3.1 Human capital
Observations
The UK’s human capital stock was £21.4 trillion in 2018, equivalent to around 10 times the size of UK gross domestic product. There was an annual increase of 0.2% in 2018 in real terms resulting from an increase in the the population size and educational attainment of those who were economically active. The human capital stock is highest in London and the South East where earnings (and the cost of living which erodes earning potential) are higher.
Indicator 3.1.1 – Human capital
Measured in monetary terms, human capital estimates are constructed by summing, for every age-gender-highest qualification obtained combination, the discounted earnings labour income the rest of their working life will generate.
Assumptions are made on the labour productivity growth rate, discount rate, probability of achieving a higher qualification, mortality rate and retirement age. Metric 3.1.1a is in constant 2015 prices. Metric 3.1.b shows the regional stock across the UK for 2017 in current prices.
Metric 3.1.1a – Real full and employed human capital stock, UK by gender, 2004-2018 (£ trillion)
Source: ONS
Metric 3.1.1b — Real full human capital stock, UK by region, 2018 (2015 prices £ trillion)
Source: ONS
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