Photo: Richard Webb · CC BY-SA 2.0In Leslie, 41% of households are one person living alone, more than in 99% of UK towns
Households in flats: 30%, above 95% of UK towns. In 2021, the Census found 2,888 residents in Leslie, living in 1,428 households. The share of households without a car or van stands at 27%. With a median age of 47.1, Leslie is older than 69% of UK towns.
What the Census says about Leslie’s people
More with no religion than most
63% of residents answered “no religion” in 2021 and 29% Christian, against 51% and 39% across Scotland’s towns. Ethnicity & religion ↓
Written from the data on this page: Scotland’s Census 2022 (output areas summed to the 2022 locality).
A lower share of residents aged 15 to 24 than 72% of UK towns, at 9.1%
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2022.
Compared with 19% across Scotland’s towns, 23% of residents are 65 or over here. By way of comparison, 12% of residents are aged 15 to 24 across Scotland’s towns. 55–59 is the most common age band: nearly one in ten residents.
Median age of UK towns of 2,500+
■ Leslie, 47.1. The typical town is 44.4.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
About 94 men for every 100 women. Across Scotland, 51% of residents are women.
Leslie ranks above 57% of UK towns on full-time students: 5%
What adults did at the 2022 Census (the NS-SEC classes).
Adults by occupation class · residents 16 and over
Managerial and professional jobs take in 24% of adults here, routine and semi-routine work 35% (Scotland’s towns: 33% and 25%). Across Scotland’s towns, the share of full-time students is 9.4%.
Households here average 2 people, below 99% of UK towns
Household make-up at the 2022 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Fife’s towns and Scotland’s towns
People per household
Scotland’s towns.
The share of shared households of unrelated adults is 1.8%, against 3.5% across Scotland’s towns. Households with dependent children account for 23%.
In Leslie, 21% of households live in a detached house, fewer than in 72% of UK towns
Accommodation type and cars or vans per household, Census 2022. Owning and renting are on Cost of living.
Type of home
Cars or vans · share of households
Households in terraced houses account for 18%.
Residents born outside the UK make up 3.6% in Leslie, less than in 84% of UK towns
Country of birth, year of arrival and main language, Census 2022.
Born outside the UK, by region · share of all residents; the bar runs to 15%
When those born abroad arrived
Main language · residents aged 3 and over
Residents born abroad were most often born in EU countries (2%), then in the Middle East and Asia (1.1%). The benchmark for residents born outside the UK across Scotland’s towns: 11%. 98% of residents have English as their main language, more than in 59% of UK towns. Arrivals from 2017 on account for 13% of residents born abroad, beside 34% across Scotland’s towns.
Residents with no religion: 63%, a higher share than 99% of UK towns
How residents described themselves at the 2022 Census. Lines join the lowest and highest of the three figures.
Ethnic groups other than White British · all residents
White British, not charted: 95% of Leslie · Fife’s towns 90% · Scotland’s towns 86%.
Religion · all residents
Compared with 86% across Scotland’s towns, 95% of residents describe themselves as White British here. Measured more widely, just over half of residents said they have no religion across Scotland’s towns. The share of residents who describe themselves as Christian stands at 29%.
37% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership, more than in 75% of UK towns
Legal partnership status (residents 16 and over) and unpaid care (residents 3 and over), Census 2022.
Partnership status · residents 16 and over
Unpaid care given · share of residents 3 and over
The share of married adults and civil partners trails 88% of UK towns: 41%. Against that, 40% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership across Scotland’s towns. On the census count, 13% of residents give unpaid care.
Adults with a degree-level qualification: 19%
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2022.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Leslie’s adults: 19% with a degree-level qualification and 21% with none, against 32% and 17% across Scotland’s towns.
515 UK towns of 2,500 to 4,000 people: this is the 247th oldest
Median age, Census 2022. Hover a dot for its students and residents born abroad; click for its page.
At the ends of the range sit Keele (20.6), the youngest, and West Chiltington (63.1), the oldest. Nearest to Leslie in age: Probus (47.1), Builth Wells (47.1), Wilsden (47.2) and Snaith (47.2).
No nearby town is as old as Leslie
Nearby towns coloured by median age, Census 2022. Tap a town for its page.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Homes with children |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leslie | 2,888 | — | 47.1 | 23% | 23% |
| Glenrothes | 37,466 | 1.5 mi | 44.6 | 21% | 25% |
| Cardenden and Auchterderran | 5,266 | 4.3 mi | 44.9 | 22% | 27% |
| Ballingry | 5,823 | 5 mi | 40.8 | 18% | 29% |
| Kirkcaldy and Dysart | 51,135 | 5.7 mi | 43.9 | 21% | 24% |
| Lochgelly | 7,157 | 6.3 mi | 44.4 | 20% | 22% |
| Kennoway | 4,665 | 6.6 mi | 45.6 | 22% | 25% |
| Buckhaven | 4,413 | 7.2 mi | 44.4 | 22% | 23% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- “Fife’s towns” and “Scotland’s towns” mean their towns. Census comparisons pool every locality in Fife (or Scotland), summed the same way as Leslie’s figures, so households in open countryside are left out.
- Small counts are blurred. National Records of Scotland adjusts small 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 Leslie’s residents
What is the population of Leslie?
The 2022 Census counted 2,888 people in Leslie’s locality.
What is the average age in Leslie?
The median age was 47.1 at the 2022 Census, older than 69% of UK towns. 9.1% of residents were 15 to 24 and 23% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Leslie?
95% of residents described themselves as White British in 2022, against 86% across Scotland’s towns and 90% across Fife’s towns. 3.6% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Leslie?
63% said they had no religion and 29% that they were Christian at the 2022 Census; 0.9% were Muslim and 6.2% didn’t answer.
Is Leslie good for families?
23% of households had dependent children in 2022, against 24% across Scotland’s towns. Schools are on Leslie’s schools page.
Sources: Scotland’s Census 2022 (National Records of Scotland), output areas summed to the NRS 2022 locality (UV101b, UV103, UV104, UV113, UV201, UV204b, UV205, UV212, UV301, UV402, UV405, UV406, UV501, UV607, UV801). 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.