Photo: Chris Whippet · CC BY-SA 2.0Residents aged 15 to 24 make up 7.5% in West Malling, less than in 96% of UK towns
The share of households without a car or van trails 77% of UK towns: 11%. The census found that 46% of residents said they have no religion in West Malling. Compared with other places, households in flats are common here: 23%, more than in 89% of UK towns. The 2021 Census put the town’s population at 4,251, in 1,846 households.
What the Census says about West Malling’s people
Growing faster than most
ONS mid-year estimates put West Malling at 3,000 in 2011 and 5,000 in 2024, up 63%, against 10% for England: faster growth than in 98% 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.
Faster growth than 98% of UK towns: West Malling changed by +63% since 2011
ONS mid-year estimates, each year indexed to mid-2011 = 100. West Malling’s figure is the small areas (2021 LSOAs) that make up the town.
People, mid-2011 = 100
Change by age, 2011 to 2024
About 3,000 people in 2011; 5,000 in 2024.
Split by age, the 0 to 15 changed most (+112%) and the 45 to 64 least (+33%). The biggest one-year rise was mid-2017 to mid-2018, 330 people.
A median age of 39.1: West Malling is younger than 85% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
With residents aged 65 and over at 19%, West Malling is behind 69% of UK towns on that count. The biggest five-year age group is 30–34, with 8.5% of residents.
Median age of UK towns of 2,500+
■ West Malling, 39.1. The typical town is 44.4.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
54% women, 46% men
About 87 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
West Malling ranks below 86% of UK towns on full-time students: 3.9%
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%.
One in ten residents lived at another address a year before the Census, against 11% across England’s towns. Measured more widely, 7.9% of adults are full-time students across England’s towns.
Families with children: 31% of households, more than in 77% 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, the share of one-person households is 30%; West Malling has 31%. What’s more, on shared households of unrelated adults, West Malling sits higher than 62% of UK towns: 2.6%. Against that, 29% of households have dependent children across England’s towns.
In West Malling, 23% of households live in a terraced house, more than in 64% 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
Households in detached houses: 21%, near enough the figure across England’s towns. The comparison figure for households in terraced houses is 24% across England’s towns.
West Malling: 8.3% of residents born outside the UK
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
Most residents from abroad were born in EU countries (2.9%) or in the Middle East and Asia (1.8%). On residents whose main language is English, West Malling sits higher than 54% of UK towns: 98%. Residents born outside the UK make up 18% across England’s towns.
88% of residents describe themselves as White British, fewer than in 72% 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: 88% of West Malling · Kent’s towns 82% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
Of the other groups, the largest are Other White (5.5%), Mixed or multiple (2.7%) and Indian (1.5%). Across England’s towns, the share of residents who describe themselves as White British is 73%. Residents who describe themselves as Christian: 46%, near enough the figure across England’s towns.
35% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership, a share 65% 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
Compared with 44% across England’s towns, 45% of adults are married or in a civil partnership here. 7.8% of residents give unpaid care, a lower share than in 88% of UK towns. Elsewhere, nearly two in five adults have never married or formed a civil partnership across England’s towns. The number giving 50 or more hours of unpaid care a week is 102.
The share of adults with a degree-level qualification: 37%
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
37% of West Malling’s adults have a degree-level qualification, against 34% across England’s towns; 14% have none (18%).
75th youngest of 695 UK towns of 3,000 to 6,000 people
Median age, Census 2021. Hover a dot for its students and residents born abroad; click for its page.
Bailrigg is the youngest (18.9); Sutton on Sea and Trusthorpe the oldest (64.7). Nearest to West Malling in age: Moulton (38.9), Brampton (39), Huntington (39.2) and Kingston Bagpuize (39.2).
Nearby, 6 of 7 towns have older populations than West Malling
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Malling | 4,251 | — | 39.1 | 19% | 31% |
| Larkfield | 26,147 | 1.5 mi | 42 | 20% | 32% |
| Kings Hill | 9,963 | 1.8 mi | 40.1 | 12% | 47% |
| Snodland | 11,820 | 2.5 mi | 38.6 | 16% | 31% |
| Wateringbury | 2,248 | 3.1 mi | 48.7 | 23% | 26% |
| Vigo Village | 2,005 | 3.1 mi | 42.9 | 20% | 33% |
| Eccles | 1,706 | 3.3 mi | 39.4 | 16% | 31% |
| Culverstone Green | 2,038 | 3.8 mi | 49.4 | 25% | 27% |
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 West Malling’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. West Malling’s trend uses the small areas (2021 LSOAs) with most of their people inside it: 4,504 people in 2021, against 4,251 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 West Malling’s residents
What is the population of West Malling?
The 2021 Census counted 4,251 people in West Malling’s built-up area. The ONS estimates the same small areas held 5,000 people in mid-2024, 63% more than in 2011.
What is the average age in West Malling?
The median age was 39.1 at the 2021 Census, younger than 85% of UK towns. 7.5% of residents were 15 to 24 and 19% were 65 or over.
How diverse is West Malling?
88% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 82% across Kent’s towns. 8.3% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in West Malling?
46% said they had no religion and 46% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.6% were Muslim and 5.2% didn’t answer.
Is West Malling good for families?
31% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on West Malling’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.