Chorley: local statistics
Chorley is a district council area in the North West, home to an estimated 121,814 people (mid-2025). This page brings together 10 official figures for the area, each with its period, publisher and the address it was read from. See also who has power over Chorley, from the council up to the G20.
Key figures
What the figures show
In August 2026, 1,865 people in Chorley were on the claimant count, 2.5% of residents aged 16 to 64; the rate for the North West was 4.2%. A year earlier the rate was 2.4%. The five-year high was 3.4% (August 2021); the low was 2.2% (December 2025).
The police recorded 58.1 crimes per 1,000 residents in Chorley in the year to March 2026 (7,076 offences in all), the 30th highest rate of the 35 council areas in the North West. That compares with 57.2 per 1,000 the year before. The highest rate in the series was 73.2, in the year to March 2019. Fraud is not included.
An estimated 80.4% of people aged 16 to 64 living in Chorley were in work in April 2025 to March 2026, according to the ONS Annual Population Survey (give or take 6.0 points); the figure for the North West was 73.8%. Over the 11 years shown it ranged from 67.5% to 87.5%.
A Band D home in Chorley pays an average of £2,430.23 in council tax in 2026-27, 3.7% more than in 2025-26. It is the 28th highest of 35 in the North West. Ten years earlier, in 2016-17, it was £1,595.14.
In 2022 to 2024, women in Chorley had a life expectancy at birth of 82.2 years; for men it was 78.4, compared with 83.3 and 79.5 years across England. Since 2012 to 2014 it has changed by -0.2 years for women and -0.5 for men. It is the 10th highest for women of 35 in the North West.
The median full-time employee living in Chorley was paid £764.80 a week before tax in April 2025, or £39,350 over a year. That is 4.1% above the figure for the North West and the 11th highest of 35 in the North West. Measured by where people work rather than where they live, the median is £710.20, £54.60 lower. In 2015 the residents' median was £515.30, so it has risen 48% before inflation.
In March 2026, 5,125 VAT or PAYE-registered businesses were based in Chorley, 7% more than in 2016. There are 42 per 1,000 residents, the 13th highest of the 35 council areas in the North West.
Homes in Chorley sold for an average of £213,246 in July 2026, up 2.8% on a year before. That is mid-table in the North West, 17th of 35 (regional average £221,445). This July figure is the highest in the series, 47% up on July 2016. Dividing the average price by the median annual pay of full-time employees living in Chorley (£39,350) gives a ratio of 5.4. That ratio is 22nd of 35 in the North West, counting from the highest ratio.
In mid-2025 the population of Chorley was estimated at 121,814, up 1.0% on mid-2024. Over ten years, since mid-2015, it has grown by 8.4% (the North West: +8.2%), mid-table in the North West, 16th of 35. No earlier year in the series was higher.
History
Population (mid-year)
| 2015 | 112,418 |
| 2016 | 113,593 |
| 2017 | 114,810 |
| 2018 | 115,739 |
| 2019 | 116,762 |
| 2020 | 117,178 |
| 2021 | 117,908 |
| 2022 | 118,591 |
| 2023 | 119,656 |
| 2024 | 120,579 |
| 2025 | 121,814 |
Average house price (same month each year)
| July 2016 | £145,235 |
| July 2017 | £148,116 |
| July 2018 | £154,015 |
| July 2019 | £159,539 |
| July 2020 | £162,471 |
| July 2021 | £180,562 |
| July 2022 | £190,612 |
| July 2023 | £200,757 |
| July 2024 | £201,420 |
| July 2025 | £207,494 |
| July 2026 | £213,246 |
Median weekly pay, residents
| 2015 | £515.30 a week |
| 2016 | £552.50 a week |
| 2017 | £549.50 a week |
| 2018 | £598.50 a week |
| 2019 | £609.00 a week |
| 2020 | £621.50 a week |
| 2021 | £645.10 a week |
| 2022 | £658.20 a week |
| 2023 | £683.20 a week |
| 2024 | £724.70 a week |
| 2025 | £764.80 a week |
Average Band D council tax
| 2016-17 | £1,595.14 |
| 2017-18 | £1,651.54 |
| 2018-19 | £1,744.54 |
| 2019-20 | £1,827.93 |
| 2020-21 | £1,893.26 |
| 2021-22 | £1,969.43 |
| 2022-23 | £2,048.35 |
| 2023-24 | £2,133.12 |
| 2024-25 | £2,233.81 |
| 2025-26 | £2,342.85 |
| 2026-27 | £2,430.23 |
Recorded crimes per 1,000 residents
| 2015/16 | 47.8 per 1,000 |
| 2016/17 | 52.0 per 1,000 |
| 2017/18 | 59.5 per 1,000 |
| 2018/19 | 73.2 per 1,000 |
| 2019/20 | 65.4 per 1,000 |
| 2020/21 | 56.1 per 1,000 |
| 2021/22 | 65.2 per 1,000 |
| 2022/23 | 63.0 per 1,000 |
| 2023/24 | 61.6 per 1,000 |
| 2024/25 | 57.2 per 1,000 |
| 2025/26 | 58.1 per 1,000 |
Employment rate
| 2015/16 | 82.8% |
| 2016/17 | 74.3% |
| 2017/18 | 87.5% |
| 2018/19 | 86.9% |
| 2019/20 | 76.8% |
| 2020/21 | 70.9% |
| 2021/22 | 74.5% |
| 2022/23 | 67.5% |
| 2023/24 | 78.2% |
| 2024/25 | 83.6% |
| 2025/26 | 80.4% |
Life expectancy, women
| 2012 to 2014 | 82.4 years |
| 2013 to 2015 | 82.4 years |
| 2014 to 2016 | 82.3 years |
| 2015 to 2017 | 82.3 years |
| 2016 to 2018 | 82.5 years |
| 2017 to 2019 | 82.5 years |
| 2018 to 2020 | 82.0 years |
| 2019 to 2021 | 82.1 years |
| 2020 to 2022 | 81.9 years |
| 2021 to 2023 | 82.3 years |
| 2022 to 2024 | 82.2 years |
Registered businesses
| 2016 | 4,785 |
| 2017 | 4,955 |
| 2018 | 4,940 |
| 2019 | 4,935 |
| 2020 | 5,000 |
| 2021 | 5,205 |
| 2022 | 5,305 |
| 2023 | 5,120 |
| 2024 | 5,075 |
| 2025 | 5,035 |
| 2026 | 5,125 |
Questions about Chorley
How many people claim unemployment-related benefits in Chorley?
1,865 in August 2026 (2.5% of residents aged 16 to 64), on the ONS claimant count, which is not the unemployment rate.
What is the crime rate in Chorley?
Home Office figures show 7,076 offences in the year to March 2026, or 58.1 per 1,000 people, not counting fraud.
How much is Band D council tax in Chorley?
£2,430.23 on average for 2026-27, including police, fire and parish precepts (Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government).
What is life expectancy in Chorley?
82.2 years for women and 78.4 for men (2022 to 2024, ONS).
What is the average salary in Chorley?
Median pay for full-time employees living in Chorley was £764.80 a week in April 2025 (£39,350 a year), from the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings.
What is the average house price in Chorley?
£213,246 in July 2026, on HM Land Registry's UK House Price Index (+2.8% on a year).
What is the population of Chorley?
121,814 in mid-2025, the latest ONS mid-year estimate.
Who has power over Chorley
Every body that makes decisions for Chorley, from the street up to the G20. Each one links to its page on the official record. How the ten levels work.
Level 1: Neighbourhood and community power
Residents' and tenants' groups, neighbourhood forums and local policing panels.
Level 2: Parish, town and community councils
Parish, town and community councils, where the area has them, sit below the council.
Level 3: Local councils
- Chorley council spending, reserves, debt and council tax
- Chorley in official figures this page
Level 5: Devolved and state governments
England has no devolved parliament of its own: its laws are made by the UK Parliament.
Level 6: National government
- Chorley: Sir Lindsay Hoyle (Speaker) MP
- South Ribble: Mr Paul Foster (Labour) MP
- All 650 MPs votes, interests and costs
- UK government and Parliament official figures and sources
Level 7: Regional blocs and supranational bodies
- Council of Europe and the European Court of Human Rights (CoE / ECtHR) The UK Government says the United Kingdom was one of the Council of Europe's founding members.
Level 8: The UN and global treaty bodies
- United Nations (General Assembly and Security Council) The UN lists the United Kingdom as a member admitted on 24 October 1945.
- United Nations Security Council (UNSC) The UK is one of the five permanent members of the Security Council and holds the veto, according to the UN.
- NATO NATO lists the United Kingdom among its 12 founding members, which signed the North Atlantic Treaty in Washington, D.C.
- World Health Organization (WHO) WHO's list of member states includes the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
- World Trade Organization (WTO) The WTO says the United Kingdom has been a WTO member since 1 January 1995 and a member of GATT since 1 January 1948.
- Commonwealth of Nations The UK is one of the 56 members, one of three European members with Cyprus and Malta, and the Commonwealth Secretariat is headquartered at Marlborough House in London.
Level 9: The IMF, World Bank and global finance
- International Monetary Fund (IMF) The UK has been a member since 27 December 1945 and has a quota of SDR 20,155.1 million (IMF country page for the United Kingdom).
- World Bank Group (WBG) The UK holds 3.75% of voting power in the IBRD (data as of 30 June 2026) and 6.92% in IDA (as of 30 June 2026), according to the World Bank's voting tables.
Level 10: G7, G20, Davos and global forums
Sources
Each value above links to the official file or query it was read from, on 14 October 2026. What each figure measures.
- Recorded crime: Years before April 2020 come from the earlier Home Office table.
More on this area and these figures
- Council money: spending, reserves and debt
- Figures for the whole region: the North West
- UK figures: UK unemployment rate · Crime Survey for England and Wales: headline crime · UK employment rate
- Other council areas in the North West: Burnley · Halton · Pendle · South Ribble · West Lancashire · Wyre
Related questions
- What is the unemployment rate in my area?
- How do I find the crime rate in my area?
- How much has council tax gone up this year?
- How healthy is my area?
- Which council am I in?
Figures checked 14 October 2026. Link moved or figure out of date? Tell us.