If you are thinking of moving to River or just want to know a what the area is like, the statistics on this page should give you a good introduction. They cover a range of socio-economic factors so you can compare River to figures for Kent and nationally. These statistics can tell you if River is an economically deprived area and how hard it might be to get a job.
River Property Ownership & Rental Statistics
| Tenure | Dover | England |
|---|---|---|
| Owned | 35.3% | 30.6% |
| Mortgage | 31.3% | 32.8% |
| Shared | 0.5% | 0.8% |
| Social Rented (Council) | 8.9% | 9.4% |
| Social Rented (Housing Assoc) | 5.4% | 8.3% |
| Private Rented | 15.3% | 15.4% |
| Other | 1.8% | 1.4% |
| Rent Free | 1.7% | 1.3% |
River Age Distribution Statistics
The population of River as a whole, is older than the national average. The population of River is also older than the average, making River a older persons location.
| Age | Dover | England |
|---|---|---|
| Age 0 to 4 | 5.6% | 6.3% |
| Age 5 to 9 | 5.3% | 5.6% |
| Age 10 to14 | 6% | 5.8% |
| Age 15 to 17 | 3.9% | 3.7% |
| Age 18 to 24 | 7.5% | 9.4% |
| Age 25 to 29 | 5.3% | 6.9% |
| Age 30 to 44 | 17.9% | 20.6% |
| Age 45 to 59 | 21% | 19.4% |
| Age 60 to 64 | 7.4% | 6% |
| Age 65 to 74 | 10.7% | 8.6% |
| Age 75 to 84 | 6.6% | 5.5% |
| Age 85 and over | 2.8% | 2.3% |
| Mean Age | 42.1 | 39.3 |
| Median Age | 44 | 39 |
River General Health Statistics
The respondents of the 2011 Census were asked to rate their health. These are the results for River. The percentage of residents in River rating their health as 'very good' is less than the national average. Also the percentage of residents in River rating their health as 'very bad' is more than the national average, suggesting that the health of the residents of River is generally worse than in the average person in England.
| Health | Dover | England |
|---|---|---|
| Very Good | 43.37% | 47.17% |
| Good | 35.35% | 34.22% |
| Fair | 14.99% | 13.12% |
| Bad | 4.96% | 4.25% |
| Very Bad | 1.33% | 1.25% |
River Benefits & Unemployment Statistics
After the introduction of Universal Credit, the government no longer publishes unemployment figures as a percentage of the working population and has no further plans to do so. They do however publish the number of Universal Credit claimants in every local district council. We have taken the LDC that includes and compared it to the nearest councils. Please be aware that Universal Credit is a in and out of work benefit. Therefore these figures are an indicator of BOTH unemployment and underemployment.
These figures below on the claiming of legacy benefits in River are dated . They are the last published statistics of unemployment rates as a percentage of the population. Althpugh outdated, these statistics can often be a good indicator of the prosperity of the town and how hard it could be to get employment in the area.
| Benefit | Dover | Kent | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jobseekers Allowance (only) | 3.2% | 2.7% | 3.3% |
| Incapacity Benefits (IB or ESA) | 2.4% | 2.1% | 2.4% |
| Any Benefit (includes in work benefits) | 15% | 12.6% | 13.5% |
Source: English Indices of Deprivation 2019
River Immigration Statistics
These figures for Country of Birth for the residents of River are from the UK Census of 2011. Since River has a higher level of residents born in the UK than the national average and a lower rate of residents either born in other EU countries or outside the EU, it does not have a significant immigrant population.
| Country | Dover | England |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 92.7% | 86.2% |
| Rebublic of Ireland | 0.4% | 0.7% |
| Other EU Countries | 3% | 3.7% |
| Outside the EU | 3.8% | 9.4% |
River Education Statistics
These statistics are for the highest level education obtained by the residents of River and are from the UK Census of 2011. River has a high level of residents with either no qualifications or qualifications equal to 1 or more GCSE at grade D or below, than the national average.
| Qualification | Dover | England |
|---|---|---|
| No Qualifications | 25% | 22.5% |
| Level 1 | 14.6% | 13.3% |
| Level 2 | 17.4% | 15.2% |
| Apprenticeship | 3.7% | 3.6% |
| Level 3 | 12.1% | 12.4% |
| Level 4 | 22% | 27.4% |
| Other | 5.1% | 5.7% |
River Social Grade & Occcupation Statistics
Social grade is a classification based on occupation and it enables a household and all its members to be classified according to the job of the main income earner. River has 20% less Higher and Intermediate managerial, administrative or professional households than the national average.
| Grade | Dover | England |
|---|---|---|
| AB | 17.52% | 22.96% |
| C1 | 31.74% | 30.92% |
| C2 | 23.39% | 20.64% |
| DE | 27.36% | 25.49% |
What is the population of River and Dover?
The table below contains the populations figures for each ward in Dover including River. These population ONS figures are estimated are dated Mid 2020.
| Ward | Population |
|---|---|
| Alkham & Capel-le-Ferne | 3206 |
| Aylesham, Eythorne & Shepherdswell | 11081 |
| Buckland | 7836 |
| Dover Downs & River | 6847 |
| Eastry Rural | 6861 |
| Guston, Kingsdown & St Margaret's-at-Cliffe | 7514 |
| Little Stour & Ashstone | 7278 |
| Maxton & Elms Vale | 3984 |
| Middle Deal | 7156 |
| Mill Hill | 7959 |
| North Deal | 7744 |
| Sandwich | 6619 |
| St Radigunds | 7339 |
| Tower Hamlets | 4824 |
| Town & Castle | 8993 |
| Walmer | 6885 |
| Whitfield | 6388 |
| Dover Total | 118514 |
Sources: Office for National Statistics & Department for Work & Pensions.
