Statistics about young adults

There are 7,159,694 young people aged between 16 and 25 years-olds in the UK, according to the last Census which was in 2001. The next Census is next year, 2011. This amounts to 12% of the UK’s population.¹²³  

Of that total, 2,909,760 are aged between 16 and 19-years-old and 4,249,934 or about 7% of the total UK population are aged between 20 and 25-years-old.^{1 2 3}

Mental health problems

• 1.7% of 16-19 year-olds, and 2.2% of 20-24 year-olds have suffered from a depressive episode.⁴

• 13.3% of 16-19 year olds, and 15.8% 20-24 year olds in Great Britain are reported to suffer from a neurotic disorder.⁴

• About 0.2% of 16-24 year olds have a probable psychotic disorder. ⁴

• 0.9% of 16-19 year-olds and 1.9% of 20-24 year-olds suffer from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.⁴

• 3.4% of 16-34 year-olds have been diagnosed with a personality disorder. ⁴

• The suicide rate in the UK among 15 to 24 year-olds in 2004 was 11.9 per 100,000 in young men and 3.6 per 100,000 in young women.

• Overall the suicide rate has fallen from the peak in 1998 of 18.1 per 100,000 in young men and 4.5 per 100,000 in young women.⁵

• In England and Wales during 2003, accidents of any kind were the main cause of death in young men aged between 15-34, and suicide and injury/poisoning of undetermined intent was the second.

• In 2003, 1,075 young men aged between 15 and 34 and 273 young women of the same age range died as a result of committing suicide/poisoning of undetermined intent.⁶

• Suicide and injury/poisoning of undetermined intent was the third highest cause of death in young women aged 15-34 years.⁶

• In 1998-2004 the suicide rate for young men aged between 15 and 44 in England was 19.1 per 100,000 of the population. The suicide rate of young men of the same age group in Scotland was 36.9 which is almost double that of England.⁷

Sources

1 Office for National Statistics (2004). Census 2001: national report for England and Wales. London: Office for National Statistics.

2 Registrar General for Scotland (2002). Scotland's Census 2001: population report. Edinburgh: General Register Office for Scotland.

3 Northern Ireland Census Access (2001). Census 2001.

4 Singleton, N., Bumpstead, R., O'Brien, M., et al. (2001). Psychiatric morbidity among adults living in private households, 2000. London: The Stationery Office.

5 Babb, P., Butcher, H., Church, J., et al. (2006). Social Trends, No. 36. London: Palgrave.

6 Office for National Statistics (2005). Health Statistics Quarterly, No. 28. London: Office for National Statistics.

7 Brock, A., Baker, A., Griffiths, C., et al. (2006). Suicide trends and geographical variations in the United Kingdom 1991-2004. Health Statistics Quarterly, Autumn 2006 (31), pp.