The Plough Public House · Photo: Colin Smith · CC BY-SA 2.0Cobham: 36% of households have dependent children, above 95% of UK towns
Across England’s towns, households average 2.4 people; in Cobham, 2.5. For Cobham, the census puts residents with no religion at 31%. Few places have so few households without a car or van: 8.5% here, fewer than in 89% of UK towns. The town had 17,505 residents and 6,692 households at the 2021 Census, with a median age of 44.6 (older than just over half of UK towns).
What the Census says about Cobham’s people
More born abroad than most towns
26% of residents were born outside the UK, against 18% across Surrey’s towns and 18% across England’s towns. The largest groups were born in EU countries (7.5%) and in the Middle East and Asia (6%). Where people were born ↓
A town of families
36% of Cobham’s 6,692 households had dependent children in 2021, more than in 95% of UK towns. 20% of residents are under 15. Households ↓
Written from the data on this page: ONS Census 2021 (output areas summed to the 2022 built-up area) and ONS mid-year population estimates.
A change of +4% since 2011 leaves Cobham behind 67% of UK towns
ONS mid-year estimates, each year indexed to mid-2011 = 100. Cobham’s figure is the small areas (2021 LSOAs) that make up the town.
People, mid-2011 = 100
Change by age, 2011 to 2024
About 18,000 people in 2011; 18,600 in 2024.
The largest rise in a single year came from mid-2011 to mid-2012: 370 people. The 65 and over age group moved most (+21%); the 30 to 44 group moved least (−14%).
Cobham ranks below 66% of UK towns on residents aged 65 and over: 20%
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
By its share of residents aged 15 to 24 (10%), Cobham is above just over three fifths of UK towns. With a median age of 44.6, Cobham is older than just over half of UK towns. Set beside that, 18% of residents are 65 or over across England’s towns.
Median age of UK towns of 2,500+
■ Cobham, 44.6. The typical town is 44.4.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
About 93 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
Above 93% of UK towns: 13% of residents lived at another address a year earlier
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, 33% of adults are in managerial and professional jobs and 24% in routine work; in Cobham, 52% and 10%. To put it in context, 11% of residents lived at another address a year earlier across England’s towns. 7.3% of adults are full-time students.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in term time, so students were counted at their term addresses.
A lower share of one-person households than 87% of UK towns, at 25%
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Surrey’s towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
Here 2.6% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home, where the figure across England’s towns is 4.3%. Across the comparison, 30% of households are one person living alone across England’s towns.
A higher share of households in detached houses than 92% of UK towns, at 53%
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
One in ten households live in a terraced house; across England’s towns the figure is 24%. Higher than in three quarters of UK towns: 17% of households live in a flat or apartment. Households in detached houses make up 21% across England’s towns.
More residents born outside the UK than 96% of UK towns: 26%
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 35%
When those born abroad arrived
Main language · residents aged 3 and over
Residents whose main language is English make up 92%, against 90% across England’s towns. The share of residents born outside the UK across England’s towns is 18%. The two biggest birthplaces abroad are in EU countries (7.5%) and in the Middle East and Asia (6%).
Cobham sits above 87% of UK towns for residents who describe themselves as Christian (57%)
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: 72% of Cobham · Surrey’s towns 76% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
Residents who describe themselves as White British make up 72%, against 73% across England’s towns. To put it in context, 46% of residents describe themselves as Christian across England’s towns. Leading the other groups after White British: Other White (15%), Mixed or multiple (4.2%) and Indian (2.4%).
Cobham ranks above 96% of UK towns on married adults and civil partners: 58%
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 adults who have never married is 39%; Cobham has 26%. What’s more, at 6.8%, the share of unpaid carers is lower than in 97% of UK towns. For comparison, 44% of adults are married or in a civil partnership across England’s towns.
Among adults, 54% hold a degree-level qualification
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Against 34% across England’s towns, 54% of adults here have a degree-level qualification, while 11% hold no qualification (18%). The highest qualification of 13% is A levels, often students still at university.
354 UK towns of 12,000 to 24,000 people: this is the 152nd oldest
Median age, Census 2021. Hover a dot for its students and residents born abroad; click for its page.
At the ends of the range sit Aberystwyth (25), the youngest, and Sidmouth (60.4), the oldest. Nearest to Cobham in age: Chard (44.5), Ivybridge (44.5), Dereham (44.7) and Kidlington (44.7).
Cobham sits below 3 of its 7 closest neighbours on 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cobham | 17,505 | — | 44.6 | 20% | 36% |
| Hersham | 12,622 | 2.6 mi | 40.3 | 16% | 38% |
| Esher | 9,484 | 2.9 mi | 45.4 | 19% | 35% |
| Leatherhead | 11,482 | 3.3 mi | 40.7 | 19% | 26% |
| Great Bookham and Fetcham | 21,655 | 3.4 mi | 49.7 | 27% | 27% |
| Byfleet | 14,187 | 3.5 mi | 42.6 | 18% | 33% |
| Ashtead | 14,830 | 3.8 mi | 47 | 24% | 32% |
| Walton-on-Thames | 27,016 | 3.8 mi | 40.1 | 16% | 33% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- The Census was taken in a lockdown, in term time. 21 March 2021 fell in term time, and students were asked to give their term-time address, so most were counted where they study. Some may have been living with family that day.
- “Surrey’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in Surrey (or England), summed the same way as Cobham’s figures, so households in open countryside are left out. The population trend compares with the whole county and nation.
- Estimates since 2021 are modelled. The ONS builds mid-year estimates from the Census, births, deaths and migration records. Cobham’s trend uses the small areas (2021 LSOAs) with most of their people inside it: 18,492 people in 2021, against 17,505 in the built-up area.
- 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 Cobham’s residents
What is the population of Cobham?
The 2021 Census counted 17,505 people in Cobham’s built-up area. The ONS estimates the same small areas held 18,600 people in mid-2024, 4% more than in 2011.
What is the average age in Cobham?
The median age was 44.6 at the 2021 Census, older than 51% of UK towns. 10% of residents were 15 to 24 and 20% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Cobham?
72% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 76% across Surrey’s towns. 26% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Cobham?
31% said they had no religion and 57% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 2.2% were Muslim and 6.4% didn’t answer.
Is Cobham good for families?
36% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Cobham’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) · ONS mid-year population estimates for 2021 LSOAs, mid-2011 to mid-2024. 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.