Photo: Immanuel Giel · CC BY-SA 3.049% of residents said they have no religion, more than in 90% of UK towns
Half of Rothwell’s residents are under 41.7, younger than in 71% of UK towns. This Northamptonshire town is home to 8,623 residents in 3,791 households, by the 2021 Census. Adults who have never married account for 35%. Households in flats: 14%, above nearly two thirds of UK towns.
What the Census says about Rothwell’s people
More with no religion than most
49% of residents answered “no religion” in 2021 and 45% Christian, against 37% and 46% across England’s towns. Ethnicity & religion ↓
Growing faster than most
ONS mid-year estimates put Rothwell at 7,700 in 2011 and 9,300 in 2024, up 20%, against 10% for England: faster growth than in 86% of UK towns. Since 2011 ↓
Written from the data on this page: ONS Census 2021 (output areas summed to the 2022 built-up area) and ONS mid-year population estimates.
Rothwell grew +20% from 2011 to 2024, faster than 86% of UK towns
ONS mid-year estimates, each year indexed to mid-2011 = 100. Rothwell’s figure is the small areas (2021 LSOAs) that make up the town.
People, mid-2011 = 100
Change by age, 2011 to 2024
About 7,700 people in 2011; 9,300 in 2024.
The 65 and over age group changed most (+47%) and the 45 to 64 least (−1%). No year added more people than mid-2022 to mid-2023: 320.
Rothwell sits below 59% of UK towns for residents aged 65 and over (21%)
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
The share of residents aged 15 to 24 is 10%, against 12% across England’s towns. To put it in context, 18% of residents are 65 or over across England’s towns. More residents are 30–34 than any other five-year age: 7.1% of residents.
Median age of UK towns of 2,500+
■ Rothwell, 41.7. The typical town is 44.4.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
About 94 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
Rothwell ranks below 73% of UK towns on full-time students: 4.3%
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%.
The share of residents who moved in within the year is 8.3%, against 11% across England’s towns. Typically, 7.9% of adults are full-time students across England’s towns.
Rothwell: 2.7% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home, above 65% of UK towns
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Northamptonshire’s towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
The census found that 30% of households are one person living alone in Rothwell. In Rothwell the average household is 2.3 people, beside 2.4 across England’s towns.
Households without a car or van make up 13% in Rothwell, less than in 61% 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
Set against 24% across England’s towns, 23% of households live in a terraced house in Rothwell. In Rothwell, 32% of households live in a detached house.
97% of residents have English as their main language, below 63% 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%
When those born abroad arrived
Main language · residents aged 3 and over
Most residents from abroad were born in EU countries (3.7%) or in Africa (1.8%). Across England’s towns, residents whose main language is English come to 90%. 7.4% of residents were born outside the UK, against 18% across Northamptonshire’s towns and 18% across England’s towns.
45% of residents describe themselves as Christian, below 79% 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: 91% of Rothwell · Northamptonshire’s towns 77% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
Residents who describe themselves as White British: 91% here and 73% across England’s towns. As a yardstick, 46% of residents describe themselves as Christian across England’s towns. Leading the other groups after White British: Other White (4.1%), Mixed or multiple (1.5%) and African (1.4%).
45% of adults are married or in a civil partnership, fewer than in 68% 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
At 9%, the share of unpaid carers is in line with the figure across England’s towns. Heavy unpaid care, 50 hours a week or more, falls to 247 residents. Across England’s towns, married adults and civil partners come to 44%.
26% of adults are qualified to degree level
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Against 34% across England’s towns, 26% of adults here have a degree-level qualification, while 20% hold no qualification (18%).
482 UK towns of 6,000 to 12,000 people: this is the 120th youngest
Median age, Census 2021. Hover a dot for its students and residents born abroad; click for its page.
Ages run from 28.4 in Tidworth to 65.3 in Barton on Sea. Nearest to Rothwell in age: Great Notley (41.6), South Elmsall (41.7), Chinnor (41.7) and Pembroke Dock (41.7).
Around Rothwell, 4 of 7 towns have a higher median age
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rothwell | 8,623 | — | 41.7 | 21% | 27% |
| Desborough | 11,899 | 1.7 mi | 42.3 | 20% | 30% |
| Mawsley Village | 2,487 | 3.3 mi | 37 | 8.3% | 49% |
| Broughton | 1,982 | 3.6 mi | 48.1 | 24% | 24% |
| Kettering | 63,149 | 3.8 mi | 39.6 | 17% | 31% |
| Geddington | 1,525 | 4.8 mi | 49.8 | 25% | 27% |
| Corby | 68,164 | 5.9 mi | 37 | 13% | 35% |
| Cottingham and Middleton | 1,365 | 5.9 mi | 53.6 | 28% | 23% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- “Northamptonshire’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in Northamptonshire (or England), summed the same way as Rothwell’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. Rothwell’s trend uses the small areas (2021 LSOAs) with most of their people inside it: 8,623 people in 2021, against 8,623 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 Rothwell’s residents
What is the population of Rothwell?
The 2021 Census counted 8,623 people in Rothwell’s built-up area. The ONS estimates the same small areas held 9,300 people in mid-2024, 20% more than in 2011.
What is the average age in Rothwell?
The median age was 41.7 at the 2021 Census, younger than 71% of UK towns. 10% of residents were 15 to 24 and 21% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Rothwell?
91% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 77% across Northamptonshire’s towns. 7.4% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Rothwell?
49% said they had no religion and 45% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.6% were Muslim and 5.1% didn’t answer.
Is Rothwell good for families?
27% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Rothwell’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. 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.