NEW figures have revealed an ageing Northern Ireland population with more people living past 85 than ever before.
The number of people aged 85 and over has risen by 1,000 in the past decade, according to findings published by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency, while it is estimated there are 280 people in the north over the age of 100.
In the past decade since 2005 the population aged 85 and over reached 35,500, representing 1.9 per cent of the population.
The growth, representing a 37.1 per cent rise in the age group, is almost six times greater than that of those under 85.
Women account for two thirds of over 85s although the population increase among men in the category over the decade has been noticeably higher.
The figures estimate that by mid 2015 there were 280 centenarians, although just one in nine were men.
At a UK level Northern Ireland continues to have the lowest proportion of people aged 85 and over, however, over the past decade the percentage growth here among this age group was noticeably higher than in each of England, Scotland and Wales.
A breakdown of the figures by district council area show the proportion of people aged 85 and over in mid-2015 ranged from 1.4 per cent (2,100 people) in Derry and Strabane to 2.4 per cent (3,800 people) in Ards and North Down.
