1m households visited by staff to fill in census

MORE than one million Scots households have been visited by census staff amid the drive to improve completion rates.

The deadline for completing the census has been extended to the end of May due to a low response rate.

National Records of Scotland (NRS), which administers the census, says that from Monday its workers will offer people extra help to complete the paperwork on the doorstep.

In early May, the census return rate stood at 80 per cent. Constitution Secretary Angus Robertson said: ‘It is vital that we secure as high a response rate as possible so that the census can be effective in delivering its many benefits.’

Paul Lowe, NRS chief executive, added: ‘I would urge everyone who has not completed to do so immediately and before the end of May.’