This story investigates the differences in age standardised rates of disability between groups of people based on their occupation and employment contracts (socio-economic class). These differences can be described as the inequality in disability and can be compared between classes in the same geographical location. It is also valid to compare the rates of the same socio-economic class between areas and between men and women to show within class inequality and gender inequality.

Tackling health inequalities, such as differences in disability prevalence, is an important policy issue as highlighted in the Marmot review. Census data provides an opportunity to measure health inequalities in ways that have benefits compared to using conventional survey data. The census has the advantage of high population coverage (the number and types of people surveyed), which increases the accuracy and precision of the rate estimates (greater certainty that the numbers reflect the true values that have been estimated).