Photo: Ian S · CC BY-SA 2.0Below 99% of UK towns: 0.9% of households live in a flat or apartment
30% of households are one person living alone across England’s towns, against 35% in Chilton. At the 2021 Census, 4,693 people lived locally, in 2,195 households. The share of households in terraced houses stands at 31%. Compared with other places, residents who describe themselves as White British are common here: 97%, more than in 98% of UK towns.
What the Census says about Chilton’s people
Growing faster than most
ONS mid-year estimates put Chilton at 4,000 in 2011 and 5,000 in 2024, up 26%, against 10% for England: faster growth than in 92% of UK towns. Since 2011 ↓
Written from the data on this page: ONS Census 2021 (output areas summed to the 2022 built-up area) and ONS mid-year population estimates.
A +26% change since 2011: faster than 92% of UK towns
ONS mid-year estimates, each year indexed to mid-2011 = 100. Chilton’s figure is the small areas (2021 LSOAs) that make up the town.
People, mid-2011 = 100
Change by age, 2011 to 2024
About 4,000 people in 2011; 5,000 in 2024.
The 16 to 29 group saw the biggest change (+44%), the 0 to 15 group the smallest (+10%). No year added more people than mid-2020 to mid-2021: 230.
Younger than 66% of UK towns: half of Chilton is under 42.5
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
Residents aged 65 and over make up 19%, against 18% across England’s towns. Here, 11% of residents are aged 15 to 24.
Median age of UK towns of 2,500+
■ Chilton, 42.5. The typical town is 44.4.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About 96 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
Residents who moved in within the year: 9.6%, a higher share than 68% 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%.
Across England’s towns, a third of adults are in managerial and professional jobs and 24% in routine work; in Chilton, 23% and 35%. To put it in context, just over one in ten residents lived at another address a year earlier across England’s towns. Locally, 4.9% of adults are full-time students.
Households here average 2.1 people, below 89% of UK towns
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against County Durham’s towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
25% of households have dependent children, against 29% across England’s towns. Lower than in 62% of UK towns: 2.1% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home.
A larger share of households without a car or van than 79% of UK towns: 22%
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
Nothing unusual on households in detached houses: 21%, close to the figure across England’s towns. The wider picture: nearly a quarter of households have no car or van across England’s towns.
Fewer residents born abroad than 92% of UK towns: 2.9%
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%
When those born abroad arrived
Main language · residents aged 3 and over
The largest groups were born in EU countries (1.4%) and in the Middle East and Asia (0.5%). Across England’s towns, 18% of residents were born outside the UK. Chilton has more residents whose main language is English than 89% of UK towns, at 99%. Since 2017: a tenth of those born abroad, against 21% across England’s towns.
A higher share of residents who describe themselves as Christian than 62% of UK towns, at 52%
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: 97% of Chilton · County Durham’s towns 93% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
41% of residents said they have no religion; across England’s towns the figure is 37%. Across the comparison, 46% of residents describe themselves as Christian across England’s towns.
A larger share of adults who have never married than 77% of UK towns: 37%
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
43% of adults are married or in a civil partnership, against 44% across England’s towns. The comparison figure for adults who have never married is 39% across England’s towns. Unpaid carers account for 10%.
Adults qualified to degree level or above: 24%
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
In Chilton, 24% of adults hold a degree-level qualification, against 34% across England’s towns, while 22% have no qualification at all (18%).
Among 695 UK towns of 3,000 to 6,000 people, the 151st youngest
Median age, Census 2021. Hover a dot for its students and residents born abroad; click for its page.
Ages run from 18.9 in Bailrigg to 64.7 in Sutton on Sea and Trusthorpe. Nearest to Chilton in age: Nantyglo (42.3), Shenley (42.4), Warboys (42.5) and Steeton (42.6).
5 in 7 nearby towns have a higher median age than Chilton
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chilton | 4,693 | — | 42.5 | 19% | 25% |
| Ferryhill | 8,857 | 1.8 mi | 46.9 | 24% | 21% |
| Newton Aycliffe | 25,760 | 2.7 mi | 44 | 21% | 27% |
| Coundon and Leeholme | 2,522 | 2.9 mi | 41.1 | 20% | 27% |
| Bishop Middleham | 1,136 | 3.1 mi | 49 | 24% | 24% |
| Cornforth | 2,424 | 3.3 mi | 47.9 | 25% | 20% |
| Spennymoor | 20,401 | 3.3 mi | 42.1 | 20% | 27% |
| Shildon | 9,650 | 4.1 mi | 42.9 | 20% | 24% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- “County Durham’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in County Durham (or England), summed the same way as Chilton’s figures, so households in open countryside are left out. The population trend compares with the whole county and nation.
- Estimates since 2021 are modelled. The ONS builds mid-year estimates from the Census, births, deaths and migration records. Chilton’s trend uses the small areas (2021 LSOAs) with most of their people inside it: 4,693 people in 2021, against 4,693 in the built-up area.
- 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 Chilton’s residents
What is the population of Chilton?
The 2021 Census counted 4,693 people in Chilton’s built-up area. The ONS estimates the same small areas held 5,000 people in mid-2024, 26% more than in 2011.
What is the average age in Chilton?
The median age was 42.5 at the 2021 Census, younger than 66% of UK towns. 11% of residents were 15 to 24 and 19% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Chilton?
97% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 93% across County Durham’s towns. 2.9% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Chilton?
41% said they had no religion and 52% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.2% were Muslim and 5.5% didn’t answer.
Is Chilton good for families?
25% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Chilton’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) · ONS mid-year population estimates for 2021 LSOAs, mid-2011 to mid-2024. 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.