Trend
+47 Latest quarter change
+723 Change across series
48 Official data points
Reading
732 on asylum support. Rank 37 nationally, 2 in South East. Rate: 40.02 per 10,000 (94th percentile). Regional provider: Clearsprings Ready Homes.
Summary
Reading has 732 people on asylum support at quarter end, ranking 37 out of 361 local authorities nationally. The rate of 40.02 per 10,000 residents places it around the 94th percentile. 406 are in contingency accommodation (55.5% of total). No hotel evidence attached yet. These are quarter-end stock numbers, not throughput.
Supported asylum in Reading
Quarter-end stock series to Dec 2025. A rise or fall is a net change in the number of people on support at period end, not the number of new claims or distinct people moving through the caseload. Support stock also overlaps with, but is not identical to, the awaiting-decision backlog.
Local numbers
Accommodation split
Dispersal accommodation 321
Initial accommodation 0
Subsistence only 5
Contingency accommodation 406
Pathway breakdown
Other routes
Homes for Ukraine 441
Afghan programme 116
Resettlement cumulative 53
Population context
All pathways total 1,289
Share of local population 0.7%
Hotel evidence
No public hotel evidence attached to this area yet.
No public hotel evidence logged for this area yet.
Ethnic composition projection
Reading: WBI 53.5% (2021) → 15.9% (2051). White British minority by ~2024. 80% CI: 17.3–22.3%.
Ethnic composition — Reading
White British White Other Asian Black Mixed Other 80% CI
Model: Hamilton-Perry single-year CCRs, 1,000 Monte Carlo simulations, SNPP-constrained
Census 2011 → 2021 cohort change ratios. Shaded band = 80% confidence interval from stochastic perturbation (σ=0.04, calibrated from NEWETHPOP validation). Not a forecast.
Religion projection
Muslim 9.6% (2021) → 13.9% (2051). Christian 42.5% → 15.5%.
Religion — Reading
Christian No religion Muslim Hindu
Nativity
33.5% foreign-born (2021). Diversity: highly diverse (entropy 0.74). 81.1% main language English.
UK-born vs foreign-born — Reading
UK-born Foreign-born
high immigration gateway: High foreign-born share means ethnic change is migration-driven. Future projections are sensitive to immigration policy.
Why Reading is changing
-11.9ppWhite British change 2011–2021. Cyan = decline. Amber = growth.
Dominant driver: national trend. Shift-share methodology following Franklin (2014).
Economy & housing by ethnicity
Census 2021 employment, homeownership, and qualifications by ethnic group.
Employment rate
White British 64.5%
Mixed 68.9%
White Other 81.2%
Other 62.4%
Homeownership rate
White British 56.3%
Mixed 30.6%
White Other 33.5%
Other 31.2%
Degree+ qualification rate
White British 38.9%
Mixed 34.2%
White Other 49.4%
Other 44.9%
Source
Census 2021 RM018 (economic activity), RM134 (tenure), RM049 (qualifications) by ethnic group. Observed, not projected.
School ethnicity
DfE School Census 2024/25: 23,990 pupils. 31.4% White British. Schools are 22.1pp more diverse than the general population.
Pupil ethnicity
Asian 32%
White British 31.4%
Mixed 12.4%
White Other 11.1%
Black 10.4%
Other 2.7%
What this means
Schools are 22pp more diverse than the general population — schools show the future.
68.6% Minority pupils now
76.2% Projected 2041
Source
DfE School Census 2024/25. State-funded schools. Upper-tier LA level.
Service demand impact
Projected impact of demographic change on local services.
non-English speakers
NHS and council services will need increased interpreter/translation provision.
foreign-born growth to 2051
High foreign-born population growth will drive additional housing demand, particularly in the private rented sector.
EAL growth
Significant additional EAL (English as Additional Language) support likely needed.
National benchmarks
Supported asylum count
732 National distribution.
Supported asylum rate
40.02 Per 10,000 residents.
Contingency accommodation
406 Hotel and contingency placements.
Regional peers
Top 5 in South East by supported asylum.