Introduction

Scotland’s Census 2022 Data on Non-Binary People

To fill evidence gaps and create a better understanding of Scotland’s diverse population, this report uses the new availability of Scotland Census 2022 data to analyse the characteristics and outcomes associated with non-binary people.

New Availability of Trans Status and History Data

National Records of Scotland (NRS) define transgender or trans as a term that describes people whose gender is not the same as the sex they were assigned at birth. This also includes non-binary people, who have a gender identity that is not exclusively male or female.

Scotland’s Census 2022 included a new question on trans status or history that had not been asked before. The question asked: “Do you consider yourself to be trans, or have a trans history?”. The question was voluntary and asked to people aged 16 and over. Overall, 94.08% of respondents answered the question.

Respondents could tick “Yes” or “No”. Those who ticked “Yes” were prompted “Please describe your trans status (for example, non-binary, trans man, trans woman)”. The write-in responses were then coded by NRS into categories. These categories included: non-binary, trans man, trans woman, other trans status or history, and trans status or history not otherwise specified. NRS explains that, “Where responses included more than one distinct category we have used a first codable response methodology. This means a person who responded 'Non-binary Trans Man' will be included in the 'Non-binary' category only. This is consistent with how other write-in questions in the Census are processed.”

NRS published initial findings from the trans status or history data in June 2024. More information about the methodology can be read in NRS’ Quality Assurance report - Sexual orientation and trans status or history. The write-in responses received from the Census 2022 for trans status or history can be read in NRS’ table of write-in responses.

Considerations for comparisons between the Non-Binary Population and the rest of Scotland’s Population

In this report we compare the non-binary population to the rest of Scotland’s population (excluding non-binary people) aged 16 and above. This is because the question on trans status or history was only asked to those aged 16 and above, unlike many other questions in the Census which are asked of people of all ages. Note that the rest of Scotland statistics will include the responses for the trans population, exclusive of the non-binary population. This report will also draw comparisons by age breakdowns between the non-binary population and the rest of Scotland where sample size permits.

About half of the non-binary population is made up of young adults - 52.6% of people who identified as non-binary were aged 16 to 24. In comparison, 12.7% of the rest of Scotland’s adult population aged 16 and over (excluding non-binary people), were aged 16 to 24. This means that the non-binary population is overall younger in comparison to the rest of Scotland. NRS published a blog on working with Census data that explains this in more detail.

Considerations for descriptive statistics and causation

The analysis presented in this report is based on descriptive statistics, meaning that the presented statistics are only able to summarise and describe the non-binary population as recorded in Scotland’s Census 2022. The analysis is not able to explain what causes or driving factors influence certain characteristics or experiences to be observed in the non-binary population. For example, descriptive statistics are able to identify that the non-binary population has a young age profile (52.6% of people who identified as non-binary were aged 16 to 24) but do not explain why young people are more likely to identify in this way.

Creating a Better Understanding of Scotland’s Non-Binary People and the Non-Binary Equality Action Plan

The Scottish Government’s Non-Binary Equality Action Plan 2023-2028 sets out actions that the Scottish Government are taking to improve the lives of non-binary people and the wider trans community in Scotland. The Non-Binary Equality Action Plan’s vision is for Scotland to be a place where everyone’s identity is recognised, respected, and celebrated.

An Evidence Review on Non-Binary People’s Experiences in Scotland was published in November 2024, partially fulfilling Action 7.7 in the Non-Binary Equality Action Plan, which focuses on identifying and agreeing priorities for filling evidence gaps with stakeholder organisations. The Evidence Review highlighted several gaps in evidence, such as a lack of information on non-binary people’s intersectional characteristics and socio-economic experiences based on economic activity.

This analytical report aims to fill some of these evidence gaps by analysing Scotland’s Census 2022 data on non-binary demographics. Scotland’s Census provides statistics representing the total population, providing a snapshot of the nation. The large number of responses and the wide range of topics covered means there is a lot of detailed characteristics data to work with. This allows users to look at the associations between different characteristics.