Photo: Evelyn Simak · CC BY-SA 2.0Older than 94% of UK towns: half of North Elmham is over 53.5
Households with dependent children: 22% here and 29% across England’s towns. On the census count, 1.3% of households live in a flat or apartment. Fewer households in terraced houses than in 90% of UK towns: 9.7%. In 2021, the Census found 1,172 residents in North Elmham, living in 542 households.
What the Census says about North Elmham’s people
Older than most towns
Half of North Elmham’s residents are under 53.5 and half over, against 44.4 in the typical UK town. 32% are 65 or over, against 18% across England’s towns. Ages ↓
Written from the data on this page: ONS Census 2021 (output areas summed to the 2022 built-up area).
32% of residents are 65 or over, more than in 94% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
The figure for residents aged 15 to 24 is 8.7% in North Elmham and 12% across England’s towns. To put it in context, 18% of residents are 65 or over across England’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
53% women, 47% men
About 88 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.
In North Elmham, 4.5% of adults are full-time students, fewer than in 63% 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
Address a year before the Census
Residents who lived somewhere else a year earlier. The bar runs to 25%.
By class, 31% of adults are in managerial and professional jobs and 23% in routine and semi-routine work (England’s towns: 33% and 24%). The share of residents who moved in within the year stands at 8.9%. For comparison, 7.9% of adults are full-time students across England’s towns.
North Elmham households average 2.2 people, smaller than in 78% of UK towns
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Norfolk’s towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
Here, 2.4% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home. There is little gap on one-person households: 30%, about the same as across England’s towns.
A village of detached houses: 51% of households live in one
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
10% of households have no car or van, against 24% across England’s towns. Measured more widely, 21% of households live in a detached house across England’s towns.
Residents whose main language is English make up 100% in North Elmham, more than in 99% 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%
Main language · residents aged 3 and over
Most residents from abroad were born in EU countries (1%) or in the Middle East and Asia (0.9%). 3.3% of residents were born outside the UK, fewer than in 88% of UK towns. As a yardstick, nine in ten residents have English as their main language across England’s towns.
Residents who describe themselves as White British: 98%, a higher share than 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
White British, not charted: 98% of North Elmham · Norfolk’s towns 88% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
Nearly two in five residents said they have no religion, against 37% across England’s towns. For comparison, 73% of residents describe themselves as White British across England’s towns. Census figures put residents who describe themselves as Christian at 54% in North Elmham.
In North Elmham, 23% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership, fewer than in 97% 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
Set against 44% across England’s towns, 55% of adults are married or in a civil partnership in North Elmham. The share of unpaid carers stands at 10%. The usual figure: nearly two in five adults have never married or formed a civil partnership across England’s towns.
Degree-level qualifications: 25% of adults
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Degree-level qualifications are held by 25% of North Elmham’s adults, against 34% across England’s towns; 21% have no qualification (18%).
Every neighbour of North Elmham has a younger population
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Elmham | 1,172 | — | 53.5 | 32% | 22% |
| Swanton Morley | 2,175 | 2.7 mi | 41.5 | 24% | 28% |
| Foulsham | 1,025 | 3.6 mi | 48.5 | 23% | 23% |
| Dereham | 20,788 | 4.8 mi | 44.7 | 24% | 27% |
| Mattishall | 2,203 | 7 mi | 51.9 | 31% | 19% |
| Reepham | 2,317 | 7.2 mi | 51.4 | 30% | 24% |
| Fakenham | 8,390 | 7.2 mi | 49.4 | 29% | 21% |
| Shipdham | 2,459 | 8.2 mi | 48.6 | 28% | 25% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- “Norfolk’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in Norfolk (or England), summed the same way as North Elmham’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 North Elmham’s residents
What is the population of North Elmham?
The 2021 Census counted 1,172 people in North Elmham’s built-up area.
What is the average age in North Elmham?
The median age was 53.5 at the 2021 Census. 8.7% of residents were 15 to 24 and 32% were 65 or over.
How diverse is North Elmham?
98% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 88% across Norfolk’s towns. 3.3% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in North Elmham?
39% said they had no religion and 54% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.1% were Muslim and 5.3% didn’t answer.
Is North Elmham good for families?
22% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on North Elmham’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.