Photo: Richard Webb · CC BY-SA 2.062% of residents said they have no religion, a share 99% of UK towns don’t reach
Set against 18% across Scotland’s towns, a fifth of households live in a detached house in Penicuik. Census day 2021: 16,431 residents and 7,140 households locally. Here, 28% of households live in a terraced house. Fewer households with dependent children than in 71% of UK towns: 25%.
What the Census says about Penicuik’s people
More with no religion than most
62% of residents answered “no religion” in 2021 and 31% Christian, against 51% and 39% across Scotland’s towns. Ethnicity & religion ↓
Written from the data on this page: Scotland’s Census 2022 (output areas summed to the 2022 locality).
A median age of 43.8: Penicuik is younger than 55% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2022.
Across Scotland’s towns, 19% of residents are 65 or over; in Penicuik, 23%. The biggest five-year age group is 30–34, with 7.3% of residents. One in ten residents are aged 15 to 24, fewer than in 50% of UK towns.
Median age of UK towns of 2,500+
■ Penicuik, 43.8. The typical town is 44.4.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About an even split. Across Scotland, 51% of residents are women.
4.7% of adults are full-time students, below 54% of UK towns
What adults did at the 2022 Census (the NS-SEC classes).
Adults by occupation class · residents 16 and over
Managerial and professional jobs account for 36% of Penicuik’s adults, routine and semi-routine work for 25%, against 33% and 25% across Scotland’s towns. Elsewhere, nearly one in ten adults are full-time students across Scotland’s towns.
Households here average 2.3 people, below 60% of UK towns
Household make-up at the 2022 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Midlothian’s towns and Scotland’s towns
People per household
Scotland’s towns.
The census found that 30% of households are one person living alone in Penicuik. This Midlothian town has fewer shared households of unrelated adults than 54% of UK towns, at 2.3%.
Penicuik: 18% of households live in a flat or apartment, above 80% of UK towns
Accommodation type and cars or vans per household, Census 2022. Owning and renting are on Cost of living.
Type of home
Cars or vans · share of households
Households without a car or van: 19% here and 29% across Scotland’s towns. Set beside that, 39% of households live in a flat or apartment across Scotland’s towns.
In Penicuik, 97% of residents have English as their main language, fewer than in 65% of UK towns
Country of birth, year of arrival and main language, Census 2022.
Born outside the UK, by region · share of all residents; the bar runs to 15%
When those born abroad arrived
Main language · residents aged 3 and over
The two biggest birthplaces abroad are in EU countries (3.7%) and in the Americas, Oceania and elsewhere (1.3%). Across Scotland’s towns, the share of residents whose main language is English is 94%. Higher than in 58% of UK towns: 7.3% of residents were born outside the UK. Born abroad and arrived since 2017: nearly a quarter of that group, against 34% across Scotland’s towns.
Below 99% of UK towns: 31% of residents describe themselves as Christian
How residents described themselves at the 2022 Census. Lines join the lowest and highest of the three figures.
Ethnic groups other than White British · all residents
White British, not charted: 91% of Penicuik · Midlothian’s towns 90% · Scotland’s towns 86%.
Religion · all residents
Beyond White British, the biggest groups are Other White (4.9%), Mixed or multiple (1.1%) and African (0.5%). At 91%, the share of residents who describe themselves as White British is lower than in 56% of UK towns. Typically, nearly two in five residents describe themselves as Christian across Scotland’s towns.
Penicuik: 13% of residents give unpaid care, above 99% of UK towns
Legal partnership status (residents 16 and over) and unpaid care (residents 3 and over), Census 2022.
Partnership status · residents 16 and over
Unpaid care given · share of residents 3 and over
40% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership across Scotland’s towns, against 34% in Penicuik. The usual figure: 12% of residents give unpaid care across Scotland’s towns. Unpaid carers giving 50 hours or more a week: 445. This Midlothian town has more married adults and civil partners than 57% of UK towns, at 49%.
Degree level: the highest qualification of 30% of adults
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2022.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Across Scotland’s towns, 32% of adults have a degree-level qualification; in Penicuik, 30%, and 14% have none, against 17%.
Of 323 UK towns its size (12,000 to 22,000 people), the 158th youngest
Median age, Census 2022. Hover a dot for its students and residents born abroad; click for its page.
The youngest is Aberystwyth (25) and the oldest Sidmouth (60.4). Nearest to Penicuik in age: Midsomer Norton (43.8), Maesteg (43.8), Shiney Row and Penshaw (43.9) and Hale (43.9).
1 in 7 nearby towns have a higher median age than Penicuik
Nearby towns coloured by median age, Census 2022. Tap a town for its page.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Homes with children |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Penicuik | 16,431 | — | 43.8 | 23% | 25% |
| Loanhead | 7,007 | 3.8 mi | 46 | 23% | 24% |
| Bonnyrigg | 18,088 | 5 mi | 42.4 | 19% | 31% |
| Gorebridge | 8,900 | 6.7 mi | 36.1 | 13% | 35% |
| Danderhall | 3,389 | 6.8 mi | 39.6 | 18% | 29% |
| Mayfield | 14,259 | 6.9 mi | 40.4 | 17% | 29% |
| Edinburgh | 493,794 | 7.2 mi | 37.2 | 16% | 21% |
| Dalkeith | 15,125 | 7.3 mi | 41.2 | 19% | 28% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- “Midlothian’s towns” and “Scotland’s towns” mean their towns. Census comparisons pool every locality in Midlothian (or Scotland), summed the same way as Penicuik’s figures, so households in open countryside are left out.
- Small counts are blurred. National Records of Scotland adjusts small 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 Penicuik’s residents
What is the population of Penicuik?
The 2022 Census counted 16,431 people in Penicuik’s locality.
What is the average age in Penicuik?
The median age was 43.8 at the 2022 Census, younger than 55% of UK towns. 9.8% of residents were 15 to 24 and 23% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Penicuik?
91% of residents described themselves as White British in 2022, against 86% across Scotland’s towns and 90% across Midlothian’s towns. 7.3% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Penicuik?
62% said they had no religion and 31% that they were Christian at the 2022 Census; 0.6% were Muslim and 5.2% didn’t answer.
Is Penicuik good for families?
25% of households had dependent children in 2022, against 24% across Scotland’s towns. Schools are on Penicuik’s schools page.
Sources: Scotland’s Census 2022 (National Records of Scotland), output areas summed to the NRS 2022 locality (UV101b, UV103, UV104, UV113, UV201, UV204b, UV205, UV212, UV301, UV402, UV405, UV406, UV501, UV607, UV801). 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.