Northern Ireland Racial Equality Indicators Report: 2014 - 2021

Date published: 30 March 2023

Some of the key findings for the period 2014 - 2021 include:

Equality of service provision

• Since the baseline year (2013/14), by 2020/21 there has been an overall increase of around fourteen percentage points for white young people and twelve percentage points for minority ethnic young people leaving school with 5 GCSEs (Grade A* - C): White: 2020/21: 92.3%; Minority Ethnic: 2020/21: 87.6%.
• In 2021, 77% of NILT respondents thought it important that public bodies take into account the needs of minority ethnic communities; this was a significant increase from baseline (2014: 65%).

Combating prejudice, racism and hate crime

• In 2021 the proportion of respondents reporting they were prejudiced against people from minority ethnic communities had increased significantly since the baseline. (2014: 24%; 2021: 30%).
• In 2022 a significantly higher proportion of respondents reported they had witnessed racist bullying or harassment in their school than in the baseline year (2014: 39%; 2022: 54%).

Participation, representation and belonging

• The proportion of respondents who thought that minority ethnic people participated ‘a little’ or ‘a lot’ in public life increased significantly by 6 percentage points from the baseline (2014: 71%; 2021: 77%).
• A significantly higher proportion of respondents aged 16 years in 2022 (59%) said they socialised or played sport with people from a different ethnic background than in 2014 (54%).

Respecting cultural diversity

• Since baseline there was a significant increase in the percentage of respondents who agreed that the culture and traditions of the minority ethnic community added to the richness and diversity of Northern Ireland (2014: 59%; 2021: 66%).
• In 2021, the percentage of people with friends from minority ethnic communities (57%) was significantly higher than the baseline position (2014: 42%).

The report is available on the Executive Office Statistics and Research Branch website at: https://www.executiveoffice-ni.gov.uk/topics/racial-equality

Further information relating to the collection and production of the statistics can be obtained by contacting: