Photo: Robin Webster · CC BY-SA 2.0Fobbing is older than 91% of UK towns: a median age of 51.7
In Fobbing, 61% of households live in a detached house, beside 21% across England’s towns. At the 2021 Census, 888 people lived here, in 362 households. Here, 6.1% of households have no car or van. One-person households are rarer here than in 85% of UK towns.
25% of residents are 65 or over, a share 71% of UK towns don’t reach
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
More residents are 50–54 than any other five-year age: just over one in ten residents, 1.5 times the share across England’s towns. Across England’s towns, 18% of residents are 65 or over.
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.
5.9% of residents lived at another address a year earlier, below 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 take in 30% of adults here, routine and semi-routine work 22% (England’s towns: 33% and 24%). The benchmark for residents who moved in within the year across England’s towns: 11%. On the census count, 4.7% of adults are full-time students.
Only 22% of households in Fobbing have dependent children
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.
Nothing unusual on shared households of unrelated adults: 5%, close to the figure across England’s towns. A household here holds 2.4 people on average. The benchmark for households with dependent children across England’s towns: 29%.
In Fobbing, 4.1% of households live in a flat or apartment, fewer than in 87% 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
14% of households live in a terraced house, against 24% across England’s towns. Elsewhere, 23% of households live in a flat or apartment across England’s towns.
Residents born outside the UK: 4.5%, a lower share than 71% 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
Residents whose main language is English: 97% here and 90% across England’s towns. For comparison, 18% of residents were born outside the UK across England’s towns.
In Fobbing, 56% of residents describe themselves as Christian, more than in 84% 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: 94% of Fobbing · Essex’s towns 83% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
94% of residents describe themselves as White British, against 83% across Essex’s towns and 73% across England’s towns. The usual figure: 46% of residents describe themselves as Christian across England’s towns. Here, 36% of residents said they have no religion.
A higher share of married adults and civil partners than 84% of UK towns, at 54%
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
32 residents give 50 hours or more of unpaid care each week. At 31%, the share of adults who have never married is lower than in 62% of UK towns. Measured more widely, 44% of adults are married or in a civil partnership across England’s towns. Unpaid carers make up 8.9%, close to the figure across England’s towns.
Degree-level qualifications reach 20% 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 Fobbing, 24%, while 20% hold one at degree level (34%).
Every neighbour of Fobbing 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fobbing | 888 | — | 51.7 | 25% | 22% |
| Stanford-le-Hope | 29,527 | 1.6 mi | 41.2 | 20% | 31% |
| Basildon | 115,935 | 2.6 mi | 36.6 | 14% | 34% |
| Horndon on the Hill | 1,510 | 3 mi | 51 | 27% | 26% |
| North Benfleet | 1,765 | 3.6 mi | 50.8 | 25% | 25% |
| Southfields | 1,167 | 4 mi | 38.8 | 11% | 33% |
| East Tilbury | 5,751 | 4.4 mi | 33.8 | 11% | 43% |
| Crays Hill | 1,218 | 4.5 mi | 50.5 | 27% | 23% |
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 Fobbing’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 Fobbing’s residents
What is the population of Fobbing?
The 2021 Census counted 888 people in Fobbing’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Fobbing?
The median age was 51.7 at the 2021 Census. 11% of residents were 15 to 24 and 25% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Fobbing?
94% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 83% across Essex’s towns. 4.5% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Fobbing?
36% said they had no religion and 56% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.1% were Muslim and 6% didn’t answer.
Is Fobbing good for families?
22% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Fobbing’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.