Number of children had by New Zealand women in their lifetime

2018 Census, % women aged 15+ where information available

The following information applies to all values in the table. Census Year: 2018, Subject population: Female census usually resident population aged 15 years and over, Unit: Percentage of people stated
Number of children born	% women aged 15+ where information available
Eight children	0.2555216017391%
Five children	2.610486633415%
Four children	6.921930674856%
Nine children	0.144308386518%
No children	30.83209996422%
Object to answering	2.240223904793%
One child	12.87217368077%
Seven children	0.5002914727015%
Six children	1.111628164831%
Ten or more children	0.1555641046748%
Three children	16.04695818417%
Two children	26.3091492189%

Data Quality

Using this data

Use this data with caution. This data was rated moderate quality by Stats NZ. Read the warnings and response rate metadata below before using.

Stats NZ gives data an overall rating based on sources and coverage, consistency, and data quality.

Why am I seeing this?

This data is from the 2018 Census. The 2018 Census had low response rates, particularly for some areas of New Zealand and groups of people. Read more about this on Stats NZ's website.

Where information was missing or unreadable, Stats NZ attempted to use data from a range of places such as the 2013 census or administrative data that is collected by other government agencies. If that isn't available, Stats NZ use statistical models to predict what the missing data would have been. This is called imputation.

Things to be aware of

The questionnaire asked 'How many babies have you given birth to? Number born'. For the 2018 Census, the word 'alive' was removed from the question due to the sensitivity of this prompt. This means that foetal deaths and stillborn children may have been included by respondents. Stats NZ expected that this change had minimal impact on the data because of the very low number of stillbirths in New Zealand.

Read the response rates and final data sources section for more information.

Subject matter

These figures represent the number of children ‘ever’ born to each woman, in their whole lifetime. The subject population for this question was the female census usually resident population aged 15 years and over.

Response rates and final data sources

The response rate from 2018 Census forms was 85.6%. In addition, 2.8% of responses were sourced from forms submitted during the 2013 Census, only for women aged 45+ at the time (because they are less likely to have had a baby since then). 4.1% were sourced from administrative data such as the births register (only for women born after 1974). There was no information for 7.5% of women aged 15+.

Definitions

Census usually resident population count of New Zealand: a count of all people who usually live in and were present in New Zealand on census night. It excludes overseas visitors and New Zealand residents who are temporarily overseas.
Census night population count of New Zealand: a count of all people present in New Zealand on census night. This includes visitors from overseas who are counted on census night but excludes residents who are temporarily overseas on census night.
Dwelling: A dwelling is any building or structure that is used, or intended to be used, for human habitation. There can be more than one dwelling within a building. For example, each apartment in an apartment building is a dwelling.
Household: either one person who usually resides alone, or two or more people who usually reside together and share facilities in a private dwelling. Included are people who were absent on census night but usually live in a particular dwelling and are members of that household, as long as they were reported as being absent on the dwelling form or the household set-up form.
Response 'stated': Members of the subject population (eg. people or dwelling) for which the data was obtained through a census form, administrative sources, or imputed.

Data calculation/treatment

This data has been randomly rounded to protect confidentiality.
Figure.NZ calculated percentages based on the 'Total stated' values for each variable. Individual percentages may not sum to 100% and values for the same data may vary in different tables.

For more information

http://datainfoplus.stats.govt.nz/Item/nz.govt.stats/ca28210f-3fd6-415c-a162-ecc07b4a28b0

Inclusions

Geographically the census includes the North Island, South Island, Stewart Island, and the Chatham Islands, plus largely uninhabited islands including the Kermadec Islands, Three Kings Islands, Mayor Island, Motiti Island, White Island, Moutohora Island, Bounty Islands, Snares Islands, Antipodes Islands, Auckland Islands, and Campbell Island.

Changes to data collection/processing

The 2018 Census was a modernised census based on models used in 2016 by the Canadian and Australian statistical agencies and then applied in the New Zealand context. Stats NZ collaborated with census experts from both countries when designing the model.

Under the new model, how Stats NZ enabled/collected from the respondents changed from predominately field-based activities to 80 percent mail-out with a reduced field presence and increased communications, marketing and engagement. The way respondents completed their forms also changed, with a greater focus on online completion over paper. The majority of the population was encouraged to complete the census online using an internet access code mailed to their households before census night. The new collection model therefore relied on the public to self-respond, rather than wait for a visit from field staff. Field follow-up activities were also planned.

The main areas of change were:
- phasing the model (prepare, enable, remind and visit)
- strategies used across the different phases
- mailing out “call to action” letters with an internet access code and instructions on how to order paper forms, if required, as the first interaction with census
- reducing the number of field staff, with a new structure and roles
- outsourcing the recruitment functions for field staff
- introducing new field technology
- creating a new address frame (a list of all dwellings in New Zealand)
- an integrated communications campaign including community engagement
- a new approach to processing the census data.

Data provided by

Stats NZ

Dataset name

Census: Census totals by topic national highlights 2018

How to find the data

This dataset is no longer available online. It has since been replaced by an updated version at https://www.stats.govt.nz/information-releases/2018-census-totals-by-topic-national-highlights-updated

Import & extraction details

File as imported: Census: Census totals by topic national highlights 2018

From the dataset Census: Census totals by topic national highlights 2018, this data was extracted:

Sheet: Table 19
Range: C8:D25
Provided: 34 data points

This data forms the table Census - Usually resident female population by number of children born 2018.

Dataset originally released on:

September 23, 2019

About this dataset

The New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings is the official count of how many people and dwellings there are in New Zealand. It provides a snapshot of our society at a point in time and helps to tell the story of its social and economic change. The 2018 Census, held on Tuesday 6 March, was the 34th New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings. The first official census was run in 1851, and since 1877 there has been a census every five years, with only four exceptions.

Purpose of collection

Census information is used by government agencies, local authorities, businesses, community organisations, and the public for developing and implementing new policies, research, planning, and decision-making. It helps us make decisions about how to best use public funding, especially in areas of health, education, housing, and transport.
The census is also the primary source of information used for deciding the number of general and Māori electorates, along with data from the corresponding Māori Electoral Option.