Photo: Oscar Taylor · CC BY-SA 2.0Half of Perham Down is under 25.6, younger than 99% of UK towns
10% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home; across England’s towns the figure is 4.3%. On the census count, 8.5% of households are one person living alone. Fewer households in detached houses than in 97% of UK towns: 7%. There were 271 households in Perham Down at the 2021 Census, home to 1,397 residents.
What the Census says about Perham Down’s people
A village of families
58% of Perham Down’s 271 households had dependent children in 2021, more than in 99% of UK towns. 20% of residents are under 15. Households ↓
Younger than most towns
Half of Perham Down’s residents are under 25.6 and half over, against 44.4 in the typical UK town. 28% are 15 to 24 and 1.9% are 65 or over. Ages ↓
A village people move to
23% of residents gave a different address a year before the 2021 Census, 2.2 times the share across England’s towns. Students & newcomers ↓
Written from the data on this page: ONS Census 2021 (output areas summed to the 2022 built-up area).
Fewer residents aged 65 and over than 99% of UK towns: 1.9%
Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.
25–29 is the most common age band: 17% of residents, 2.5 times the share across England’s towns. Residents aged 15 to 24 account for 28%. Against that, 18% of residents are 65 or over across England’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
32% women, 68% men
About 47 women for every 100 men. Across England, 51% of residents are women. Perham Down is a garrison town: service personnel living in barracks count as residents.
23% of residents lived at another address a year earlier, more than in 99% 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%.
The share of full-time students tops 95% of UK towns: 9%. The usual figure: just over one in ten residents lived at another address a year earlier across England’s towns.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in term time, so students were counted at their term addresses.
A higher share of households with dependent children than 99% of UK towns, at 58%
Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.
Against Wiltshire’s towns and England’s towns
People per household
England’s towns.
The typical household size is 3.3 people, against 2.4 across England’s towns. Across England’s towns, households with dependent children come to 29%.
Below 99% of UK towns: 2.9% of households have no car or van
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
Households in terraced houses: 38% here and 24% across England’s towns. Here, 9.2% of households live in a flat or apartment.
21% of residents were born outside the UK, a share 93% of UK towns don’t reach
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
Most residents from abroad were born in EU countries (6.4%) or in the Americas, Oceania and elsewhere (5.3%). On residents whose main language is English, Perham Down sits lower than 85% of UK towns: 93%. The comparison figure for residents born outside the UK is 18% across England’s towns.
Only 41% of residents describe themselves as Christian in Perham Down
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: 77% of Perham Down · Wiltshire’s towns 84% · England’s towns 73%.
Religion · all residents
Across England’s towns, 37% of residents said they have no religion; in Perham Down, 45%. Residents who describe themselves as Christian: 46% across England’s towns, for comparison. In Perham Down, 77% of residents describe themselves as White British.
3.1% of residents give unpaid care, below 99% 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
The share of married adults and civil partners trails 98% of UK towns: 34%. By contrast, 58% of adults have never married or formed a civil partnership, a higher share than in 99% of UK towns. The comparison figure for unpaid carers is 8.7% across England’s towns.
21% of adults are qualified to degree level
Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.
Highest qualification · residents 16 and over
Degree-level qualifications are held by 21% of adults in Perham Down (England’s towns: 34%), and no qualification by 7.2% (England’s towns: 18%). Many of the 30% whose highest qualification is A levels are students working towards a degree.
Perham Down 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Perham Down | 1,397 | — | 25.6 | 1.9% | 58% |
| Tidworth | 10,693 | 1.1 mi | 28.4 | 4.1% | 54% |
| Ludgershall | 5,400 | 1.2 mi | 38.6 | 16% | 32% |
| Shipton Bellinger | 1,442 | 2.8 mi | 43.5 | 20% | 29% |
| Bulford | 4,923 | 5.8 mi | 28.4 | 4.6% | 57% |
| Charlton | 2,121 | 6.1 mi | 48.8 | 27% | 24% |
| Anna Valley and Upper Clatford | 1,557 | 6.5 mi | 47.6 | 22% | 27% |
| Durrington | 5,718 | 6.7 mi | 38.7 | 18% | 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.
- “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 Perham Down’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 Perham Down’s residents
What is the population of Perham Down?
The 2021 Census counted 1,397 people in Perham Down’s built-up area.
What is the average age in Perham Down?
The median age was 25.6 at the 2021 Census. 28% of residents were 15 to 24 and 1.9% were 65 or over.
How diverse is Perham Down?
77% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 84% across Wiltshire’s towns. 21% were born outside the UK.
What religion are people in Perham Down?
45% said they had no religion and 41% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 0.4% were Muslim and 7.1% didn’t answer.
Is Perham Down good for families?
58% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Perham Down’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.