Photo: peter robinson · CC BY-SA 2.0Half of Gainford is over 53.5, older than 94% of UK towns
Shared households of unrelated adults: 1% here and 4.3% across England’s towns. On residents who describe themselves as Christian, Gainford sits higher than 95% of UK towns: 61%. The village had 1,127 residents in 524 households at the 2021 Census. Here, 3% of households live in a flat or apartment.
What the Census says about Gainford’s people
Older than most towns
Half of Gainford’s residents are under 53.5 and half over, against 44.4 in the typical UK town. 31% are 65 or over, against 18% across England’s towns. Ages ↓
Written from the data on this page: ONS Census 2021 (output areas summed to the 2022 built-up area).
Gainford ranks above 92% of UK towns on residents aged 65 and over: 31%
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
By its share of residents aged 15 to 24 (8.1%), Gainford is below 91% of UK towns. As a reference point, 18% of residents are 65 or over across England’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
53% women, 47% men
About 89 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
Gainford ranks above 83% of UK towns on full-time students: 5.9%
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%.
By class, 39% of adults are in managerial and professional jobs and 20% in routine and semi-routine work (England’s towns: 33% and 24%). 7.8% of residents had moved in within the year before the Census, fewer than the 11% across England’s towns. Across England’s towns, 7.9% of adults are full-time students.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in term time, so students were counted at their term addresses.
Fewer families than 80% of UK towns: 24% of households have children
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.
Across England’s towns, households average 2.4 people; in Gainford, 2.2. The wider picture: 29% of households have dependent children across England’s towns. Census figures put one-person households at 33% locally.
35% of households live in a terraced house, more than in 90% 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
Set against 24% across England’s towns, 11% of households have no car or van in Gainford. Households in detached houses: 29% of the total.
Above 98% of UK towns: 99% of residents have English as their main language
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
In Gainford, 3.6% of residents were born outside the UK, beside 18% across England’s towns. Residents whose main language is English: 90% across England’s towns, for comparison. Most residents from abroad were born in EU countries (1.1%) or in the Middle East and Asia (0.9%).
34% of residents said they have no religion, fewer than in 86% of UK towns
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: 96% of Gainford · County Durham’s towns 93% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
Residents who describe themselves as White British make up 96%, against 73% across England’s towns. The wider picture: 37% of residents said they have no religion across England’s towns. Other than White British, most residents describe themselves as Mixed or multiple (1.3%), Other White (1.2%) and African (0.4%).
A smaller share of adults who have never married than 80% of UK towns: 28%
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
Unpaid carers make up just over one in ten residents, against 8.7% across England’s towns. Across England’s towns, the share of adults who have never married is 39%. Census figures put married adults and civil partners at 52% in Gainford.
Adults qualified to degree level or above: 38%
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Across England’s towns, 18% of adults have no qualification; in Gainford, 17%, while 38% hold one at degree level (34%).
The towns around Gainford are all younger
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gainford | 1,127 | — | 53.5 | 31% | 24% |
| Staindrop | 1,339 | 3.6 mi | 51.8 | 29% | 22% |
| Evenwood | 1,587 | 5.2 mi | 46.5 | 23% | 23% |
| Cockfield | 1,351 | 5.3 mi | 51.2 | 27% | 21% |
| Heighington | 1,548 | 5.7 mi | 50 | 28% | 26% |
| West Auckland | 3,107 | 5.7 mi | 45.9 | 23% | 27% |
| Shildon | 9,650 | 6.8 mi | 42.9 | 20% | 24% |
| School Aycliffe | 1,590 | 6.8 mi | 45.2 | 20% | 34% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- The Census was taken in a lockdown, in term time. 21 March 2021 fell in term time, and students were asked to give their term-time address, so most were counted where they study. Some may have been living with family that day.
- “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 Gainford’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 Gainford’s residents
What is the population of Gainford?
The 2021 Census counted 1,127 people in Gainford’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Gainford?
The median age was 53.5 at the 2021 Census. 8.1% of residents were 15 to 24 and 31% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Gainford?
96% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 93% across County Durham’s towns. 3.6% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Gainford?
34% said they had no religion and 61% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0% were Muslim and 4% didn’t answer.
Is Gainford good for families?
24% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Gainford’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.