England: Facts & Stats

1. London 8,2 million
2. Birmingham 2,3 million 
3. Manchester 1,7 million 
4. Liverpool 0,83 million 
5. Newcastle 0,79 million

Welfare:

The National Health Service (NHS) is the publicly funded healthcare system in England responsible for provided the majority of healthcare in the country. The NHS provides most services at no cost to the patient though there are charges associated with eye tests, dental care, prescriptions, and many aspects of personal care.

The NHS began on 5 July 1948, putting into effect the provisions of the National Health Service Act 1946. Private health care has continued parallel to the NHS, paid for largely by private insurance, but it is used by less than 8% of the population, and generally as a top-up to NHS services. Recently the private sector has been increasingly used to increase NHS capacity despite a large proportion of the public opposing such involvement.

The NHS is largely funded from general taxation (including a proportion from National Insurance payments). The UK government department responsible for the NHS is the Department of Health, headed by the Secretary of State for Health (Health Secretary), who sits in the British Cabinet. Most of the expenditure of The Department of Health (£98.6 billion in 2008–9) is spent on the NHS.

Education:

Education in England is overseen by the Department for Children, Schools and Families and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. At a local level the local authorities take responsibility for implementing policy for public education and state schools.

Full-time education is compulsory for all children aged between 5 and 16 (inclusive). Students may then continue their secondary studies for a further two years (sixth form), leading most typically to an A level qualification, although other qualifications and courses exist, including GNVQ and the International Baccalaureate. The leaving age for compulsory education was raised to 18 by the Education and Skills Act 2008. The change will take effect in 2013 for 17 year olds and 2015 for 18 year olds. State-provided schools are free of charge to students, and there is also a tradition of independent schooling, but parents may choose to educate their children by any suitable means.

Higher education typically begins with a 3-year Bachelor's Degree. Postgraduate degrees include Master's Degrees, either taught or by research, and Doctor of Philosophy, a research degree that usually takes at least 3 years. Universities require a Royal Charter in order to issue degrees, and all but one are financed by the state with a low level of fees for students.

Religion:

Religion in England refers to those religions that are practiced, either currently or in the past, in the nation of England. Currently, the largest religion in the country is Christianity, with the Church of England the official state church holding a special constitutional position. After Christianity, religions with the most adherents are Islam, Hinduism, Sikhism, Judaism, Buddhism, the Bahá'í Faith, Rastafarianism and Neopaganism. There are also organisations which promote irreligion, humanism, and secularism.

In the past, various other religions (usually "pagan") have been important in the country, particularly Celtic polytheism, Roman polytheism, Anglo-Saxon paganism and Norse paganism. The only widespread world religion that was created in England was the neopagan religion of Wicca.

Many of England's most notable buildings and monuments are religious in nature, including Stonehenge, the Angel of the North, Westminster Abbey, St Paul's Cathedral and Canterbury Cathedral. The festivals of Christmas and Easter, both of which are religious in origin, are still widely commemorated in the country.