Old Plough House · Photo: Hjamesberglen · CC BY-SA 4.014% of households are one person living alone, below 99% of UK towns
The average household has 2.9 people, against 2.4 across England’s towns. The census found that 63% of households live in a detached house in Bulphan. The village has fewer residents with no religion than 94% of UK towns, at 30%. At the 2021 Census Bulphan was home to 776 people in 272 households.
Residents aged 15 to 24 make up 12% in Bulphan, more than in 90% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
With a median age of 45.6, Bulphan is older than 58% of UK towns. Census figures put residents aged 65 and over at 21% here. The biggest five-year age group is 55–59, with nearly one in ten residents, 1.3 times the share across England’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
A student village: 5.6% of adults study full-time
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 take in 40% of adults here, routine and semi-routine work 15% (England’s towns: 33% and 24%). The census found that 8.6% of residents lived at another address a year earlier in Bulphan. On average, 7.9% of adults are full-time students across England’s towns.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in term time, so students were counted at their term addresses.
Bulphan sits above 89% of UK towns for households with dependent children (33%)
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.
Bulphan sits close to the norm on shared households of unrelated adults: 4.8%, about the same as across England’s towns. To put it in context, 29% of households have dependent children across England’s towns.
Households in flats make up 0.4% in Bulphan, less than in 99% 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 England’s towns, nearly a quarter of households live in a terraced house; in Bulphan, 2.6%. Compared with other places, households without a car or van are scarce here: 4.1%, fewer than in 99% of UK towns. The comparison figure for households in flats is 23% across England’s towns.
7.4% born outside the UK, more than in 59% 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%
Main language · residents aged 3 and over
Most residents from abroad were born in EU countries (3.1%) or in the Middle East and Asia (2.3%). Against that, 18% of residents were born outside the UK across England’s towns. The share of residents whose main language is English is 98%, against 90% across England’s towns.
58% describe themselves as Christian, more than in 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: 83% of Bulphan · Essex’s towns 83% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
2.8% of residents are Muslim. The share of residents who describe themselves as Christian across England’s towns is 46%. Residents who describe themselves as White British are rarer here than in 81% of UK towns.
Bulphan ranks above 98% of UK towns on married adults and civil partners: 61%
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 adults who have never married at 28%, Bulphan is behind 79% of UK towns on that count. The comparison figure for married adults and civil partners is 44% across England’s towns. For Bulphan, the census puts unpaid carers at 9.5%.
Degree-level qualifications reach 27% of adults
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Across England’s towns, 18% of adults have no qualification; in Bulphan, 21%, while 27% hold one at degree level (34%).
3 of the 7 nearest towns are older than Bulphan
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bulphan | 776 | — | 45.6 | 21% | 33% |
| West Horndon | 1,648 | 1.8 mi | 44.1 | 20% | 27% |
| Horndon on the Hill | 1,510 | 2.3 mi | 51 | 27% | 26% |
| Orsett | 1,428 | 2.5 mi | 46.3 | 22% | 29% |
| Southfields | 1,167 | 3.1 mi | 38.8 | 11% | 33% |
| Stanford-le-Hope | 29,527 | 3.8 mi | 41.2 | 20% | 31% |
| Ingrave and Herongate | 1,856 | 3.8 mi | 47.8 | 23% | 31% |
| South Ockendon | 22,441 | 4.1 mi | 35.7 | 12% | 38% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- The Census was taken in a lockdown, in term time. 21 March 2021 fell in term time, and students were asked to give their term-time address, so most were counted where they study. Some may have been living with family that day.
- “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 Bulphan’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 Bulphan’s residents
What is the population of Bulphan?
The 2021 Census counted 776 people in Bulphan’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Bulphan?
The median age was 45.6 at the 2021 Census. 12% of residents were 15 to 24 and 21% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Bulphan?
83% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 83% across Essex’s towns. 7.4% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Bulphan?
30% said they had no religion and 58% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 2.8% were Muslim and 4.3% didn’t answer.
Is Bulphan good for families?
33% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Bulphan’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.