Photo: Marathon · CC BY-SA 2.0

40.9Median age

Who lives here · ONS Census 2021 & mid-year estimates

Birkenhead sits above 97% of UK towns for households without a car or van (33%)

44% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership; across England’s towns the figure is 39%. At the 2021 Census, 109,854 people lived in Birkenhead, in 50,162 households. The share of households in detached houses stands at 12%. The median age locally is 40.9, lower than in just over three quarters of UK towns.

+6%people since 2011 19%aged 65 or over 6.9%born abroad 50,162households

Population since 2011

Since 2011, Birkenhead has changed by +6%, slower than 56% of UK towns

ONS mid-year estimates, each year indexed to mid-2011 = 100. Birkenhead’s figure is the small areas (2021 LSOAs) that make up the city.

People, mid-2011 = 100

BirkenheadEnglandAll of Merseyside

Change by age, 2011 to 2024

BirkenheadEngland

0 to 15+3%

16 to 29−2%

30 to 44+9%

45 to 64+3%

65 and over+21%

About 107,900 people in 2011; 114,500 in 2024.

The largest rise in a single year came from mid-2023 to mid-2024: 1,960 people. Split by age, the 65 and over changed most (+21%) and the 16 to 29 least (−2%).

Ages

11% of residents are aged 15 to 24, more than in 84% of UK towns

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

BirkenheadEngland’s towns

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

Nearly a fifth of residents are 65 or over, against 18% across England’s towns. Against that, 12% of residents are aged 15 to 24 across England’s towns.

Median age of UK towns of 2,500+

2535455565

■ Birkenhead, 40.9. The typical town is 44.4.

Broad ages · share of residents

Under 1518%

15 to 2411%

25 to 4426%

45 to 6427%

65 and over19%

BirkenheadMerseyside’s townsEngland’s towns

Women and men · all residents

51% women, 49% men

Birkenhead

England

WomenMen

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

Students & newcomers

5.8% of adults are full-time students, more than in 81% 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

Full-time students5.8%

Higher managerial and professional8.5%

Lower managerial and professional18%

Intermediate12%

Small employers and self-employed8.2%

Supervisory and technical6.2%

Semi-routine14%

Routine15%

Never worked or long-term unemployed12%

BirkenheadMerseyside’s townsEngland’s towns

Address a year before the Census

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

Birkenhead

8.5%

England’s towns

11%

Moved within the UKTerm-time addressMoved from abroad

Moved in within a year

9,042

residents, 8.3%; England’s towns 11%

Of them from abroad

460

0.4× England’s share

Residents who moved in within the year: 8.3%, below 57% of UK towns. The comparison figure for full-time students is 7.9% across England’s towns.

The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in term time, so students were counted at their term addresses.

Households

A higher share of one-person households than 97% of UK towns, at 38%

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

Living alone, 66+ 14%Living alone, under 66 24%Families with dependent children 28%Couples and families, no young children 32%Shared houses and other 2.3%

Against Merseyside’s towns and England’s towns

Birkenhead

Merseyside’s towns

England’s towns

People per household

1 person38%

2 people30%

3 people16%

4 people10%

5 or more5.4%

England’s towns.

A household here has 2.2 people on average; across England’s towns, 2.4. Locally, 2.3% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home. 28% of households have dependent children, more than in 54% of UK towns. The share of one-person households across England’s towns is 30%.

Homes & cars

Birkenhead sits above 83% of UK towns for households in terraced houses (30%)

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

Type of home

Birkenhead

Merseyside’s towns

England’s towns

DetachedSemi-detachedTerracedFlat or maisonetteCaravan or other

Cars or vans · share of households

No car or van33%

One42%

Two20%

Three or more5.7%

BirkenheadMerseyside’s townsEngland’s towns

In Birkenhead, 22% of households live in a flat or apartment, beside 23% across England’s towns. To put it in context, 24% of households live in a terraced house across England’s towns.

Where people were born

Residents whose main language is English: 96%, a lower share than 69% 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%

Birkenhead

6.9%

Merseyside’s towns

8.8%

England’s towns

18%

EU countriesRest of EuropeMiddle East and AsiaAfricaAmericas, Oceania, other

When those born abroad arrived

BirkenheadEngland’s towns

Before 19711971–801981–901991–20002001–102011–132014–162017–192020–21

Main language · residents aged 3 and over

English is main language96%

Another main language, speaks English very well or well2.8%

Another main language, little or no English0.9%

BirkenheadMerseyside’s townsEngland’s towns

Most residents from abroad were born in EU countries (2.9%) or in the Middle East and Asia (2.5%). Residents born outside the UK are more common here than in 56% of UK towns. Across the comparison, 90% of residents have English as their main language across England’s towns. Of residents born abroad, 20% arrived in 2017 or later, against 21% across England’s towns.

Ethnicity & religion

In Birkenhead, 53% of residents describe themselves as Christian, more than in 69% 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

BirkenheadMerseyside’s townsEngland’s towns

Other White3.4%

Asian3.3%

Mixed1.6%

Black0.6%

Other0.9%

0%6%12%

White British, not charted: 90% of Birkenhead · Merseyside’s towns 87% · England’s towns 73%.

Religion · all residents

BirkenheadMerseyside’s townsEngland’s towns

No religion39%

Christian53%

Muslim1.8%

Hindu, Sikh, Jewish, Buddhist1%

Other religion0.4%

Didn’t answer5.3%

0%35%70%

Against a figure of 37% across England’s towns, the share of residents with no religion in Birkenhead comes in at 39%. 90% of residents describe themselves as White British, fewer than in 62% of UK towns. As a reference point, 46% of residents describe themselves as Christian across England’s towns. Islam is the religion of 1.8% of residents.

Relationships & caring

A lower share of married adults and civil partners than 97% of UK towns, at 35%

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 partnership44%

Married or civil partnership35%

Separated2.9%

Divorced11%

Widowed6.9%

BirkenheadMerseyside’s townsEngland’s towns

11,221residents give unpaid care to someone with an illness, disability or old age: 11%, against 8.7% in England’s towns

Unpaid care given · share of residents 5 and over

Up to 19 hours a week4.4%

20 to 49 hours2.8%

50 hours or more3.7%

Students and young renters account for much of that. Here, just over one in ten residents give unpaid care. 44% of Birkenhead’s adults have never married or formed a civil partnership and 35% are married, against 39% and 44% across England’s towns.

Qualifications

27% of adults have a degree-level qualification

Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.

Highest qualification · residents 16 and over

No qualifications21%

Apprenticeship6.3%

A levels or similar18%

Degree level27%

BirkenheadMerseyside’s townsEngland’s towns

Across England’s towns, 18% of adults have no qualification; in Birkenhead, 21%, while 27% hold one at degree level (34%).

Where in Birkenhead

From a median age of 32 in Bebington New Ferry to 52 in Claughton South & Oxton North

The city’s 16 neighbourhoods (ONS middle-layer areas with 500+ residents inside it, named by the House of Commons Library), youngest first. Census 2021.

Median age 30 → 55 · line = all BirkenheadAdults who are full-time students

Bebington New Ferry325.8%

Birkenhead South355.9%

Bidston Hill356.9%

Tranmere357.4%

Poulton367.2%

Noctorum North & Upton East377.5%

Birkenhead Central395.6%

Woodchurch405.9%

Oxton South406.1%

Egerton Park415.8%

Noctorum South465.2%

Claughton North466.2%

Upton West464.4%

Prenton475.6%

Saughall Massie484.4%

Claughton South & Oxton North524%

Claughton South & Oxton North is the oldest area, with 29% aged 65 or over; Bebington New Ferry the youngest (median age 32). Families with children are most common in Bebington New Ferry (38% of households).

Towns its size

15th highest median age among 63 UK towns of 77,000 to 148,000

Median age, Census 2021. Hover a dot for its students and residents born abroad; click for its page.

Birkenhead 40.9

SalfordSouthportStockport

283950

The youngest is Salford (29.8) and the oldest Southport (48.4). Nearest to Birkenhead in age: Bury (40.5), Stockton-on-Tees (40.6), Carlisle (41.1) and Wigan (41.1).

Neighbours

No nearby town is as young as Birkenhead

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

WallaseyGreasbyHeswallBebingtonMeolsCaldyWest KirbyBirkenhead

under 3838–4444–5050–5656+

Town	People	Away	Median age	65+	Homes with children
Birkenhead	109,854	—	40.9	19%	28%
Wallasey	85,619	2.4 mi	43.2	20%	27%
Greasby	9,175	2.6 mi	51.4	30%	24%
Heswall	29,082	3.5 mi	52.2	31%	23%
Bebington	57,607	3.7 mi	45.1	23%	27%
Meols	5,023	4.6 mi	51	27%	27%
Caldy	1,227	4.9 mi	55.4	34%	24%
West Kirby	13,383	5 mi	50.4	28%	25%

More about Birkenhead’s residents

Health, work and homes have their own pages

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

How to read these numbers

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.
“Merseyside’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in Merseyside (or England), summed the same way as Birkenhead’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. Birkenhead’s trend uses the small areas (2021 LSOAs) with most of their people inside it: 109,805 people in 2021, against 109,854 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 Birkenhead’s residents

What is the population of Birkenhead?

The 2021 Census counted 109,854 people in Birkenhead’s built-up area. The ONS estimates the same small areas held 114,500 people in mid-2024, 6% more than in 2011.

What is the average age in Birkenhead?

The median age was 40.9 at the 2021 Census, younger than 76% of UK towns. 11% of residents were 15 to 24 and 19% were 65 or over.

How diverse is Birkenhead?

90% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 87% across Merseyside’s towns. 6.9% were born outside the UK.

What religion are people in Birkenhead?

39% said they had no religion and 53% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 1.8% were Muslim and 5.3% didn’t answer.

Is Birkenhead good for families?

28% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Families are most common in Bebington New Ferry (38% of households). Schools are on Birkenhead’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 · House of Commons Library MSOA names. 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.