Demography
The 2001 census shows there were 180,061 people and 75,154 occupied houses in the Swindon Unitary Authority. The average household size was 2.38 people. The population density was 780/km² (2020.19/mi²). 20.96% of the population were 0–15 years old, 72.80% 16–74 and the remaining 6.24% were 75 years old or over. For every 100 females there were 98.97 males. Approximately 300,000 people live within 20 minutes of Swindon town centre.
It is forecast that there will be a 70,000 (38.9%) increase in Swindon's population by 2026 from the current 180,000, to 250,000. The ethnic make-up of the town was 95.2% white, 1.3% Indian and 3.5% other. 92.4% were born in the UK, 2.7% in the EU and 4.9% elsewhere.
The majority of Swindonians (70.3%) identify themselves as Christians. This is followed by those of no religion (19.2%), Muslims (1.0%), Sikhs (0.6%), Hindus (0.6%), other (0.2%) and Jews (0.1%). In addition, 8.0% of people chose not to answer this question in the 2001 census.
In May 2007, 65.3% of households in Swindon had broadband Internet access, the highest in the UK, up 5.5% from June 2006.
A 2007 report by Endsleigh Insurance says it was the second safest place to live in the UK after Guildford, Surrey. This was based on the number of insurance claims made and burglaries and accidents reported. Endsleigh said: "Swindon is a great example of where local authorities, working hand in hand with the community, have played a key role in bringing down crime."
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