THE population of Herefordshire has increased according to new estimates.

New estimates from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that Herefordshire's population has increased to 193,600 in mid-2020.

A spokesperson for Herefordshire Council said the main cause of the increase was a fall in the number of people leaving the county, though there was also a drop in the numbers of people moving to the county.

In 2019-20 the number of people moving to the county had dropped to 7,800, down by 900 from the previous year.

In the same period, the number moving away from the county had fallen to 6,300, down from 7,700 in 2018-19.

The council spokesperson said that while the population had increased, the annual growth over the last two years was the slowest seen in the previous decade.

As a result, they do not anticipate the rise in population having an impact on service provision.

The ONS data also shows that the percentage of people over the age of 50 in Herefordshire was higher than the national average, with the largest age group being 55-59 year olds, who made up 7.6% of the county's population.

In contrast, Herefordshire's total population of 0-49 year olds was below the national average.

The smallest age group was 20-24 year olds who made up just 4.4% of the county's population.