Household projections
Household projections produced by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) provide an understanding of the potential future number of households. The figures are based on population estimates, census data and assumptions of future fertility, mortality and migration that are based on observed current and past trends.
A household is defined as one person living alone or a group of people (not necessarily related) living at the same address who share cooking facilities and share a living room or sitting room or dining area.
The latest population projections cover the period from 2022 to 2047, providing a count of the total households, with breakdowns by the age group of the household reference person and household composition. Further information is provided in the things to know about the data at the bottom of this page.
Summary
In Lancashire-12, a 24.8% increase in the number of households is projected over the 25-year period. This results in a projected total of 662,923 households by 2047. This increase is above the projection for both the North West (22.3%) and England (22.8%).
The largest increases in the number of households in Lancashire-12 are projected to be in Ribble Valley (37.2%), Fylde (35.1%), Preston (35.0%), Wyre (34.1%) and Chorley (26.9%). Hyndburn (15.8%) and Rossendale (16.7%) are projected to have the lowest increase in the number of households in Lancashire-12.
In Lancashire-14, the projected percentage increase in the number of households is expected to be smaller, at 22.6%. By 2047, the total number of households is projected to be 802,110 in Lancashire-14. This is above the projected increase for the North West, but below England's projection.
Blackpool (11.3%) and Blackburn with Darwen (14.5%) are projected to have the lowest increases in the number of households in Lancashire-14.
Projections by age of household reference person
In Lancashire-12, the number of households in which the household reference person is aged under 25 is expected to reduce by 1.1% (England = 0.2% increase) over the projection period. As a proportion of the total number of households, this age group is expected to decrease to 2.2% of households by 2047 (England = 2.3%).
Households in which the reference person is aged 25 to 64 are projected to increase by 16.1% (England = 14.7%) in Lancashire-12. However, as a proportion of the total number of households, this age group is expected to reduce across the projection period to 60.1% of households by 2047 (England = 63.0%).
Households in which the reference person is aged 65 and over are projected to increase by 44.4% (England = 43.3%) across the projection period in Lancashire-12. As a proportion of the total number of households, the 65 and over age group is expected to increase to 37.7% of households (England = 34.6%) by 2047. This age group is projected to account for nearly half of households in Fylde (48.2%) and Wyre (47.6%) by 2047.
The largest increase by age group in Lancashire-12 is expected in households with a reference person aged 85 and over, which are expected to more than double over the projection period, seeing an increase of 118.4% (England = 106.5%). As a proportion of the total number of households, the 85 and over age group is expected to increase to 8.1% of households (England = 7.6%) by 2047. This age group is projected to account for more than a tenth of households in Fylde (11.2%), Ribble Valley (10.1%), and Wyre (10.1%) by 2047.
Household composition
Single adult households (including single female and single male households) in Lancashire-12 are projected to increase by 48.0% (England = 43.6%). As a proportion of the total number of households, one person households are expected to rise to 37.8% of households (England = 35.6%) by 2047. Blackpool (42.5%), Fylde (40.6%), Hyndburn (39.7%), Burnley (39.7%) and Wyre (38.8%) are projected to have the largest proportions of one person households in Lancashire-14 by 2047.
The number of households with dependent children in Lancashire-12 is expected to decrease by 21.4% (England = 17.5%) over the projection period, accounting for 17.1% of all households (England = 19.1%) by 2047. Households with one child are expected to see the largest decrease of 22.4% but will continue to be the most frequent number of children amongst households with dependents, accounting for 7.5% of all households in 2047.
Two local authorities in Lancashire-14 are projected to have a larger proportion of households with dependent children than England by 2047: Blackburn with Darwen (21.2%) and Preston (21.0%). The smallest proportions are projected in Fylde (11.8%) and Wyre (13.0%).
Source: Household projections for England (2022-based migration category variant projection edition), from the Office for National Statistics via LG inform.
Things to know about the data
The 2022-based household projections release has no projection that is defined as the principal projection by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Due to availability of more up-to-date migration data, the ONS recommends the use of the migration category variant edition to better reflect short-term changes and to fit with the long-term international migration data. Following this recommendation, the figures presented in this article are drawn from the migrant category variant. Other variants of the household projections are available from the ONS website.
Definitions
A household is defined as one person living alone or a group of people (not necessarily related) living at the same address who share cooking facilities and living or dining rooms. This includes sheltered accommodation units and caravans, where this is the person's usual place of residence.
Each household has a household reference person (HRP) which serves as a reference point to characterise the household and is used in calculating the household projections. The HRP is defined as the eldest economically active person in the household, then the eldest inactive person if there was no economically active person. In some cases the household reference person may not be, and could be much younger than, the eldest person in that household.
A dependent child is defined as any person aged 0 to 15 years living in a household, or a person aged 16 to 18 years in full-time education and living in a family with their parent(s) or grandparent(s). It does not include any people aged 16 to 18 years who have a spouse, partner or child living in the household.
Limitations
Household projections are not forecasts and do not attempt to predict the possible effects of any future political or economic developments. Household projections are calculated using a two stage process, using multiple data sources and demographic assumptions of future fertility, mortality and migration, based on observed current and past demographic behaviours and trends.
The assumptions used in projections are uncertain and so the projections become increasingly uncertain the further into the future they are carried forward. This is particularly the case for smaller geographical areas and detailed age, sex and household composition breakdowns. In addition, at the local level, change is influenced by economic development and housing policies – these are factors that are not included in the projections.
Some breakdowns may not sum to the totals due to rounding.
Page updated 23 January 2026