Photo: Robert Graham · CC BY-SA 2.0Older than 97% of UK towns: half of Frosterley is over 55
The figure for one-person households is 42% in Frosterley and 30% across England’s towns. The village had 574 residents in 302 households at the 2021 Census. The share of households in terraced houses stands at 47%. 0.3% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home, a lower share than in 99% of UK towns.
Residents aged 15 to 24: 6.4%, a lower share than 99% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
More residents are 70–74 than any other five-year age: 10% of residents, 2.2 times the share across England’s towns. Elsewhere, 12% of residents are aged 15 to 24 across England’s towns. The share of residents aged 65 and over stands at 34%.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
6% of residents lived at another address a year earlier, below 97% 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%.
Full-time students make up 4.1% of adults, against 7.9% across England’s towns. For comparison, 11% of residents lived at another address a year earlier across England’s towns.
Frosterley ranks below 98% of UK towns on households with dependent children: 17%
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.
At 1.9 people, the average household compares with 2.4 across England’s towns. Measured more widely, 29% of households have dependent children across England’s towns.
2% of households live in a flat or apartment, below 97% 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
The share of households without a car or van is 19%, against 24% across England’s towns. For households in flats, the comparison across England’s towns is 23%. Households in detached houses are rarer here than in 76% of UK towns.
1.7% born outside the UK, fewer than in 99% of UK towns
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
The two biggest birthplaces abroad are in EU countries (1.2%) and in the Middle East and Asia (0.4%). For residents born outside the UK, the comparison across England’s towns is 18%. Residents whose main language is English are more common here than in 98% of UK towns.
Frosterley sits above 99% of UK towns for residents who describe themselves as White British (98%)
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: 98% of Frosterley · County Durham’s towns 93% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
Across England’s towns, the share of residents who describe themselves as Christian is 46%; Frosterley has 63%. On average, 73% of residents describe themselves as White British across England’s towns. In Frosterley, 33% of residents said they have no religion.
In Frosterley, 12% of residents give unpaid care, more than in 97% 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
Heavy unpaid care, 50 hours a week or more, falls to 16 residents. As a reference point, 8.7% of residents give unpaid care across England’s towns. Fewer adults who have never married than in 78% of UK towns: 28%. Across England’s towns, 44% of adults are married or in a civil partnership; in Frosterley, 49%.
Degree-level qualifications: 28% of adults
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Degree-level qualifications cover 28% of adults in Frosterley, 34% across England’s towns; 23% have no qualification, against 18%.
Every nearby town is younger than Frosterley
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frosterley | 574 | — | 55 | 34% | 17% |
| Stanhope | 1,575 | 2.2 mi | 53.9 | 32% | 20% |
| Wolsingham | 2,428 | 3.3 mi | 52.1 | 30% | 23% |
| Tow Law | 1,796 | 6 mi | 44.4 | 22% | 26% |
| Castleside | 1,532 | 8.2 mi | 50.3 | 27% | 24% |
| Crook | 9,717 | 8.6 mi | 44.3 | 21% | 27% |
| Billy Row | 1,254 | 8.7 mi | 39.6 | 15% | 29% |
| Consett | 29,874 | 9.9 mi | 42.7 | 19% | 28% |
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 Frosterley’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 Frosterley’s residents
What is the population of Frosterley?
The 2021 Census counted 574 people in Frosterley’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Frosterley?
The median age was 55 at the 2021 Census. 6.4% of residents were 15 to 24 and 34% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Frosterley?
98% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 93% across County Durham’s towns. 1.7% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Frosterley?
33% said they had no religion and 63% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.5% were Muslim and 2.8% didn’t answer.
Is Frosterley good for families?
17% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Frosterley’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.