Photo: Robert Graham · CC BY-SA 2.051% of households live in a terraced house, more than in 98% of UK towns
73% of residents describe themselves as White British across England’s towns, against 97% in Tow Law. By contrast, the village has fewer households in detached houses than 87% of UK towns, at 14%. The 2021 Census counted 1,796 residents in 809 households. For Tow Law, the census puts married adults and civil partners at 37%.
A young village: 11% of residents are 15 to 24
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
No age band is larger than 50–54: nearly one in ten residents, 1.3 times the share across England’s towns. The share of residents aged 65 and over stands at 22%. Half of Tow Law’s residents are under 44.4, younger than in 51% of UK towns. Elsewhere, 12% of residents are aged 15 to 24 across England’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
About 92 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
Below 92% of UK towns: 6.5% of residents lived at another address a year earlier
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%.
With full-time students at 5.5%, Tow Law is ahead of 75% of UK towns on that count. By way of comparison, 11% of residents lived at another address a year earlier across England’s towns.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in term time, so students were counted at their term addresses.
34% of households are one person living alone, a share 82% of UK towns don’t reach
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.
The typical household size is 2.2 people, against 2.4 across England’s towns. Against that, 30% of households are one person living alone across England’s towns. Census figures put households with dependent children at 26% in Tow Law.
Fewer flats than 78% of UK towns: 6% of households
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
By its share of households without a car or van (23%), Tow Law is above just over four fifths of UK towns.
Only 2% of residents were born outside the UK in Tow Law
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 figure for residents whose main language is English is 99% in Tow Law and 90% across England’s towns. The wider picture: 18% of residents were born outside the UK across England’s towns. The two biggest birthplaces abroad are in the Middle East and Asia (0.8%) and in EU countries (0.7%).
In Tow Law, 58% of residents describe themselves as Christian, more than in 91% 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: 97% of Tow Law · County Durham’s towns 93% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
Residents with no religion: 37%, near enough the figure across England’s towns. The benchmark for residents who describe themselves as Christian across England’s towns: 46%.
Unpaid carers make up 11% in Tow Law, more than in 86% 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
Adults who have never married: 40% here and 39% across England’s towns. Measured more widely, nearly one in ten residents give unpaid care across England’s towns. Unpaid carers giving 50 hours or more a week: 81.
22% of adults have qualifications at degree level
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Across England’s towns, 34% of adults have a degree-level qualification; in Tow Law, 22%, and 25% have none, against 18%.
Tow Law is younger than 5 of its 7 nearest neighbours
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tow Law | 1,796 | — | 44.4 | 22% | 26% |
| Wolsingham | 2,428 | 2.8 mi | 52.1 | 30% | 23% |
| Billy Row | 1,254 | 2.9 mi | 39.6 | 15% | 29% |
| Crook | 9,717 | 3.6 mi | 44.3 | 21% | 27% |
| Esh Winning | 3,877 | 4.5 mi | 45.4 | 22% | 25% |
| Willington | 5,685 | 5.5 mi | 44.7 | 22% | 27% |
| Lanchester | 3,510 | 6 mi | 52.2 | 32% | 23% |
| Langley Park | 4,031 | 6.6 mi | 45.4 | 20% | 25% |
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 Tow Law’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 Tow Law’s residents
What is the population of Tow Law?
The 2021 Census counted 1,796 people in Tow Law’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Tow Law?
The median age was 44.4 at the 2021 Census. 11% of residents were 15 to 24 and 22% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Tow Law?
97% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 93% across County Durham’s towns. 2% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Tow Law?
37% said they had no religion and 58% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.2% were Muslim and 3.7% didn’t answer.
Is Tow Law good for families?
26% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Tow Law’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.