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59.9Median age

Who lives here · ONS Census 2021 & mid-year estimates

Lyme Regis is older than 99% of UK towns: a median age of 59.9

Here 16% of households have dependent children, where the figure across England’s towns is 29%. There were 1,831 households in Lyme Regis at the 2021 Census, home to 3,741 residents. Census figures put shared households of unrelated adults at 1.6% here. This Dorset town has more households in detached houses than four fifths of UK towns, at 42%.

−3%people since 2011 40%aged 65 or over 6.1%born abroad 1,831households

What stands out · In brief

What the Census says about Lyme Regis’s people

59.9median age, older than 99% of UK towns −3%people, mid-2011 to mid-2024; England +10%

Older than most towns

Half of Lyme Regis’s residents are under 59.9 and half over, against 44.4 in the typical UK town. 40% are 65 or over, against 18% across England’s towns. Ages ↓

Fewer people than in 2011

ONS mid-year estimates put Lyme Regis at 3,700 in 2011 and 3,600 in 2024, down 3%, against 10% for England: slower growth than in 93% of UK towns. Since 2011 ↓

Written from the data on this page: ONS Census 2021 (output areas summed to the 2022 built-up area) and ONS mid-year population estimates.

Population since 2011

−3% since 2011, a pace below 93% of UK towns

ONS mid-year estimates, each year indexed to mid-2011 = 100. Lyme Regis’s figure is the small areas (2021 LSOAs) that make up the town.

People, mid-2011 = 100

Lyme RegisEnglandAll of Dorset

Change by age, 2011 to 2024

Lyme RegisEngland

0 to 15−20%

16 to 29−4%

30 to 44−18%

45 to 64−13%

65 and over+19%

About 3,700 people in 2011; 3,600 in 2024.

The 65 and over age group changed most (+19%) and the 0 to 15 least (−20%).

Ages

40% of Lyme Regis is 65 or over, a higher share than 99% of UK towns

Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.

Lyme RegisEngland’s towns

0–410–1420–2430–3440–4450–5460–6470–7480–84

70–74 is the most common age band: 12% of residents, 2.5 times the share across England’s towns. For comparison, 18% of residents are 65 or over across England’s towns. The census found that 7.6% of residents are aged 15 to 24 in Lyme Regis.

Median age of UK towns of 2,500+

2535455565

■ Lyme Regis, 59.9. The typical town is 44.4.

Broad ages · share of residents

Under 1510%

15 to 247.6%

25 to 4413%

45 to 6429%

65 and over40%

Lyme RegisDorset’s townsEngland’s towns

Women and men · all residents

52% women, 48% men

Lyme Regis

England

WomenMen

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.

Students & newcomers

A lower share of full-time students than 91% of UK towns, at 3.7%

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

Full-time students3.7%

Higher managerial and professional15%

Lower managerial and professional23%

Intermediate9%

Small employers and self-employed19%

Supervisory and technical5.1%

Semi-routine10%

Routine8.7%

Never worked or long-term unemployed6.4%

Lyme RegisDorset’s townsEngland’s towns

Address a year before the Census

Residents who lived somewhere else a year earlier. The bar runs to 25%.

Lyme Regis

10%

England’s towns

11%

Moved within the UKTerm-time addressMoved from abroad

Moved in within a year

365

residents, 9.8%; England’s towns 11%

Of them from abroad

0.5× England’s share

Across England’s towns, 33% of adults are in managerial and professional jobs and 24% in routine work; in Lyme Regis, 38% and 19%. The share of full-time students across England’s towns is 7.9%. For Lyme Regis, the census puts residents who moved in within the year at 9.8%.

Households

One-person households: 37%, a higher share than 93% of UK towns

Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.

Living alone, 66+ 22%Living alone, under 66 15%Families with dependent children 16%Couples and families, no young children 46%Shared houses and other 1.6%

Against Dorset’s towns and England’s towns

Lyme Regis

Dorset’s towns

England’s towns

People per household

1 person37%

2 people42%

3 people11%

4 people7%

5 or more3.4%

England’s towns.

Households in Lyme Regis hold 2 people on average (England’s towns: 2.4). Elsewhere, 30% of households are one person living alone across England’s towns.

Homes & cars

In Lyme Regis, 14% of households live in a terraced house, fewer than in 78% of UK towns

Accommodation type and cars or vans per household, Census 2021. Owning and renting are on Cost of living.

Type of home

Lyme Regis

Dorset’s towns

England’s towns

DetachedSemi-detachedTerracedFlat or maisonetteCaravan or other

Cars or vans · share of households

No car or van16%

One46%

Two28%

Three or more9.2%

Lyme RegisDorset’s townsEngland’s towns

The share of households without a car or van is 16%, against 24% across England’s towns. For Lyme Regis, the census puts households in flats at 22%.

Where people were born

Residents whose main language is English make up 99% in Lyme Regis, more than in 78% 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%

Lyme Regis

6.1%

Dorset’s towns

11%

England’s towns

18%

EU countriesRest of EuropeMiddle East and AsiaAfricaAmericas, Oceania, other

When those born abroad arrived

Lyme RegisEngland’s towns

Before 19711971–801981–901991–20002001–102011–132014–162017–192020–21

Main language · residents aged 3 and over

English is main language99%

Another main language, speaks English very well or well1.1%

Another main language, little or no English0.2%

Lyme RegisDorset’s townsEngland’s towns

Born outside the UK: 6.1% of residents, against 18% across England’s towns. The comparison figure for residents whose main language is English is 90% across England’s towns. Most residents from abroad were born in EU countries (2.9%) or in the Middle East and Asia (1.3%).

Ethnicity & religion

Above 72% of UK towns: 53% of residents describe themselves as Christian

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

Lyme RegisDorset’s townsEngland’s towns

Other White3.5%

Asian0.7%

Mixed1%

Black0.3%

Other0.2%

0%6%12%

White British, not charted: 94% of Lyme Regis · Dorset’s towns 87% · England’s towns 73%.

Religion · all residents

Lyme RegisDorset’s townsEngland’s towns

No religion39%

Christian53%

Muslim0.1%

Hindu, Sikh, Jewish, Buddhist0.7%

Other religion0.6%

Didn’t answer6.4%

0%30%60%

Set against 37% across England’s towns, nearly two in five residents said they have no religion in Lyme Regis. The share of residents who describe themselves as White British stands at 94%. As a yardstick, 46% of residents describe themselves as Christian across England’s towns.

Relationships & caring

In Lyme Regis, 22% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership, fewer than in 98% 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

Never married or in a civil partnership22%

Married or civil partnership53%

Separated2.7%

Divorced12%

Widowed10%

Lyme RegisDorset’s townsEngland’s towns

330residents give unpaid care to someone with an illness, disability or old age: 9.1%, against 8.7% in England’s towns

Unpaid care given · share of residents 5 and over

Up to 19 hours a week5%

20 to 49 hours1%

50 hours or more3.1%

With married adults and civil partners at 53%, Lyme Regis is ahead of 81% of UK towns on that count. Elsewhere, 39% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership across England’s towns. For 112 residents, unpaid care runs to 50 hours or more a week.

Qualifications

Degree-level qualifications: 39% of adults

Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.

Highest qualification · residents 16 and over

No qualifications15%

Apprenticeship6.5%

A levels or similar14%

Degree level39%

Lyme RegisDorset’s townsEngland’s towns

With 39% of its adults qualified to degree level, Lyme Regis compares with 34% across England’s towns; another 15% hold no qualification (18%).

Towns its size

Of 530 UK towns its size (3,000 to 5,000 people), the 10th oldest

Median age, Census 2021. Hover a dot for its students and residents born abroad; click for its page.

Lyme Regis 59.9

BailriggMilford on SeaAmlwch

174266

The youngest is Bailrigg (18.9) and the oldest Milford on Sea (64.6). Nearest to Lyme Regis in age: Dymchurch (59.2), Woodhall Spa (59.8), Heacham (60.1) and Church Stretton (61.1).

Neighbours

Lyme Regis and its 7 nearest towns: 2 of them are older

Nearby built-up areas coloured by median age, Census 2021. Tap a town for its page.

UplymeCharmouthAxminsterColytonSeatonBeerBridportLyme Regis

under 3838–4444–5050–5656+

Town	People	Away	Median age	65+	Homes with children
Lyme Regis	3,741	—	59.9	40%	16%
Uplyme	1,053	0.9 mi	54	29%	25%
Charmouth	1,337	1.7 mi	61.8	46%	16%
Axminster	6,094	4.5 mi	46.8	27%	24%
Colyton	1,938	5.8 mi	55.7	35%	19%
Seaton	7,429	6 mi	61	44%	14%
Beer	1,280	7.3 mi	54.9	34%	19%
Bridport	12,294	7.9 mi	56.2	35%	17%

More about Lyme Regis’s residents

Health, work and homes have their own pages

Health B⁺Life expectancy, early deaths and Census health, adjusted for age Work & commute C⁻Income, the claimant count, jobs and how people get to work Cost of living D⁻Owners and renters, prices, rents and council tax Schools C⁺Every primary and secondary, with results and inspections

How to read these numbers

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 Lyme Regis’s figures, so households in open countryside are left out. The population trend compares with the whole county and nation.
Estimates since 2021 are modelled. The ONS builds mid-year estimates from the Census, births, deaths and migration records. Lyme Regis’s trend uses the small areas (2021 LSOAs) with most of their people inside it: 3,741 people in 2021, against 3,741 in the built-up area.
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 Lyme Regis’s residents

What is the population of Lyme Regis?

The 2021 Census counted 3,741 people in Lyme Regis’s built-up area. The ONS estimates the same small areas held 3,600 people in mid-2024, 3% fewer than in 2011.

What is the average age in Lyme Regis?

The median age was 59.9 at the 2021 Census, older than 99% of UK towns. 7.6% of residents were 15 to 24 and 40% were 65 or over.

How diverse is Lyme Regis?

94% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 87% across Dorset’s towns. 6.1% were born outside the UK.

What religion are people in Lyme Regis?

39% said they had no religion and 53% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.1% were Muslim and 6.4% didn’t answer.

Is Lyme Regis good for families?

16% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Lyme Regis’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) · ONS mid-year population estimates for 2021 LSOAs, mid-2011 to mid-2024. 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.