E63011389 /South West evidence profile
South West evidence profile
Gloucester digital planning profile
Gloucester is a large, non-coastal built-up area in South West. ONS records show a 2021 population of 118,562; the population expanded quickly between 2001 and 2021, while the 2015 to 2024 employment series shows modest employment growth. This profile turns those public observations into a reviewable website-planning brief without claiming that the figures measure searches, leads or Mosalio's physical presence.
01 / Data snapshot
What the reviewed source records
- BUA24 code
- E63011389
- ITL1 region
- South West
- Coastal
- Non-coastal
- Income-deprivation flag
- Higher deprivation
02 / Context
Three comparisons, with the benchmark stated
8.4% above the 11.2% median across complete England records in this ONS file.
8.2% above the 0% dataset median.
3.8% below the 224.1% dataset median.
These medians use every complete England record accepted from the same ONS file. They are descriptive context, not targets, forecasts or a national demand model.
03 / Distinctive pattern
Where this record sits within 936 complete England profiles
Highest decile · percentile position 94.9 of 100.
Upper quartile · percentile position 80.8 of 100.
Lower quartile · percentile position 23.5 of 100.
These are the three values furthest from the middle percentile position for this record. A higher position means a higher published value, not a better outcome or evidence of search demand.
Evidence fingerprint: sha256:54087d07bdc…21e5c4c4c184
04 / Constrained peers
Three named comparisons from the same reviewed source
Each peer is selected from all 936complete England records using the documented eight-metric distance. Deltas are Gloucester minus the named peer; a plus sign means the value recorded for Gloucester is higher.
Regional peer
Bournemouth · E63013847
South West. Nearest complete record in South West. ONS classification: Nearer - Higher deprivation - Working.
- 2021 population
- -77,570 people
- Population change, 2001 to 2021
- -1 pp
- Economic inactivity
- -3.3 pp
- Employment change, 2015 to 2024
- +5.8 pp
- 2023 median house price
- -£56,000
- House-price growth, 2001 to 2023
- +33.6 pp
- Population aged under 25
- 0 pp
- Population aged 65 or over
- -0.7 pp
Classification peer
Ipswich · E63010852
East of England. Nearest complete record outside South West with the same ONS combined classification. ONS classification: Nearer - Higher deprivation - Working.
- 2021 population
- -33,004 people
- Population change, 2001 to 2021
- +1.2 pp
- Economic inactivity
- +0.2 pp
- Employment change, 2015 to 2024
- +4.1 pp
- 2023 median house price
- -£5,000
- House-price growth, 2001 to 2023
- -8.6 pp
- Population aged under 25
- +0.3 pp
- Population aged 65 or over
- +0.4 pp
National peer
Bedford · E63010690
East of England. Nearest remaining complete England record. ONS classification: Nearer - Higher deprivation - Working.
- 2021 population
- +21,336 people
- Population change, 2001 to 2021
- +2.1 pp
- Economic inactivity
- +0.4 pp
- Employment change, 2015 to 2024
- -0.3 pp
- 2023 median house price
- -£45,500
- House-price growth, 2001 to 2023
- -15.5 pp
- Population aged under 25
- -0.2 pp
- Population aged 65 or over
- +1.8 pp
05 / Evidence synthesis
Gloucester evidence synthesis: 2021 population, Population aged under 25, Population aged 65 or over
Gloucester is recorded as a large, non-coastal, working built-up area, nearer to a major town or city. This classification sets a transparent frame for the three observations below; it is not a persona, a service-area promise or proof of local search demand. Each finding pairs one distinctive percentile measure with one independently selected peer and one explicit validation route.
Eight-metric evidence matrix
The matrix shows every measure used by the peer-distance method, not only the three most distinctive values. Direction describes the published value relative to the middle percentile position; it is not a positive or negative judgement.
Highest-to-lowest percentile order: 2021 population → Population aged under 25 → Population change, 2001 to 2021 → Employment change, 2015 to 2024 → House-price growth, 2001 to 2023 → 2023 median house price → Economic inactivity → Population aged 65 or over.
Furthest-to-nearest distance from the middle percentile: 2021 population → Population aged under 25 → Population aged 65 or over → Population change, 2001 to 2021 → Economic inactivity → Employment change, 2015 to 2024 → 2023 median house price → House-price growth, 2001 to 2023.
Regional peer
2021 population: 118,562 · Bournemouth delta -77,570 people
The reviewed record positions Gloucester at percentile 94.9 for 2021 population; its published value is 118,562 and its band is highest decile. For a bounded comparison rather than a national average, Bournemouth supplies the regional reference; Gloucester is -77,570 people from it on the displayed scale. A defensible brief can turn the pair into a verification task for content hierarchy and service-capacity assumptions, using task-frequency interviews and observed completion data before changing the information architecture. Keep the inference narrow: population size does not establish addressable demand.
Classification peer
Population aged under 25: 30.1% · Ipswich delta +0.3 pp
Among the eight reviewed measures, population aged under 25 stands out for Gloucester at 30.1%; its percentile position is 80.8 and its band is upper quartile. The constrained classification comparison is Ipswich (E63010852). On this measure, Gloucester minus that record is +0.3 pp; the selection basis is nearest complete record outside south west with the same ons combined classification. Its practical use is to frame—not answer—a question about mobile task speed, privacy explanation and channel continuity; the next evidence should come from cross-device usability sessions without age-based assumptions. The responsible interpretation stops short of intent: an age-group share does not determine channel preference.
National peer
Population aged 65 or over: 17.3% · Bedford delta +1.8 pp
At 17.3%, population aged 65 or over places Gloucester in the lower quartile and at percentile 23.5 of the reviewed distribution. Using Bedford as the national peer, the profile-minus-peer delta is +1.8 pp; the peer was selected because nearest remaining complete england record. This evidence can narrow a discovery question around readability, keyboard access and assisted alternatives, while inclusive usability sessions and accessibility conformance checks supplies the user-level check the aggregate data cannot provide. It must not be over-read, because an age-group share does not determine digital ability.
Together, 2021 population, population aged under 25, population aged 65 or over and the constrained comparisons with Bournemouth, Ipswich, Bedford create three separate research tracks for Gloucester. They do not form a demand score. Keep each hypothesis independently testable, record contradictory findings and remove a planning assumption when user evidence does not support it.
06 / Evidence interpretation
Planning signals before design decisions
Population context: 118,562 people in 2021
Gloucester's recorded population changed from 99,095 in 2001 to 118,562 in 2021 (+19.6%). This historical direction can inform content governance and capacity planning, but it is not a forecast and does not establish demand for a particular service.
Audience context: 17.3% aged 65 or over
The 2021 age-group series records 22,445 people aged 0 to 15, 13,296 aged 16 to 24, 62,385 aged 25 to 64 and 20,470 aged 65 or over. Small differences from the headline population reflect the published source series; percentages here use the age-group total and should guide testing questions, not stereotypes.
Activity context: 36.6% economically inactive
ONS records economic inactivity at 36.6%. The published composition includes 20.3% retired, 4.4% long-term sick or disabled, 4.6% students and 4.2% looking after home or family. These categories support inclusive task design; they do not identify individual users or purchasing intent.
Economic context: £245,000 median house price in 2023
The median house-price series moved from £76,500 in 2001 to £225,000 in 2021 and £245,000 in 2023, a published change of +220.3%. It is contextual evidence only—not a current affordability, revenue or customer-value estimate.
07 / Independent question set
Questions this evidence cannot answer on its own
These questions convert the profile-specific observations into falsifiable discovery work. They are not recommendations to create a service, location or page, and each needs direct user or behavioural evidence before it changes a website brief.
- 01
Which real user task would justify changing content hierarchy and service-capacity assumptions after seeing Gloucester's 2021 population position and its -77,570 people difference from Bournemouth?
The prompt combines one distinctive metric with the named regional comparator selected by the eight-metric method. It does not treat either record as search, lead or customer evidence.
- 02
Which real user task would justify changing mobile task speed, privacy explanation and channel continuity after seeing Gloucester's population aged under 25 position and its +0.3 pp difference from Ipswich?
Ipswich is the constrained classification reference and is classified as Nearer - Higher deprivation - Working; the question keeps an age-group share does not determine channel preference as an explicit limit.
- 03
What evidence would show that the population aged 65 or over contrast between Gloucester and Bedford should alter readability, keyboard access and assisted alternatives, rather than remain background context?
Evidence basis: 17.3%, lower quartile, with Gloucester minus the national peer equal to +1.8 pp. Validation route: inclusive usability sessions and accessibility conformance checks.
- 04
For Gloucester's large, non-coastal, working built-up area, nearer to a major town or city classification, how should 2021 population, population aged under 25, population aged 65 or over be tested as separate website hypotheses without turning the combined pattern into a claim about local demand?
Cross-check all three named comparisons—Bournemouth, Ipswich, Bedford—and define a user-research or behavioural measure for each question before changing navigation, page scope or conversion paths. The observations share one source but do not demonstrate causation.
08 / Practical brief
Website-planning recommendations for this evidence pattern
- 01
Separate employer and customer journeys
Gloucester is classified as a working town. A useful website brief should separate recruitment, procurement and customer tasks, then give each journey its own proof, contact route and success measure instead of forcing every visitor through one generic enquiry page.
- 02
Differentiate from the nearby major centre
Gloucester is nearer to a major town or city. Use specific offer boundaries, proof and response expectations to explain why the organisation is relevant; do not rely on a place-name heading or create a doorway that simply redirects users to a national service page.
- 03
Support quick comparison without hiding detail
30.1% of the recorded 2021 age-group total is under 25. Lead with concise task summaries and responsive performance, while keeping fees, eligibility, privacy and next steps available in the same journey rather than behind a social-only channel.
- 04
Prepare the content model for change
Gloucester recorded +19.6% population change from 2001 to 2021 and +8.2% employment change from 2015 to 2024. Use owned templates, update dates, accountable content roles and measurable conversion events so the site can evolve without publishing unreviewed route permutations.
09 / Method and limits
What this profile can—and cannot—support
This is a Mosalio editorial interpretation of the ONS May 2026 dataset for BUA24 code E63011389. The source periods differ by metric; values are historical, not live. The profile deliberately excludes ONS experimental visitor-to-resident fields and makes no claim about search volume, rankings, customers, a Mosalio office or physical delivery in Gloucester.
Mosalio does not claim an office, staff member, customer, or physical-delivery presence in Gloucester.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Understanding towns in England and Wales, investigating socioeconomic trends, released . This Mosalio interpretation was first published on and last reviewed on .
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
How this page was made: Mosalio applies one documented, deterministic transform to the validated ONS record, calculates the displayed comparisons, and renders the result from source-controlled data. It is an automated public-data resource, not individually commissioned local market research. A portfolio-level editorial-value review checks every profile's source identity, distinctive metrics, peer evidence, synthesis and planning questions before index eligibility can be enabled.
Analysis basis: Midrank percentile across all accepted England records; a higher percentile means a higher published value, not a better outcome. Root-mean-square Euclidean distance across eight clipped robust z-scores; population and 2023 house price are log-transformed before median/MAD scaling.