Lincolnshire is the 4th most sparsely and largest populated county in England covering an area of 5,921 sq. km. It is predominately rural, with no motorways, little dual carriageway and 80km of North Sea coastline, which provides fundamental difficulties in the provision of services. It has a population of 751,171 residents (according to mid-year population estimates 2017), or 783,080 GP- registered patients, dispersed across Lincolnshire.
In relation to age the statistics show that, out of the total population of 751,171, the age range 0-15 makes up 17.1% of the population, whilst the other sections of the population aged 16-24, 25-64, 65 -84 and 85 years and over make up 10.1%, 49.6% 20.3%, and 2.9% respectively.
Lincolnshires population is on average older than the population of England and the East Midlands. It also has a higher proportion of adults over the age of 75 and the number in this age range is estimated to double over the next 20 years. Year-to-year increases in the size of this ageing population are one of the key planning assumptions for Lincolnshires health and care system.
The 2011 Census shows that 27.1% of households in Lincolnshire have one person or more with a long-term disability. 16.7% of households which contain someone with a long-term health problem or disability also have dependent children.
Within Lincolnshire only 9.43% were limited a lot in their daily activities, 10.94% were limited a little, while the clear majority (79.62%) were not limited at all in their daily activities due to their long term or permanent illness or disability.
Statistics also show that in Lincolnshire 15,886 adults, (2.1% of the total population) currently have a moderate or severe visual impairment, this is projected to rise to 20,281 (2.7% of the total population) by 2030. In April 2018, 4,544 people in Lincolnshire were recorded on the Visual Impairment Register and were supported by the Lincolnshire Sensory Services.
With regard to learning disabilities, statistics show that over 15,000 people have learning disability in Lincolnshire. 2016-17 data suggests that in Lincolnshire the proportion of adults with a learning disability and in paid employment is 4.4%, which is lower than the national average of 5.7%.
Furthermore, 2016/17 Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) dataset for adults mental health for Lincolnshire show that 105,838 adults aged 16 and over suffer from a common mental disorder; this equates to 17% of the total adult population. In 2016/17 in Lincolnshire, there were 1,505 inpatient admissions due to mental ill health, representing 200.1 in every 100,000 residents. Admission rates in 2016/17 were higher for men (216.5 per 100,000 population) than for women (173.6 per 100,000 population).
Hospital admissions due to mental ill health are 2.3 times higher for those living in the 20% most deprived areas of Lincolnshire (rate = 337 per 100,000 population) compared to those living in the 20% least deprived areas (rate = 146 per 100,000 population). This highlights a clear social inequality regarding linking mental ill health and deprivation. As for mental ill-health related deaths, there were 827 registered deaths in 2017 as a result of mental health related causes. This is equivalent to 97.6 in 100,000 Lincolnshire residents. This is higher than the national equivalent mortality rate of 91.2 per 100,000 population.
The diversity of the population has increased in recent years as a result of new and emerging communities. As of the 2011 Census, around 93% of residents identify themselves as White British with a significant 4% identifying as White Other. This 4% is primarily made of Eastern European communities, which represents much in the agricultural, hospitality and tourist industries.
Recent issues relating to Brexit have influenced the migration of EU foreign nationals back to their countries of birth. This in the future will no doubt have impact on the statistics of the white European population and detrimental impact on the Lincolnshires agricultural industries.
The non-white population makes up 2.4% of the total population in 2011 compared to 1.4% in 2001 and although slight increases are becoming apparent since 2011, the proportions are still very small in comparison to the national non-white population of 14%.