Photo: Rept0n1x · CC BY-SA 3.0In Knowsley, 21% of residents said they have no religion, fewer than in 99% of UK towns
Just over two in five adults have never married or formed a civil partnership, against 39% across England’s towns. At the 2021 Census, 2,345 people lived in Knowsley, in 1,011 households. Households in terraced houses account for 28%. The village has fewer households in flats than 83% of UK towns, at 5%.
What the Census says about Knowsley’s people
Many carers
288 residents gave unpaid care to someone with an illness, disability or old age in 2021, 13% of those 5 and over: more than in 99% of UK towns. Relationships & caring ↓
Written from the data on this page: ONS Census 2021 (output areas summed to the 2022 built-up area).
A median age of 46.8: Knowsley is older than 67% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
The largest age band is 60–64: nearly one in ten residents, 1.4 times the share across England’s towns. The share of residents aged 15 to 24 stands at 11%. At 23%, the share of residents aged 65 and over is higher than in 63% of UK towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
49% women, 51% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
A lower share of residents who moved in within the year than 99% of UK towns, at 5%
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%.
Managerial and professional jobs take in a quarter of adults here, routine and semi-routine work 26% (England’s towns: 33% and 24%). Compared with other places, full-time students are common here: 4.8%, more than in half of UK towns. Residents who moved in within the year make up 11% across England’s towns.
Fewer households with dependent children than 77% of UK towns: 24%
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Merseyside’s towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
Set against 30% across England’s towns, nearly a third of households are one person living alone in Knowsley. What’s more, at 3.3%, the share of shared households of unrelated adults is higher than in 83% of UK towns. For households with dependent children, the comparison across England’s towns is 29%. Each household has 2.3 people on average.
18% of households have no car or van, 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
Across England’s towns, the share of households in detached houses is 21%; Knowsley has 34%. For households without a car or van, the comparison across England’s towns is 24%.
Below 85% of UK towns: 3.5% of residents were 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%
Main language · residents aged 3 and over
The share of residents whose main language is English tops three fifths of UK towns: 98%. For residents born outside the UK, the comparison across England’s towns is 18%. By birthplace, the largest groups from abroad were born in the Middle East and Asia (1.5%) and in the Americas, Oceania and elsewhere (0.8%).
Knowsley sits above 99% of UK towns for residents who describe themselves as Christian (73%)
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: 95% of Knowsley · Merseyside’s towns 87% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
95% of residents describe themselves as White British, against 87% across Merseyside’s towns and 73% across England’s towns. Across England’s towns, 46% of residents describe themselves as Christian. After White British, the largest groups are Other White (1.3%), Mixed or multiple (1.2%) and Indian (0.7%).
Unpaid carers make up 13% in Knowsley, more than in 99% 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
44% of adults are married or in a civil partnership across England’s towns, against 41% in Knowsley. As a reference point, nearly one in ten residents give unpaid care across England’s towns.
Adults with a degree-level qualification: 25%
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Knowsley’s adults: 25% with a degree-level qualification and 26% with none, against 34% and 18% across England’s towns.
2 in 7 nearby towns have a higher median age than Knowsley
Nearby built-up areas coloured by median age, Census 2021. Tap a town for its page.
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- “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 Knowsley’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 Knowsley’s residents
What is the population of Knowsley?
The 2021 Census counted 2,345 people in Knowsley’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Knowsley?
The median age was 46.8 at the 2021 Census. 11% of residents were 15 to 24 and 23% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Knowsley?
95% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 87% across Merseyside’s towns. 3.5% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Knowsley?
21% said they had no religion and 73% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.2% were Muslim and 4.7% didn’t answer.
Is Knowsley good for families?
24% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Knowsley’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.