Photo: Michael Garlick · CC BY-SA 2.0

45.8Median age

Who lives here · ONS Census 2021 & mid-year estimates

In Locks Heath, 46% of households live in a detached house, more than in 86% of UK towns

Households without a car or van make up 9.4%, against 24% across England’s towns. At 54%, the share of married adults and civil partners is higher than in 83% of UK towns. There were 15,072 households in Locks Heath at the 2021 Census, home to 35,744 residents. In Locks Heath, 26% of households are one person living alone.

+7%people since 2011 22%aged 65 or over 6.9%born abroad 15,072households

Population since 2011

Locks Heath’s population moved +7% on 2011, less than in 50% of UK towns

ONS mid-year estimates, each year indexed to mid-2011 = 100. Locks Heath’s figure is the small areas (2021 LSOAs) that make up the town.

People, mid-2011 = 100

Locks HeathEnglandAll of Hampshire

Change by age, 2011 to 2024

Locks HeathEngland

0 to 15−3%

16 to 29−8%

30 to 44−3%

45 to 64+4%

65 and over+49%

About 35,200 people in 2011; 37,900 in 2024.

Mid-2014 to mid-2015 brought the biggest yearly rise, 510 people. The 65 and over age group changed most (+49%) and the 16 to 29 least (−8%).

Ages

Older than 60% of UK towns: half of Locks Heath is over 45.8

Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.

Locks HeathEngland’s towns

0–410–1420–2430–3440–4450–5460–6470–7480–84

The biggest five-year age group is 55–59, with 8% of residents. 9.6% of residents are aged 15 to 24, a lower share than in 58% of UK towns. In Barton on Sea, the oldest of Hampshire’s towns by this measure, it is 51%.

Median age of UK towns of 2,500+

2535455565

■ Locks Heath, 45.8. The typical town is 44.4.

Broad ages · share of residents

Under 1516%

15 to 249.6%

25 to 4423%

45 to 6429%

65 and over22%

Locks HeathHampshire’s townsEngland’s towns

Women and men · all residents

52% women, 48% men

Locks Heath

England

WomenMen

About 94 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.

Students & newcomers

In Locks Heath, 4.7% of adults are full-time students, fewer than in 55% 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

Full-time students4.7%

Higher managerial and professional18%

Lower managerial and professional26%

Intermediate13%

Small employers and self-employed11%

Supervisory and technical4.7%

Semi-routine10%

Routine7.6%

Never worked or long-term unemployed4.7%

Locks HeathHampshire’s townsEngland’s towns

Address a year before the Census

Residents who lived somewhere else a year earlier. The bar runs to 25%.

Locks Heath

England’s towns

11%

Moved within the UKTerm-time addressMoved from abroad

Moved in within a year

3,118

residents, 8.8%; England’s towns 11%

Of them from abroad

163

0.5× England’s share

Managerial and professional jobs take in 44% of adults here, routine and semi-routine work 18% (England’s towns: 33% and 24%). 8.8% of residents lived at another address a year earlier. The comparison figure for full-time students is 7.9% across England’s towns.

Households

Locks Heath households average 2.4 people, larger than in 68% of UK towns

Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.

Living alone, 66+ 14%Living alone, under 66 13%Families with dependent children 28%Couples and families, no young children 43%Shared houses and other 2.9%

Against Hampshire’s towns and England’s towns

Locks Heath

Hampshire’s towns

England’s towns

People per household

1 person26%

2 people38%

3 people16%

4 people15%

5 or more4.4%

England’s towns.

Across England’s towns, the share of households with dependent children is 29%; Locks Heath has 28%. The town has more shared households of unrelated adults than 72% of UK towns, at 2.9%.

Homes & cars

Locks Heath ranks below 66% of UK towns on households in terraced houses: 16%

Accommodation type and cars or vans per household, Census 2021. Owning and renting are on Cost of living.

Type of home

Locks Heath

Hampshire’s towns

England’s towns

DetachedSemi-detachedTerracedFlat or maisonetteCaravan or other

Cars or vans · share of households

No car or van9.4%

One37%

Two39%

Three or more15%

Locks HeathHampshire’s townsEngland’s towns

Households in flats: 13% here and 23% across England’s towns. As a reference point, nearly a quarter of households live in a terraced house across England’s towns.

Where people were born

A higher share of residents whose main language is English than 58% of UK towns, at 98%

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%

Locks Heath

6.9%

Hampshire’s towns

13%

England’s towns

18%

EU countriesRest of EuropeMiddle East and AsiaAfricaAmericas, Oceania, other

When those born abroad arrived

Locks HeathEngland’s towns

Before 19711971–801981–901991–20002001–102011–132014–162017–192020–21

Main language · residents aged 3 and over

English is main language98%

Another main language, speaks English very well or well1.6%

Another main language, little or no English0.3%

Locks HeathHampshire’s townsEngland’s towns

Among residents born abroad, the largest groups were born in EU countries (2.9%) and in the Middle East and Asia (1.7%). Compared with other places, residents born outside the UK are common here: 6.9%, more than in 55% of UK towns. Across the comparison, nine in ten residents have English as their main language across England’s towns. Arrivals from 2017 on account for 14% of residents born abroad, beside 21% across England’s towns.

Ethnicity & religion

43% of residents said they have no religion, more than in 63% 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

Locks HeathHampshire’s townsEngland’s towns

Other White3%

Asian1.7%

Mixed1.6%

Black0.6%

Other0.5%

0%6%12%

White British, not charted: 93% of Locks Heath · Hampshire’s towns 84% · England’s towns 73%.

Religion · all residents

Locks HeathHampshire’s townsEngland’s towns

No religion43%

Christian50%

Muslim0.5%

Hindu, Sikh, Jewish, Buddhist0.8%

Other religion0.4%

Didn’t answer5.3%

0%30%60%

93% of residents describe themselves as White British, against 73% across England’s towns. Measured more widely, 37% of residents said they have no religion across England’s towns. After White British, the largest groups are Other White (3%), Mixed or multiple (1.6%) and Indian (0.7%). Residents who describe themselves as Christian are more common here than in 53% of UK towns.

Relationships & caring

Locks Heath sits below 80% of UK towns for adults who have never married (28%)

Legal partnership status (residents 16 and over) and unpaid care (residents 5 and over), Census 2021.

Partnership status · residents 16 and over

Never married or in a civil partnership28%

Married or civil partnership54%

Separated1.9%

Divorced9.9%

Widowed6.7%

Locks HeathHampshire’s townsEngland’s towns

2,979residents give unpaid care to someone with an illness, disability or old age: 8.8%, against 8.7% in England’s towns

Unpaid care given · share of residents 5 and over

Up to 19 hours a week5.1%

20 to 49 hours1.4%

50 hours or more2.3%

The number giving 50 or more hours of unpaid care a week is 766. Fewer unpaid carers than in 67% of UK towns: 8.8%. On average, nearly two in five adults have never married or formed a civil partnership across England’s towns.

Qualifications

Degree-level qualifications reach 36% of adults

Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.

Highest qualification · residents 16 and over

No qualifications12%

Apprenticeship6.3%

A levels or similar19%

Degree level36%

Locks HeathHampshire’s townsEngland’s towns

Degree-level qualifications cover 36% of adults in Locks Heath, 34% across England’s towns; 12% have no qualification, against 18%.

Where in Locks Heath

From a median age of 42 in Swanwick & Sarisbury Green to 49 in Locks Heath

The town’s 5 neighbourhoods (ONS middle-layer areas with 500+ residents inside it, named by the House of Commons Library), youngest first. Census 2021.

Median age 40 → 55 · line = all Locks HeathAdults who are full-time students

Swanwick & Sarisbury Green424.6%

Park Gate & Segensworth444.8%

Titchfield & Titchfield Common464.5%

Warsash465.1%

Locks Heath494.5%

Locks Heath is the oldest area, with 25% aged 65 or over; Swanwick & Sarisbury Green the youngest (median age 42). Families with children are most common in Swanwick & Sarisbury Green (35% of households).

Towns its size

25th oldest of 192 UK towns of 25,000 to 48,000 people

Median age, Census 2021. Hover a dot for its students and residents born abroad; click for its page.

Locks Heath 45.8

HatfieldRustingtonEston

294458

Hatfield is the youngest (30.3); Rustington the oldest (56.2). Nearest to Locks Heath in age: Chandler's Ford (45.7), Cramlington (45.8), Morecambe (45.9) and Brighouse (46.1).

Neighbours

3 of the 7 nearest towns are older than Locks Heath

Nearby built-up areas coloured by median age, Census 2021. Tap a town for its page.

WhiteleyHamble-le-RiceBursledonKnowleFarehamNetleyHedge EndLocks Heath

under 3838–4444–5050–5656+

Town	People	Away	Median age	65+	Homes with children
Locks Heath	35,744	—	45.8	22%	28%
Whiteley	9,350	1.6 mi	38.6	11%	39%
Hamble-le-Rice	4,613	2.3 mi	47.6	23%	24%
Bursledon	8,072	2.7 mi	38.5	15%	31%
Knowle	1,487	3.2 mi	35.2	6.7%	28%
Fareham	42,633	3.4 mi	46.2	24%	25%
Netley	6,309	3.4 mi	47.5	25%	25%
Hedge End	23,195	4.1 mi	40.3	17%	34%

More about Locks Heath’s residents

Health, work and homes have their own pages

Health ALife expectancy, early deaths and Census health, adjusted for age Work & commute A⁺Income, the claimant count, jobs and how people get to work Cost of living A⁻Owners and renters, prices, rents and council tax Schools BEvery primary and secondary, with results and inspections

How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

“Hampshire’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in Hampshire (or England), summed the same way as Locks Heath’s figures, so households in open countryside are left out. The population trend compares with the whole county and nation.
Estimates since 2021 are modelled. The ONS builds mid-year estimates from the Census, births, deaths and migration records. Locks Heath’s trend uses the small areas (2021 LSOAs) with most of their people inside it: 37,458 people in 2021, against 35,744 in the built-up area.
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 Locks Heath’s residents

What is the population of Locks Heath?

The 2021 Census counted 35,744 people in Locks Heath’s built-up area. The ONS estimates the same small areas held 37,900 people in mid-2024, 7% more than in 2011.

What is the average age in Locks Heath?

The median age was 45.8 at the 2021 Census, older than 60% of UK towns. 9.6% of residents were 15 to 24 and 22% were 65 or over.

How diverse is Locks Heath?

93% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 84% across Hampshire’s towns. 6.9% were born outside the UK.

What religion are people in Locks Heath?

43% said they had no religion and 50% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.5% were Muslim and 5.3% didn’t answer.

Is Locks Heath good for families?

28% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Families are most common in Swanwick & Sarisbury Green (35% of households). Schools are on Locks Heath’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) · ONS mid-year population estimates for 2021 LSOAs, mid-2011 to mid-2024 · House of Commons Library MSOA names. 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.