Photo: My another account · CC0Half of Hersden is under 34.5, younger than 96% of UK towns
21% of households are one person living alone; across England’s towns the figure is 30%. Few places have so few residents who describe themselves as White British: 84% here, fewer than in 80% of UK towns. At the 2021 Census, 2,118 people lived in Hersden, in 781 households. Here, 45% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership.
What the Census says about Hersden’s people
A village of families
40% of Hersden’s 781 households had dependent children in 2021, more than in 98% of UK towns. 22% of residents are under 15. Households ↓
Younger than most towns
Half of Hersden’s residents are under 34.5 and half over, against 44.4 in the typical UK town. 13% are 15 to 24 and 13% are 65 or over. Ages ↓
More with no religion than most
49% of residents answered “no religion” in 2021 and 41% Christian, against 37% and 46% across England’s towns. Ethnicity & religion ↓
Written from the data on this page: ONS Census 2021 (output areas summed to the 2022 built-up area).
Only 13% of residents are 65 or over in Hersden
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
The share of residents aged 15 to 24 is 13%, against 12% across England’s towns. The usual figure: 18% of residents are 65 or over across England’s towns. The largest age band is 30–34: 8% of residents.
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.
Hersden ranks above 93% of UK towns on residents who moved in within the year: 13%
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%.
6.7% of adults are full-time students (England’s towns: 7.9%). Across England’s towns, the share of residents who moved in within the year is 11%.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in term time, so students were counted at their term addresses.
Households with dependent children make up 40% in Hersden, more than in 98% of UK towns
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.
In Hersden the average household is 2.7 people, beside 2.4 across England’s towns. Measured more widely, 29% of households have dependent children across England’s towns. Census figures put shared households of unrelated adults at 4.2% in the village.
Households without a car or van: 13%, a lower share than 66% 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
A quarter of households live in a terraced house, against 24% across England’s towns. On the census count, just over a fifth of households live in a detached house. Higher than in 50% of UK towns: 11% of households live in a flat or apartment.
Hersden: 12% of residents were born outside the UK, above 79% 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%
When those born abroad arrived
Main language · residents aged 3 and over
Residents whose main language is English: 94%, below just over four fifths of UK towns. The comparison figure for residents born outside the UK is 18% across England’s towns. Most residents from abroad were born in the Middle East and Asia (4.9%) or in EU countries (2.9%).
Hersden sits above 91% of UK towns for residents with no religion (49%)
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: 84% of Hersden · Kent’s towns 82% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
The largest groups after White British are Other White (4%), Mixed or multiple (2.6%) and Indian (2%). At 41%, the share of residents who describe themselves as Christian is lower than in 91% of UK towns. By way of comparison, 37% of residents said they have no religion across England’s towns.
40% of adults are married or in a civil partnership, fewer than in 92% 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
One in ten residents give unpaid care (England’s towns: 8.7%). The usual figure: 44% of adults are married or in a civil partnership across England’s towns.
Among adults, 28% hold a degree-level qualification
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
With 28% of its adults qualified to degree level, Hersden compares with 34% across England’s towns; another 19% hold no qualification (18%). A levels are the highest qualification of 17%, many of them students still working towards a degree.
Hersden sits below 6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hersden | 2,118 | — | 34.5 | 13% | 40% |
| Sturry | 4,857 | 1.5 mi | 44.7 | 24% | 27% |
| Littlebourne | 1,596 | 2.7 mi | 49.4 | 28% | 26% |
| Herne | 14,874 | 3.3 mi | 45 | 23% | 30% |
| Wingham | 1,313 | 3.8 mi | 49.5 | 27% | 25% |
| Canterbury | 55,107 | 4 mi | 27.5 | 13% | 24% |
| Herne Bay | 24,873 | 4 mi | 49.9 | 29% | 23% |
| Rough Common | 1,291 | 4.9 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 Hersden’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 Hersden’s residents
What is the population of Hersden?
The 2021 Census counted 2,118 people in Hersden’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Hersden?
The median age was 34.5 at the 2021 Census. 13% of residents were 15 to 24 and 13% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Hersden?
84% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 82% across Kent’s towns. 12% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Hersden?
49% said they had no religion and 41% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 1.7% were Muslim and 5.3% didn’t answer.
Is Hersden good for families?
40% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Hersden’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.