E63011776 /South East evidence profile
South East evidence profile
Abingdon-on-Thames digital planning profile
Abingdon-on-Thames is a medium, non-coastal built-up area in South East. ONS records show a 2021 population of 33,179; the population grew steadily 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
- E63011776
- ITL1 region
- South East
- Coastal
- Non-coastal
- Income-deprivation flag
- Lower deprivation
02 / Context
Three comparisons, with the benchmark stated
5.2% below the 11.2% median across complete England records in this ONS file.
5.6% below the 0% dataset median.
64.4% 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 5.8 of 100.
Lower quartile · percentile position 14.2 of 100.
Lower quartile · percentile position 20.5 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:a023185402d…f4f7e3210bd8
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 Abingdon-on-Thames minus the named peer; a plus sign means the value recorded for Abingdon-on-Thames is higher.
Regional peer
Staines-upon-Thames · E63012219
South East. Nearest complete record in South East. ONS classification: Nearer - Lower deprivation - Working.
- 2021 population
- +11,852 people
- Population change, 2001 to 2021
- -5.1 pp
- Economic inactivity
- +1.2 pp
- Employment change, 2015 to 2024
- -5.6 pp
- 2023 median house price
- -£88,750
- House-price growth, 2001 to 2023
- -12.7 pp
- Population aged under 25
- +0.3 pp
- Population aged 65 or over
- +2.4 pp
Classification peer
Chippenham (Wiltshire) · E63012165
South West. Nearest complete record outside South East with the same ONS combined classification. ONS classification: Nearer - Lower deprivation - Working.
- 2021 population
- -2,905 people
- Population change, 2001 to 2021
- -2.7 pp
- Economic inactivity
- +0.4 pp
- Employment change, 2015 to 2024
- +0.3 pp
- 2023 median house price
- +£36,250
- House-price growth, 2001 to 2023
- -11.8 pp
- Population aged under 25
- -1 pp
- Population aged 65 or over
- +1.7 pp
National peer
Salisbury · E63013173
South West. Nearest remaining complete England record. ONS classification: Further - Medium deprivation - Working.
- 2021 population
- -14,511 people
- Population change, 2001 to 2021
- -4 pp
- Economic inactivity
- -3.2 pp
- Employment change, 2015 to 2024
- -5.6 pp
- 2023 median house price
- +£31,250
- House-price growth, 2001 to 2023
- +11.7 pp
- Population aged under 25
- -0.1 pp
- Population aged 65 or over
- -2 pp
05 / Evidence synthesis
Abingdon-on-Thames evidence synthesis: House-price growth, 2001 to 2023, Economic inactivity, Employment change, 2015 to 2024
Abingdon-on-Thames 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: 2021 population → 2023 median house price → Population aged 65 or over → Population aged under 25 → Population change, 2001 to 2021 → Employment change, 2015 to 2024 → Economic inactivity → House-price growth, 2001 to 2023.
Furthest-to-nearest distance from the middle percentile: House-price growth, 2001 to 2023 → Economic inactivity → Employment change, 2015 to 2024 → 2021 population → 2023 median house price → Population change, 2001 to 2021 → Population aged under 25 → Population aged 65 or over.
Regional peer
House-price growth, 2001 to 2023: 159.7% · Staines-upon-Thames delta -12.7 pp
Among the eight reviewed measures, house-price growth, 2001 to 2023 stands out for Abingdon-on-Thames at 159.7%; its percentile position is 5.8 and its band is lowest decile. Using Staines-upon-Thames as the regional peer, the profile-minus-peer delta is -12.7 pp; the peer was selected because nearest complete record in south east. Use the contrast to prioritise research into how dated economic context is labelled and maintained. A decision should wait for source-date checks and user tests for interpretation. No user or market conclusion follows automatically; historic price growth cannot support a current revenue claim.
Classification peer
Economic inactivity: 34.3% · Chippenham (Wiltshire) delta +0.4 pp
Abingdon-on-Thames's economic inactivity is 34.3%, a lower quartile result at percentile 14.2 among 936 complete England records. The constrained classification comparison is Chippenham (Wiltshire) (E63012165). On this measure, Abingdon-on-Thames minus that record is +0.4 pp; the selection basis is nearest complete record outside south east with the same ons combined classification. A defensible brief can turn the pair into a verification task for assisted, accessible and non-digital completion routes, using accessibility testing across real tasks and support-channel evidence before changing the information architecture. It must not be over-read, because an aggregate inactivity rate cannot describe an individual visitor.
National peer
Employment change, 2015 to 2024: -5.6% · Salisbury delta -5.6 pp
Abingdon-on-Thames's employment change, 2015 to 2024 is -5.6%, a lower quartile result at percentile 20.5 among 936 complete England records. For a bounded comparison rather than a national average, Salisbury supplies the national reference; Abingdon-on-Thames is -5.6 pp from it on the displayed scale. Its practical use is to frame—not answer—a question about the separation of employer, worker and customer journeys; the next evidence should come from journey interviews plus measured form and contact outcomes. No user or market conclusion follows automatically; employment change does not prove commercial search intent.
Abingdon-on-Thames'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: 33,179 people in 2021
Abingdon-on-Thames's recorded population changed from 31,289 in 2001 to 33,179 in 2021 (+6%). 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: 20% aged 65 or over
The 2021 age-group series records 5,863 people aged 0 to 15, 2,809 aged 16 to 24, 17,878 aged 25 to 64 and 6,628 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: 34.3% economically inactive
ONS records economic inactivity at 34.3%. The published composition includes 22.9% retired, 2.5% long-term sick or disabled, 3.4% students and 3.3% looking after home or family. These categories support inclusive task design; they do not identify individual users or purchasing intent.
Economic context: £336,250 median house price in 2023
The median house-price series moved from £129,475 in 2001 to £322,000 in 2021 and £336,250 in 2023, a published change of +159.7%. 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
Where should the team record uncertainty when using Abingdon-on-Thames's house-price growth, 2001 to 2023 value and the Staines-upon-Thames comparison to discuss how dated economic context is labelled and maintained?
The prompt combines one distinctive metric with the named regional comparator selected by the eight-metric method. It does not treat either record as search, lead or customer evidence.
- 02
How should a prototype test assisted, accessible and non-digital completion routes without assuming that Abingdon-on-Thames's percentile 14.2 position predicts an individual user's needs?
Evidence basis: 34.3%, lower quartile, with Abingdon-on-Thames minus the classification peer equal to +0.4 pp. Validation route: accessibility testing across real tasks and support-channel evidence.
- 03
Which real user task would justify changing the separation of employer, worker and customer journeys after seeing Abingdon-on-Thames's employment change, 2015 to 2024 position and its -5.6 pp difference from Salisbury?
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 Abingdon-on-Thames's medium, non-coastal, working built-up area, nearer to a major town or city classification, how should house-price growth, 2001 to 2023, economic inactivity, employment change, 2015 to 2024 be tested as separate website hypotheses without turning the combined pattern into a claim about local demand?
Cross-check all three named comparisons—Staines-upon-Thames, Chippenham (Wiltshire), Salisbury—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
Abingdon-on-Thames 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
Abingdon-on-Thames 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
Build a broad, task-led accessibility baseline
53.9% of the recorded 2021 age-group total is aged 25 to 64, with meaningful younger and older groups also present. Organise content by task, test keyboard and mobile use, and avoid designing around one assumed demographic persona.
- 04
Prioritise clarity before catalogue expansion
Abingdon-on-Thames recorded +6% population change from 2001 to 2021 and -5.6% 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 E63011776. 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 Abingdon-on-Thames.
Mosalio does not claim an office, staff member, customer, or physical-delivery presence in Abingdon-on-Thames.
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.