Photo: Chris Heaton · CC BY-SA 2.0Rothwell ranks below 76% of UK towns on shared households of unrelated adults: 1.9%
The figure for households without a car or van is 19% in Rothwell and 24% across England’s towns. The 2021 Census put the town’s population at 20,964, in 9,158 households. For Rothwell, the census puts households in flats at 9.1%. Half of the town’s residents are under 43.3, younger than in 59% of UK towns.
Rothwell changed by ±0% from 2011 to 2024, slower than 83% of UK towns
ONS mid-year estimates, each year indexed to mid-2011 = 100. Rothwell’s figure is the small areas (2021 LSOAs) that make up the town.
People, mid-2011 = 100
Change by age, 2011 to 2024
About 21,300 people in 2011; 21,300 in 2024.
Between mid-2012 and mid-2013 the population rose by 130, its biggest one-year gain. Of the age groups, 65 and over changed most (+18%) and 0 to 15 least (−8%).
9.4% of residents are aged 15 to 24, below 61% of UK towns
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
With residents aged 65 and over at 20%, Rothwell is behind three fifths of UK towns on that count. More residents are 50–54 than any other five-year age: 7.4% of residents. For comparison, 12% of residents are aged 15 to 24 across England’s towns.
Median age of UK towns of 2,500+
■ Rothwell, 43.3. The typical town is 44.4.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
About 94 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
Below 80% of UK towns: 7.3% 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%.
Managerial and professional jobs take in 36% of adults here, routine and semi-routine work 23% (England’s towns: 33% and 24%). Across England’s towns, 11% of residents lived at another address a year earlier. Full-time students: 4.7% of the total.
A smaller share of one-person households than 58% of UK towns: 29%
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.
Households with dependent children are more common here than in 64% of UK towns. For one-person households, the comparison across England’s towns is 30%. Each household has 2.3 people on average.
Rothwell sits below 65% of UK towns for households in detached houses (24%)
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 terraced houses stands at 21%.
In Rothwell, 4.9% of residents were born outside the UK, fewer than in 66% 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%
When those born abroad arrived
Main language · residents aged 3 and over
18% of the town’s residents born abroad came in 2017 or later, set against 21% across England’s towns. Most residents from abroad were born in EU countries (2.4%) or in the Middle East and Asia (1.2%).
In Rothwell, 42% of residents said they have no religion, more than in 57% 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: 92% of Rothwell · West Yorkshire’s towns 71% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
After White British, the largest groups are Other White (3%), Mixed or multiple (1.9%) and Indian (0.8%). Residents with no religion: 37% across England’s towns, for comparison. 51% of residents describe themselves as Christian, against 46% across England’s towns.
34% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership, a share 61% of UK towns don’t reach
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
The share of married adults and civil partners is 47%, against 44% across England’s towns. For adults who have never married, the comparison across England’s towns is 39%. 560 residents give 50 hours or more of unpaid care each week.
Degree-level qualifications: held by 30% of adults
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 Rothwell, 30%, and 20% have none, against 18%.
From a median age of 41 in Rothwell Outer to 45 in Rothwell Inner
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.
Rothwell Inner is the oldest area, with 22% aged 65 or over; Rothwell Outer the youngest (median age 41). Families with children are most common in Rothwell Outer (30% of households).
Ranked by age, 130th youngest of 273 UK towns this size
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 Bangor (26.4), the youngest, and South Hayling (57.2), the oldest. Nearest to Rothwell in age: Ebbw Vale (43.1), Sleaford (43.2), Mansfield Woodhouse (43.3) and St Ives (43.3).
2 of the 7 nearest towns are older than Rothwell
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rothwell | 20,964 | — | 43.3 | 20% | 29% |
| Lofthouse and Robin Hood | 4,187 | 1.7 mi | 44.5 | 19% | 30% |
| Bottom Boat | 1,191 | 2.2 mi | 39.3 | 17% | 27% |
| Swillington | 3,077 | 2.4 mi | 49.2 | 27% | 22% |
| Thorpe on the Hill | 1,232 | 2.6 mi | 34.6 | 8.8% | 37% |
| Mickletown | 3,362 | 3.1 mi | 42.8 | 19% | 31% |
| Methley | 1,196 | 3.3 mi | 38.1 | 10% | 38% |
| Allerton Bywater | 6,958 | 4 mi | 39.2 | 18% | 34% |
Health, work and homes have their own pages
What this data can and can’t tell you
- “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 Rothwell’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. Rothwell’s trend uses the small areas (2021 LSOAs) with most of their people inside it: 21,419 people in 2021, against 20,964 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 Rothwell’s residents
What is the population of Rothwell?
The 2021 Census counted 20,964 people in Rothwell’s built-up area. The ONS estimates the same small areas held 21,300 people in mid-2024, about as many as in 2011.
What is the average age in Rothwell?
The median age was 43.3 at the 2021 Census, younger than 59% of UK towns. 9.4% of residents were 15 to 24 and 20% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Rothwell?
92% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 71% across West Yorkshire’s towns. 4.9% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Rothwell?
42% said they had no religion and 51% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.7% were Muslim and 5.2% didn’t answer.
Is Rothwell good for families?
29% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Families are most common in Rothwell Outer (30% of households). Schools are on Rothwell’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 · 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.