Photo: Cj1340 at English Wikipedia · Public domainHalf of Towcester is under 40.5, younger than 78% of UK towns
The share of households without a car or van trails 70% of UK towns: 12%. The census found that 46% of residents said they have no religion in Towcester. At 7.2%, the share of unpaid carers is lower than in 95% of UK towns. In 2021, the Census found 11,333 residents in the town, living in 4,854 households.
What the Census says about Towcester’s people
Growing faster than most
ONS mid-year estimates put Towcester at 9,300 in 2011 and 12,800 in 2024, up 38%, against 10% for England: faster growth than in 96% 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.
+38% since 2011, a pace 96% of UK towns didn’t match
ONS mid-year estimates, each year indexed to mid-2011 = 100. Towcester’s figure is the small areas (2021 LSOAs) that make up the town.
People, mid-2011 = 100
Change by age, 2011 to 2024
About 9,300 people in 2011; 12,800 in 2024.
No year added more people than mid-2020 to mid-2021: 600. The 65 and over age group changed most (+75%) and the 45 to 64 least (+22%).
Residents aged 65 and over make up 17% in Towcester, less than in 84% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
The biggest five-year age group is 30–34, with 7.7% of residents. The usual figure: 18% of residents are 65 or over across England’s towns. One in ten residents are aged 15 to 24, a higher share than in 59% of UK towns. In Irchester, the oldest of Northamptonshire’s towns by this measure, it is 25%.
Median age of UK towns of 2,500+
■ Towcester, 40.5. The typical town is 44.4.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About 96 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
Residents who moved in within the year: 12%, a higher share than 90% 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%.
Set against 7.9% across England’s towns, 4.7% of adults are full-time students in Towcester. For residents who moved in within the year, the comparison across England’s towns is 11%.
Only 27% of households are one person living alone in Towcester
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.
At 29%, households with dependent children sit close to the figure across England’s towns. In Towcester, 2.2% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home. Across England’s towns, 30% of households are one person living alone.
In Towcester, 38% of households live in a detached house, more than in 73% 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
Against a figure of 24% across England’s towns, the share of households in terraced houses in Towcester comes in at 17%. Set beside that, 21% of households live in a detached house across England’s towns. The share of households in flats stands at 11%.
In Towcester, 7.7% of residents were born outside the UK, more than in 62% 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
The newest arrivals, from 2017 or later, are 16% of those born abroad (against 21% across England’s towns). Residents born outside the UK: 18% across England’s towns, for comparison. Most residents from abroad were born in EU countries (3.4%) or in the Middle East and Asia (1.3%). On residents whose main language is English, Towcester sits lower than 53% of UK towns: 98%.
Residents who describe themselves as White British: 91%, a lower share than 59% 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 Towcester · Northamptonshire’s towns 77% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
Other than White British, most residents describe themselves as Other White (4.3%), Mixed or multiple (1.7%) and Indian (0.7%). Residents who describe themselves as Christian are rarer here than in 69% of UK towns. Set beside that, 73% of residents describe themselves as White British across England’s towns.
Towcester sits above 63% of UK towns for adults who have never married (34%)
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
On the census count, 48% of adults are married or in a civil partnership. Across England’s towns, adults who have never married come to 39%.
Qualified to degree level: 35% of adults
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 Towcester, 13%, while 35% hold one at degree level (34%).
63rd lowest median age among 397 UK towns of 8,000 to 15,000
Median age, Census 2021. 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 Towcester in age: Faringdon (40.4), Haverfordwest (40.4), Hoo St Werburgh (40.5) and Newhaven (40.6).
6 of the 7 nearest towns are older than Towcester
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Towcester | 11,333 | — | 40.5 | 17% | 29% |
| Greens Norton | 1,525 | 1.7 mi | 47.8 | 27% | 27% |
| Silverstone | 2,542 | 3.1 mi | 40.9 | 17% | 34% |
| Blisworth | 1,603 | 3.8 mi | 50.5 | 28% | 22% |
| Pattishall and Astcote | 1,081 | 3.9 mi | 50.5 | 25% | 23% |
| Roade | 3,571 | 4.5 mi | 39.7 | 18% | 32% |
| Yardley Gobion | 1,283 | 4.9 mi | 48.9 | 24% | 27% |
| Potterspury | 1,637 | 5.2 mi | 47.2 | 24% | 28% |
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 Towcester’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. Towcester’s trend uses the small areas (2021 LSOAs) with most of their people inside it: 11,544 people in 2021, against 11,333 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 Towcester’s residents
What is the population of Towcester?
The 2021 Census counted 11,333 people in Towcester’s built-up area. The ONS estimates the same small areas held 12,800 people in mid-2024, 38% more than in 2011.
What is the average age in Towcester?
The median age was 40.5 at the 2021 Census, younger than 78% of UK towns. 10% of residents were 15 to 24 and 17% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Towcester?
91% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 77% across Northamptonshire’s towns. 7.7% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Towcester?
46% said they had no religion and 47% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.7% were Muslim and 5.4% didn’t answer.
Is Towcester good for families?
29% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Towcester’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.