Photo: Mike Searle · CC BY-SA 2.0Shared households of unrelated adults: 1.5%, a lower share than 93% of UK towns
96% of residents describe themselves as White British, against 73% across England’s towns. Fewer residents aged 15 to 24 than in 88% of UK towns: 8.4%. Crossways had 2,494 residents in 1,091 households at the 2021 Census. Here, 46% of households live in a detached house.
A median age of 49: Crossways is older than 80% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
55–59 is the most common age band: 7.9% of residents. On residents aged 65 and over, Crossways sits higher than 80% of UK towns: 27%. In Ashley Heath, the oldest of Dorset’s towns by this measure, it is 42%.
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.
Crossways ranks below 98% of UK towns on full-time students: 3.1%
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%.
Residents who moved in within the year make up 7.3%, against 11% across England’s towns. To put it in context, 7.9% of adults are full-time students across England’s towns.
A smaller share of households with dependent children than 79% of UK towns: 24%
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Dorset’s towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
In Crossways, 27% of households are one person living alone, beside 30% across England’s towns. Against that, 29% of households have dependent children across England’s towns. There are 2.3 people in the average household.
In Crossways, 11% of households have no car or van, fewer than in 77% 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
16% of households live in a terraced house, against 24% across England’s towns. The share of households in flats stands at 12%.
In Crossways, 99% of residents have English as their main language, more than in 88% of UK towns
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
5.6% of residents were born outside the UK, against 11% across Dorset’s towns and 18% across England’s towns. Across England’s towns, 90% of residents have English as their main language. Among residents born abroad, the largest groups were born in EU countries (3%) and in the Middle East and Asia (1.1%).
56% of residents describe themselves as Christian, more than in 83% 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: 96% of Crossways · Dorset’s towns 87% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
37% of residents said they have no religion across England’s towns, against 38% in Crossways. Behind White British, the largest groups are Other White (2%), Mixed or multiple (0.9%) and Chinese (0.2%). Set beside that, 46% of residents describe themselves as Christian across England’s towns.
In Crossways, 25% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership, fewer than in 92% 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
The share of married adults and civil partners tops 89% of UK towns: 55%. Across England’s towns, the share of adults who have never married is 39%. Unpaid care takes 50 hours a week or more for 61 people. On unpaid carers, Crossways sits lower than 53% of UK towns: 9.3%.
27% of adults have a degree-level qualification
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Degree-level qualifications are held by 27% of Crossways’s adults, against 34% across England’s towns; 18% have no qualification (18%).
Around Crossways, 4 of 7 towns have a higher median age
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crossways | 2,494 | — | 49 | 27% | 24% |
| Puddletown | 1,193 | 3.6 mi | 51.1 | 28% | 25% |
| Wool | 5,044 | 4.5 mi | 37.6 | 17% | 33% |
| Dorchester | 21,358 | 5.1 mi | 48.7 | 28% | 23% |
| Milborne St Andrew | 1,090 | 6 mi | 52.7 | 28% | 21% |
| Bere Regis | 1,320 | 6.1 mi | 50.5 | 28% | 22% |
| Charminster | 1,732 | 6.2 mi | 49.7 | 28% | 26% |
| Charlton Down | 1,487 | 6.8 mi | 45.6 | 22% | 31% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- “Dorset’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in Dorset (or England), summed the same way as Crossways’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 Crossways’s residents
What is the population of Crossways?
The 2021 Census counted 2,494 people in Crossways’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Crossways?
The median age was 49 at the 2021 Census. 8.4% of residents were 15 to 24 and 27% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Crossways?
96% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 87% across Dorset’s towns. 5.6% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Crossways?
38% said they had no religion and 56% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.2% were Muslim and 5.3% didn’t answer.
Is Crossways good for families?
24% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Crossways’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.