Claims of the self-segregation of minority ethnic groups during the early 2000s were much critiqued in the British academic literature, which pointed instead to decreasing ethnic segregation via the rather benign demographic processes of births and deaths, and internal migration from urban clusters. Despite the attention that these opposing debates received, a detailed study of change in ethnic residential segregation during the period has yet to be undertaken for the whole of England and Wales, and the recent release of 2011 Census data has now made this possible. This paper contributes to the literature by providing a systematic overview of national-level change in residential segregation in a changing socio-political climate, considering how minority ethnic distributions have altered in the last decade. The paper explores the specific case of England and Wales, but in doing so makes a contribution to our understanding of the contemporary evolution of ethnic geographies and the dynamics of diverse places, beyond this specific region. Using a commonly employed measure of spatial unevenness, the Index of Dissimilarity, at the smallest possible geographical level, the findings demonstrate how there has been increased residential mixing between each ethnic group (the White British majority and all minority groups), and that urban locales have experienced a decrease in segregation between 2001 and 2011. The findings disturb the association of ethnic diversity with ethnic divisions in (particularly urban) space and provide support for the somewhat 'every day' processes of de-segregation, rather than a cause for concern over increasingly entrenched neighbourhoods.

While ethnic diversity is traditionally an urban characteristic, new spaces of diversity are emerging. This challenges our current understandings of the geographies of ethnic diversity and forces us to consider the more intricate spatial patterns and processes of ethnic group population change. Ethnic diversity, now a key feature of contemporary society in Britain, is an issue of public, policy, political, and academic interest; the 2011 Census provided an opportunity to update our knowledge of how diversity has grown, and in what ways. This paper explores the new geographies of ethnic diversity in England and Wales, mapping the evolving landscape of diversity over two decades. The paper makes use of measures of diversity and clustering for small areas (wards) for consistent geographies for 1991–2011, and for the most recent decade using a district level urban–rural area classification. There is evidence of a spreading out of ethnic diversity from urban centres towards areas traditionally less diverse. Spatial mixing has increased – the period also saw a growth of minority ethnic groups in areas outside own‐group clusters. The increased share of all ethnic groups (White British and minority) in less urban areas challenges claims of ‘White flight’ from diversity. Increased ethnic diversity is clearly an important feature of contemporary population change, and the coming years are likely to see continued mixing between people and within places – and in new locales. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The relationship between migration and age has long been established, and most recently, there have been calls for the inclusion of a life course perspective to migration research. In this paper, we explore Northern Ireland's internal migration patterns, and in particular, we test for the importance of urban to rural migration at different stages of the life course. Data from the Northern Ireland Longitudinal Study are used for the first time to analyse urban-rural migration patterns. The resulting modelling demonstrates unique aspects of urban to rural migration within Northern Ireland, which up until now have gone largely unreported. Results from logistic regression modelling suggest that there is an age selectivity to urbanrural mobility but not necessarily at the life course stages predicted from a review of the life course migration literature. Individuals in younger age groups (at the household and family formation stages of the life course) are most likely to make an urban to rural move in Northern Ireland, with a decline in the likelihood of this move type with age. Possible explanations are offered linked to Northern Ireland's settlement hierarchy, rural planning policy, and family farming traditions. The findings challenge researchers to pay due attention to how migration processes may play out differently in varying geographical, social, and planning contexts and emphasise the importance of structural factors to explain migration patterns.

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This paper uses a commissioned table based on data from the 2001 Census of Population to explore differentials in migration by ethnic group and occupational class. Employing an area classification based on the minority ethnic population and international and internal migration history of districts in England and Wales, it is hypothesised that those most likely to migrate from 'immigrant settlement areas' are those with the greatest economic resources. It is suggested that if migration does vary by level of affluence, then a social gradient may be apparent with respect to migration propensity and occupational class membership. Furthermore, if such 'affluent flight' can explain 'racial' migration patterns, then a similar social gradient would be expected for each ethnic group, and a similar probability of migrating for people of common socio-demographic characteristics, irrespective of ethnic group. Three main questions relating to these themes were proposed, namely: Does a social gradient exist for the residential mobility of those who live in settlement areas of England and Wales? Is a social gradient associated with moves away from settlement areas and in particular towards other areas to which minorities have dispersed? Is the social gradient, such as it exists, similar for each ethnic group? Clear evidence is presented for a social gradient with respect to movement from settlement areas. It was found that for those who originated in settlement districts, the probability of moving was greater if in higher than lower occupational classes and this was consistent for all ethnic groups. In addition, migrants were more likely to move outside their own (settlement) district, and to a non-settlement district, if in professional forms of employment. Settlement areas in London were modelled separately, and London was shown to have a distinct pattern of migration. London professionals were less likely to move to a non-settlement district than those in less skilled employment. key words Migration ethnicity immigrant settlement areas social class England and Wales logistic regression