Babergh Hall · Photo: Sandy Gerrard · CC BY-SA 2.0Households without a car or van make up 5.7% in Acton, less than in 98% of UK towns
Nearly a quarter of households are one person living alone, against 30% across England’s towns. The 2021 Census counted 1,666 residents in 700 households. Census figures put residents with no religion at 46% in Acton. At 54%, the share of married adults and civil partners is higher than in 84% of UK towns.
Residents aged 65 and over: 25%, a higher share than 71% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
Where just over one in ten residents are aged 15 to 24 across England’s towns, Acton has 9.6%. Measured more widely, 18% of residents are 65 or over across England’s towns. Half of the village’s residents are over 45.3, older than in 56% of UK towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
Below 66% of UK towns: 4.5% of adults are full-time students
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 account for 32% of Acton’s adults, routine and semi-routine work for 27%, against 33% and 24% across England’s towns. Set beside that, 7.9% of adults are full-time students across England’s towns. Here, nearly one in ten residents lived at another address a year earlier.
2.4 people per household, more than in 72% of UK towns
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Suffolk’s towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
By its share of shared households of unrelated adults (2.9%), Acton is above 72% of UK towns. Census figures put households with dependent children at 27% locally.
Only 3.9% of households live in a flat or apartment in Acton
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
The figure for households in terraced houses is 23% in Acton and 24% across England’s towns. For Acton, the census puts households in detached houses at 36%.
A larger share of residents whose main language is English than 90% of UK towns: 99%
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
Where 18% of residents were born outside the UK across England’s towns, Acton has 4.3%. Residents born abroad were most often born in EU countries (1.7%), then in the Americas, Oceania and elsewhere (1.2%).
A higher share of residents who describe themselves as White British than 87% of UK towns, at 96%
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 Acton · Suffolk’s towns 86% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
The groups that follow White British are Other White (2.1%), Mixed or multiple (1.3%) and Chinese (0.1%). 47% of residents describe themselves as Christian, a lower share than in 65% of UK towns. Residents who describe themselves as White British make up 73% across England’s towns.
29% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership, fewer than in 70% 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
Here, nearly one in ten residents give unpaid care. The comparison figure for adults who have never married is 39% across England’s towns.
25% of adults are qualified to degree level
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
17% of Acton’s adults have no qualification (18% across England’s towns), and 25% have one at degree level (34%).
Around Acton, 6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acton | 1,666 | — | 45.3 | 25% | 27% |
| Great Waldingfield | 1,377 | 1.1 mi | 51.1 | 30% | 27% |
| Long Melford | 3,895 | 2 mi | 54.5 | 35% | 19% |
| Sudbury | 23,922 | 2.3 mi | 44.9 | 23% | 25% |
| Lavenham | 1,224 | 3.1 mi | 61.6 | 42% | 11% |
| Glemsford | 3,693 | 4.6 mi | 46.6 | 25% | 25% |
| Bures | 1,183 | 6.6 mi | 48.4 | 27% | 25% |
| Bildeston | 1,096 | 6.7 mi | 50.1 | 24% | 24% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- “Suffolk’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in Suffolk (or England), summed the same way as Acton’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 Acton’s residents
What is the population of Acton?
The 2021 Census counted 1,666 people in Acton’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Acton?
The median age was 45.3 at the 2021 Census. 9.6% of residents were 15 to 24 and 25% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Acton?
96% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 86% across Suffolk’s towns. 4.3% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Acton?
46% said they had no religion and 47% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0% were Muslim and 6.1% didn’t answer.
Is Acton good for families?
27% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Acton’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.