Photo: Adrian Cable · CC BY-SA 2.0A median age of 53: Kelsale is older than 94% of UK towns
Across England’s towns, the share of households in flats is 23%; Kelsale has 2.8%. At the 2021 Census, 618 people lived here, in 281 households. Households with dependent children: 20% of the total. More residents who describe themselves as White British than in 99% of UK towns: 98%.
30% of residents are 65 or over, more than in 91% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
The share of residents aged 15 to 24 trails 78% of UK towns: 8.9%. Elsewhere, 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 94 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
Below 97% of UK towns: 3.3% 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%.
Across England’s towns, a third of adults are in managerial and professional jobs and 24% in routine or semi-routine work; Kelsale has 27% and 32%. Few places have so few residents who moved in within the year: 7.6% here, fewer than in nearly three quarters of UK towns. The wider picture: 7.9% of adults are full-time students across England’s towns.
2.2 people per household, fewer than in 81% 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.
5.3% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home, against 4.3% across England’s towns. One-person households: 31% of the total.
A larger share of households in terraced houses than 81% of UK towns: 29%
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 share of households in detached houses trails 54% of UK towns: 28%. On the census count, 16% of households have no car or van. The comparison figure for households in terraced houses is 24% across England’s towns.
A smaller share of residents born outside the UK than 99% of UK towns: 2.1%
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
Across England’s towns, the share of residents whose main language is English is 90%; Kelsale has 100%. The two biggest birthplaces abroad are in EU countries (1%) and in Africa (0.7%). Residents born outside the UK make up 18% across England’s towns.
Above 65% of UK towns: 43% of residents said they have no religion
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: 98% of Kelsale · Suffolk’s towns 86% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
The figure for residents who describe themselves as Christian is 51% in Kelsale and 46% across England’s towns. Typically, 37% of residents said they have no religion across England’s towns.
Adults who have never married: 29%, a lower share than 71% 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
With unpaid carers at 9.9%, Kelsale is ahead of 65% of UK towns on that count. Unpaid carers giving 50 hours or more a week: 24. On married adults and civil partners, Kelsale sits lower than 74% of UK towns: 44%. For adults who have never married, the comparison across England’s towns is 39%.
A degree-level qualification for 22% of adults
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Kelsale’s adults: 22% with a degree-level qualification and 26% with none, against 34% and 18% across England’s towns.
Older than Kelsale: 1 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kelsale | 618 | — | 53 | 30% | 20% |
| Saxmundham | 4,778 | 0.7 mi | 43.2 | 23% | 27% |
| Leiston | 5,919 | 4 mi | 47.2 | 25% | 22% |
| Framlingham | 3,831 | 6.3 mi | 48.2 | 27% | 27% |
| Aldeburgh | 2,423 | 6.5 mi | 61.9 | 44% | 12% |
| Wickham Market | 2,231 | 7.4 mi | 52 | 33% | 21% |
| Laxfield | 1,004 | 7.4 mi | 52.3 | 28% | 19% |
| Rendlesham | 3,185 | 7.5 mi | 40.6 | 17% | 35% |
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 Kelsale’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 Kelsale’s residents
What is the population of Kelsale?
The 2021 Census counted 618 people in Kelsale’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Kelsale?
The median age was 53 at the 2021 Census. 8.9% of residents were 15 to 24 and 30% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Kelsale?
98% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 86% across Suffolk’s towns. 2.1% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Kelsale?
43% said they had no religion and 51% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0% were Muslim and 6.2% didn’t answer.
Is Kelsale good for families?
20% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Kelsale’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.