The number of centenarians has surged by more than a fifth over a decade as the birth rate plunged to its lowest in nearly 50 years, figures show today.

In a sign of the pace at which the population is ageing, official data found there were around 15,172 people aged over 100 in England and Wales last year.

This was up from 14,635 in 2024 (3.7 per cent) and 12,472 in 2015 (21.6 per cent).

The number of people aged 105 or more increased by more than a third (34 per cent) to 709, compared with 529 in 2024.

Among the hundreds of Britons to reach the 100-year-old milestone recently was veteran broadcaster Sir David Attenborough, who became a centenarian in May.

The late singer Dame Vera Lynn also hit the milestone before her passing aged 103 in 2020, as did Captain Sir Tom Moore after famously raising funds for charity during the pandemic by walking 100 lengths of his garden.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) also estimated there were around 581,400 people aged 90 or over last year, up from 564,300 (3 per cent) the year before and 500,000 (16.3 per cent) in 2015.

Men now make up 34.1 per cent of the over 90 population and 18.8 per cent of the over 100 population. For every man aged over 100, there were 4.3 women.

Meanwhile, the number of births plummeted to 588,000, the fewest since 1978 and an 8,000 fall compared to 2024. 

The number of deaths was not far off births (568,400).

The official statistics highlight the extent to which England and Wales's population is ageing, with adults having fewer children while people live for longer amid advances in medicine and living standards.

The ONS data also found that population growth in England and Wales has slowed to its lowest rate since the Covid-19 pandemic.

This was largely down to a huge fall in net migration in recent years after hitting record levels in 2023.

The statistics agency estimated that the population in England and Wales overall grew again by 224,900 (0.4 per cent) last year to around a record 62million.

A total of 816,500 people immigrated to England and Wales from outside the UK, down from 1,197,500 in the year to mid-2024.

Meanwhile, 604,800 people emigrated from England and Wales to another country outside the UK, up from 584,900.

It meant net migration was down by more than 400,000 to 211,700 last year.

However, because the difference between births and deaths was so narrow, this remained the main driver of population growth.

But it is the overall lowest rate of increase since mid-2020 and follows a run of much steeper jumps, including 1.4 per cent in 2023 and 1.0 per cent in 2024.

Around one in four local areas saw a fall in their population in the year to mid-2025.

The population in Wales dropped for the first time in a decade, while the total for London fell slightly due to more people moving out of the capital to live elsewhere.

Dr Carole Easton, chief executive of the Centre for Ageing Better, said: ‘Exceptional longevity has a strong genetic component but the fact that the number of centenarians has increased at a faster rate than the population as a whole suggests that something other than genetics is at play too.

‘Longevity appears to result from a combination of genetics, lifestyle, resilience and wider social factors. The increase in the number of centenarians gives cause for hope and we need to apply learnings from this special group to the population more broadly.’

But David Brooks, of the financial consultancy Broadstone, said the ageing population brings economic challenges for the government.

He said: ‘While greater longevity is something to celebrate, it also presents significant challenges for the State, as a growing older population increases demand for the State Pension, social care and other benefits.

‘With fewer working-age people supporting an expanding retired population, the pressure on public finances will only intensify.

‘The Government will need to think carefully about how the costs of longer lives are shared across generations.

‘Without reform to taxation, pensions and the care system, those of working age could increasingly be asked to shoulder a greater share of the financial burden.’