Photo: Chris Heaton · CC BY-SA 2.0

48.1Median age

Who lives here · ONS Census 2021

In Sabden, 50% of households live in a terraced house, more than in 98% of UK towns

Here 27% of residents said they have no religion, where the figure across England’s towns is 37%. Census day 2021: 1,582 residents and 713 households in Sabden. 24% of households have dependent children. The median age in the village is 48.1, higher than in 75% of UK towns.

22%aged 65 or over 2.8%born abroad 713households

Ages

9.5% of residents are aged 15 to 24, below 61% of UK towns

Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.

SabdenEngland’s towns

0–410–1420–2430–3440–4450–5460–6470–7480–84

Just over a fifth of Sabden is 65 or over, against 20% across Lancashire’s towns and 18% across England’s towns. As a yardstick, 12% of residents are aged 15 to 24 across England’s towns.

Broad ages · share of residents

Under 1515%

15 to 249.5%

25 to 4421%

45 to 6432%

65 and over22%

SabdenLancashire’s townsEngland’s towns

Women and men · all residents

51% women, 49% men

Sabden

England

WomenMen

About 95 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.

Students & newcomers

Below 70% of UK towns: 4.4% of adults are full-time students

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

Full-time students4.4%

Higher managerial and professional14%

Lower managerial and professional26%

Intermediate14%

Small employers and self-employed15%

Supervisory and technical4.8%

Semi-routine8.8%

Routine9.7%

Never worked or long-term unemployed4.1%

SabdenLancashire’s townsEngland’s towns

Address a year before the Census

Residents who lived somewhere else a year earlier. The bar runs to 25%.

Sabden

13%

England’s towns

11%

Moved within the UKTerm-time addressMoved from abroad

Moved in within a year

197

residents, 12%; England’s towns 11%

Of them from abroad

0.7× England’s share

With residents who moved in within the year at 12%, Sabden is ahead of 92% of UK towns on that count. Full-time students make up 7.9% across England’s towns.

Households

1.5% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home, fewer than in 90% of UK towns

Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.

Living alone, 66+ 15%Living alone, under 66 16%Families with dependent children 24%Couples and families, no young children 43%Shared houses and other 1.5%

Against Lancashire’s towns and England’s towns

Sabden

Lancashire’s towns

England’s towns

People per household

1 person31%

2 people37%

3 people16%

4 people13%

5 or more3.1%

England’s towns.

Households average 2.2 people, against 2.4 across England’s towns. As a reference point, 4.3% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home across England’s towns. The census found that 31% of households are one person living alone in Sabden.

Homes & cars

Below 86% of UK towns: 9.2% of households have no car or van

Accommodation type and cars or vans per household, Census 2021. Owning and renting are on Cost of living.

Type of home

Sabden

Lancashire’s towns

England’s towns

DetachedSemi-detachedTerracedFlat or maisonetteCaravan or other

Cars or vans · share of households

No car or van9.2%

One43%

Two35%

Three or more12%

SabdenLancashire’s townsEngland’s towns

Across England’s towns, the share of households in detached houses is 21%; Sabden has 20%. Add to that, the village has fewer households in flats than 72% of UK towns, at 7%. By way of comparison, 24% of households have no car or van across England’s towns.

Where people were born

Fewer residents born outside the UK than 93% of UK towns: 2.8%

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%

Sabden

2.9%

Lancashire’s towns

10%

England’s towns

18%

EU countriesRest of EuropeMiddle East and AsiaAfricaAmericas, Oceania, other

Main language · residents aged 3 and over

English is main language99%

Another main language, speaks English very well or well0.6%

Another main language, little or no English0%

SabdenLancashire’s townsEngland’s towns

Residents whose main language is English: 99% here and 90% across England’s towns. Set beside that, 18% of residents were born outside the UK across England’s towns.

Ethnicity & religion

Residents who describe themselves as Christian make up 66% in Sabden, more than in 99% 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

SabdenLancashire’s townsEngland’s towns

Other White1.4%

Asian0.7%

Mixed1.2%

Black0.1%

Other0.3%

0%7%14%

White British, not charted: 96% of Sabden · Lancashire’s towns 82% · England’s towns 73%.

Religion · all residents

SabdenLancashire’s townsEngland’s towns

No religion27%

Christian66%

Muslim0.5%

Hindu, Sikh, Jewish, Buddhist0.3%

Other religion0.3%

Didn’t answer5.4%

0%40%80%

In Sabden, 96% of residents describe themselves as White British, beside 73% across England’s towns. As a yardstick, 46% of residents describe themselves as Christian across England’s towns. Besides White British, the main groups are Other White (1.4%), Mixed or multiple (1.2%) and Chinese (0.4%).

Relationships & caring

In Sabden, 52% of adults are married or in a civil partnership, more than in 74% 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

Never married or in a civil partnership30%

Married or civil partnership52%

Separated2.1%

Divorced9.8%

Widowed6.7%

SabdenLancashire’s townsEngland’s towns

145residents give unpaid care to someone with an illness, disability or old age: 9.6%, against 8.7% in England’s towns

Unpaid care given · share of residents 5 and over

Up to 19 hours a week5.8%

20 to 49 hours1.7%

50 hours or more2.1%

The figure for adults who have never married is 30% in Sabden and 39% across England’s towns. Against that, 44% of adults are married or in a civil partnership across England’s towns. The share of unpaid carers stands at 9.6%.

Qualifications

40% of adults are qualified to degree level

Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.

Highest qualification · residents 16 and over

No qualifications12%

Apprenticeship6.1%

A levels or similar20%

Degree level40%

SabdenLancashire’s townsEngland’s towns

40% of Sabden’s adults have a degree-level qualification, against 34% across England’s towns; 12% have none (18%).

Neighbours

Among its 7 nearest neighbours, 3 are older than Sabden

Nearby built-up areas coloured by median age, Census 2021. Tap a town for its page.

ReadBarrowPadihamWhalleyFenceClitheroeBillingtonSabden

under 3838–4444–5050–5656+

Town	People	Away	Median age	65+	Homes with children
Sabden	1,582	—	48.1	22%	24%
Read	2,049	1.8 mi	48.1	25%	28%
Barrow	1,388	2.6 mi	43.3	19%	30%
Padiham	10,121	2.6 mi	40.3	19%	28%
Whalley	3,411	3.2 mi	49.6	25%	26%
Fence	1,585	3.3 mi	50.6	30%	27%
Clitheroe	16,626	3.5 mi	44	22%	26%
Billington	1,743	3.6 mi	48.6	24%	25%

More about Sabden’s residents

Health, work and homes have their own pages

Health A⁻Life expectancy, early deaths and Census health, adjusted for age Work & commute B⁻Income, the claimant count, jobs and how people get to work Cost of living AOwners and renters, prices, rents and council tax Schools D⁻Every primary and secondary, with results and inspections

How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

“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 Sabden’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 Sabden’s residents

What is the population of Sabden?

The 2021 Census counted 1,582 people in Sabden’s built-up area.

What is the average age in Sabden?

The median age was 48.1 at the 2021 Census. 9.5% of residents were 15 to 24 and 22% were 65 or over.

How diverse is Sabden?

96% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 82% across Lancashire’s towns. 2.8% were born outside the UK.

What religion are people in Sabden?

27% said they had no religion and 66% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.5% were Muslim and 5.4% didn’t answer.

Is Sabden good for families?

24% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Sabden’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.