Place CheckerOfficial local evidence

Census 2021 neighbourhood · E02004364

Old Town & Motcombe

Old Town & Motcombe is a Census neighbourhood of about 8,200 residents in Eastbourne. This is a statistical area, not an administrative boundary or a postcode district.

8,200

Usual residents

ONS Census 2021 · MSOA

3,870

Households

ONS Census 2021 · MSOA

5,715.5

Residents per km²

ONS Census 2021 · MSOA

65.7%

Households owning their home

ONS Census 2021 · tenure

27.6%

Households with no car or van

ONS Census 2021 · car availability

38.0%

Adults with a degree or above

ONS Census 2021 · qualifications

Neighbourhoods most like this one

Closest matches elsewhere in England and Wales, across 14 Census themes. Similarity is statistical, not a recommendation, and says nothing about how anywhere feels to live in.

Christchurch Town, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole9,470 residents · 62.0% owned · 21.6% no carClevedon Central, North Somerset8,032 residents · 64.9% owned · 18.8% no carWest Worthing, Worthing8,245 residents · 75.1% owned · 18.9% no carWimborne Minster, Dorset7,987 residents · 58.0% owned · 19.0% no carTruro South & Central, Cornwall6,968 residents · 56.4% owned · 27.9% no carStourbridge Town & Old Quarter, Dudley8,168 residents · 61.6% owned · 24.0% no car

Census 2021 · Census neighbourhood (MSOA)

Life in Old Town & Motcombe

People, households and homes at the stated Census geography. These describe the 2021 population, not the occupants of a particular home.

Tenure

Owned65.7%
2,543 households
Private rented22.7%
879 households
Social rented11.1%
429 households
Shared ownership0.4%
15 households
Lives rent free0.1%
4 households
Old Town & Motcombe · Census neighbourhood (MSOA) · ONS Census 2021

Accommodation type

In a purpose-built block of flats or tenement30.2%
1,169 households
Terraced28.2%
1,090 households
Semi-detached21.5%
833 households
Detached10.3%
400 households
Part of a converted or shared house, including bedsits7.7%
299 households
Part of another converted building, for example, former school, church or warehouse1.1%
41 households
In a commercial building, for example, in an office building, hotel or over a shop0.9%
35 households
A caravan or other mobile or temporary structure0%
0 households
Old Town & Motcombe · Census neighbourhood (MSOA) · ONS Census 2021

Car or van availability

1 car or van in household45.8%
1,773 households
No cars or vans in household27.6%
1,069 households
2 cars or vans in household20.7%
800 households
3 or more cars or vans in household5.8%
225 households
Old Town & Motcombe · Census neighbourhood (MSOA) · ONS Census 2021

Number of bedrooms

2 bedrooms31.9%
1,232 households
3 bedrooms29.4%
1,137 households
4 or more bedrooms19.6%
758 households
1 bedroom19.1%
740 households
Old Town & Motcombe · Census neighbourhood (MSOA) · ONS Census 2021

Household composition

Single family household54.3%
2,103 households
One-person household40.1%
1,550 households
Other household types5.6%
217 households
Old Town & Motcombe · Census neighbourhood (MSOA) · ONS Census 2021

Household size

1 person in household40.1%
1,550 households
2 people in household31.8%
1,231 households
3 people in household12.9%
500 households
4 people in household10.9%
422 households
5 people in household3%
116 households
6 people in household0.8%
30 households
7 people in household0.4%
14 households
8 or more people in household0.1%
4 households
0 people in household0%
0 households
Old Town & Motcombe · Census neighbourhood (MSOA) · ONS Census 2021

Age

Under 1514.7%
1,205 residents
15–2913.9%
1,141 residents
30–4415.8%
1,299 residents
45–6429%
2,374 residents
65 and over26.6%
2,179 residents
Old Town & Motcombe · Census neighbourhood (MSOA) · ONS Census 2021

Ethnic group

White92.7%
7,599 residents
Mixed or Multiple ethnic groups3%
244 residents
Asian, Asian British or Asian Welsh2.2%
184 residents
Other ethnic group1.5%
120 residents
Black, Black British, Black Welsh, Caribbean or African0.6%
52 residents
Old Town & Motcombe · Census neighbourhood (MSOA) · ONS Census 2021

Highest qualification

Level 4 qualifications or above38%
2,619 residents aged 16 and over
Level 3 qualifications16.1%
1,114 residents aged 16 and over
No qualifications14.7%
1,011 residents aged 16 and over
Level 2 qualifications14.1%
973 residents aged 16 and over
Level 1 and entry level qualifications9.1%
629 residents aged 16 and over
Apprenticeship4.8%
334 residents aged 16 and over
Other qualifications3.2%
219 residents aged 16 and over
Old Town & Motcombe · Census neighbourhood (MSOA) · ONS Census 2021

Economic activity

Economically active (excluding full-time students)54.6%
3,768 residents aged 16 and over
Economically inactive43.6%
3,007 residents aged 16 and over
Economically active and a full-time student1.8%
122 residents aged 16 and over
Old Town & Motcombe · Census neighbourhood (MSOA) · ONS Census 2021

Occupational class (NS-SeC)

L4, L5 and L6 Lower managerial, administrative and professional occupations25.6%
1,765 residents aged 16 and over
L7 Intermediate occupations13.2%
907 residents aged 16 and over
L1, L2 and L3 Higher managerial, administrative and professional occupations12.7%
879 residents aged 16 and over
L8 and L9 Small employers and own account workers12.5%
860 residents aged 16 and over
L12 Semi-routine occupations11.2%
774 residents aged 16 and over
L13 Routine occupations7.8%
538 residents aged 16 and over
L14.1 and L14.2 Never worked and long-term unemployed7.1%
488 residents aged 16 and over
L15 Full-time students5.5%
379 residents aged 16 and over
L10 and L11 Lower supervisory and technical occupations4.5%
307 residents aged 16 and over
Old Town & Motcombe · Census neighbourhood (MSOA) · ONS Census 2021

General health

Very good health45.9%
3,760 residents
Good health34.5%
2,830 residents
Fair health13.8%
1,129 residents
Bad health4.5%
369 residents
Very bad health1.4%
112 residents
Old Town & Motcombe · Census neighbourhood (MSOA) · ONS Census 2021

Disability

Not disabled under the Equality Act79.7%
6,536 residents
Disabled under the Equality Act20.3%
1,664 residents
Old Town & Motcombe · Census neighbourhood (MSOA) · ONS Census 2021

Household deprivation

Household is not deprived in any dimension48.8%
1,887 households
Household is deprived in one dimension34.1%
1,318 households
Household is deprived in two dimensions13.4%
519 households
Household is deprived in three dimensions3.2%
125 households
Household is deprived in four dimensions0.5%
18 households
Old Town & Motcombe · Census neighbourhood (MSOA) · ONS Census 2021

Each percentage uses its Census table’s own total. Rounding and source categories can affect totals. ONS Census data · OGL v3.0.

How the similarity is worked out

Alike on the Census, which is not the same as alike to live in.

Every neighbourhood is described by its shares across the Census themes above — tenure, housing, cars, household make-up, age, ethnic group, qualifications, work, health and deprivation — each theme weighted equally, which is the approach ONS takes in its own Output Area Classification. The neighbourhoods listed are the closest on those numbers, published in full rather than folded into a score. Nothing here measures schools, crime, prices or what a place is like to be in, and a close match is a statistical fact rather than a suggestion to move.

Browse every neighbourhood in Eastbourne

Evidence ledger

Source and date are part of the record.

Shared catalogue checked 2026-08-28: 88 candidate data layers listed. Catalogue presence is not publication approval; only separately approved public projections may be shown.