Whenever a Census of Population and Housing is undertaken, questions invariably arise about the completeness and accuracy of the Census count. While every effort is made to eliminate the potential causes of error, some undercount and overcount will occur in such a large operation. In Australia, estimates of net undercount in the Census are based on the results of the Census Post Enumeration Survey (PES).

Australia has a long history of conducting a PES after each Census, with a number of key innovations being introduced in recent surveys.

This paper highlights some of the key changes to the Australian PES, plans for the 2011 survey, and outlines how the Australian Bureau of Statistics uses results from the PES in the rebasing of the Australian Estimated Resident Population.

Keywords: Post-enumeration; Undercount; Census; Survey

Biography: Dr Jill Charker is the Branch Head of the Labour and Demography Statistics program at the Australian Bureau of Statistics. In this role, she has responsibility for key ABS household and business survey collections in labour market statistics, ABS' demographic statistics outputs, and the conduct of the five-yearly Post-Enumeration Survey following the Australian Population Census. Jill's academic background is in psychology and statistics, and she brings experience working in both State and Commonwealth official statistical agencies.