The number of centenarians in England and Wales has risen by around a fifth over the past decade, new figures show, even as the country's birth rate has fallen to its lowest level since 1978. The trend highlights a significant demographic shift, with a growing elderly population placing greater demands on health and social care systems, while shrinking numbers of new births raise longer-term concerns about the size of the future workforce and the sustainability of pension and care funding.

Despite record low birth rates, the overall population of England and Wales has reached a record 62 million, driven largely by immigration, even though more than 600,000 people emigrated abroad over the same period. The combination of rising longevity and falling births is reshaping the age structure of the population, with implications for planning around care homes, pensions and public services in the years ahead.