Photo: Josh Tilley · CC BY-SA 4.0Bridge is older than 93% of UK towns: a median age of 52.6
Adults who have never married: 23% here and 39% across England’s towns. Few places have as many residents who describe themselves as Christian: 59% here, more than in 92% of UK towns. Bridge had 1,539 residents in 660 households at the 2021 Census. Households in detached houses account for 42%.
What the Census says about Bridge’s people
Older than most towns
Half of Bridge’s residents are under 52.6 and half over, against 44.4 in the typical UK town. 32% are 65 or over, against 18% across England’s towns. Ages ↓
Many carers
181 residents gave unpaid care to someone with an illness, disability or old age in 2021, 12% of those 5 and over: more than in 98% of UK towns. Relationships & caring ↓
Written from the data on this page: ONS Census 2021 (output areas summed to the 2022 built-up area).
Bridge sits above 94% of UK towns for residents aged 65 and over (32%)
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
By its share of residents aged 15 to 24 (8%), Bridge is below 93% of UK towns. To put it in context, 18% of residents are 65 or over across England’s towns. 55–59 is the most common age band: 7.6% of residents.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
53% women, 47% men
About 88 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.
A student village: 6.4% 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%.
In Bridge, 45% of adults work in managerial and professional jobs and 13% in routine and semi-routine work, against 33% and 24% across England’s towns. To put it in context, 7.9% of adults are full-time students across England’s towns. Residents who moved in within the year are rarer here than in 68% of UK towns.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in term time, so students were counted at their term addresses.
Only 25% of households in Bridge have dependent children
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Kent’s towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
Across England’s towns, 30% of households are one person living alone; in Bridge, 32%. On top of that, 2.4% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home, a higher share than in 55% of UK towns. Households with dependent children: 29% across England’s towns, for comparison.
Households without a car or van make up 12% in Bridge, less than in 68% 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
In Bridge, 17% of households live in a terraced house, beside 24% across England’s towns. Households in flats account for 11%.
A higher share of residents born outside the UK than 67% of UK towns, at 8.6%
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%
When those born abroad arrived
Main language · residents aged 3 and over
Residents whose main language is English make up 98%, against 90% across England’s towns. Measured more widely, 18% of residents were born outside the UK across England’s towns. The two biggest birthplaces abroad are in EU countries (2.9%) and in Africa (2.4%).
Bridge ranks below 89% of UK towns on residents with no religion: 32%
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: 89% of Bridge · Kent’s towns 82% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
1.1% of residents said their religion is Muslim. On residents who describe themselves as White British, Bridge sits lower than 67% of UK towns: 89%. For residents with no religion, the comparison across England’s towns is 37%.
12% of residents give unpaid care, a share 98% of UK towns don’t reach
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
59 residents give 50 hours or more of unpaid care each week. As a yardstick, nearly one in ten residents give unpaid care across England’s towns. On married adults and civil partners, Bridge sits higher than 85% of UK towns: 54%.
44% of adults have a degree-level qualification
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Against 34% across England’s towns, 44% of adults here have a degree-level qualification, while 15% hold no qualification (18%). A levels are the highest qualification of 15%, many of them students still working towards a degree.
Every neighbour of Bridge 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bridge | 1,539 | — | 52.6 | 32% | 25% |
| Littlebourne | 1,596 | 2.7 mi | 49.4 | 28% | 26% |
| Canterbury | 55,107 | 3.2 mi | 27.5 | 13% | 24% |
| Aylesham | 5,788 | 3.5 mi | 33.2 | 12% | 40% |
| Sturry | 4,857 | 4 mi | 44.7 | 24% | 27% |
| Wingham | 1,313 | 4.3 mi | 49.5 | 27% | 25% |
| Chartham | 3,569 | 4.5 mi | 37.6 | 13% | 37% |
| Rough Common | 1,291 | 4.6 mi | 42.5 | 24% | 27% |
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.
- “Kent’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in Kent (or England), summed the same way as Bridge’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 Bridge’s residents
What is the population of Bridge?
The 2021 Census counted 1,539 people in Bridge’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Bridge?
The median age was 52.6 at the 2021 Census. 8% of residents were 15 to 24 and 32% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Bridge?
89% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 82% across Kent’s towns. 8.6% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Bridge?
32% said they had no religion and 59% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 1.1% were Muslim and 5.5% didn’t answer.
Is Bridge good for families?
25% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Bridge’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.