Photo: Eugene Birchall · CC BY-SA 2.0Half of Dunkeswell is over 52.3, older than 93% of UK towns
Across England’s towns, 23% of households live in a flat or apartment; in Dunkeswell, 2.2%. For Dunkeswell, the census puts households with dependent children at 21%. The village has fewer adults who have never married than 88% of UK towns, at 26%. At the 2021 Census, 1,835 people lived here, in 835 households.
What the Census says about Dunkeswell’s people
Older than most towns
Half of Dunkeswell’s residents are under 52.3 and half over, against 44.4 in the typical UK town. 29% 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).
In Dunkeswell, 6.1% of residents are aged 15 to 24, fewer than in 99% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
Compared with 18% across England’s towns, 29% of residents are 65 or over here. For comparison, 12% of residents are aged 15 to 24 across England’s towns.
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.
A lower share of full-time students than 99% of UK towns, at 2.8%
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%.
7.5% of residents lived at another address a year earlier, against 11% across England’s towns. By way of comparison, 7.9% of adults are full-time students across England’s towns.
Smaller households than 85% of UK towns: 2.2 people on average
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.
The share of one-person households is 34%, against 30% across England’s towns. The census found that 2.5% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home in Dunkeswell.
Dunkeswell ranks below 80% of UK towns on households without a car or van: 10%
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
Households in detached houses: 35%, above 65% of UK towns. For Dunkeswell, the census puts households in terraced houses at 18%. Against that, nearly a quarter of households have no car or van across England’s towns.
Above 87% 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%
When those born abroad arrived
Main language · residents aged 3 and over
By its share of residents born outside the UK (5.7%), Dunkeswell is below 57% of UK towns. As a reference point, 90% of residents have English as their main language across England’s towns. Among residents born abroad, the largest groups were born in EU countries (2.5%) and in Africa (1.6%).
Residents who describe themselves as White British: 95%, a higher share than 76% 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: 95% of Dunkeswell · Devon’s towns 91% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
With residents with no religion at 40%, Dunkeswell is behind 55% of UK towns on that count. As a yardstick, 73% of residents describe themselves as White British across England’s towns. Across Dunkeswell, 52% of residents describe themselves as Christian.
A larger share of unpaid carers than 85% of UK towns: 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
The number giving 50 or more hours of unpaid care a week is 50. Unpaid carers: 8.7% across England’s towns, for comparison. On married adults and civil partners, Dunkeswell sits higher than 69% of UK towns: 51%.
Degree level: the highest qualification of 24% of adults
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Degree-level qualifications are held by 24% of adults in Dunkeswell (England’s towns: 34%), and no qualification by 21% (England’s towns: 18%).
Dunkeswell is older than every town around it
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dunkeswell | 1,835 | — | 52.3 | 29% | 21% |
| Hemyock | 1,674 | 4.1 mi | 46.6 | 24% | 28% |
| Honiton | 12,155 | 4.3 mi | 49.8 | 29% | 21% |
| Feniton | 1,725 | 5.3 mi | 43.8 | 22% | 30% |
| Uffculme | 2,041 | 5.9 mi | 46.2 | 25% | 28% |
| Willand | 3,477 | 6.9 mi | 46.1 | 23% | 26% |
| Cullompton | 8,895 | 7.5 mi | 41.4 | 19% | 28% |
| Ottery St Mary | 6,043 | 7.6 mi | 46.3 | 25% | 29% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- “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 Dunkeswell’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 Dunkeswell’s residents
What is the population of Dunkeswell?
The 2021 Census counted 1,835 people in Dunkeswell’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Dunkeswell?
The median age was 52.3 at the 2021 Census. 6.1% of residents were 15 to 24 and 29% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Dunkeswell?
95% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 91% across Devon’s towns. 5.7% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Dunkeswell?
40% said they had no religion and 52% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.3% were Muslim and 6.3% didn’t answer.
Is Dunkeswell good for families?
21% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Dunkeswell’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.