Photo: Derek Harper · CC BY-SA 2.0Holcombe is older than 99% of UK towns: a median age of 63.4
Against a figure of 23% across England’s towns, the share of households in flats in Holcombe comes in at 3.9%. In Holcombe, 79% of households live in a detached house. More residents who describe themselves as White British than in 98% of UK towns: 97%. Its 317 households held 642 residents at the 2021 Census.
46% of residents are 65 or over, more than in 99% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
Just over one in ten residents are aged 15 to 24 across England’s towns, against 4.8% in Holcombe. The wider picture: 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 90 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.
A smaller share of full-time students than 99% of UK towns: 3%
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 residents who moved in within the year at 16%, Holcombe is ahead of 97% of UK towns on that count. For comparison, 7.9% of adults are full-time students across England’s towns.
10% of households have dependent children, below 99% of UK towns
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.
2.8% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home; across England’s towns the figure is 4.3%. For comparison, 29% of households have dependent children across England’s towns. In Holcombe, 24% of households are one person living alone.
2.9% of households live in a terraced house, below 99% 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
The figure for households without a car or van is 6.1% in Holcombe and 24% across England’s towns.
Above 97% 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
By birthplace, the largest groups from abroad were born in EU countries (2%) and in the Middle East and Asia (0.6%). On residents born outside the UK, Holcombe sits lower than 87% of UK towns: 3.3%. Across England’s towns, the share of residents whose main language is English is 90%.
Holcombe: 61% of residents describe themselves as Christian, above 96% 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 Holcombe · Devon’s towns 91% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
Residents with no religion: 32%, below 90% of UK towns. Across England’s towns, residents who describe themselves as Christian come to 46%.
Only 17% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership in Holcombe
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
Just over one in ten residents give unpaid care; across England’s towns the figure is 8.7%. Few places have as many married adults and civil partners: 63% here, more than in 99% of UK towns. The comparison figure for adults who have never married is 39% across England’s towns.
The share of adults with a degree-level qualification: 43%
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
In Holcombe, 43% of adults hold a degree-level qualification, against 34% across England’s towns, while 12% have no qualification at all (18%).
The towns around Holcombe 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Holcombe | 642 | — | 63.4 | 46% | 10% |
| Teignmouth | 15,314 | 1.3 mi | 51.8 | 30% | 21% |
| Dawlish | 11,800 | 1.4 mi | 52 | 30% | 20% |
| Shaldon | 1,717 | 2.4 mi | 60.7 | 42% | 16% |
| Dawlish Warren | 1,191 | 2.6 mi | 58 | 36% | 17% |
| Bishopsteignton | 2,271 | 3 mi | 62 | 45% | 16% |
| Starcross | 1,687 | 4.3 mi | 49.9 | 26% | 21% |
| Kingsteignton | 11,945 | 5.1 mi | 45.2 | 22% | 27% |
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 Holcombe’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 Holcombe’s residents
What is the population of Holcombe?
The 2021 Census counted 642 people in Holcombe’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Holcombe?
The median age was 63.4 at the 2021 Census. 4.8% of residents were 15 to 24 and 46% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Holcombe?
97% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 91% across Devon’s towns. 3.3% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Holcombe?
32% said they had no religion and 61% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0% were Muslim and 6.1% didn’t answer.
Is Holcombe good for families?
10% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Holcombe’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.