Study title

Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.

The Great Britain Historical Database has been assembled as part of the ongoing Great Britain Historical GIS Project. The project aims to trace the emergence of the north-south divide in Britain and to provide a synoptic view of the human geography of Britain at sub-county scales. Further information about the project is available on A Vision of Britain webpages, where users can browse the database's documentation system online.

These data were originally collected by the Censuses of Population for England and Wales, and for Scotland. They were computerised by the Great Britain Historical GIS Project and its collaborators. 

In 1961, the Census of Population gathered data on housing tenure as well as density and amenities. The data in this study summarise the resulting tabulations, providing counts of numbers of households in each tenure type for all districts in Great Britain; the original tabulations also give counts by numbers of persons, and for some districts include cross-tabulations against numbers of rooms.

Whether households owned their own home or, if owned by someone else, whether that was their employer, the local council (or New Town corporation), or a private rentier. If a private rental, whether the property was furnished or unfurnished.