Census field staff and public thanked

The Central Statistics Office (CSO) wishes to thank the public for its participation in, and support of, Census 2022. The CSO would also like to pay tribute to the almost 6,000 field staff who were instrumental in the delivery of more than two million forms to households across the country.

Collection of forms has now been completed, although we continue to receive forms through the post. Processing of the forms has begun and preliminary results are expected to be published by the end osiobhanf June.

Pádraig Dalton, Director General of the CSO, expressed his gratitude to the public for returning their completed census forms and to the dedicated census field staff who worked tirelessly to ensure the success of the census and said:

“As the last of the Census field staff have now finished their work, I want, on behalf of everyone in the CSO, to applaud and commend the efforts of our Census Enumerators, Field Supervisors, Regional Supervisors and Liaison Officers in helping us to deliver another successful census.

“The commitment and hard work of the teams never ceases to amaze me. They understand the importance of their job for the country and the success of the census is reliant on their dedication and determination. Thank you all for what you have achieved.

"The Census field operation in 2022 faced unique challenges, not least because of Covid-19, but also the changes in society we have all witnessed in more recent times. People now generally lead busier lives, can be harder to reach, and a larger proportion of our population are now living in apartment settings and gated communities.

"I also acknowledge the public’s support for Census 2022 and on behalf of the CSO I want to say thanks to them for their contribution. By participating in Census 2022 you are helping to create a valuable, independent data resource which will assist in targeting public services where they are needed. Thank you for being counted.”

Eileen Murphy, Head of Census Administration outlined the next steps for the returned census forms. “The Census Office has been a hive of activity over the past few weeks as crates of completed census forms have been delivered to our warehouse. The work of processing the census forms now begins and will continue for the remainder of the year. Preliminary results will be published on 23 June and the first official census results are scheduled to be published next April 2023, and the CSO will continue to release the valuable insights from Census 2022 throughout next year in themed publications. However, we will have to wait until 2122 for the publication of any details from our highly popular Time Capsule section.”

As well as producing the results from Census 2022, the CSO is now looking ahead to the next census which will take place in 2027. Work is underway on providing an online response option, which will be part funded by the European Union National Recovery and Resilience Plan (#NRRP).

While the field collection operation has been completed, the CSO will continue to accept census forms by post. Forms can be returned by freepost to:

Central Statistics Office

PO Box 2021

Freepost 4726

Swords

Co. Dublin

K67 D2X4.