Photo: David Anstiss · CC BY-SA 2.0Istead Rise is older than 92% of UK towns: a median age of 52.2
Against a figure of 23% across England’s towns, the share of households in flats in Istead Rise comes in at 1%. The 2021 Census counted 3,398 residents in 1,374 households. The share of households in terraced houses stands at 2.1%. More married adults and civil partners than in 97% of UK towns: 59%.
What the Census says about Istead Rise’s people
Older than most towns
Half of Istead Rise’s residents are under 52.2 and half over, against 44.4 in the typical UK town. 31% are 65 or over, against 18% across England’s towns. Ages ↓
Fewer people than in 2011
ONS mid-year estimates put Istead Rise at 3,400 in 2011 and 3,300 in 2024, down 3%, against 10% for England: slower growth than in 94% of UK towns. Since 2011 ↓
Written from the data on this page: ONS Census 2021 (output areas summed to the 2022 built-up area) and ONS mid-year population estimates.
Istead Rise changed by −3% from 2011 to 2024, slower than 94% of UK towns
ONS mid-year estimates, each year indexed to mid-2011 = 100. Istead Rise’s figure is the small areas (2021 LSOAs) that make up the town.
People, mid-2011 = 100
Change by age, 2011 to 2024
About 3,400 people in 2011; 3,300 in 2024.
Split by age, the 65 and over changed most (+13%) and the 16 to 29 least (−17%).
31% of Istead Rise is 65 or over, a higher share than 93% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
Set against 12% across England’s towns, nearly one in ten residents are aged 15 to 24 in Istead Rise. The wider picture: 18% of residents are 65 or over across England’s towns.
Median age of UK towns of 2,500+
■ Istead Rise, 52.2. The typical town is 44.4.
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.
4% of adults are full-time students, fewer than in 83% 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
Address a year before the Census
Residents who lived somewhere else a year earlier. The bar runs to 25%.
Across England’s towns, a third of adults are in managerial and professional jobs and 24% in routine or semi-routine work; Istead Rise has 35% and 17%. Few places have so few residents who moved in within the year: 7.1% here, fewer than in 83% of UK towns. By way of comparison, 7.9% of adults are full-time students across England’s towns.
21% of households are one person living alone, below 97% 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.
Across England’s towns, households average 2.4 people; in Istead Rise, 2.5. The comparison figure for one-person households is 30% across England’s towns. For Istead Rise, the census puts households with dependent children at 25%. Few places have as many shared households of unrelated adults: 2.8% here, more than in 69% of UK towns.
Households without a car or van make up 8.4% in Istead Rise, less than in 90% 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
35% of households live in a detached house (England’s towns: 21%). Across England’s towns, the share of households without a car or van is 24%.
Above 56% of UK towns: 98% of residents have English as their main language
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 born abroad were most often born in EU countries (2.3%), then in the Middle East and Asia (1.7%). The comparison figure for residents whose main language is English is 90% across England’s towns. Across England’s towns, 21% of those born abroad arrived in 2017 or later; here, 12%.
59% describe themselves as Christian, more than in 93% 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
White British, not charted: 92% of Istead Rise · Kent’s towns 82% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
Set against 37% across England’s towns, 32% of residents said they have no religion in Istead Rise. Across England’s towns, residents who describe themselves as Christian come to 46%. The groups that follow White British are Other White (2.7%), Indian (1.8%) and Mixed or multiple (1.2%).
Only 24% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership in Istead Rise
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
118 residents give 50 hours or more of unpaid care each week. The share of adults who have never married across England’s towns is 39%. At 11%, the share of unpaid carers is higher than in 84% of UK towns.
24% of adults hold a degree-level qualification
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Across England’s towns, 18% of adults have no qualification; in Istead Rise, 18%, while 24% hold one at degree level (34%).
94th highest median age among 749 UK towns of 2,500 to 5,000
Median age, Census 2021. Hover a dot for its students and residents born abroad; click for its page.
At the ends of the range sit Bailrigg (18.9), the youngest, and Milford on Sea (64.6), the oldest. Nearest to Istead Rise in age: Oaklands (52.2), Goring (52.2), Headley Down and Headley (52.3) and Romanby (52.4).
Median age: 1 of the 7 towns around Istead Rise are older
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Istead Rise | 3,398 | — | 52.2 | 31% | 25% |
| Meopham | 4,349 | 1.9 mi | 49.8 | 27% | 26% |
| Gravesend | 58,105 | 2.1 mi | 38.3 | 16% | 34% |
| Northfleet | 29,892 | 2.1 mi | 36 | 13% | 37% |
| Longfield, New Ash Green and Hartley | 16,077 | 2.2 mi | 48.2 | 27% | 27% |
| Ebbsfleet Valley | 2,989 | 2.9 mi | 30.5 | 1.5% | 49% |
| Bean | 1,633 | 3.2 mi | 41.9 | 21% | 30% |
| Shorne | 1,038 | 3.6 mi | 54.9 | 34% | 21% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- “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 Istead Rise’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. Istead Rise’s trend uses the small areas (2021 LSOAs) with most of their people inside it: 3,398 people in 2021, against 3,398 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 Istead Rise’s residents
What is the population of Istead Rise?
The 2021 Census counted 3,398 people in Istead Rise’s built-up area. The ONS estimates the same small areas held 3,300 people in mid-2024, 3% fewer than in 2011.
What is the average age in Istead Rise?
The median age was 52.2 at the 2021 Census, older than 92% of UK towns. 9.3% of residents were 15 to 24 and 31% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Istead Rise?
92% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 82% across Kent’s towns. 6.2% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Istead Rise?
32% said they had no religion and 59% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.5% were Muslim and 5.1% didn’t answer.
Is Istead Rise good for families?
25% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Istead Rise’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. 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.