Photo: BishopHerman · Public domainNether Compton is older than 98% of UK towns: a median age of 57.6
1% of households live in a flat or apartment (England’s towns: 23%). At the 2021 Census, 402 people lived in Nether Compton, in 195 households. The share of one-person households stands at 19%. Fewer residents with no religion than in 99% of UK towns: 17%.
Residents aged 15 to 24: 4%, a lower share than 99% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
The biggest five-year age group is 60–64, with 14% of residents, 2.5 times the share across England’s towns. Locally, 30% of residents are 65 or over. Across the comparison, 12% of residents are aged 15 to 24 across England’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About 95 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
Only 2% of adults are full-time students in Nether Compton
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%.
In Nether Compton, just over one in ten residents lived at another address a year earlier, beside 11% across England’s towns. The share of full-time students across England’s towns is 7.9%.
Only 13% of households in Nether Compton have dependent children
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.
Shared households of unrelated adults make up 2.1%, against 4.3% across England’s towns. As a reference point, 29% of households have dependent children across England’s towns.
Households without a car or van: 7.7%, a lower share than 93% 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
Households in terraced houses: 17% here and 24% across England’s towns. Still, 45% of households live in a detached house, a higher share than in 85% of UK towns. In one household in 13 there is no car or van.
100% of residents have English as their main language, a share 99% of UK towns don’t reach
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
Against a figure of 18% across England’s towns, the share of residents born outside the UK in Nether Compton comes in at 4%. As a reference point, nine in ten residents have English as their main language across England’s towns. Most residents from abroad were born in the Americas, Oceania and elsewhere (1.7%) or in EU countries (1.5%).
Residents who describe themselves as Christian: 75%, a higher share than 99% 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 Nether Compton · Dorset’s towns 87% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
Leading the other groups after White British: Other White (2.7%), Mixed or multiple (1%) and Pakistani (0.3%). Residents who describe themselves as White British are more common here than in 85% of UK towns. To put it in context, 46% of residents describe themselves as Christian across England’s towns.
Unpaid carers make up 6.3% in Nether Compton, less 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
Unpaid care given · share of residents 5 and over
Here 47% of adults are married or in a civil partnership, where the figure across England’s towns is 44%. A third of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership, a higher share than in 53% of UK towns. By way of comparison, 8.7% of residents give unpaid care across England’s towns.
Qualified to degree level: 44% of adults
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Degree-level qualifications cover 44% of adults in Nether Compton, 34% across England’s towns; 16% have no qualification, against 18%.
Every nearby town is younger than Nether Compton
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nether Compton | 402 | — | 57.6 | 30% | 13% |
| Sherborne | 10,359 | 2.3 mi | 50.2 | 32% | 20% |
| Yeovil | 50,170 | 2.9 mi | 40 | 19% | 28% |
| Barwick and Stoford | 1,095 | 3.2 mi | 47.9 | 28% | 24% |
| Milborne Port | 3,207 | 4.8 mi | 47.8 | 26% | 24% |
| Ilchester | 2,062 | 5.9 mi | 35.3 | 14% | 37% |
| Templecombe | 1,657 | 7.5 mi | 46.9 | 25% | 24% |
| Stoke sub Hamdon | 1,360 | 7.7 mi | 51.2 | 27% | 22% |
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 Nether Compton’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 Nether Compton’s residents
What is the population of Nether Compton?
The 2021 Census counted 402 people in Nether Compton’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Nether Compton?
The median age was 57.6 at the 2021 Census. 4% of residents were 15 to 24 and 30% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Nether Compton?
96% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 87% across Dorset’s towns. 4% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Nether Compton?
17% said they had no religion and 75% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0% were Muslim and 8% didn’t answer.
Is Nether Compton good for families?
13% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Nether Compton’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.