Photo: Geographer · CC BY-SA 2.0Darsham is older than 99% of UK towns: a median age of 61.9
16% of households have dependent children, against 29% across England’s towns. Darsham counted 393 residents and 172 households at the 2021 Census. Across Darsham, 4.7% of households live in a terraced house. At 2.4%, the share of households in flats is lower than in 96% of UK towns.
42% of residents are 65 or over, more than in 99% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
The figure for residents aged 15 to 24 is 3.1% in Darsham and 12% across England’s towns. Typically, 18% of residents are 65 or over across England’s 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.
In Darsham, 1.2% of adults are full-time students, fewer than in 99% 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%.
Residents who moved in within the year: 13% here and 11% across England’s towns. Across the comparison, 7.9% of adults are full-time students across England’s towns.
A smaller share of one-person households than 88% of UK towns: 24%
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.
The typical household size is 2.1 people, against 2.4 across England’s towns. Compared with other places, shared households of unrelated adults are common here: 2.9%, more than in nearly three quarters of UK towns. One-person households make up 30% across England’s towns.
Households without a car or van: 5.2%, a lower share than 98% 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
By its share of households in detached houses (61%), Darsham is above 97% of UK towns. The wider picture: 24% of households have no car or van across England’s towns.
Residents whose main language is English: 99%, a higher share than 85% 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
Among residents born abroad, the largest groups were born in EU countries (3.3%) and in the Americas, Oceania and elsewhere (2%). 6.9% of residents were born outside the UK, more than in 55% of UK towns. The comparison figure for residents whose main language is English is 90% across England’s towns.
More residents who describe themselves as White British than 70% of UK towns: 94%
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: 94% of Darsham · Suffolk’s towns 86% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
The share of residents who describe themselves as Christian is 53%, against 46% across England’s towns. At the same time, on residents with no religion, Darsham sits lower than 79% of UK towns: 36%. For comparison, 73% of residents describe themselves as White British across England’s towns. The groups that follow White British are Other White (3.3%), Mixed or multiple (1.5%) and Indian (0.3%).
Fewer adults who have never married than 99% of UK towns: 21%
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
Across England’s towns, the share of married adults and civil partners is 44%; Darsham has 56%. Compared with other places, unpaid carers are scarce here: 6%, fewer than in 99% of UK towns. As a yardstick, 39% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership across England’s towns. 12 residents give 50 hours or more of unpaid care each week.
37% of adults hold a degree-level qualification
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Degree-level qualifications are held by 37% of Darsham’s adults, against 34% across England’s towns; 19% have no qualification (18%).
Every nearby town is younger than Darsham
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Darsham | 393 | — | 61.9 | 42% | 16% |
| Saxmundham | 4,778 | 4.7 mi | 43.2 | 23% | 27% |
| Halesworth | 4,924 | 4.8 mi | 54 | 35% | 18% |
| Leiston | 5,919 | 5.2 mi | 47.2 | 25% | 22% |
| Reydon | 2,369 | 6.9 mi | 59.2 | 40% | 17% |
| Laxfield | 1,004 | 7.6 mi | 52.3 | 28% | 19% |
| Aldeburgh | 2,423 | 8.5 mi | 61.9 | 44% | 12% |
| Framlingham | 3,831 | 9.2 mi | 48.2 | 27% | 27% |
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 Darsham’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 Darsham’s residents
What is the population of Darsham?
The 2021 Census counted 393 people in Darsham’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Darsham?
The median age was 61.9 at the 2021 Census. 3.1% of residents were 15 to 24 and 42% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Darsham?
94% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 86% across Suffolk’s towns. 6.9% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Darsham?
36% said they had no religion and 53% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0% were Muslim and 11% didn’t answer.
Is Darsham good for families?
16% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Darsham’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.