Photo: Peter Stack · CC BY-SA 2.0A lower share of one-person households than 96% of UK towns, at 21%
Half of Birchanger’s residents are over 50.2, older than in 86% of UK towns. The village is home to 957 residents in 381 households, by the 2021 Census. Across Birchanger, 6.5% of households have no car or van. By its share of households in detached houses (41%), Birchanger is above 78% of UK towns.
A larger share of residents aged 65 and over than 89% of UK towns: 29%
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
The biggest five-year age group is 70–74, with 8.6% of residents, 1.8 times the share across England’s towns. 9.1% of residents are aged 15 to 24, a lower share than in 71% of UK towns. As a reference point, 18% of residents are 65 or over across England’s towns.
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.
Only 4.1% of adults are full-time students in Birchanger
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%.
11% of residents lived at another address a year earlier across England’s towns, against 8.1% in Birchanger. Across England’s towns, 7.9% of adults are full-time students.
Larger households than 83% of UK towns: 2.4 people on average
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.
Here 3.2% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home, where the figure across England’s towns is 4.3%. A quarter of households have dependent children.
6% of households live in a flat or apartment, 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
Cars or vans · share of households
Across Birchanger, 21% of households live in a terraced house. Set beside that, 23% of households live in a flat or apartment across England’s towns.
More residents born outside the UK than 67% of UK towns: 8.6%
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
By birthplace, the largest groups from abroad were born in EU countries (3.9%) and in the Middle East and Asia (2%). As a yardstick, 18% of residents were born outside the UK across England’s towns. Residents whose main language is English: 98% here and 90% across England’s towns.
89% of residents describe themselves as White British, fewer than in 68% 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: 89% of Birchanger · Essex’s towns 83% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
Across England’s towns, 46% of residents describe themselves as Christian; in Birchanger, 51%. On average, 73% of residents describe themselves as White British across England’s towns. Residents with no religion account for 40%.
A lower share of adults who have never married than 79% of UK towns, at 28%
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
52% of adults are married or in a civil partnership (England’s towns: 44%). For 19 residents, unpaid care runs to 50 hours or more a week. Set beside that, nearly two in five adults have never married or formed a civil partnership across England’s towns.
30% 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 30% of adults in Birchanger (England’s towns: 34%), and no qualification by 16% (England’s towns: 18%).
Every neighbour of Birchanger 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Birchanger | 957 | — | 50.2 | 29% | 25% |
| Stansted Mountfitchet | 8,629 | 1.3 mi | 40.1 | 16% | 34% |
| Bishop's Stortford | 40,916 | 1.8 mi | 40.2 | 15% | 33% |
| Elsenham | 3,414 | 2.8 mi | 38.6 | 16% | 36% |
| Little Hallingbury | 1,434 | 3.1 mi | 47.1 | 22% | 34% |
| Takeley and Little Canfield | 5,553 | 3.8 mi | 38.4 | 14% | 39% |
| Henham | 1,046 | 4 mi | 48.1 | 22% | 31% |
| Hatfield Heath | 1,789 | 4.7 mi | 46.4 | 26% | 32% |
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 Birchanger’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 Birchanger’s residents
What is the population of Birchanger?
The 2021 Census counted 957 people in Birchanger’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Birchanger?
The median age was 50.2 at the 2021 Census. 9.1% of residents were 15 to 24 and 29% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Birchanger?
89% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 83% across Essex’s towns. 8.6% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Birchanger?
40% said they had no religion and 51% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.3% were Muslim and 6.8% didn’t answer.
Is Birchanger good for families?
25% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Birchanger’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.