If it wasn't for the 8 censuses taken between 1841 and 1911 - all now available for searching online, I - and other family historians like me - would never have been able to gather the wealth of information about our families that we have. Taken at the individual level, they give a wonderful - if brief - insight into the lives of our personal ancestors. Taken at a broader level, they hold huge amounts of valuable information about the lives of people and communities.

However, there should be a common-sense approach on the part of the census makers as to what they ask - and why. The last census was roundly condemned by family historians because it excluded the birthplace of individuals - hugely important for people a hundred years later in tracing their family tree - presumably on grounds of ethnic sensitivity.

Older censuses, arranged by district, asked for: address, name, relationship to head of household, marital status, age, occupation and birthplace. Quite sufficient for a snapshot of the nation and for future researchers.