Photo: Bikeboy · CC BY-SA 2.0Fewer car-free households than 99% of UK towns: 3.3%
Shared households of unrelated adults make up 1.3%, against 4.3% across England’s towns. Arkesden counted 375 residents and 152 households at the 2021 Census. The census found that nearly a quarter of households are one person living alone in the village. Households in detached houses are more common here than in 96% of UK towns.
A median age of 50.6: Arkesden is older than 88% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
Against a figure of 18% across England’s towns, the share of residents aged 65 and over in Arkesden comes in at 23%. Residents aged 15 to 24: 8% of the total.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
49% women, 51% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
In Arkesden, 3.3% of adults are full-time students, fewer than in 97% 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%.
Managerial and professional jobs account for 53% of Arkesden’s adults, routine and semi-routine work for 8.3%, against 33% and 24% across England’s towns. Set beside that, 7.9% of adults are full-time students across England’s towns. Across Arkesden, nearly one in ten residents lived at another address a year earlier.
Arkesden households average 2.4 people, larger than in 84% of UK towns
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Essex’s towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
Households with dependent children: 26% here and 29% across England’s towns.
A smaller share of households in flats than 99% of UK towns: 1.3%
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: 5.8%, below 97% of UK towns. The share of households in flats across England’s towns is 23%.
99% of residents have English as their main language, a share 98% 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
In Arkesden, 7.5% of residents were born outside the UK, beside 18% across England’s towns. Across England’s towns, the share of residents whose main language is English is 90%. By birthplace, the largest groups from abroad were born in EU countries (4%) and in Africa (1.6%).
Residents with no religion: 32%, a lower share than 89% 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: 92% of Arkesden · Essex’s towns 83% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
46% of residents describe themselves as Christian across England’s towns, against 54% in Arkesden. The share of residents with no religion across England’s towns is 37%. Beyond White British, the biggest groups are Other White (4.3%), Mixed or multiple (1.3%) and Indian (0.5%).
Above 99% of UK towns: 65% of adults are married or in a civil partnership
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
Heavy unpaid care, 50 hours a week or more, falls to 3 residents. Across England’s towns, the share of married adults and civil partners is 44%. Compared with other places, adults who have never married are scarce here: 20%, fewer than in 99% of UK towns. Unpaid carers make up 10%, against 8.7% across England’s towns.
49% of adults have qualifications at degree level
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
With 49% of its adults qualified to degree level, Arkesden compares with 34% across England’s towns; another 7% hold no qualification (18%).
Every neighbour of Arkesden has a younger population
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arkesden | 375 | — | 50.6 | 23% | 26% |
| Newport | 2,945 | 2.3 mi | 43.9 | 22% | 32% |
| Saffron Walden | 16,609 | 4.3 mi | 43.8 | 21% | 29% |
| Great Chesterford | 1,775 | 5.5 mi | 42.2 | 19% | 35% |
| Henham | 1,046 | 5.6 mi | 48.1 | 22% | 31% |
| Elsenham | 3,414 | 5.7 mi | 38.6 | 16% | 36% |
| Stansted Mountfitchet | 8,629 | 6.3 mi | 40.1 | 16% | 34% |
| Duxford | 2,216 | 7.3 mi | 44.3 | 21% | 31% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- “Essex’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in Essex (or England), summed the same way as Arkesden’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 Arkesden’s residents
What is the population of Arkesden?
The 2021 Census counted 375 people in Arkesden’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Arkesden?
The median age was 50.6 at the 2021 Census. 8% of residents were 15 to 24 and 23% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Arkesden?
92% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 83% across Essex’s towns. 7.5% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Arkesden?
32% said they had no religion and 54% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.3% were Muslim and 8.8% didn’t answer.
Is Arkesden good for families?
26% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Arkesden’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.