Photo: Dave Kelly · CC BY-SA 2.0No religion: 54% of residents, a higher share than 97% of UK towns
Here nearly one in ten residents are aged 15 to 24, where the figure across England’s towns is 12%. St Erth had 1,128 residents in 484 households at the 2021 Census. In St Erth, 25% of households are one person living alone. 6.6% of households live in a flat or apartment, a lower share than in 74% of UK towns.
What the Census says about St Erth’s people
More with no religion than most
54% of residents answered “no religion” in 2021 and 39% Christian, against 37% and 46% across England’s towns. Ethnicity & religion ↓
Written from the data on this page: ONS Census 2021 (output areas summed to the 2022 built-up area).
Half of St Erth is over 46.4, older than 64% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
No age band is larger than 55–59: 7.9% of residents. More residents aged 65 and over than in 57% of UK towns: 23%. In Tywardreath, the oldest of Cornwall’s towns by this measure, it is 35%.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About 95 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
Residents who moved in within the year: 9.3%, a higher share than 61% of UK towns
What adults did at the 2021 Census (the ONS’s NS-SEC classes), and where residents lived a year earlier.
Adults by occupation class · residents 16 and over
Address a year before the Census
Residents who lived somewhere else a year earlier. The bar runs to 25%.
The share of full-time students is 4.7%, against 7.9% across England’s towns. The benchmark for residents who moved in within the year across England’s towns: 11%.
Shared households of unrelated adults make up 3.3% in St Erth, more than in 83% of UK towns
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Cornwall’s towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
The average household has 2.3 people, against 2.4 across England’s towns. To put it in context, 4.3% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home across England’s towns. In St Erth, 29% of households have dependent children.
Households in terraced houses: 39%, a higher share than 93% of UK towns
Accommodation type and cars or vans per household, Census 2021. Owning and renting are on Cost of living.
Type of home
Cars or vans · share of households
Compared with 21% across England’s towns, 23% of households live in a detached house here. Here, 13% of households have no car or van. As a reference point, nearly a quarter of households live in a terraced house across England’s towns.
St Erth sits above 98% of UK towns for residents whose main language is English (99%)
Country of birth, year of arrival and main language, Census 2021.
Born outside the UK, by region · share of all residents; the bar runs to 25%
Main language · residents aged 3 and over
Across England’s towns, the share of residents born outside the UK is 18%; St Erth has 3.6%. Residents whose main language is English: 90% across England’s towns, for comparison. The two biggest birthplaces abroad are in EU countries (1.8%) and in the Middle East and Asia (0.8%).
Below 94% of UK towns: 39% of residents describe themselves as Christian
How residents described themselves at the 2021 Census. Lines join the lowest and highest of the three figures.
Ethnic groups other than White British · all residents
White British, not charted: 93% of St Erth · Cornwall’s towns 93% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
93% of residents describe themselves as White British; across England’s towns the figure is 73%. For residents who describe themselves as Christian, the comparison across England’s towns is 46%. Leading the other groups after White British: Other White (2.8%), Mixed or multiple (1.2%) and African (0.2%).
10% of residents give unpaid care, more than in 70% of UK towns
Legal partnership status (residents 16 and over) and unpaid care (residents 5 and over), Census 2021.
Partnership status · residents 16 and over
Unpaid care given · share of residents 5 and over
The share of married adults and civil partners is 47%, against 44% across England’s towns. Unpaid carers: 8.7% across England’s towns, for comparison. For 36 residents, unpaid care runs to 50 hours or more a week. On adults who have never married, St Erth sits higher than 51% of UK towns: 32%.
Adults qualified to degree level or above: 31%
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
At degree level, St Erth counts 31% of its adults, against 34% across England’s towns; at the other end, 14% have no qualification (18%).
Nearby, 5 of 7 towns have older populations than St Erth
Nearby built-up areas coloured by median age, Census 2021. Tap a town for its page.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Homes with children |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St Erth | 1,128 | — | 46.4 | 23% | 29% |
| Hayle | 9,040 | 1.8 mi | 45.7 | 24% | 26% |
| Crowlas | 1,054 | 2.5 mi | 49.7 | 28% | 24% |
| Carbis Bay | 3,967 | 2.7 mi | 53.3 | 32% | 21% |
| Goldsithney | 1,346 | 2.8 mi | 47 | 26% | 27% |
| Marazion | 1,350 | 3.3 mi | 52 | 31% | 20% |
| Reawla | 1,117 | 3.4 mi | 45.1 | 20% | 28% |
| Connor Downs | 1,482 | 3.7 mi | 46.6 | 26% | 30% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- “Cornwall’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in Cornwall (or England), summed the same way as St Erth’s figures, so households in open countryside are left out.
- Small counts are blurred. The ONS adds small random changes to Census counts to protect privacy, so the same total differs a little between tables, and the shares of a small town can move by a point or two.
Questions about St Erth’s residents
What is the population of St Erth?
The 2021 Census counted 1,128 people in St Erth’s built-up area.
What is the average age in St Erth?
The median age was 46.4 at the 2021 Census. 8.3% of residents were 15 to 24 and 23% were 65 or over.
How diverse is St Erth?
93% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 93% across Cornwall’s towns. 3.6% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in St Erth?
54% said they had no religion and 39% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.1% were Muslim and 5.9% didn’t answer.
Is St Erth good for families?
29% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on St Erth’s schools page.
Sources: ONS Census 2021, output areas summed to the ONS 2022 built-up area (TS002, TS003, TS004, TS007A, TS008, TS015, TS017, TS019, TS021, TS029, TS030, TS039, TS044, TS045, TS062, TS067). All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.