Photo: Chris Whippet · CC BY-SA 2.0A higher share of households with dependent children than 98% of UK towns, at 39%
Half of Ryarsh’s residents are under 40.6, younger than in 77% of UK towns. One-person households: 20% of the total. In 2021, the Census found 491 residents locally, living in 186 households. The share of residents with no religion is 50%, against 37% across England’s towns.
Fewer residents aged 65 and over than 87% of UK towns: 16%
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
The biggest five-year age group is 50–54, with 8.4% of residents. Few places have as many residents aged 15 to 24: 10% here, more than in 72% of UK towns. Typically, 18% of residents are 65 or over across England’s towns. In St Mary's Bay, the oldest of Kent’s towns by this measure, it is 42%.
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.
6.2% of adults are full-time students, more than in 86% 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%.
Against a figure of 11% across England’s towns, the share of residents who moved in within the year in Ryarsh comes in at 7.6%. Set beside that, 7.9% of adults are full-time students across England’s towns.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in term time, so students were counted at their term addresses.
Ryarsh households average 2.6 people, larger than in 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.
Shared households of unrelated adults: 2.7% here and 4.3% across England’s towns.
Ryarsh ranks below 89% of UK towns on households without a car or van: 8.5%
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
The share of households in flats tops 64% of UK towns: 13%. The comparison figure for households without a car or van is 24% across England’s towns. Across Ryarsh, 17% of households live in a terraced house. More households in detached houses than in 52% of UK towns: 30%.
Ryarsh ranks above 97% of UK towns on residents whose main language is English: 99%
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%
Main language · residents aged 3 and over
3.5% of residents were born outside the UK (England’s towns: 18%). Among residents born abroad, the largest groups were born in the Middle East and Asia (1.4%) and in EU countries (0.8%). The usual figure: nine in ten residents have English as their main language across England’s towns.
Only 42% of residents describe themselves as Christian in Ryarsh
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 Ryarsh · Kent’s towns 82% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
After White British, the largest groups are Indian (2.7%), Mixed or multiple (2.4%) and Other White (2%). For comparison, 46% of residents describe themselves as Christian across England’s towns. Residents who describe themselves as White British are rarer here than in just over half of UK towns.
A larger share of married adults and civil partners than 90% of UK towns: 56%
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
With unpaid carers at 7.2%, Ryarsh is behind 95% of UK towns on that count. 31% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership. As a yardstick, 44% of adults are married or in a civil partnership across England’s towns.
The share of adults with a degree-level qualification: 26%
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
With 26% of its adults qualified to degree level, Ryarsh compares with 34% across England’s towns; another 17% hold no qualification (18%). Many still at university: 19% list A levels as their highest qualification.
Older than Ryarsh: 3 of the 7 towns nearby
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ryarsh | 491 | — | 40.6 | 16% | 39% |
| West Malling | 4,251 | 1.4 mi | 39.1 | 19% | 31% |
| Vigo Village | 2,005 | 1.8 mi | 42.9 | 20% | 33% |
| Snodland | 11,820 | 2.2 mi | 38.6 | 16% | 31% |
| Culverstone Green | 2,038 | 2.4 mi | 49.4 | 25% | 27% |
| Larkfield | 26,147 | 2.5 mi | 42 | 20% | 32% |
| Kings Hill | 9,963 | 3 mi | 40.1 | 12% | 47% |
| Halling | 2,926 | 3.5 mi | 37.8 | 13% | 35% |
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 Ryarsh’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 Ryarsh’s residents
What is the population of Ryarsh?
The 2021 Census counted 491 people in Ryarsh’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Ryarsh?
The median age was 40.6 at the 2021 Census. 10% of residents were 15 to 24 and 16% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Ryarsh?
92% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 82% across Kent’s towns. 3.5% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Ryarsh?
50% said they had no religion and 42% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0% were Muslim and 5.1% didn’t answer.
Is Ryarsh good for families?
39% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Ryarsh’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.