Socio-economic statistics for Barcombe, East Sussex

Is Barcombe in Lewes a nice place to live or is it a bit rough? We have collated a series of socio-economic statistics and demographics from UK government sources such as the 2021 Census and the Index of Multiple Deprivation. They should give you a broad snapshot of the area and the surrounding locations. Are the residents of Barcombe older than the national average or younger? What is the population of Barcombe and Lewes? What is the claimant count in Barcombe and how many residents are unemployed? This page should provide you with the answers.

Barcombe Age Distribution Statistics

We have taken the raw data from the 2021 Census and the calculated the proportion of age groups in Chailey, Barcombe & Hamsey.

Age Band	Proportion
4 & under
5 - 9 years
10 - 15 years
16 - 19 years
20 - 24 years
25 - 34 years
35 - 49 years
50 - 64 years
65 - 74 years
75 - 84 years
85 years & over

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Barcombe & Lewes Immigration Statistics

We have analysed the Census 2021 raw data on country of birth and compiled immigration statistics as percentages of the population. All percentages have been rounded to two decimal places. Below are the figures for Barcombe in the Lewes local area district.

Barcombe has a lower rate of immigrants than Lewes, the South East region and England as a whole.

Area	Born in UK	Born outside UK
Chailey, Barcombe & Hamsey	92.66%	7.34%
Lewes	91.15%	8.85%
South East	84.24%	15.76%
England	82.65%	17.35%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Barcombe compared to other wards in Lewes

#	Ward	Born in UK	Born outside UK
1	Peacehaven West	87.69%	12.31%
2	Peacehaven East	88.73%	11.27%
3	Lewes Priory	88.78%	11.22%
4	Newhaven South	89.5%	10.5%
5	East Saltdean & Telscombe Cliffs	89.6%	10.4%
6	Seaford Central	89.68%	10.32%
7	Lewes Bridge	89.74%	10.26%
8	Peacehaven North	90.2%	9.8%
9	Ditchling & Westmeston	90.73%	9.27%
10	Lewes Castle	91.04%	8.96%
11	Plumpton, Streat, East Chiltington & St John	91.27%	8.73%
12	Kingston	91.58%	8.42%
13	Seaford South	91.77%	8.23%
14	Wivelsfield	92.47%	7.53%
15	Chailey, Barcombe & Hamsey	92.66%	7.34%
16	Seaford North	93.18%	6.82%
17	Seaford West	93.89%	6.11%
18	Ouse Valley & Ringmer	93.9%	6.1%
19	Newhaven North	94.26%	5.74%
20	Seaford East	94.26%	5.74%
21	Newick	94.44%	5.56%

';Barcombe is ranked 15 out of 21 wards in Lewes for the number of residents born outside of the UK.

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Barcombe Education Statistics

We have taken the raw data from the 2021 census to found of the level of education Barcombe residents have in terms of formal qualifications as a percentage. The UK government breaks qualifications down into 7 levels. A detailed explanation of these levels can be found here. However, the Census groups these into just 4 \'levels\'. Here are some examples of the qualifications each census level represents when not stated;

Level 1 - GCSE grades D, E, F, or G & below
Level 2 - GCSE A*, A, B, C or O Level grades A, B or C
Level 3 - A or AS qualification at any grade
Level 4 - HNC, Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree or Phd

In this first table we have compared Barcombe to the national average for England.

Level	Chailey, Barcombe & Hamsey	England
No Qualifications	11.7%	18.08%
Level 1	8.33%	9.69%
Level 2	14.69%	13.32%
Apprenticeship	4.01%	5.32%
Level 3	16.56%	16.92%
Level 4	42.63%	33.92%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

How many residents own or rent their home in Barcombe and Lewes

We have taken the raw data from the 2021 census and calculated what proportion of people in Barcombe either own or rent their home. All percentages have been rounded to two decimal places. 72.44 of residents own their home either outright or mortgaged. 27.56 of Barcombe residents rent their home either privately or through a social landlord.

Area	Owned	Rented
Chailey, Barcombe & Hamsey	72.44%	27.56%
Lewes	71.12%	28.88%
South East	65.66%	34.34%
England	61.31%	38.69%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Barcombe has a significantly higher level of home ownership than the national average. This is indicative or an economically wealthy area.

Barcombe compared to other wards in Lewes

#	Ward	Owned	Rented
1	Seaford West	87.49%	12.51%
2	Seaford East	83.72%	16.28%
3	Ditchling & Westmeston	83.02%	16.98%
4	Newick	78.14%	21.86%
5	Plumpton, Streat, East Chiltington & St John	77.93%	22.07%
6	East Saltdean & Telscombe Cliffs	77.79%	22.21%
7	Newhaven North	77.2%	22.8%
8	Wivelsfield	77.08%	22.92%
9	Kingston	76.26%	23.74%
10	Lewes Priory	74.65%	25.35%
11	Seaford North	74.11%	25.89%
12	Peacehaven North	72.88%	27.12%
13	Seaford South	72.54%	27.46%
14	Chailey, Barcombe & Hamsey	72.44%	27.56%
15	Peacehaven East	71.51%	28.49%
16	Peacehaven West	66.49%	33.51%
17	Ouse Valley & Ringmer	65.52%	34.48%
18	Seaford Central	63.39%	36.61%
19	Lewes Bridge	59%	41%
20	Lewes Castle	56.38%	43.62%
21	Newhaven South	54.22%	45.78%

Barcombe is ranked 14 out of 21 wards in Lewes for the percentage of home owners.

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Barcombe Unemployment Statistics

Since the introduction of Universal Credit, The Department for Work & Pensions have not issued any statistics (in our view) that can be used to ascertain the levels of unemployment or under employment in the UK, just meaningless geographic counts. However, the Office of National Statistics does publish claimant counts of people receiving out of work benefits, be that legacy Jobseeker’s Allowance or Universal Credit as a proportion of people over 16. These figures are usually updated once a month and are for Local Authority Districts and Unitary Authority Districts. So below are the figures of Lewes.

Area	Unemployed	Yearly Change
Lewes	3.1%	-0.6%
South East	2.9%	-0.3%
England	3.8%	-0.3%
UK	3.7%	-0.3%

Source: Office for National Statistics (ONS), Last Retrieved: March 2023

The 2021 census had data on people who were economically active (seeking work) yet unemployed on Census day (Sunday March 21st 2021). These statitics do cover Barcombe on a ward level. However, it has to be noted that the Census day was during the height of the Covid19 pandemic and therefore are not reflective of normal levels of unemployment. For example, between March 2020 and June 2020 people claiming Universal Credit doubled in most areas of the United Kingdom and then steadily declined up to the day of the Census and beyond. This data also contains the proportion of people in part-time work (working between 1-35 hours per week), which maybe an indicator of under employment in Barcombe.

Economic Status	Proportion
In Employment	59.59%
In Part-Time Work	34.31%
Unemployed	3.42%

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

65.69% of the people in work, are in full-time employment in Barcombe

What are the occupations of the residents of Barcombe?

The largest employment sector in Barcombe is Professional Occupations. The smallest employment sector is Process Plant & Machine Operatives.

Sector	Proportion
Professional Occupations	21.71%
Managers, Directors & Senior Officials	21.28%
Associate Professional & Technical	14.76%
Skilled Trades	12.46%
Caring, leisure & Other Services	8.63%
Administrative & Secretarial	7.61%
Elementary Occupations	5.15%
Process Plant & Machine Operatives	3.79%

Source: Office for National Statistics (30 June 2020)

Barcombe Health Statistics

Chailey, Barcombe & Hamsey has significantly more residents (>5%) describing their health as very good than the national average for England.

Area	VG	G	F	B	VB
Chailey, Barcombe & Hamsey	53.82%	31.8%	10.95%	2.71%	0.71%
Lewes	45.58%	34.77%	14.17%	4.3%	1.19%
South East	49.98%	34.01%	11.77%	3.31%	0.93%
England	48.49%	33.71%	12.65%	3.98%	1.17%

VG = Very Good, G = Good, F = Fair, B = Bad & VB = Very Bad

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

How has the health of residents in Lewes changed since 2011?

Lewes residents who describe their health as either good or very good has decreased by 0.01% between the 2011 and 2021 census.

Year	VG	G	F	B	VB
2011	44.84%	35.52%	14.26%	4.17%	1.21%
2021	45.58%	34.77%	14.17%	4.3%	1.19%

VG = Very Good, G = Good, F = Fair, B = Bad & VB = Very Bad

Source: Census 2011/2021 (Nomis/ONS)

What is the population of Barcombe and Lewes?

The table below contains the populations figures for each ward in Lewes including Barcombe. These population ONS figures are estimated are dated Mid 2020.

Ward	Population
Chailey, Barcombe & Hamsey	5491
Ditchling & Westmeston	2475
East Saltdean & Telscombe Cliffs	7896
Kingston	2086
Lewes Bridge	5173
Lewes Castle	4332
Lewes Priory	8332
Newhaven North	5135
Newhaven South	8102
Newick	2570
Ouse Valley & Ringmer	6656
Peacehaven East	5504
Peacehaven North	5089
Peacehaven West	5020
Plumpton, Streat, East Chiltington & St John	2338
Seaford Central	5127
Seaford East	4796
Seaford North	5328
Seaford South	4619
Seaford West	4706
Wivelsfield	2750
Lewes Total	103525

Source: Census 2021 (Nomis/ONS)

Last updated: 20/02/2024, Additional Sources: Office for National Statistics & Department for Work & Pensions.

Top 20 most depressing towns in Britain 2024