Photo: Totnesmartin · Public domainDartington is older than 96% of UK towns: a median age of 54.6
Households in Dartington hold 2.1 people on average (England’s towns: 2.4). The census found that 40% of residents describe themselves as Christian here. At 45%, the share of households in detached houses is higher than in 85% of UK towns. The village counted 924 residents and 422 households at the 2021 Census.
In Dartington, 33% of residents are 65 or over, more than in 96% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
70–74 is the most common age band: 9.9% of residents, 2.1 times the share across England’s towns. Residents aged 15 to 24: 9.6% of the total. 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
56% women, 44% men
About 80 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.
Full-time students make up 5.6% in Dartington, more than in 77% 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, 33% of adults are in managerial and professional jobs and 24% in routine or semi-routine work; Dartington has 44% and 17%. The census found that 11% of residents lived at another address a year earlier here. Typically, 7.9% of adults are full-time students across England’s towns.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in term time, so students were counted at their term addresses.
36% of households are one person living alone, a share 89% of UK towns don’t reach
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Devon’s towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
Shared households of unrelated adults are about as common here as across England’s towns, at 5%. On the census count, 23% of households have dependent children. The share of one-person households across England’s towns is 30%.
A lower share of households without a car or van than 82% of UK towns, at 9.9%
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 in terraced houses (14%), Dartington is below 77% of UK towns. Typically, 24% of households have no car or van across England’s towns. The share of households in flats stands at 8.5%.
Above 77% 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
The largest groups were born in EU countries (3.5%) and in Africa (1.3%). Residents born outside the UK are more common here than in 60% of UK towns. By way of comparison, nine in ten residents have English as their main language across England’s towns.
More residents with no religion than 81% of UK towns: 46%
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: 93% of Dartington · Devon’s towns 91% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
Behind White British, the largest groups are Other White (4.9%), Mixed or multiple (1.5%) and Indian (0.2%). On average, 37% of residents said they have no religion across England’s towns. 93% of residents describe themselves as White British, a higher share than in 53% of UK towns.
A higher share of unpaid carers than 89% of UK towns, at 11%
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: 31% here and 39% across England’s towns. Fewer married adults and civil partners than in 82% of UK towns: 43%. Measured more widely, nearly one in ten residents give unpaid care across England’s towns. Heavy unpaid care, 50 hours a week or more, falls to 28 residents.
Adults qualified to degree level or above: 52%
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Degree-level qualifications are held by 52% of Dartington’s adults, against 34% across England’s towns; 11% have no qualification (18%).
No nearby town is as old as Dartington
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dartington | 924 | — | 54.6 | 33% | 23% |
| Totnes | 9,217 | 1.3 mi | 49.7 | 27% | 23% |
| Buckfastleigh | 2,720 | 4.1 mi | 45.5 | 22% | 28% |
| Ipplepen | 2,150 | 4.3 mi | 54.4 | 34% | 21% |
| Stoke Gabriel | 1,340 | 4.5 mi | 53.7 | 32% | 23% |
| Denbury | 1,482 | 5 mi | 42.5 | 19% | 27% |
| Marldon | 2,073 | 5.1 mi | 54 | 31% | 24% |
| South Brent | 2,643 | 5.5 mi | 53.2 | 31% | 22% |
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.
- “Devon’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in Devon (or England), summed the same way as Dartington’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 Dartington’s residents
What is the population of Dartington?
The 2021 Census counted 924 people in Dartington’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Dartington?
The median age was 54.6 at the 2021 Census. 9.6% of residents were 15 to 24 and 33% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Dartington?
93% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 91% across Devon’s towns. 7.5% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Dartington?
46% said they had no religion and 40% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.1% were Muslim and 9.3% didn’t answer.
Is Dartington good for families?
23% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Dartington’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.