In common with most areas of Ireland, the preliminary report of the CSO shows a big increase in the population of County Wicklow.

County Wicklow as a whole recorded a 10.2% increase in population, from 114,676 in 2002 to 126,330 in 2006.

Kilcoole recorded one of the biggest population increases in the state. The village population has increased from 4,066 to 6,856 which represents an increase of 68.6% over the 2002 figures.

Nationally, the preliminary figures show that the State’s population has increased to just over 4.2 million. This is the highest level since 1861 and represents an increase of more than 300,000 compared with 2002.

The figures show that in the last decade, the Republic’s population has grown at an annual average rate of 1.6%, which is the highest rate in the EU.

A full report is available for download from the CSO website http://www.cso.ie