JSNA – People – Children and Young People

Last Updated: May 2024

Children and Young People

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According to the 2021 Census, people aged 24 or under represent just over 30% of the total population living in Barnet. The Children and Young People Profile provides a demographic summary about the population of children and young people in Barnet. It also brings together information on topics such as Crime, Education and Health and how these topics impact on children and young people. The Family Friendly Index is also presented on this profile to allow comparison to other measures. 

Headline Figures

  • There are 119,027 people aged 0-24 years in Barnet according to the 2021 Census; this is an increase of 4.1% compared to the 2011 Census.
  • 70.4% of children in Barnet are achieving a good level of development at the end of Reception as of 2022/23. This is a 5.5% increase compared to 2021/22 but still below pre-pandemic levels.
  • Coverage of MenACWY vaccine coverage at 14-15 years has increased by 5.5% since 2021/21 and is currently at 76.5% coverage. However, coverage of other vaccines have decreased including two doses of MMR (4.6% decrease since 2020/21) and flu vaccine at 2-3 years (9.3% decrease since 2020/21).
  • The rate of children in need in Barnet is 194.5 per 100,000 – this is lower than the London and England averages. 64% of care leavers are in education, employment, or training; this is a 12.5% increase compared to 2018.
  • In 2022 in Barnet, the chlamydia detection rate was 1,078 per 100,000 in those aged 15-24 years old – this is below the London and England averages.

Narrative

Population: There are 58,415 females and 60,612 males aged 0-24 in Barnet. The highest numbers of children and young people are seen in Hendon, followed by Burnt Oak. Of Barnet’s population aged 0-24, 52% are White, 17% are Asian, 11% are of Other ethnicity, 10% are of Mixed ethnicity, and a further 10% are Black. 13% of those aged 0-24 in Barnet have English as their second language.

Deprivation and Disparity: The Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index for Barnet in 2019 was 12.2, below the England average of 20. At the ward-level, only two were above the England average – Colindale (a score of 23) and Burnt Oak (a score of 21). The percentage of children in absolute and relative low-income families in Barnet (10.3% and 12.6% respectively) was significantly below both the London and England average. 18.8% of pupils in Barnet are known to be eligible for free school meals which is again below both the London and England average.

Education: In 2021/22 only 1.5% of 16-17 year olds in Barnet were not in education, employment or training – this is significantly below the average for London (3.5%) and England (4.7%) and this percentage has been decreasing in Barnet since 2016. 64.9% of children in Barnet are achieving a good level of development at the end of Reception, though there was an approximate 10% decrease seen between 2018/19 to 2021/22 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In terms of older children, 66.8% are achieving a grade 5 or above in English and Maths GCSE in Barnet, higher than both the London (57.5%) and England average (50%).

Vaccines: For the majority of childhood vaccines, Barnet has a coverage rate similar to London but below the England average. There has been some decline in coverage in Barnet over time. The current coverage for MMR dose one in 2-3 year-olds is 80.2% – this is down 12% compared to the peak of coverage in 2011/12. For MMR dose two, the current coverage in those aged 5 years is 71.4% – this is significantly below the coverage of 75% in 2020/21. Similarly, coverage of the flu vaccine in those aged 2-3 years old in 2021/22 decreased by approximately 10% compared to 2020/21. One vaccine that has seen an increase in coverage is MenACWY, which in 2021/22 had a coverage of 76.5% in those aged 14-15 years. The current coverage for the polio catch-up vaccine is 30% in those aged 10 and under in Barnet – coverage is highest in PCN 6 (40%) and lowest in PCN 1D (18%).

Social care: In Barnet, the rate of children in need is 195 per 100,000 – this is below both the London (347 per 100,000) and England average (334 per 100,000). There was a 46% increase in the rate of children protection plans per 10,000 in Barnet between 2021 and 2022, though the rate is still below the peak seen in 2016. Across Barnet, 90.5% of care leavers are in suitable accommodation and 64% are in education, employment, or training.

Healthy Weight: In Barnet in 2021/22, 1.7% Reception children and 2.1% Year 6 children were underweight, which is higher than the England average but similar to London. In the same year, 19.5% of Reception children and 34.9% of Year 6 children were overweight or obese, which is significantly below both the London and England average. At the ward-level for both Reception and Year 6, Burnt Oak and Colindale were the only wards significantly above the Barnet average; West Hendon was also above average for Year 6 children.

Oral Health: 30.2% of 5-year olds have experience of visually obvious dental decay. Furthermore, the rate of hospital admissions for dental caries in those aged 0-5 years is 253 per 100,000, with 57% of patients admitted being male. Both of these indicators of oral health are similar to the London and England average

Sexual Health: The coverage of HPV dose one in those aged 12-13 years old was 46.2% in 2021/22 – this is significantly below both the London and England average. Coverage of this vaccine hasn’t recovered to pre-pandemic levels and declined by approximately 17% between 2020/21 and 2021/22. Conceptions in women under 16 has been consistently declining in Barnet since 2009 and in 2020 was at 0.5 per 1,000 which is similar to London and below England. In 2022 in Barnet, the chlamydia detection rate was 1,078 per 100,000 in those aged 15-24 years old – this is significantly below both the London (1,584 per 100,000) and England average (1,302 per 100,000)

Further information

  • Barnet Children and Young People Plan: this plan captures the priorities, needs and aspirations of the local population and sets out how, together, we can make Barnet an enjoyable place for children and families to live. 
  • OHID Child and Maternal Health Profile: this offers a range of publicly available data on child and maternal health, with indicators split by life-course stage (pregnancy and birth, early years, school-age, young people) and by theme (breastfeeding, healthcare use, long-term conditions, mortality, oral health, unintentional injuries, vaccinations, vulnerable children and young people).

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