# Census Form Question - clarification required



## podgerodge (22 Apr 2006)

On page 4 of the census form it asks "What is your place of birth? - give the place where your mother lived at the time of your birth."

So if my mother lived in, say, Carlow at the time of my birth but I was born in Dublin which answer would I give here?  I have mentioned this to a few people and heard different interpretations.  As I see it, if I answer "Carlow" that is not my place of birth.  If I answer "Dublin" it's not where my mother lived at the time....

ps while there are two rows of boxes under the question for writing in answers this does not mean that 2 answers can be given.


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## z107 (22 Apr 2006)

yes, it does seem confusing. Maybe you could ask the census people.



> As I see it, if I answer "Carlow" that is not my place of birth. If I answer "Dublin" it's not where my mother lived at the time....



'Ireland' would probably cover it in this case.


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## podgerodge (22 Apr 2006)

nope can't use Ireland - it also says, if in Ireland specify County!


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## justin (22 Apr 2006)

As a census enumerator we were told to use the county of residence of your mother at the time of your birth.


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## Henny Penny (23 Apr 2006)

Not all counties in Ireland would have a maternity hospital, hence the place where your mother resides at the time of your birth is where you're from.


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## moesha (23 Apr 2006)

http://www.cso.ie/census/documents/census_2006_guide_10-22.pdf

Check this out it might help you! Im a census enumerator so feel free to ask anymore questions


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## ariidae (23 Apr 2006)

Hi there,

I haven't received a census form yet at all? I have called twice requesting one but still haven't got one. I guess it's too late to get one now 

Anyone know if you can pick one up in the garda station or anything?


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## Cati76 (23 Apr 2006)

I got mine yesterday. The census enumerator of my area called on Friday at 15.00, expecting us to be at home. He left a note in our door, with his contact number. We texted the guy, who called us back, and arrange to drop it on saturday morning.
The funny thing was that having not received the form on Friday, I called the CSO Census line, and when explained the situation the operator said "seat tight, you will get one in the next 24 hours" (that was friday afternoon, before I got home and saw the note). I mean, what time of answer is that? When asked what to do if I didn't receive it, he said, "call back again".


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## moesha (23 Apr 2006)

Ariidae,

You should get one by tonight if not somebody isnt doing their job properly.  Where do you live, not location , but is it in a block of apartments or a country house, in the middle of nowhere? Did you get anything at all in your door about the census?  We all have calling cards that we leave if we knock and there is nobody there the 2nd and 3rd time we will leave one with our number and you can call or text us.  If your not there on the 4th time we can drop the form in the letterbox.  Actually, i know silly question but do you have a letterbox?  Some of my houses dont!!!!! But i managed to get the form into a few..


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## moesha (23 Apr 2006)

Cati76 said:
			
		

> The census enumerator of my area called on Friday at 15.00, expecting us to be at home. .



In out training we are told the best time to catch people is in the evening and weekend.  But I have chanced my arm and got people in during the day. I dont thinks its fair to make that statement above.  Us CE's arent psychic, we dont know when and when not people are going to be in..........


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## DrMoriarty (23 Apr 2006)

moesha said:
			
		

> ...we dont know when and when not people are going to be in..........


But you're working on it, right? 

In relation to the OP's question — as Henny Penny points out, 'the place where your mother lived at the time of your birth' can only mean her usual place of residence/'permanent address'.


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## Cati76 (23 Apr 2006)

moesha said:
			
		

> In out training we are told the best time to catch people is in the evening and weekend. But I have chanced my arm and got people in during the day. I dont thinks its fair to make that statement above. Us CE's arent psychic, we dont know when and when not people are going to be in..........


Sorry Moesha if my comment offended you, it was not intended that way. My only complaint was the response I got over the phone. I got the card from my enumarator with his phone, and from there we arrange a drop time, and he said that if we were not at home, he would leave it in the letter box. I know it's really difficult to get into some places, like the block I live in, where there is a code to get in, so either you know the code to get in, or you wait till someone let you in. But don't you think Saturday 22nd is a bit late to be getting the forms? I mean, we all have to fill the form tonight, I am not from here, so it might be difficult for me to get in touch with the enumerator should I have any questions, etc etc. 
I did my homework, and got the info from the CSO, but not sure if everyone out there is that bothered.


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## moesha (23 Apr 2006)

Ah dont worry no offence taken.  

If you need to ask the CE a question just fill in what you can and when they come to collect the form you can ask your q then.  I am dreading my collection for my area coz alot of people told me that they cant read or write and i will be filling the form out for them when i call to collect.

I think the 22nd is fine to get your form.  In fact i still have to deliver a few today. Not from laziness but only because these houses were vacant and now there is somebody living in them. 

The form looks like hard work filling it in but its not really.  The Household form covers six people.   The same questions for 6 people.  Unders 15 dont answer q's  20 to 34.

Your enumerator sounds like he is doing exactly what we were trained to do.  the reason why we have to make contact with a person in the house is so we can ascertain how many forms we need to give.

I could go on and on but its a lovely day and im going to make daisy chains with my kids now.


ttfn


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## ariidae (23 Apr 2006)

> Where do you live, not location , but is it in a block of apartments or a country house, in the middle of nowhere? Did you get anything at all in your door about the census? We all have calling cards that we leave if we knock and there is nobody there the 2nd and 3rd time we will leave one with our number and you can call or text us. If your not there on the 4th time we can drop the form in the letterbox. Actually, i know silly question but do you have a letterbox? Some of my houses dont!!!!! But i managed to get the form into a few..



I live in an apartment and our postwoman has a key to leave our mail. But I left phone numbers and never got a call! Pity!  I love the idea of my great great grand kids trying to look me up and stuff


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## Marion (23 Apr 2006)

All is not lost!


[FONT=Verdana, Arial]   Anyone who has still not received a census form is asked to call 1890 236 787. 
[/FONT]
Marion


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## Guest127 (23 Apr 2006)

one of the questions for people absent on 23rd is how long they have been absent ie over 3 months etc. Cu junior was present until 9pm tonight but departed for college at that time. He had already been informed by DCU that anyone in residence on Sunday night would be included in the college return. He has been in Dcu since October. He's home every weekend and if the census was last weekend or next weekend for example he would have been here. So is he absent for less than 3 months or more than three months?


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## Marion (24 Apr 2006)

< 3 months if he left this evening.

Marion


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## legend99 (24 Apr 2006)

you can still request and complete forms over the next few days in the expectation that you will remember the set-up from SUnday night.


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## bond-007 (24 Apr 2006)

justin said:
			
		

> As a census enumerator we were told to use the county of residence of your mother at the time of your birth.


Really? I don't think the passport office would be too happy with that approach. 
Why won't people answer that question correctly by saying which county were they born in, simple? I am proud of the fact I was born in Dublin even though I only spent a week there!


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## michaelm (24 Apr 2006)

podgerodge said:
			
		

> On page 4 of the census form it asks "What is your place of birth? - give the place where your mother lived at the time of your birth."


This seems perfectly clear to me.  Despite the €50M we're putting into this they couldn't manage proof read the form, as there is a mistake on page 19 'Relationship of person six to persons 1, 2, 3, 4' . . it seems they don't care what relationship person six has to person five.  Given the volume of people moving to and from this country I can't see a 5 year Census being current or useful for very long.


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## podgerodge (24 Apr 2006)

Henny Penny said:
			
		

> Not all counties in Ireland would have a maternity hospital, hence the place where your mother resides at the time of your birth is where you're from.




Maybe not all. But thats not the point as I see it.  As far as I am concerned if my mother lived in another county and I got born in dublin on a weekend away, I'm from Dublin.  If my mother lived in Kildare but brought me up to a dublin hospital to be born, my place of birth is Dublin. etc etc!

Anyway, if they want the "the place where your mother lived at the time of your birth" why didn't they just ask for that and SKIP the "What is your place of birth? " which was the main question!


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## Guest127 (24 Apr 2006)

both cu junior's were born in Newry. in the last census it specified county of birth. We just put Louth as mothers place of residence to answer  this question.


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## huskerdu (28 Apr 2006)

The question is confusing, but it does ask for the residence of the mother.

For instance, in the case of Meath, Kildare and Wicklow, a lot of mothers go to maternity hospitals in Dublin. The CSO doesn t care if these people 
are proud of the fact that they were born in  Dublin, they care about being about to predict how many 5 year old will be looking for school
places in 5 years time.


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## Furze (1 May 2006)

My dog has a fetish for paper and is now eyeing up the census form.

Any good reason why an option to complete the census online was not made available?


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## DrMoriarty (1 May 2006)

Furze said:
			
		

> Any good reason why an option to complete the census online was not made available?


Ehm, Martin Cullen..?


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## RainyDay (1 May 2006)

Furze said:
			
		

> Any good reason why an option to complete the census online was not made available?


I understand that the CSO were concerned about;

1) How the collectors would know whether the online form had been completed?
2) Inconsistency of results arising from the 2 different collection methods (even though the questions are identical)

I'd guess that there are solutions available to no.1, but not to no.2. I understand the international experience with online census collection has not been hugely successful.


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## Cahir (2 May 2006)

Anyone know when the forms are likely to be collected?  Nobody has called for ours yet.


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## bond-007 (2 May 2006)

It can take upto 3 weeks from the census date.


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## franmac (3 May 2006)

Hi Moesha, 
a question for you, when our census form was delivered I informed the guy that we would be in the UK on that night and he made some notes on his papers and I did not get a form.

Today the enumerator called and questioned me like as if I was an imbecile "are you sure the two of you were away , was it not just one of you" I was then asked to fill in a form to tell the address in the UK where we had spent that night. 
What difference does that make to the census? 

I have no objection to filling in our census and never had but I found that was intruding into my personal life.


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## bond-007 (3 May 2006)

They have no business asking where in the UK you were. The mere fact that you were is all they need to know. 

Do you know what form it was?


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## franmac (4 May 2006)

I did not see the heading or number on the form as it was on his clipboard. 

He just entered both our names on it and the address we stayed at on the census night.


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## bond-007 (4 May 2006)

I would have simply not given the address. Not their concern.


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## moesha (4 May 2006)

franmac said:
			
		

> Hi Moesha,
> a question for you, when our census form was delivered I informed the guy that we would be in the UK on that night and he made some notes on his papers and I did not get a form.
> 
> Today the enumerator called and questioned me like as if I was an imbecile "are you sure the two of you were away , was it not just one of you" I was then asked to fill in a form to tell the address in the UK where we had spent that night.
> ...


The reason why you were not given a form was because you were not in Irleland on the 23rd April (census day).  Instead you have to fill out a form called Form E.  This is just a declaration by you to say that you were not at your normal address and you have to give an address that you were at.  If for instance you enexpectadly away in Cork at a businessmeeting or whatever, you would be enumerated there.  And this form E tracks that.  BTW they are only used when the whole house is away on Census day. If there is somebody in the house you will get a form,  they write you down as absent and fillin a few questions at the back of the form about you.

If on the form  E you give your temp address as Room 410 Jurys Inn COrk.  My supervisor would have to check with the Census enumerator of the Hotel that you were counted. 
But as you were out of the country you will not be counted.  IMO the CE was doing what we were told to do.  I dont think they were intruding, tbh its less work for us if you were out of the country butmore work for the Supervisor  .

I hope this clarifies the matter for you............


BTW i have a pain in my This post will be deleted if not edited to remove bad language with this Census, i cant wait until ive all my forms collected as i need my life back now!!!!!!!!!


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## alligator (4 May 2006)

moesha said:
			
		

> http://www.cso.ie/census/documents/census_2006_guide_10-22.pdf
> 
> Check this out it might help you! Im a census enumerator so feel free to ask anymore questions


Hi Moesha, I dont think the census aptly captured the details of people who live in ireland but work in another country.  

For example, should someone who flys over to london on a weekly basis put in a commuting distance of 1000km?  If so, Im sure this would leave a lot of enumerators scratching their heads as there was no area to specify that you fly to work.


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## Guest127 (5 May 2006)

anybody get an enumeator who complained about the hours and pay? mine did. said it was the most grossly mis-advertised job he ever did. and then I gave him back the completed form he left the first time he called and also the blank one he left the second time he called.


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