Manor Arms Public House · Photo: Derek Bennett · CC BY-SA 2.0Residents who describe themselves as White British make up 84% in Rushall and Shelfield, less than in 80% of UK towns
Just over one in ten residents give unpaid care, against 8.7% across England’s towns. With a median age of 42.7, Rushall and Shelfield is younger than 64% of UK towns. Census day 2021: 12,844 residents and 5,348 households locally. On the census count, 19% of households have no car or van.
More residents aged 15 to 24 than 69% of UK towns: 10%
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
55–59 is the most common age band: 7.6% of residents. On average, 12% of residents are aged 15 to 24 across England’s towns. People aged 65 and over make up just over a fifth of residents, against 18% across England’s towns.
Median age of UK towns of 2,500+
■ Rushall and Shelfield, 42.7. The typical town is 44.4.
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.
Only 6.3% of residents lived at another address a year earlier in Rushall and Shelfield
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 or semi-routine work; Rushall and Shelfield has 25% and 31%. Elsewhere, 11% of residents lived at another address a year earlier across England’s towns. In Rushall and Shelfield, 5.2% 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.
Rushall and Shelfield households average 2.4 people, larger than in 77% of UK towns
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against West Midlands’ towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
28% of households are one person living alone; across England’s towns the figure is 30%. In Rushall and Shelfield, 29% of households have dependent children.
Fewer households in terraced houses than 62% of UK towns: 17%
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, just over a fifth of households live in a detached house; in Rushall and Shelfield, 22%. Households in terraced houses: 24% across England’s towns, for comparison. The share of households in flats stands at 11%.
In Rushall and Shelfield, 96% of residents have English as their main language, fewer than in 68% 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 30%
When those born abroad arrived
Main language · residents aged 3 and over
By birthplace, the largest groups from abroad were born in the Middle East and Asia (3.2%) and in EU countries (1.6%). On average, 90% of residents have English as their main language across England’s towns. Of residents born abroad, 9.8% arrived in 2017 or later, against 21% across England’s towns.
Residents with no religion: 35%, a lower share than 81% 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: 84% of Rushall and Shelfield · West Midlands’ towns 56% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
In Rushall and Shelfield, 52% of residents describe themselves as Christian, beside 46% across England’s towns. The Muslim share of residents is 2.1%. The share of residents with no religion across England’s towns is 37%.
Adults who have never married: 36%, a higher share than 72% 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
Married adults and civil partners make up 45%, against 44% across England’s towns. For adults who have never married, the comparison across England’s towns is 39%. 481 people give 50 hours or more of unpaid care a week.
23% of adults have a degree-level qualification
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Across England’s towns, 34% of adults have a degree-level qualification; in Rushall and Shelfield, 23%, and 25% have none, against 18%.
From a median age of 40 in Rushall to 52 in Pelsall South
The town’s 3 neighbourhoods (ONS middle-layer areas with 500+ residents inside it, named by the House of Commons Library), youngest first. Census 2021.
Pelsall South is the oldest area, with 31% aged 65 or over; Rushall the youngest (median age 40). Families with children are most common in Rushall (30% of households).
129th youngest of 382 UK towns of 9,000 to 17,000 people
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 Rushall and Shelfield in age: Elland (42.7), Birstall (42.7), Halstead (42.7) and Porth (42.7).
Rushall and Shelfield and its 7 nearest towns: 3 of them are older
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rushall and Shelfield | 12,844 | — | 42.7 | 21% | 29% |
| Pelsall | 10,455 | 1.2 mi | 47 | 24% | 26% |
| Aldridge | 15,827 | 1.5 mi | 49 | 28% | 25% |
| Bloxwich | 51,891 | 1.7 mi | 36.3 | 16% | 35% |
| Clayhanger | 1,698 | 2 mi | 42.1 | 13% | 32% |
| Brownhills | 21,238 | 2.3 mi | 42.4 | 20% | 29% |
| Walsall | 70,777 | 2.6 mi | 35.3 | 14% | 36% |
| Stonnall | 1,340 | 2.8 mi | 51.7 | 31% | 25% |
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.
- “West Midlands’ towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in West Midlands (or England), summed the same way as Rushall and Shelfield’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 Rushall and Shelfield’s residents
What is the population of Rushall and Shelfield?
The 2021 Census counted 12,844 people in Rushall and Shelfield’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Rushall and Shelfield?
The median age was 42.7 at the 2021 Census, younger than 64% of UK towns. 10% of residents were 15 to 24 and 21% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Rushall and Shelfield?
84% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 56% across West Midlands’ towns. 6.5% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Rushall and Shelfield?
35% said they had no religion and 52% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 2.1% were Muslim and 5.7% didn’t answer.
Is Rushall and Shelfield good for families?
29% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Families are most common in Rushall (30% of households). Schools are on Rushall and Shelfield’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) · House of Commons Library MSOA names. 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.