Photo: Bill Henderson · CC BY-SA 2.0Households with dependent children: 38%, a higher share than 97% of UK towns
By its share of households in flats (0.4%), Methley is below 99% of UK towns. The village counted 1,196 residents and 459 households at the 2021 Census. One-person households: just over a fifth of the total. Lower than in 96% of UK towns: 6.5% of households have no car or van.
What the Census says about Methley’s people
A village of families
38% of Methley’s 459 households had dependent children in 2021, more than in 97% of UK towns. 20% of residents are under 15. Households ↓
More with no religion than most
50% of residents answered “no religion” in 2021 and 45% Christian, against 37% and 46% across England’s towns. Ethnicity & religion ↓
Younger than most towns
Half of Methley’s residents are under 38.1 and half over, against 44.4 in the typical UK town. 13% are 15 to 24 and 10% are 65 or over. Ages ↓
Written from the data on this page: ONS Census 2021 (output areas summed to the 2022 built-up area).
Methley ranks below 97% of UK towns on residents aged 65 and over: 10%
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
Here 13% of residents are aged 15 to 24, where the figure across England’s towns is 12%. Across the comparison, 18% of residents are 65 or over across England’s towns. With a median age of 38.1, Methley is younger than 89% of UK 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.
6.7% of residents lived at another address a year earlier, below 90% 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%.
At 8%, full-time students sit close to the figure across England’s towns. Across England’s towns, 11% of residents lived at another address a year earlier.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in term time, so students were counted at their term addresses.
Bigger households than 96% of UK towns: 2.6 people each on average
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against West Yorkshire’s towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
On the census count, 2.4% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home.
More detached houses than 59% of UK towns: 33% of households
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, the share of households in terraced houses is 24%; Methley has 19%. 0.4% of households live in a flat, less than in 99% of UK towns; 33% in a detached house, against 21% across England’s towns.
A lower share of residents born outside the UK than 93% of UK towns, at 2.9%
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 whose main language is English: 99%, above 75% of UK towns. Set beside that, 18% of residents were born outside the UK across England’s towns. The two biggest birthplaces abroad are in Africa (1%) and in the Middle East and Asia (0.8%).
A higher share of residents with no religion than 93% of UK towns, at 50%
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: 91% of Methley · West Yorkshire’s towns 71% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
Beyond White British, the biggest groups are Mixed or multiple (3.4%), Other White (1.7%) and Indian (1.3%). 45% of residents describe themselves as Christian, fewer than in 79% of UK towns. The share of residents with no religion across England’s towns is 37%. Where 73% of residents describe themselves as White British across England’s towns, Methley has 91%.
More adults who have never married than 91% of UK towns: 41%
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
23 people care, unpaid, for 50 hours or more a week. Measured more widely, 39% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership across England’s towns. Fewer married adults and civil partners than in nearly three quarters of UK towns: 44%. Unpaid carers make up 10%, against 8.7% across England’s towns.
Degree-level qualifications: held by 33% of adults
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Across England’s towns, 18% of adults have no qualification; in Methley, 17%, while 33% hold one at degree level (34%). A levels top the qualifications of 18%, many of them students on the way to a degree.
Methley is younger than every town around it
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Methley | 1,196 | — | 38.1 | 10% | 38% |
| Mickletown | 3,362 | 0.7 mi | 42.8 | 19% | 31% |
| Allerton Bywater | 6,958 | 1.9 mi | 39.2 | 18% | 34% |
| Normanton | 21,976 | 2.1 mi | 42.4 | 19% | 28% |
| Bottom Boat | 1,191 | 2.3 mi | 39.3 | 17% | 27% |
| Castleford | 45,363 | 2.6 mi | 38.7 | 16% | 29% |
| Swillington | 3,077 | 2.8 mi | 49.2 | 27% | 22% |
| Kippax | 10,299 | 3 mi | 45.2 | 22% | 27% |
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 Yorkshire’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in West Yorkshire (or England), summed the same way as Methley’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 Methley’s residents
What is the population of Methley?
The 2021 Census counted 1,196 people in Methley’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Methley?
The median age was 38.1 at the 2021 Census. 13% of residents were 15 to 24 and 10% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Methley?
91% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 71% across West Yorkshire’s towns. 2.9% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Methley?
50% said they had no religion and 45% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 1.4% were Muslim and 3.2% didn’t answer.
Is Methley good for families?
38% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Methley’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.