Haringey Council issues Census rallying cry

Haringey Council has marked the launch of the nationwide Census campaign with a call to everyone in the borough to stand up and be counted. 

Millions of Census questionnaires will be arriving in homes across England and Wales on March 27. 

The once-a-decade survey measures national population, giving information on the age, ethnicity, faith, work and life patterns of millions of us. 

That information will help the government to decide how to target resources over a 10-year period, and each person listed on the Census will be worth an estimated £650 in government grants for key services in their area. 

Council Leader Claire Kober said: “The Census is hugely important to Haringey, having a direct impact on funding for services including education, housing, health and transport. 

"We want to make sure everyone is counted so that we can be confident that we are getting the right level of funding to help us deliver the services local people rely on.

"This is an opportunity for every man, woman and child in Haringey to do their bit to secure a fair future for the borough."

Suspicion about how Census information is used can deter some people from taking part, but there is nothing to be afraid of – in fact, it is a criminal offence to pass Census information to any other organisation. 

Cllr Kober added: "The Census serves purely and simply to paint an accurate picture of the local and national population and establish where resources are most needed. 

"Information is never – under any circumstances – passed on to the police, immigration, courts, the council or any other organisations.

"You can be sure that the information you provide will only ever be used to measure population and will pave the way for funding a huge range of important local services."