In the south east of the ward is the council estate of Kimberworth. In the north west of the ward is the village of Thorpe Hesley with 4,200 residents, a mainly affluent area popular with commuters.

In the centre of the ward is the landmark of Keppel’s column, from which the ward takes its name.

The central part of the ward is more rural and includes the small village of Scholes with 310 residents.

Find out more about Keppel on Rotherham Data Hub

Population by Age

The population of Keppel ward has fallen slightly since 2011 in contrast to the increasing borough population. The age structure of the population is broadly similar to the Rotherham average.

Age	Ward Population	Ward Percentage	Rotherham Percentage
Age 00-15	2493	18.27	18.89
Age 16-24	1272	9.32	9.60
Age 25-44	3300	24.19	25.09
Age 45-64	3923	28.75	26.76
Age 65+	2656	19.47	19.66
Total	13644	100.00	100.00

Ethnicity

Keppel is among the 80% of wards in Rotherham where the white British population exceeds 90%. However, the 2020 School and Pupil Census shows ethnic minority pupils accounting for over 10% of the school age population.

Ethnicity	Ward %	Rotherham %	England %
White British	93.50	88.30	74.70
Asian/Asian British	1.20	5.30	9.60
White Other	2.00	2.80	6.30
Mixed/multiple	1.60	1.40	3.00
Black/Black British	1.50	1.10	4.20
Other	0.20	1.10	2.20

Housing

Total dwellings (2021 Census) - 6066

Total dwellings (2011 Census) - 5961

Change since 2011 (%) – 1.80

Number of households

Households (2021 Census) - 5884

Households (2011 Census) - 5961

Change since 2011 (%) - -1.30

Population Density (no. of residents per square Kilometre) 2021 Census

Ward - 1429.70

Rotherham - 927.70

Employment, Benefits and Pensions

In Keppel ward the total claimant count in July 2023 is 290, which is 3.5% of the working age population. This is lower than the Rotherham average where the claimant count is 4.3% of the working age population.

Keppel ward has a high proportion of local employment in Education and Accommodation and Catering. Keppel ward contains jobs for only 16% of the working age population, with most working elsewhere.

Health

In Keppel 43.2% are in very good health, and 1.5% are in very bad health. In comparison, in Rotherham 44.3% are in very good health and 1.6% are in very bad health.

According to Census 2021, in Keppel ward, 22% of the population are considered to be disabled under the Equality Act 2010, compared to 21.1% in Rotherham and 17.3% in England. The definition of disability in Census 2021 was: People who assessed their day to day activities as limited by long-term physical or mental health conditions of illnesses are considered disabled. Thus definition of a disabled person meets the harmonised standard for measuring disability and is in line with the Equality Act (2010).

Life expectancy

In the period 2016-2020, Keppel ward's life expectancy at birth for females is 80.8 years and for males is 78.8 years. This is worse than the England average. In comparison, Rotherham's life expectancy for females is 81.3 years and for males is 77.6 years.

Disease and lifestyle

In the 2016-20 time period, the mortality ratio for deaths from strokes in Keppel ward is 66.7. This is similar to England. In comparison, the lowest mortality ratio for stroke deaths in a Rotherham ward is 56.7 in Aston & Todwick ward and the highest ratio is 185.8 in Rother Vale ward.

In the 2016-20 time period, the mortality ratio for deaths from respiratory disease in Keppel ward is 122.9. This is similar to England. In comparison, the lowest mortality ratio for deaths from respiratory disease in a Rotherham ward is 79.9 in Bramley & Ravenfield ward and the highest ratio is 209.1 in Rother Vale ward.

In the 2016-20 time period, the mortality ratio for deaths from coronary heart disease in Keppel ward is 125. This is similar to England. In comparison, the lowest mortality ratio for deaths from coronary heart disease in a Rotherham ward is 76.2 in Aston & Todwick ward and the highest ratio is 152.1 in Rotherham East ward.

In the 2016-20 time period, the mortality ratio for deaths from circulatory disease in Keppel ward is 113.1. This is similar to England. In comparison, the lowest mortality ratio for deaths from circulatory disease in a Rotherham ward is 73.5 in Aston & Todwick ward and the highest ratio is 141.9 in Rother Vale ward.

In the 2016-20 time period, the mortality ratio for deaths from cancer in Keppel ward is 116.5. This is worse than England. In comparison, the lowest mortality ratio for deaths from cancer in a Rotherham ward is 94.2 in Aston & Todwick ward and the highest ratio is 152.1 in Rother Vale ward.

Obesity

In Keppel ward (for the time period 2019/20-2021/22) the percentage of children in Reception (aged 4-5 years) classified as overweight or obese is 27%. This is worse than the England average. The percentage of children classified as obese (including severe obesity) is 12.2%. This is worse than the England average. In Rotherham overall (for comparison) the percentage of children aged 4-5 years classified as overweight or obese is 25.1% and the percentage classified as obese (including severe obesity) is 11.4%.

In Keppel ward (for the time period 2019/20-2021/22) the percentage of children in Year 6 (aged 10-11 years) classified as overweight or obese is 37.7%. This is worse than the England average. The percentage of children classified as obese (including severe obesity) is 24.7%. This is worse than the England average. In Rotherham overall (for comparison) the percentage of children aged 10-11 years classified as overweight or obese is 38.8% and the percentage classified as obese (including severe obesity) is 25.1%.

Education

According to Census 2021, in Keppel ward 21.9% of residents aged 16 or over have no qualifications, and 21.7 % are qualified to level 4 or above. In comparison 23.4% in Rotherham have no qualifications and 23.1% are qualified to level 4 or above.

For Keppel ward in 2023, there was a total of 191 pupils at the end of key stage 2, of which 60.2% were disadvantaged compared to 54.5% for Rotherham overall. The percentage of pupils in the ward achieving the expected standard in Reading, Writing and Maths was 64.4%, compared to 54.5% in Rotherham and 59% nationally.

For Keppel ward in 2023, there was a total of 129 pupils at the end of key stage 4, of which 62.8% of pupils were disadvantaged, compared to 53.4%% in Rotherham overall. The average Attainment 8 score for the ward was 49.4, compared to 43.2 in Rotherham and 46.2 nationally.

Crime and Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB)

Levels of recorded crime and anti-social behaviour in Keppel ward are lower than the Rotherham average.

In Keppel ward in 2021 there were a total of 1,182 recorded crimes. This equates to 87 recorded crimes per 1,000 population compared to 110 per 1,000 population for Rotherham.

In Keppel ward in 2021, there were a total of 206 recorded incidents of anti-social behaviour. This equates to 15 recorded incidents per 1,000 population, compared to 19 per 1,000 population for Rotherham.

Index of Multiple Deprivation 2015 & 2019

Keppel ward has a rank of 15 out of 25 wards in Rotherham and is in Decile 4. Of the 25 wards in Rotherham, 5 are in the top 20% most deprived in the country (deciles 1 and 2). The top 3 most deprived wards in Rotherham are Rotherham East, Dalton & Thrybergh and Maltby East.

Deprivation in Keppel ward is below the borough average and in parts of the ward is also below the national average. There is disparity across the ward with the neighbourhood of Kimberworth Park West within the most deprived 10% in England, in contrast the neighbourhoods of Thorpe Hesley Central and Thorpe Hesley East are within the least 10% deprived in England.

In Keppel ward, the proportion of all children aged 0-15 living in income deprived families is 19.6% and the proportion of those aged 60 or over who experience income deprivation is 16.2%. The ward with the highest proportion of children aged 0-15 living in income deprived families is Dalton & Thrybergh ward at 39.1%. The ward with the highest proportion of those aged 60 and over who experience income deprivation is Rotherham East ward at 36.9%.

Keppel IMD map

Data Sources

Data sources contained within this document include:

Population - ONS Census data via NOMIS Ethnicity - ONS Census data via NOMIS

Religion - ONS Census data via NOMIS

Housing - ONS Census data via NOMIS

Households - ONS Census data via NOMIS

Unemployment claimants aged 16-64 - ONS Claimant Count via NOMIS

Types of employment - Business Register and Employment Survey via NOMIS

General Health - ONS Census data via NOMIS

Disability - ONS Census data via NOMIS

Life expectancy at birth - Public Health England Fingertips

Causes of death - Public Health England Fingertips

Overweight and obesity in children - Public Health England Fingertips

Highest level of education - ONS Census data via NOMIS

Key Stage 2 and Key Stage 4 attainment - RMBC Children & Young People's Services

Index of Multiple Deprivation - Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government Community assets map - OpenStreetMap via TomTom/Microsoft Corporation

Access to green space - Green Space Index 2023 commissioned by The Ordinance Survey and undertaken by The Fields in Trust

Crime data - www.police.uk