Photo: Rodw · Public domainFewer people live alone than in 96% of UK towns: 21% of households
Across England’s towns, households average 2.4 people; in Whitchurch, 2.5. The village counted 1,992 residents and 783 households at the 2021 Census. The census found that 41% of households live in a detached house here. The median age locally is 39.1, lower than in 85% of UK towns.
What the Census says about Whitchurch’s people
More with no religion than most
48% of residents answered “no religion” in 2021 and 44% Christian, against 37% and 46% across England’s towns. Ethnicity & religion ↓
Written from the data on this page: ONS Census 2021 (output areas summed to the 2022 built-up area).
A higher share of residents aged 15 to 24 than 72% of UK towns, at 10%
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
Residents aged 65 and over are about as common here as across England’s towns: 18%. No age band is larger than 30–34: nearly one in ten residents. The wider picture: 12% of residents are aged 15 to 24 across England’s towns.
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.
Residents who moved in within the year make up 7.6% in Whitchurch, less than in 75% 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%.
Managerial and professional jobs take in 36% of adults here, routine and semi-routine work 19% (England’s towns: 33% and 24%). The comparison figure for residents who moved in within the year is 11% across England’s towns. Full-time students account for 4.5%.
Households with dependent children: 32%, a higher share than 86% of UK towns
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Somerset’s towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
Here 3.3% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home, where the figure across England’s towns is 4.3%. Households with dependent children make up 29% across England’s towns.
10% of households have no car or van, below 82% 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
Flats are home to 7.4% of households, against 23% across England’s towns. The share of households without a car or van across England’s towns is 24%. For Whitchurch, the census puts households in terraced houses at 13%.
Fewer residents whose main language is English than 67% of UK towns: 97%
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 are more common here than in just over three fifths of UK towns. Elsewhere, 90% of residents have English as their main language across England’s towns. The largest groups were born in EU countries (4.1%) and in Africa (1.3%).
Whitchurch ranks above 88% of UK towns on residents with no religion: 48%
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: 90% of Whitchurch · Somerset’s towns 89% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
Across England’s towns, the share of residents who describe themselves as White British is 73%; Whitchurch has 90%. Compared with other places, residents who describe themselves as Christian are scarce here: 44%, fewer than in 81% of UK towns. Set beside that, 37% of residents said they have no religion across England’s towns. Leading the other groups after White British: Other White (5.3%), Mixed or multiple (2%) and Indian (0.7%).
Adults who have never married make up 36% in Whitchurch, more than in 73% 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
Compared with 44% across England’s towns, half of adults are married or in a civil partnership here. By way of comparison, nearly two in five adults have never married or formed a civil partnership across England’s towns. Unpaid carers account for 9.5%.
Adults with a degree-level qualification: 29%
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Whitchurch’s adults: 29% with a degree-level qualification and 15% with none, against 34% and 18% across England’s towns.
Older than Whitchurch: 6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whitchurch | 1,992 | — | 39.1 | 18% | 32% |
| Keynsham | 19,257 | 2.4 mi | 41.3 | 22% | 27% |
| Chew Magna | 1,249 | 3.7 mi | 51.7 | 31% | 25% |
| Bristol | 425,196 | 4.1 mi | 33.9 | 13% | 26% |
| Saltford | 4,133 | 4.1 mi | 51.6 | 29% | 25% |
| Kingswood and Fishponds | 160,280 | 4.9 mi | 39.2 | 17% | 29% |
| Long Ashton | 5,184 | 5 mi | 42.6 | 19% | 37% |
| Bishop Sutton | 1,424 | 5.2 mi | 44.1 | 19% | 37% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- “Somerset’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in Somerset (or England), summed the same way as Whitchurch’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 Whitchurch’s residents
What is the population of Whitchurch?
The 2021 Census counted 1,992 people in Whitchurch’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Whitchurch?
The median age was 39.1 at the 2021 Census. 10% of residents were 15 to 24 and 18% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Whitchurch?
90% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 89% across Somerset’s towns. 7.6% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Whitchurch?
48% said they had no religion and 44% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.7% were Muslim and 6.4% didn’t answer.
Is Whitchurch good for families?
32% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Whitchurch’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.