Photo: Vieve Forward · CC BY-SA 2.0

51.7Median age

Who lives here · ONS Census 2021

Older than 91% of UK towns: half of Broad Town is over 51.7

Set against 23% across England’s towns, 0.4% of households live in a flat or apartment in Broad Town. The 2021 Census put the village’s population at 587, in 245 households. Census figures put households in detached houses at 65% locally. Lower than in 99% of UK towns: 17% of households are one person living alone.

26%aged 65 or over 5.8%born abroad 245households

Ages

26% of residents are 65 or over, a share 78% of UK towns don’t reach

Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.

Broad TownEngland’s towns

0–410–1420–2430–3440–4450–5460–6470–7480–84

The biggest five-year age group is 55–59, with one in ten residents, 1.6 times the share across England’s towns. By way of comparison, 18% of residents are 65 or over across England’s towns. The census found that 9.1% of residents are aged 15 to 24 in Broad Town.

Broad ages · share of residents

Under 1513%

15 to 249.1%

25 to 4417%

45 to 6435%

65 and over26%

Broad TownWiltshire’s townsEngland’s towns

Women and men · all residents

51% women, 49% men

Broad Town

England

WomenMen

About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.

Students & newcomers

Below 84% of UK towns: 4% of adults are full-time students

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

Full-time students4%

Higher managerial and professional20%

Lower managerial and professional22%

Intermediate12%

Small employers and self-employed17%

Supervisory and technical5%

Semi-routine7.6%

Routine7.8%

Never worked or long-term unemployed4.8%

Broad TownWiltshire’s townsEngland’s towns

Address a year before the Census

Residents who lived somewhere else a year earlier. The bar runs to 25%.

Broad Town

7.8%

England’s towns

11%

Moved within the UKTerm-time addressMoved from abroad

Moved in within a year

residents, 7.6%; England’s towns 11%

Of them from abroad

0.7× England’s share

Just over two fifths of Broad Town’s adults are in managerial and professional jobs and 15% in routine and semi-routine work, against 33% and 24% across England’s towns. Compared with other places, residents who moved in within the year are scarce here: 7.6%, fewer than in 73% of UK towns. The comparison figure for full-time students is 7.9% across England’s towns.

Households

Broad Town sits below 76% of UK towns for households with dependent children (24%)

Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.

Living alone, 66+ 9.4%Living alone, under 66 7.8%Families with dependent children 24%Couples and families, no young children 55%Shared houses and other 3.3%

Against Wiltshire’s towns and England’s towns

Broad Town

Wiltshire’s towns

England’s towns

People per household

1 person18%

2 people48%

3 people16%

4 people14%

5 or more5.1%

England’s towns.

Households average 2.4 people, against 2.4 across England’s towns. 3.3% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home. To put it in context, 29% of households have dependent children across England’s towns.

Homes & cars

Households without a car or van make up 4.2% in Broad Town, less than in 99% of UK towns

Accommodation type and cars or vans per household, Census 2021. Owning and renting are on Cost of living.

Type of home

Broad Town

Wiltshire’s towns

England’s towns

DetachedSemi-detachedTerracedFlat or maisonetteCaravan or other

Cars or vans · share of households

No car or van4.2%

One26%

Two47%

Three or more23%

Broad TownWiltshire’s townsEngland’s towns

Terraced houses are home to 3.4% of households, against 24% across England’s towns.

Where people were born

Residents whose main language is English make up 99% in Broad Town, more than in 95% 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%

Broad Town

5.8%

Wiltshire’s towns

14%

England’s towns

18%

EU countriesRest of EuropeMiddle East and AsiaAfricaAmericas, Oceania, other

Main language · residents aged 3 and over

English is main language99%

Another main language, speaks English very well or well0.7%

Another main language, little or no English0%

Broad TownWiltshire’s townsEngland’s towns

Across England’s towns, the share of residents born outside the UK is 18%; Broad Town has 5.8%. The share of residents whose main language is English across England’s towns is 90%. The two biggest birthplaces abroad are in EU countries (2.6%) and in Africa (2%).

Ethnicity & religion

More residents who describe themselves as White British than 94% of UK towns: 97%

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

Broad TownWiltshire’s townsEngland’s towns

Other White2.2%

Asian0.9%

Mixed0.3%

Black0%

Other0%

0%6%12%

White British, not charted: 97% of Broad Town · Wiltshire’s towns 84% · England’s towns 73%.

Religion · all residents

Broad TownWiltshire’s townsEngland’s towns

No religion37%

Christian56%

Muslim0.3%

Hindu, Sikh, Jewish, Buddhist0.2%

Other religion0.2%

Didn’t answer6.5%

0%35%70%

At 37%, the share of residents with no religion is in line with the figure across England’s towns. Set beside that, 73% of residents describe themselves as White British across England’s towns. Here, 56% of residents describe themselves as Christian.

Relationships & caring

68% of adults are married or in a civil partnership, a share 99% 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

Never married or in a civil partnership21%

Married or civil partnership68%

Separated0.6%

Divorced5.2%

Widowed4.8%

Broad TownWiltshire’s townsEngland’s towns

47residents give unpaid care to someone with an illness, disability or old age: 8.3%, against 8.7% in England’s towns

Unpaid care given · share of residents 5 and over

Up to 19 hours a week4.4%

20 to 49 hours1.1%

50 hours or more2.8%

With adults who have never married at 21%, Broad Town is behind 99% of UK towns on that count. As a yardstick, 44% of adults are married or in a civil partnership across England’s towns. Locally, 8.3% of residents give unpaid care.

Qualifications

42% of adults hold a degree-level qualification

Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.

Highest qualification · residents 16 and over

No qualifications14%

Apprenticeship4.4%

A levels or similar15%

Degree level42%

Broad TownWiltshire’s townsEngland’s towns

Against 34% across England’s towns, 42% of adults here have a degree-level qualification, while 14% hold no qualification (18%).

Neighbours

Every neighbour of Broad Town has a younger population

Nearby built-up areas coloured by median age, Census 2021. Tap a town for its page.

Royal Wootton BassettWroughtonLynehamPurtonSwindonChiseldonCalneBroad Town

under 3838–4444–5050–5656+

Town	People	Away	Median age	65+	Homes with children
Broad Town	587	—	51.7	26%	24%
Royal Wootton Bassett	13,002	3.2 mi	45.7	23%	27%
Wroughton	7,276	3.9 mi	50.3	29%	25%
Lyneham	4,645	4.3 mi	25.6	5%	42%
Purton	3,193	6 mi	49.3	24%	24%
Swindon	183,687	6 mi	38.1	14%	33%
Chiseldon	2,033	6.1 mi	51	27%	24%
Calne	19,725	6.9 mi	42.6	19%	28%

More about Broad Town’s residents

Health, work and homes have their own pages

HealthLife expectancy, early deaths and Census health, adjusted for age Work & commuteIncome, the claimant count, jobs and how people get to work Cost of livingOwners and renters, prices, rents and council tax SchoolsEvery primary and secondary, with results and inspections

How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

“Wiltshire’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in Wiltshire (or England), summed the same way as Broad Town’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 Broad Town’s residents

What is the population of Broad Town?

The 2021 Census counted 587 people in Broad Town’s built-up area.

What is the average age in Broad Town?

The median age was 51.7 at the 2021 Census. 9.1% of residents were 15 to 24 and 26% were 65 or over.

How diverse is Broad Town?

97% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 84% across Wiltshire’s towns. 5.8% were born outside the UK.

What religion are people in Broad Town?

37% said they had no religion and 56% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.3% were Muslim and 6.5% didn’t answer.

Is Broad Town good for families?

24% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Broad Town’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.