St Mary’s ward has the largest population in the borough. There is a relatively elderly age profile. However, this is changing quite quickly over time as numbers of young people increase, although this rate of increase may now be slowing. 48.9% of residents are Pakistani.

St. Mary’s median household income (£23,785) is higher than the Oldham average (£22,289). The employment rate (43.7%) is lower than the Oldham average (58.2%). A higher proportion of people are on Out of Work Benefits in St Mary’s (18.5%) than in Oldham as a whole (11.0%).

St Mary’s has a lower proportion of single person households (27.7%) than the Oldham average (30.3%). The proportion of lone parent households in the ward (15.7%) is higher than the Oldham average (13.1%). The proportion of households overcrowded in the ward (15.7%) is considerably higher than the Oldham average (7.5%).

St Mary’s rate of reported Anti-Social Behaviour is higher than the average for the borough. The overall rate of reported crimes is considerably higher than the Oldham average. This is due to parts of the town centre falling within St Mary’s, and the town centre having a high concentration of crime due to the concentration of shops. Police intelligence suggests a fall in the rate of reporting.