Photo: Andrew Curtis · CC BY-SA 2.0A lower share of shared households of unrelated adults than 99% of UK towns, at 0.5%
The share of married adults and civil partners is 56%, against 44% across England’s towns. On the census count, 6.4% of households have no car or van. Higher than in 88% of UK towns: 96% of residents describe themselves as White British. In 2021, the Census found 403 residents in Horsley, living in 186 households.
Horsley is older than 89% of UK towns: a median age of 50.9
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
50–54 is the most common age band: nearly one in ten residents, 1.4 times the share across England’s towns. Residents aged 15 to 24: nearly a tenth of the total. More residents aged 65 and over than in 83% of UK towns: 27%.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
Horsley: 5% of adults are full-time students, above 60% 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%.
The figure for residents who moved in within the year is 10% in Horsley and 11% across England’s towns. On average, 7.9% of adults are full-time students across England’s towns.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in term time, so students were counted at their term addresses.
2.2 people per household, fewer than in 82% of UK towns
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Northumberland’s towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
31% of households are one person living alone; across England’s towns the figure is 30%. The share of households with dependent children stands at 25%.
More terraced houses than 80% of UK towns: 29% of households
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
Across England’s towns, the share of households in flats is 23%; Horsley has 6.4%. Households in terraced houses: 24% across England’s towns, for comparison. The share of households in detached houses stands at 34%.
Residents whose main language is English: 100%, a higher share than 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
3.5% of residents were born outside the UK; across England’s towns the figure is 18%. Across England’s towns, residents whose main language is English come to 90%. Residents born abroad were most often born in EU countries (2%), then in the Middle East and Asia (0.7%).
33% of residents said they have no religion, fewer 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: 96% of Horsley · Northumberland’s towns 96% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
The groups that follow White British are Mixed or multiple (1.5%), Other White (1.2%) and Bangladeshi (1%). Measured more widely, 37% of residents said they have no religion across England’s towns. Higher than in 91% of UK towns: 58% of residents describe themselves as Christian.
28% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership, fewer than in 82% 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
11 people give 50 hours or more of unpaid care a week. Typically, nearly two in five adults have never married or formed a civil partnership across England’s towns. At 9.6%, the share of unpaid carers is in line with the figure across England’s towns.
42% of adults have a degree-level qualification
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Degree-level qualifications cover 42% of adults in Horsley, 34% across England’s towns; 12% have no qualification, against 18%.
Median age: 3 of the 7 towns around Horsley are older
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Horsley | 403 | — | 50.9 | 27% | 25% |
| Ovingham | 1,155 | 1.3 mi | 50.6 | 27% | 23% |
| Wylam | 1,661 | 1.5 mi | 51.1 | 28% | 25% |
| Prudhoe | 10,285 | 1.9 mi | 45.7 | 21% | 27% |
| Heddon-on-the-Wall | 1,300 | 2.6 mi | 58.2 | 37% | 17% |
| Crawcrook and Greenside | 7,544 | 3.3 mi | 45.6 | 23% | 25% |
| Stocksfield | 1,944 | 3.6 mi | 54 | 32% | 23% |
| Throckley | 6,207 | 4 mi | 41.8 | 21% | 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.
- “Northumberland’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in Northumberland (or England), summed the same way as Horsley’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 Horsley’s residents
What is the population of Horsley?
The 2021 Census counted 403 people in Horsley’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Horsley?
The median age was 50.9 at the 2021 Census. 8.4% of residents were 15 to 24 and 27% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Horsley?
96% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 96% across Northumberland’s towns. 3.5% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Horsley?
33% said they had no religion and 58% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 1% were Muslim and 7.6% didn’t answer.
Is Horsley good for families?
25% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Horsley’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.