E63008458 /Yorkshire and The Humber evidence profile
Yorkshire and The Humber evidence profile
Rotherham digital planning profile
Rotherham is a medium, non-coastal built-up area in Yorkshire and The Humber. ONS records show a 2021 population of 70,761; the population remained comparatively stable between 2001 and 2021, while the 2015 to 2024 employment series shows a modest employment contraction. This profile turns those public observations into a reviewable website-planning brief without claiming that the figures measure searches, leads or Mosalio's physical presence.
01 / Data snapshot
What the reviewed source records
- BUA24 code
- E63008458
- ITL1 region
- Yorkshire and The Humber
- Coastal
- Non-coastal
- Income-deprivation flag
- Higher deprivation
02 / Context
Three comparisons, with the benchmark stated
7.4% below the 11.2% median across complete England records in this ONS file.
2.8% below the 0% dataset median.
12.9% below the 224.1% dataset median.
These medians use every complete England record accepted from the same ONS file. They are descriptive context, not targets, forecasts or a national demand model.
03 / Distinctive pattern
Where this record sits within 936 complete England profiles
Lowest decile · percentile position 7.7 of 100.
Upper quartile · percentile position 88.1 of 100.
Upper quartile · percentile position 88 of 100.
These are the three values furthest from the middle percentile position for this record. A higher position means a higher published value, not a better outcome or evidence of search demand.
Evidence fingerprint: sha256:891a0254c38…01b22a491ce5
04 / Constrained peers
Three named comparisons from the same reviewed source
Each peer is selected from all 936complete England records using the documented eight-metric distance. Deltas are Rotherham minus the named peer; a plus sign means the value recorded for Rotherham is higher.
Regional peer
Halifax · E63007966
Yorkshire and The Humber. Nearest complete record in Yorkshire and The Humber. ONS classification: Nearer - Higher deprivation - Working.
- 2021 population
- -18,633 people
- Population change, 2001 to 2021
- -4.7 pp
- Economic inactivity
- +3.1 pp
- Employment change, 2015 to 2024
- +6.3 pp
- 2023 median house price
- +£3,000
- House-price growth, 2001 to 2023
- -18.2 pp
- Population aged under 25
- -0.4 pp
- Population aged 65 or over
- +0.6 pp
Classification peer
Middlesbrough · E63007408
North East. Nearest complete record outside Yorkshire and The Humber with the same ONS combined classification. ONS classification: Nearer - Higher deprivation - Working.
- 2021 population
- -77,101 people
- Population change, 2001 to 2021
- -0.7 pp
- Economic inactivity
- 0 pp
- Employment change, 2015 to 2024
- -9.4 pp
- 2023 median house price
- -£2,000
- House-price growth, 2001 to 2023
- -7.5 pp
- Population aged under 25
- -0.9 pp
- Population aged 65 or over
- -0.4 pp
National peer
Burnley · E63007907
North West. Nearest remaining complete England record. ONS classification: Nearer - Higher deprivation - Mixed.
- 2021 population
- -7,505 people
- Population change, 2001 to 2021
- -3 pp
- Economic inactivity
- +2.1 pp
- Employment change, 2015 to 2024
- +0.3 pp
- 2023 median house price
- +£38,000
- House-price growth, 2001 to 2023
- -2.5 pp
- Population aged under 25
- +0.5 pp
- Population aged 65 or over
- -0.6 pp
05 / Evidence synthesis
Rotherham evidence synthesis: 2023 median house price, Population aged under 25, Economic inactivity
Rotherham is recorded as a medium, non-coastal, working built-up area, nearer to a major town or city. This classification sets a transparent frame for the three observations below; it is not a persona, a service-area promise or proof of local search demand. Each finding pairs one distinctive percentile measure with one independently selected peer and one explicit validation route.
Eight-metric evidence matrix
The matrix shows every measure used by the peer-distance method, not only the three most distinctive values. Direction describes the published value relative to the middle percentile position; it is not a positive or negative judgement.
Highest-to-lowest percentile order: Population aged under 25 → Economic inactivity → 2021 population → House-price growth, 2001 to 2023 → Population change, 2001 to 2021 → Employment change, 2015 to 2024 → Population aged 65 or over → 2023 median house price.
Furthest-to-nearest distance from the middle percentile: 2023 median house price → Population aged under 25 → Economic inactivity → 2021 population → Population aged 65 or over → Employment change, 2015 to 2024 → Population change, 2001 to 2021 → House-price growth, 2001 to 2023.
Regional peer
2023 median house price: £143,000 · Halifax delta +£3,000
The reviewed record positions Rotherham at percentile 7.7 for 2023 median house price; its published value is £143,000 and its band is lowest decile. The same-source regional check uses Halifax, classified as Nearer - Higher deprivation - Working. The Rotherham-minus-Halifax delta on this metric is +£3,000. A defensible brief can turn the pair into a verification task for pricing clarity, qualification steps and expectation setting, using comprehension tests using the organisation's real offer and fees before changing the information architecture. The boundary is important: a median house price is not a household affordability measure.
Classification peer
Population aged under 25: 31.6% · Middlesbrough delta -0.9 pp
The reviewed record positions Rotherham at percentile 88.1 for population aged under 25; its published value is 31.6% and its band is upper quartile. Middlesbrough, the named classification peer from North East, differs by -0.9 pp when the calculation is Rotherham minus peer. Nearest complete record outside Yorkshire and The Humber with the same ONS combined classification. Its practical use is to frame—not answer—a question about mobile task speed, privacy explanation and channel continuity; the next evidence should come from cross-device usability sessions without age-based assumptions. The responsible interpretation stops short of intent: an age-group share does not determine channel preference.
National peer
Economic inactivity: 45.6% · Burnley delta +2.1 pp
Rotherham's economic inactivity is 45.6%, a upper quartile result at percentile 88 among 936 complete England records. The same-source national check uses Burnley, classified as Nearer - Higher deprivation - Mixed. The Rotherham-minus-Burnley delta on this metric is +2.1 pp. This evidence can narrow a discovery question around assisted, accessible and non-digital completion routes, while accessibility testing across real tasks and support-channel evidence supplies the user-level check the aggregate data cannot provide. This remains contextual evidence—an aggregate inactivity rate cannot describe an individual visitor.
Rotherham's evidence pattern combines the medium, non-coastal, working built-up area, nearer to a major town or city frame with three percentile observations and peer-specific deltas. That combination can make discovery more precise, but it cannot establish what residents want or whether a service has local demand. Decisions should remain reversible until direct research or measured website behaviour confirms them.
06 / Evidence interpretation
Planning signals before design decisions
Population context: 70,761 people in 2021
Rotherham's recorded population changed from 68,141 in 2001 to 70,761 in 2021 (+3.8%). This historical direction can inform content governance and capacity planning, but it is not a forecast and does not establish demand for a particular service.
Audience context: 16.7% aged 65 or over
The 2021 age-group series records 14,587 people aged 0 to 15, 7,789 aged 16 to 24, 36,583 aged 25 to 64 and 11,801 aged 65 or over. Small differences from the headline population reflect the published source series; percentages here use the age-group total and should guide testing questions, not stereotypes.
Activity context: 45.6% economically inactive
ONS records economic inactivity at 45.6%. The published composition includes 20.1% retired, 7.5% long-term sick or disabled, 5.1% students and 7.8% looking after home or family. These categories support inclusive task design; they do not identify individual users or purchasing intent.
Economic context: £143,000 median house price in 2023
The median house-price series moved from £45,950 in 2001 to £134,625 in 2021 and £143,000 in 2023, a published change of +211.2%. It is contextual evidence only—not a current affordability, revenue or customer-value estimate.
07 / Independent question set
Questions this evidence cannot answer on its own
These questions convert the profile-specific observations into falsifiable discovery work. They are not recommendations to create a service, location or page, and each needs direct user or behavioural evidence before it changes a website brief.
- 01
Before prioritising pricing clarity, qualification steps and expectation setting, which part of comprehension tests using the organisation's real offer and fees would verify whether this 2023 median house price observation matters to users in Rotherham?
Evidence basis: £143,000, lowest decile, with Rotherham minus the regional peer equal to +£3,000. Validation route: comprehension tests using the organisation's real offer and fees.
- 02
How should a prototype test mobile task speed, privacy explanation and channel continuity without assuming that Rotherham's percentile 88.1 position predicts an individual user's needs?
This question is traceable to population aged under 25 at percentile 88.1 and a -0.9 pp profile-minus-peer difference, not to inferred local behaviour.
- 03
Where should the team record uncertainty when using Rotherham's economic inactivity value and the Burnley comparison to discuss assisted, accessible and non-digital completion routes?
The prompt combines one distinctive metric with the named national comparator selected by the eight-metric method. It does not treat either record as search, lead or customer evidence.
- 04
For Rotherham's medium, non-coastal, working built-up area, nearer to a major town or city classification, how should 2023 median house price, population aged under 25, economic inactivity be tested as separate website hypotheses without turning the combined pattern into a claim about local demand?
Cross-check all three named comparisons—Halifax, Middlesbrough, Burnley—and define a user-research or behavioural measure for each question before changing navigation, page scope or conversion paths. The observations share one source but do not demonstrate causation.
08 / Practical brief
Website-planning recommendations for this evidence pattern
- 01
Separate employer and customer journeys
Rotherham is classified as a working town. A useful website brief should separate recruitment, procurement and customer tasks, then give each journey its own proof, contact route and success measure instead of forcing every visitor through one generic enquiry page.
- 02
Differentiate from the nearby major centre
Rotherham is nearer to a major town or city. Use specific offer boundaries, proof and response expectations to explain why the organisation is relevant; do not rely on a place-name heading or create a doorway that simply redirects users to a national service page.
- 03
Support quick comparison without hiding detail
31.6% of the recorded 2021 age-group total is under 25. Lead with concise task summaries and responsive performance, while keeping fees, eligibility, privacy and next steps available in the same journey rather than behind a social-only channel.
- 04
Prioritise clarity before catalogue expansion
Rotherham recorded +3.8% population change from 2001 to 2021 and -2.8% employment change from 2015 to 2024. Start with the few journeys that can be maintained well, instrument meaningful outcomes and expand only when verified questions or search data show a separate need.
09 / Method and limits
What this profile can—and cannot—support
This is a Mosalio editorial interpretation of the ONS May 2026 dataset for BUA24 code E63008458. The source periods differ by metric; values are historical, not live. The profile deliberately excludes ONS experimental visitor-to-resident fields and makes no claim about search volume, rankings, customers, a Mosalio office or physical delivery in Rotherham.
Mosalio does not claim an office, staff member, customer, or physical-delivery presence in Rotherham.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Understanding towns in England and Wales, investigating socioeconomic trends, released . This Mosalio interpretation was first published on and last reviewed on .
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
How this page was made: Mosalio applies one documented, deterministic transform to the validated ONS record, calculates the displayed comparisons, and renders the result from source-controlled data. It is an automated public-data resource, not individually commissioned local market research. A portfolio-level editorial-value review checks every profile's source identity, distinctive metrics, peer evidence, synthesis and planning questions before index eligibility can be enabled.
Analysis basis: Midrank percentile across all accepted England records; a higher percentile means a higher published value, not a better outcome. Root-mean-square Euclidean distance across eight clipped robust z-scores; population and 2023 house price are log-transformed before median/MAD scaling.