Photo: Warofdreams · CC BY 2.5Households in terraced houses: 50%, a higher share than 98% of UK towns
The figure for residents who describe themselves as White British is 97% in Rowsley and 73% across England’s towns. The village is home to 267 residents in 117 households, by the 2021 Census. On the census count, 32% of households have dependent children. Compared with other places, households in flats are scarce here: 4.3%, fewer than in 86% of UK towns.
More residents aged 15 to 24 than 95% of UK towns: 13%
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
Here 17% of residents are 65 or over, where the figure across England’s towns is 18%. With a median age of 45.8, Rowsley is older than 60% of UK towns. The wider picture: 12% of residents are aged 15 to 24 across England’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
55% women, 45% men
About 83 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
A higher share of full-time students than 84% of UK towns, at 6%
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%.
Managerial and professional jobs account for 29% of Rowsley’s adults, routine and semi-routine work for 31%, against 33% and 24% across England’s towns. Against that, 7.9% of adults are full-time students across England’s towns. Census figures put residents who moved in within the year at 9.5% locally.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in term time, so students were counted at their term addresses.
1.7% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home, below 84% of UK towns
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Derbyshire’s towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
One-person households make up 28%, against 30% across England’s towns. Households average 2.3 people. Measured more widely, 4.3% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home across England’s towns.
More car-free households than 64% of UK towns: 18% in Rowsley
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 figure for households in detached houses is 20% in Rowsley and 21% across England’s towns. Across England’s towns, households without a car or van come to 24%.
A lower share of residents born outside the UK than 99% of UK towns, at 1.5%
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
100% of residents have English as their main language; across England’s towns the figure is 90%. Residents born outside the UK make up 18% across England’s towns.
Above 78% of UK towns: 45% of residents said they have no religion
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 Rowsley · Derbyshire’s towns 86% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
Residents who describe themselves as Christian make up 44%, against 46% across England’s towns. Measured more widely, 37% of residents said they have no religion across England’s towns.
A higher share of adults who have never married than 63% of UK towns, at 34%
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 number giving 50 or more hours of unpaid care a week is 8. Fewer married adults and civil partners than in 81% of UK towns: 43%. For adults who have never married, the comparison across England’s towns is 39%. The share of unpaid carers tops nearly two thirds of UK towns: 10%.
31% of adults have qualifications at degree level
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Degree-level qualifications cover 31% of adults in Rowsley, 34% across England’s towns; 15% have no qualification, against 18%.
Every neighbour of Rowsley has an older population
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rowsley | 267 | — | 45.8 | 17% | 32% |
| Darley Dale | 3,985 | 1.9 mi | 53.1 | 33% | 21% |
| Bakewell | 3,275 | 3 mi | 58.2 | 38% | 17% |
| Baslow | 1,172 | 3.9 mi | 56.8 | 36% | 21% |
| Matlock | 11,990 | 4.4 mi | 49.4 | 26% | 23% |
| Calver | 1,073 | 5.2 mi | 56.3 | 34% | 19% |
| Holymoorside | 1,363 | 5.3 mi | 55.5 | 33% | 20% |
| Tansley | 1,176 | 5.5 mi | 54.8 | 32% | 20% |
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.
- “Derbyshire’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in Derbyshire (or England), summed the same way as Rowsley’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 Rowsley’s residents
What is the population of Rowsley?
The 2021 Census counted 267 people in Rowsley’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Rowsley?
The median age was 45.8 at the 2021 Census. 13% of residents were 15 to 24 and 17% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Rowsley?
97% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 86% across Derbyshire’s towns. 1.5% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Rowsley?
45% said they had no religion and 44% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0% were Muslim and 10% didn’t answer.
Is Rowsley good for families?
32% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Rowsley’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.