Rochester and Strood covers a broad part of the Medway towns in north Kent. It is centred on historic Rochester and Strood, which face each other across the River Medway and form part of a continuous urban area. The constituency includes dense town-centre districts, suburban neighbourhoods and areas of redevelopment, with the river, railway and major roads strongly shaping its geography. Rochester is known for its cathedral and castle, while Strood is an important transport and residential centre. Development becomes lower-density toward the outer edge. Overall, the seat combines historic river towns within the wider Medway conurbation.
Election data comes from UK Parliament. Turnout percentage is calculated by Project Open Gov from Parliament's turnout and electorate figures.
People and place
A population and household snapshot for Rochester and Strood, using validated House of Commons Library constituency datasets.
Estimated population109,506
EstimateMid-2024 estimate
Region / nationSouth East
Age profile
0 to 1723.4% · 25,596 people
18 to 247.1% · 7,771 people
25 to 3414.1% · 15,474 people
35 to 4921.1% · 23,061 people
50 to 6418.5% · 20,249 people
65 and over15.8% · 17,355 people
Population figures are mid-2024 estimates from the House of Commons Library. Project Open Gov calculates the estimated population shown above by summing the six published age-band counts. View population source ↗
Home ownership and renting
Housing tenure shows how households in this constituency described their home at the most recent census.
41,442 householdsCensus 2021
Home owners64.6% · 26,768 households
Private renters18.4% · 7,631 households
Social renters14.9% · 6,159 households
Other tenure2.1% · 884 households
“Other tenure” combines shared ownership and households recorded as living rent free.
Housing-tenure figures come from the most recent census: 2021 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and 2022 in Scotland. View housing-tenure source ↗
Household composition
A broad view of household types in this constituency. Project Open Gov uses the four broad groups supplied by the Commons Library so the presentation remains consistent across the UK.
41,445 householdsCensus 2021
One-person households27.7% · 11,463 households
Families with dependent children31.7% · 13,132 households
Other single-family households36.7% · 15,193 households
Other household types4.0% · 1,657 households
Household-composition figures come from the Commons Library constituency dataset. The source uses census data and Project Open Gov displays its broad household groups rather than attempting to harmonise the detailed categories itself. View household-composition source ↗
Disability and day-to-day activities
The source records whether day-to-day activities are limited and uses separate person-level tables for England & Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
103,042 people in the source baseCensus 2021Source comparison: England & Wales
Day-to-day activities limited a lot6.9% · 7,114 people
Day-to-day activities limited a little10.0% · 10,256 people
Not disabled under the Equality Act83.1% · 85,672 people
Comparison note: the workbook uses different source terminology across the UK: England & Wales uses “Disabled under the Equality Act”, while Scotland and Northern Ireland use “Disabled” / “Non-disabled”. Project Open Gov therefore preserves the source categories and does not present them as one single like-for-like UK legal definition.
Disability figures come from the Commons Library constituency workbook. This profile uses the person-level tables only; the workbook also contains separate household-level disability tables which are not used here. View disability source ↗
Petitions
Open UK Government and Parliament petitions that have reached at least 10,000 signatures nationally, ranked here by the number of signatures recorded in this constituency.
Petition signatures are not a poll and do not show what the constituency as a whole thinks. A person can also sign more than one petition.
Open petitionCloses 6 January 2027
Permanent driving ban on intoxicated drivers guilty of causing death
Signature counts come from the official UK Government and Parliament petitions data and may change while a petition remains open. Browse official petitions ↗
Funding and local projects
National Lottery grants awarded to organisations recorded in this parliamentary constituency since 4 July 2024.
The constituency is based on the recipient organisation recorded in the source data. The funded activity may sometimes take place across a wider area.
Grants recorded64
Total awarded£8,775,697
Most recent awards
National Lottery grantAwarded 11 June 2026
Two Homes One Childhood
Foundations: Supporting Families
£18,215
The National Lottery Community Fund · Charitable and Community including Health, Education and Environment
About this award
Foundations: Supporting Families - Children & Young People - National Lottery Awards for All England
National Lottery grantAwarded 9 June 2026
Extension 2027-28: GEM - Group for Education in Museums
Group for Education in Museums
£181,374
Arts Council England · Arts
About this award
Extension 2027-28: GEM - Group for Education in Museums - Museums - NPO 2023-26
National Lottery grantAwarded 21 May 2026
Community Makerspace and workshop
Make Medway CIC
£1,823
The National Lottery Community Fund · Charitable and Community including Health, Education and Environment
About this award
Make Medway CIC - Environment - National Lottery Awards for All England
National Lottery grantAwarded 21 May 2026
Medway Pride and Pride Fringe 2026
Medway Pride CIC
£19,740
The National Lottery Community Fund · Charitable and Community including Health, Education and Environment
About this award
Medway Pride CIC - Community - National Lottery Awards for All England
National Lottery grantAwarded 20 May 2026
A Train to Woking V2
Fleur De Lis Classical Theatre Company Ltd
£28,551
Arts Council England · Arts
About this award
A Train to Woking V2 - Theatre - National Lottery Project Grants
59 more awards are available.
Source: DCMS National Lottery Grants Database. The figures shown cover awards from 4 July 2024 to 1 July 2026. View official grants data ↗
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