Photo: Pauline E · CC BY-SA 2.075% of households live in a detached house, more than in 99% of UK towns
By its share of one-person households (24%), Wheldrake is below 89% of UK towns. 5.1% of households live in a terraced house, fewer than in 98% of UK towns. The village had 1,955 residents in 776 households at the 2021 Census. On the census count, 97% of residents describe themselves as White British.
Older than 76% of UK towns: half of Wheldrake is over 48.3
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
The biggest five-year age group is 45–49, with nearly one in ten residents, 1.4 times the share across England’s towns. Few places have as many residents aged 65 and over: 25% here, more than in 70% of UK towns. Here, 9.8% of residents are aged 15 to 24.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
About 91 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.
Below 89% of UK towns: 6.8% of residents lived at another address a year earlier
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 47% of adults here, routine and semi-routine work 13% (England’s towns: 33% and 24%). Higher than in 87% of UK towns: 6.3% of adults are full-time students. Residents who moved in within the year make up 11% across England’s towns.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in term time, so students were counted at their term addresses.
In Wheldrake, 32% of households have dependent children, more than in 85% of UK towns
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against North Yorkshire’s towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
2.1% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home, against 4.3% across England’s towns. Elsewhere, 29% of households have dependent children across England’s towns. On average, 2.5 people share a household.
Fewer households in flats than 99% of UK towns: 1.2%
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
Nearly a quarter of households have no car or van across England’s towns, against 6.6% in Wheldrake. On average, nearly a quarter of households live in a flat or apartment across England’s towns.
In Wheldrake, 99% of residents have English as their main language, more than in 97% 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
By birthplace, the largest groups from abroad were born in EU countries (1.6%) and in the Middle East and Asia (0.8%). Lower than in 87% of UK towns: 3.3% of residents were born outside the UK. Across England’s towns, residents whose main language is English come to 90%.
In Wheldrake, 58% of residents describe themselves as Christian, more than in 89% 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: 97% of Wheldrake · North Yorkshire’s towns 90% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
Other than White British, most residents describe themselves as Other White (1.5%), Mixed or multiple (1%) and Indian (0.4%). For residents who describe themselves as Christian, the comparison across England’s towns is 46%. On residents with no religion, Wheldrake sits lower than nearly four fifths of UK towns: 36%.
Married adults and civil partners make up 61% in Wheldrake, 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
Unpaid carers are about as common here as across England’s towns, at 8.1%. For Wheldrake, the census puts adults who have never married at 22%. Set beside that, 44% of adults are married or in a civil partnership across England’s towns.
Among adults, 47% hold a degree-level qualification
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Across England’s towns, 18% of adults have no qualification; in Wheldrake, 12%, while 47% hold one at degree level (34%). The highest qualification of 15% is A levels, often students still at university.
Older than Wheldrake: 2 of the 7 towns nearby
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wheldrake | 1,955 | — | 48.3 | 25% | 32% |
| Elvington | 1,271 | 2.1 mi | 45.4 | 17% | 33% |
| Heslington | 1,787 | 4.7 mi | 19.8 | 9.9% | 22% |
| Dunnington | 3,256 | 4.7 mi | 53.4 | 34% | 24% |
| Wilberfoss | 2,015 | 4.8 mi | 46.5 | 25% | 30% |
| North Duffield | 1,305 | 4.9 mi | 46.8 | 21% | 28% |
| Osbaldwick | 2,313 | 5 mi | 43.2 | 20% | 21% |
| Bishopthorpe | 3,333 | 5.7 mi | 48.5 | 26% | 29% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
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.
- “North Yorkshire’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in North Yorkshire (or England), summed the same way as Wheldrake’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 Wheldrake’s residents
What is the population of Wheldrake?
The 2021 Census counted 1,955 people in Wheldrake’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Wheldrake?
The median age was 48.3 at the 2021 Census. 9.8% of residents were 15 to 24 and 25% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Wheldrake?
97% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 90% across North Yorkshire’s towns. 3.3% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Wheldrake?
36% said they had no religion and 58% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.1% were Muslim and 5.4% didn’t answer.
Is Wheldrake good for families?
32% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Wheldrake’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.