Photo: Geographer · CC BY-SA 2.0A median age of 55.7: Rattlesden is older than 97% of UK towns
Against a figure of 24% across England’s towns, the share of households in terraced houses in Rattlesden comes in at 9.2%. On the census count, 64% of households live in a detached house. Nearly a quarter of households are one person living alone, a lower share than in 94% of UK towns. The village’s 132 households held 303 residents at the 2021 Census.
32% of residents are 65 or over, more than in 94% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
The largest age band is 55–59: 12% of residents, 1.8 times the share across England’s towns. Rattlesden has fewer residents aged 15 to 24 than 96% of UK towns, at 7.6%. The wider picture: 18% of residents are 65 or over across England’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
47% women, 53% men
About 115 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
5.3% of residents lived at another address a year earlier, 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%.
Managerial and professional jobs account for 37% of Rattlesden’s adults, routine and semi-routine work for 15%, against 33% and 24% across England’s towns. The wider picture: 11% of residents lived at another address a year earlier across England’s towns. 3.8% of adults are full-time students.
Only 21% of households in Rattlesden have dependent children
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.
In Rattlesden the average household is 2.3 people, beside 2.4 across England’s towns. The usual figure: 29% of households have dependent children across England’s towns. Across Rattlesden, 3% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home.
Only 3.1% of households have no car or van in Rattlesden
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, 23% of households live in a flat or apartment; in Rattlesden, 0.8%. Against that, 24% of households have no car or van across England’s towns.
Residents whose main language is English make up 100% in Rattlesden, more than in 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
Residents born abroad were most often born in EU countries (2%), then in the Americas, Oceania and elsewhere (1.3%). 4.9% of residents were born outside the UK, fewer than in 65% of UK towns. Across England’s towns, the share of residents whose main language is English is 90%.
Residents who describe themselves as White British make up 97% in Rattlesden, more than in 97% 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: 97% of Rattlesden · Suffolk’s towns 86% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
Across England’s towns, the share of residents with no religion is 37%; Rattlesden has 42%. For Rattlesden, the census puts residents who describe themselves as Christian at 54%. As a reference point, 73% of residents describe themselves as White British across England’s towns.
In Rattlesden, 61% of adults are married or in a civil partnership, more than in 99% 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
2 people give 50 hours or more of unpaid care a week. At 24%, the share of adults who have never married is lower than in 96% of UK towns. Across England’s towns, married adults and civil partners come to 44%. Compared with 8.7% across England’s towns, 7.5% of residents give unpaid care here.
39% of adults have a degree-level qualification
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Against 34% across England’s towns, 39% of adults here have a degree-level qualification, while 13% hold no qualification (18%).
The towns around Rattlesden are all younger
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rattlesden | 303 | — | 55.7 | 32% | 21% |
| Woolpit | 1,838 | 2 mi | 52 | 31% | 21% |
| Elmswell | 4,446 | 3.1 mi | 43.2 | 23% | 27% |
| Haughley | 1,316 | 3.7 mi | 48.8 | 29% | 21% |
| Stowmarket | 21,537 | 4.4 mi | 40.2 | 19% | 29% |
| Thurston | 3,009 | 5.3 mi | 49.1 | 27% | 25% |
| Stowupland | 2,019 | 5.4 mi | 47.6 | 28% | 24% |
| Great Bricett | 1,518 | 6 mi | 28.2 | 8.8% | 40% |
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 Rattlesden’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 Rattlesden’s residents
What is the population of Rattlesden?
The 2021 Census counted 303 people in Rattlesden’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Rattlesden?
The median age was 55.7 at the 2021 Census. 7.6% of residents were 15 to 24 and 32% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Rattlesden?
97% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 86% across Suffolk’s towns. 4.9% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Rattlesden?
42% said they had no religion and 54% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0% were Muslim and 4% didn’t answer.
Is Rattlesden good for families?
21% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Rattlesden’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.