The Boat House · Photo: BarriePrice100 · CC BY-SA 4.0A lower share of households in flats than 87% of UK towns, at 4.1%
56% of residents describe themselves as Christian; across England’s towns the figure is 46%. Halton had 2,652 residents in 1,153 households at the 2021 Census. Married adults and civil partners: 52% of the total. Households without a car or van are rarer here than in 71% of UK towns.
What the Census says about Halton’s people
Growing faster than most
ONS mid-year estimates put Halton at 2,300 in 2011 and 3,100 in 2024, up 37%, against 10% for England: faster growth than in 95% 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.
Halton grew +37% from 2011 to 2024, ahead of 95% of UK towns
ONS mid-year estimates, each year indexed to mid-2011 = 100. Halton’s figure is the small areas (2021 LSOAs) that make up the town.
People, mid-2011 = 100
Change by age, 2011 to 2024
About 2,300 people in 2011; 3,100 in 2024.
Split by age, the 16 to 29 changed most (+77%) and the 45 to 64 least (+19%). The biggest jump came in the year to mid-2021: 160 more people.
A lower share of residents aged 15 to 24 than 87% of UK towns, at 8.4%
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
Residents aged 65 and over make up 23%, against 18% across England’s towns. For comparison, 12% of residents are aged 15 to 24 across England’s towns. The biggest five-year age group is 35–39, with 7.6% of residents. The median age in Halton is 44.8, higher than in 52% of UK towns.
Median age of UK towns of 2,500+
■ Halton, 44.8. The typical town is 44.4.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
About 92 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.
More students than 62% of UK towns: 5.1% of adults in Halton
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%.
With residents who moved in within the year at 9.8%, Halton is ahead of 70% of UK towns on that count. Measured more widely, 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.
A higher share of shared households of unrelated adults than 75% of UK towns, at 3%
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Lancashire’s towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
Compared with 29% across England’s towns, 27% of households have dependent children here. Shared households of unrelated adults make up 4.3% across England’s towns. The average household has 2.3 people. One-person households are rarer here than in 61% of UK towns.
A higher share of households in detached houses than 63% of UK towns, at 34%
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 Halton, 20% of households live in a terraced house. 4.1% of households live in a flat, less than in 87% of UK towns; 34% in a detached house, against 21% across England’s towns.
98% of residents have English as their main language, more than in 70% 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
With residents born outside the UK at 5.8%, Halton is behind 56% of UK towns on that count. To put it in context, 90% of residents have English as their main language across England’s towns. By birthplace, the largest groups from abroad were born in EU countries (2.9%) and in the Middle East and Asia (1.3%).
Halton sits above 52% of UK towns for residents who describe themselves as White British (92%)
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 Halton · Lancashire’s towns 82% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
The largest groups after White British are Other White (3.6%), Mixed or multiple (1.3%) and Indian (0.4%). Compared with other places, residents with no religion are scarce here: 37%, fewer than in 71% of UK towns. On average, 73% of residents describe themselves as White British across England’s towns.
30% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership, fewer than in 69% 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
Unpaid carers: 8.8%, near enough the figure across England’s towns. To put it in context, 39% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership across England’s towns.
42% of adults have a degree-level qualification
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
12% of Halton’s adults have no qualification (18% across England’s towns), and 42% have one at degree level (34%).
Ranked by age, 162nd youngest of 514 UK towns this size
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 Keele (20.6), the youngest, and West Chiltington (63.1), the oldest. Nearest to Halton in age: Wollaston (44.7), Taff's Well (44.7), Spilsby (44.8) and Cwm (44.8).
Median age: 5 of the 7 towns around Halton 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Halton | 2,652 | — | 44.8 | 23% | 27% |
| Caton | 2,552 | 1.8 mi | 49.6 | 28% | 24% |
| Bolton-le-Sands | 6,728 | 2 mi | 53.9 | 32% | 21% |
| Lancaster | 52,646 | 2.7 mi | 35 | 14% | 25% |
| Carnforth | 5,852 | 3.3 mi | 46 | 23% | 26% |
| Morecambe | 32,745 | 4 mi | 45.9 | 25% | 24% |
| Warton (Lancaster) | 1,801 | 4.7 mi | 54.5 | 31% | 19% |
| Bailrigg | 4,788 | 4.9 mi | 18.9 | 1.6% | 25% |
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.
- “Lancashire’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in Lancashire (or England), summed the same way as Halton’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. Halton’s trend uses the small areas (2021 LSOAs) with most of their people inside it: 2,885 people in 2021, against 2,652 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 Halton’s residents
What is the population of Halton?
The 2021 Census counted 2,652 people in Halton’s built-up area. The ONS estimates the same small areas held 3,100 people in mid-2024, 37% more than in 2011.
What is the average age in Halton?
The median age was 44.8 at the 2021 Census, older than 52% of UK towns. 8.4% of residents were 15 to 24 and 23% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Halton?
92% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 82% across Lancashire’s towns. 5.8% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Halton?
37% said they had no religion and 56% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.2% were Muslim and 5.2% didn’t answer.
Is Halton good for families?
27% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Halton’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.