively high numbers of children, and young adults aged 18-24, amongst these are many full-time students. The most populous age group in Canley is people aged 20-24, an estimated 1,200 people in this age group make up 21.0% of the total population of Canley compared to 9.1% for Coventry overall. There are a few areas of the city where students concentrate that have higher percentages of young adults, but Canley is amongst the areas with the highest proportion. This is due to the University of Warwick being located here.

20.4% of the Canley population are aged 0-15 compared to 19.8% in Coventry overall. If there wasn’t as many full-time students living Canley the proportion of children would be even higher, children are a more prominent part of the population in this neighbourhood than is average for Coventry. In the last 10 years the population of children has increased, it is just that the student population has grown by more. It is particularly children aged 5-15 that are more common in Canley, in 2021 the population of infants and young children aged 0-4 was not particularly high, reflecting a reducing number of births to mothers living in Canley.

People of all ages live in Canley, but the make-up of the population by percentage is different from that of Coventry overall; there are relatively few people in older groups aged 65 and over. The population pyramid diagram below illustrates how the age profile of the Canley population differs from Coventry overall. Even after removing the effect on the age profile of having particularly high numbers of student aged people, Canley is home to relatively low numbers of older people aged 65+ compared to other neighbourhoods in the city, as well as a higher-than-average number of children. From the Census 2021, 9.6% of Canley’s population, an estimated 533 people, were aged 65 years and older, compared to 14.6% across Coventry overall.

The population of Canley has been growing significantly, the number of people from most age groups have increased, but the growth has been fastest amongst young adults, accounting for nearly two-thirds of the total growth. The estimated number of Canley residents aged 16-24 increased from 750 in 2011 to 1,700 in 2021, the growth of 950 makes up nearly two-thirds (63%) of the total increase of 1,500 people. While there has been growth in this age group across Coventry overall, this age group has grown more in Canley than any other part of the city. Growth has also been faster than the Coventry average amongst other age groups. The number of children aged 5-15 living in Canley increased by 33% compared to an increase of 19% across Coventry overall (the number of 0-4s has stayed the same). The number of residents aged 25-44 increased by 29% compared to an increase of 9% across Coventry overall. The number of Canley residents aged 65 and over, stayed about the same between 2011 and 2021, at an estimated 550.

Like Coventry overall, the total number of births to mothers living in Canley has been on a falling trend. In 2021 there were 50 births, down from 66 in 2014. The general fertility rate, the number of births per 1,000 females aged 15-44 living in Canley, gives an indication as to how the number of births compare to other parts of Coventry. At 33.8 per 1,000 in 2021 compared to the rate across Coventry overall at 52.0, this indicates there are less births here than average. However, the high number of full-time students living in Canley, who are less likely to have children compared to non-students in the same age group, means that the difference between these rates likely exaggerates the picture; if there were fewer students living in Canley the fertility rate would likely be nearer average.

Student households and lone parent households are notably more common in Canley than they are across Coventry overall. Together these types make up 3 in every 10 Canley households. Households classified in the Census 2021 data as ‘Other household types, including all full-time students’ (which will be mainly all student households) make up 15.6% of Canley households compared to the Coventry average of 5.8% and lone parent households make up 14.7% of all households compared to the Coventry average of 8.3%. making up a larger proportion of Canley households than they do in most other Coventry neighbourhoods. The most common type of household is single person households, as is the case across Coventry overall and in most areas; households of one person aged 66 and over make up 12.2% of all Canley households (Coventry 11.6%) and households of one person aged 16-65 make up 19.7% of all Canley households (Coventry 18.8%).

Overall, the average household size is bigger than the Coventry average in Canley. The Census 2021 counted 5,400 people living in 2,000 households. This amounts to an average of 2.64 people per household, higher than the Coventry average of 2.48. Not every Canley resident lives in a ‘household’, about 200 live in university ‘communal establishments’ (halls of residence).

We can understand more about our communities by using Geodemographic segmentation. The Acorn geodemographic profiler data model from CACI ltd categorises all UK households into 6 main categories ranked from most to least wealthy. Canley has a higher proportion of households in the three categories with the lowest wealth levels (92%, compared to 80% for Coventry). Looking at the household types in more detail, four specific types make up more than two-thirds (69%) of all Canley households and are significantly more common here than across Coventry overall: 

• ‘Stretched Society: Socially renting households in terraces’. People living in this type of household make up 18% of the residents in Canley compared to 5% of the whole of Coventry. 
• ‘Stretched Society: Sharers and students in private rentals’. 18% of the residents in Canley compared to 6% of the whole of Coventry. 
• ‘Stretched Society: Routine occupations, social renting families in semis’. 17% of the residents in Canley compared to 3% of the whole of Coventry. 
• ‘Low income living: Young families in socially rented semis’. 16% of the residents in Canley compared to 1% of the whole of Coventry. 

Acorn Wellbeing assigns households to different health categories. In Canley a higher proportion of the population live in households assigned to the groups that have greater health challenges. The main four groups that Acorn Wellbeing uses to classify residents are: 

1. Health Challenges (highest levels of illness, often areas with higher elderly population).  People living in this type of household make up 17% of the residents in Canley compared to 12% of the whole of Coventry. 
2. At Risk - 65% of the residents in Canley compared to 39% of the whole of Coventry. 
3. Caution - 17% of the residents in Canley compared to 33% of the whole of Coventry. 
4. Healthy (more affluent neighbourhoods with low levels of illness given their age). 1% of the residents in Canley compared to 15% of the whole of Coventry. 

Diversity  

Why is this important?

It is important to understand how Coventry’s population and demographics is changing so that local communities and organisations can ensure that the city has the right services to meet the needs of its people.

What is the local picture? How does it compare?

Coventry as a city is becoming increasingly diverse, Canley is no exception. 4 in every 10 Canley residents are from an ethnic minority group (39.4%), a slightly lower percentage than the Coventry average (44.7%). We use ‘ethnic minorities’ to refer to all ethnic groups except the White British group. Ethnic minorities include white minorities, such as Gypsy, Roma, and Irish Traveller groups, as well as ‘White: Other’ which typically covers people from other European countries.  

Aside from White British (60.6%), the largest populations are from the ‘White: Other’ group making up 8.5% of the total population (8.2% for Coventry overall), ‘Black: African’, making up 8.2% of the total population (7.0% for Coventry overall) and Chinese, making up 4.3% of the total population (1.3% for Coventry overall). There are also communities of a number of other ethnic groups.

The size of the growth of the ethnic minority community as a whole was larger than the growth in White British people, as such Canley’s population has become notably more diverse. In 2011 the Canley population was predominantly White British, 79.4% (with several other communities, although relatively small in size), more than so than many other neighbourhoods of Coventry. By 2021 this was 60.6%, closer to the Coventry average.

The ethnic groups that have grown by the most in Canley are, ‘Black African’, from 3.6% of the total population of the area in 2011 to 8.2% in 2021; ‘White Other, from 4.2% to 8.5% and Chinese, from 1.6% to 4.3%.

The population of school children living in Canley, as measured by the 2021 annual school census, is slightly more diverse than the population of people of all ages, this could be a factor that will make the total population of the area even more diverse in the future. 41.7% of school children living in Canley are from an ethnic minority group (compared to 39.4% of the total population), the largest group are Black African children, making up 14.8% of all Canley school children.

Canley residents are overall more likely to follow no religion than the Coventry average. Nearly half (45.5%) of those who answered the question in the Census 2021 said they had no religion, notably more than the average of 31.6% for all Coventry residents. Christianity is the most common single religion, with 42.8% of the residents following it, slightly lower than the average of 46.8% for Coventry overall. Other religions followed by many Canley residents, but less commonly than across the city overall are Islam, 7.2% of residents follow (11.0% for Coventry overall) and 2.4% of residents follow Hinduism (Coventry 4.2%). 

Most Canley residents speak English as their main language. In the Census 2021, 86.1% of Canley residents indicated that English is their main language, compared to 82.5% of people across the city as a whole. In 8.9% of all Canley households there is no one whose main language is English, compared to 10.7% across Coventry. However, not speaking English as a main language does not mean that people cannot speak English: a relatively low proportion in Canley may have language barriers, only 2.3% cannot speak English well or at all, lower than the city average, 3.5%.  

While a range of languages are spoken in Canley, other than English there are three main groups of languages spoken as a main language; 'Other European' (likely mostly Romanian) (3.0% of all Canley residents aged 3+); ‘Chinese languages' (2.8%) and Polish (1.8%).

Newly arrived communities are a significant and growing part of Canley, although most residents were born in the UK. Data from the Census 2021 shows that three-quarters (74.5%) of Canley residents were born in the UK, a slightly higher proportion than Coventry overall (72.1%).  Amongst the 25.5% of the local population born outside the UK, the most common areas of origin are 'Middle East and Asia, 9.2% (Coventry overall 10.5%), EU counties, 8.3% (Coventry 10.1%) and Africa, 5.5% (Coventry 5.5%).

The census data also give a richer picture of recent migration: 15.6% of all Canley residents were born outside the UK and arrived in the UK in the previous 10 years, higher than the average for Coventry overall of 14.2%.  This underlines the change in the local population in recent years, a scale of change not seen in previous decades. Over the 10 years between the 2011 and 2021 censuses, there was growth in the UK born and non-UK born populations, as Canley’s total population expanded; but the % of the total population that were born overseas has increased, as the number of people migrating to the UK and settling in Canley increased faster; most notably amongst people born in Asian countries, EU countries and African countries (in order starting from the largest increase).

Newly arrived communities to Coventry are from diverse sources, and include people migrating for economic reasons, international students and asylum seekers and refugees, amongst other reasons. We know that there are few asylum seekers living in Canley, however, international students do form a large part of the local population.  A quarter (25.3%) of the total population were identified in the census as schoolchildren or full-time students aged 18+ (not just international students), much higher than the Coventry average of 9.8%. The ‘NINo’ data below gives some indication about other migration, like those migrating for work.

While there is uncertainty in measuring annual international migration due to challenges collecting accurate data, the number of foreign nationals living in Coventry and newly registering for a National Insurance Number (NINo) gives an indication of this and how the trends in movement have changed over recent years, particularly for people moving to the UK for work.

The data indicates that the total number of people living in Canley newly registering for a NINo has increased significantly in recent years following a dip due to pandemic restrictions, to a level in 2022 far exceeding levels in any year in the previous 10 years. The annual data showing the trends for Canley & Westwood Health (data is only available for bigger geographies, MSOAs) are illustrated in the chart below. This gives a good indication of the trends for Canley alone, although the totals will not be quite as high for just Canley.

Table: Number of NINo registrations by foreign nationals in Canley and Westwood Heath

Source: Department for Work and Pensions, https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/

The recent increase was in line with the national trend of a big increase in 2022 and the trends broadly mirror those for Coventry overall; although the recent increase in Canley & Westwood Heath was actually a little sharper, and annually between 2011 and 2022 the numbers have increased relatively more than the average for other parts of the city. The significant increase to 2022 levels comes from increases amongst the number of people from South Asia, East Asia and African, whereas the number of people from EU countries is not significantly different from previous years.

Coventry Household Survey data indicates that overall feelings of belonging and cohesion amongst Canley residents are less than average and have reduced in recent years. A sample of all residents responded to a large questionnaire in 2022, and data can be compared by area of residence; this is available by Coventry MSOA so for a local picture we are limited to examining responses from people from a wider area, Canley & Westwood Heath. The summary of the data below is included with this caveat, the data gives an indication about Canley.

Only 46% of respondents from Canley & Westwood Heath agreed that their neighbourhood is a place where people from different backgrounds got on well together, lower than the proportion for all Coventry (63%) and a significant reduction since the survey conducted in 2018 (92%). 38% of respondents said they felt a sense of belonging to their neighbourhood, lower than the average for Coventry overall (54%) and down from 94% in 2018.

Responses to the Coventry Household Survey data indicate that levels of 'cultural participation' may be lower than average amongst Canley residents but improved in 2022.  The answers, to a series of question about culture, of 46% of Canley & Westwood Heath residents indicated that they had low levels of cultural participation, compared to 34% across Coventry. ‘Low’ participation is defined as respondents who had not engaged in any of a list of cultural activities at least three times in the previous 12 months. As it had across Coventry overall, indications are that levels of participation increased in this area between 2018 and 2022, likely influenced by the Coventry City of Culture 2021/22. 42% of local respondents said that had attended a City of Culture event in the city centre, similar to the city average of 45%. Only 10% said they attended an event based in their area, compared to 27% of all respondents across Coventry.