Photo: Humphrey Bolton · CC BY-SA 2.0Half of Penally is over 57.4, older than 98% of UK towns
Set against 29% across Wales’s towns, 1.9% of households live in a terraced house in Penally. In 2021, the Census found 807 residents here, living in 378 households. For Penally, the census puts residents who describe themselves as Christian at 61%. 14% of households have dependent children, fewer than in 99% of UK towns.
37% of residents are 65 or over, more than in 98% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
Across Wales’s towns, just over one in ten residents are aged 15 to 24; in Penally, 8.4%. The wider picture: 21% of residents are 65 or over across Wales’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
About an even split. Across Wales, 51% of residents are women.
In Penally, 5.6% of residents lived at another address a year earlier, fewer than in 99% of UK towns
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 Penally, 3.9% of adults are full-time students, beside 8% across Wales’s towns. Against that, 9.1% of residents lived at another address a year earlier across Wales’s towns.
Households here average 2.1 people, below 93% of UK towns
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Dyfed’s towns and Wales’s towns
People per household
Wales’s towns.
In Penally, 4.5% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home, beside 3.1% across Wales’s towns. The share of one-person households stands at 34%.
Above 98% of UK towns: 64% of households live in a detached house
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
Where just over a fifth of households have no car or van across Wales’s towns, Penally has 11%. Households in flats are more common here than in 52% of UK towns. Measured more widely, 24% of households live in a detached house across Wales’s towns.
In Penally, 99% of residents have English as their main language, more than in 97% 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 10%
Main language · residents aged 3 and over
Residents born abroad were most often born in EU countries (3.1%), then in the Americas, Oceania and elsewhere (0.6%). As a reference point, 96% of residents have English as their main language across Wales’s towns. Fewer residents born outside the UK than in 68% of UK towns: 4.7%.
14% of people in Penally speak Welsh
Welsh language skills, residents aged 3 and over, Census 2021.
Welsh language skills · residents aged 3 and over
14% of residents aged 3 and over, 115 people, said in 2021 that they can speak Welsh, more than in 63% of Welsh towns (Welsh towns: 16%). Within Dyfed, Tumble has the largest share, 62%.
A higher White British share than 92% of UK towns: 96% of residents
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 Penally · Dyfed’s towns 93% · Wales’s towns 90%.
Religion · all residents
On religion, 33% answered “no religion” and 61% Christian, against 47% and 43% across Wales’s towns. Across Wales’s towns, residents who describe themselves as White British come to 90%.
Fewer adults who have never married than 95% of UK towns: 24%
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
With married adults and civil partners at 54%, Penally is ahead of 84% of UK towns on that count. Set beside that, 38% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership across Wales’s towns. Unpaid carers: 11% of the total.
Adults qualified to degree level or above: 35%
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Against 31% across Wales’s towns, 35% of adults here have a degree-level qualification, while 19% hold no qualification (20%).
Among its 7 nearest neighbours, 1 are older than Penally
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Penally | 807 | — | 57.4 | 37% | 14% |
| Tenby | 4,092 | 0.9 mi | 52.4 | 30% | 20% |
| Saundersfoot | 2,515 | 3.3 mi | 58.7 | 39% | 16% |
| Wooden | 1,300 | 3.9 mi | 51.9 | 31% | 21% |
| Kilgetty | 1,247 | 5 mi | 54.7 | 34% | 16% |
| Pembroke | 7,963 | 8.4 mi | 46.4 | 26% | 25% |
| Pembroke Dock | 9,659 | 9.6 mi | 41.7 | 21% | 27% |
| Narberth | 2,365 | 9.6 mi | 46 | 26% | 23% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- “Dyfed’s towns” and “Wales’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in Dyfed (or Wales), summed the same way as Penally’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 Penally’s residents
What is the population of Penally?
The 2021 Census counted 807 people in Penally’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Penally?
The median age was 57.4 at the 2021 Census. 8.4% of residents were 15 to 24 and 37% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Penally?
96% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 90% across Wales’s towns and 93% across Dyfed’s towns. 4.7% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Penally?
33% said they had no religion and 61% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.1% were Muslim and 4.6% didn’t answer.
Is Penally good for families?
14% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 27% across Wales’s towns. Schools are on Penally’s schools page.
How many people speak Welsh in Penally?
115 residents aged 3 and over, 14%, said they can speak Welsh at the 2021 Census, against 16% across Welsh towns.
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, TS032). 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.