Photo: Roger W Haworth · CC BY-SA 2.0Older than 92% of UK towns: half of Thorrington is over 52.1
The share of households in detached houses tops 98% of UK towns: 64%. Thorrington counted 1,427 residents and 550 households at the 2021 Census. On the census count, 4.9% of households have no car or van. Lower than in 95% of UK towns: 24% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership.
What the Census says about Thorrington’s people
Older than most towns
Half of Thorrington’s residents are under 52.1 and half over, against 44.4 in the typical UK town. 31% are 65 or over, against 18% across England’s towns. Ages ↓
Written from the data on this page: ONS Census 2021 (output areas summed to the 2022 built-up area).
Residents aged 65 and over: 31%, a higher share than 93% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
12% of residents are aged 15 to 24 across England’s towns, against 10% in Thorrington. The wider picture: 18% of residents are 65 or over across England’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
About 94 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
Below 72% of UK towns: 4.3% of adults are full-time students
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 31% of Thorrington’s adults, routine and semi-routine work for 21%, against 33% and 24% across England’s towns. By way of comparison, 7.9% of adults are full-time students across England’s towns. Census figures put residents who moved in within the year at 11% locally.
18% of households are one person living alone, fewer than in 99% 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.
At 2.5 people, the average household compares with 2.4 across England’s towns. Across Thorrington, 25% of households have dependent children. Higher than in 91% of UK towns: 3.8% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home. On average, 30% of households are one person living alone across England’s towns.
Few flats: only 1.1% of households in Thorrington live in one
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
By its share of households in terraced houses (4%), Thorrington is below 98% of UK towns. Across the comparison, nearly a quarter of households live in a flat or apartment across England’s towns.
A larger share of residents whose main language is English than 93% of UK towns: 99%
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
Against a figure of 18% across England’s towns, the share of residents born outside the UK in Thorrington comes in at 3.5%. Residents whose main language is English: 90% across England’s towns, for comparison.
Above 70% of UK towns: 53% of residents describe themselves as Christian
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 Thorrington · Essex’s towns 83% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
After White British, the largest groups are Other White (1.6%), Mixed or multiple (1%) and Indian (0.8%). Residents who describe themselves as White British are more common here than in just over two thirds of UK towns. The usual figure: 46% of residents describe themselves as Christian across England’s towns. Asked about religion, 40% answered none, against 37% across England’s towns.
Married adults and civil partners make up 58% in Thorrington, more than in 96% of UK towns
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
Some 44 people give 50 hours or more of unpaid care a week. Unpaid carers are about as common here as across England’s towns, at 9.1%.
22% of adults hold a degree-level qualification
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
23% of Thorrington’s adults have no qualification (18% across England’s towns), and 22% have one at degree level (34%).
Thorrington sits below 2 of its 7 closest neighbours on median age
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thorrington | 1,427 | — | 52.1 | 31% | 25% |
| Great Bentley | 1,746 | 1.6 mi | 48.4 | 26% | 25% |
| Alresford | 2,462 | 1.8 mi | 46.2 | 27% | 26% |
| Brightlingsea | 8,678 | 1.9 mi | 49.9 | 28% | 24% |
| St Osyth | 2,249 | 3.3 mi | 53.5 | 33% | 20% |
| Point Clear | 1,707 | 3.3 mi | 55.6 | 34% | 17% |
| Elmstead Market | 1,767 | 3.4 mi | 48.4 | 26% | 25% |
| Wivenhoe | 7,354 | 3.5 mi | 47.1 | 25% | 25% |
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 Thorrington’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 Thorrington’s residents
What is the population of Thorrington?
The 2021 Census counted 1,427 people in Thorrington’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Thorrington?
The median age was 52.1 at the 2021 Census. 10% of residents were 15 to 24 and 31% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Thorrington?
94% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 83% across Essex’s towns. 3.5% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Thorrington?
40% said they had no religion and 53% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.1% were Muslim and 5.6% didn’t answer.
Is Thorrington good for families?
25% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Thorrington’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.