Wakefield
Wakefield is a town or village in West Yorkshire, England, with a population of around 100,000. It has around 3 restaurants & cafés, with 17 bus stops and Streethouse railway station 1.5 km away. There were around 49 recorded street crimes in June 2026, most commonly Violence & sexual offences. Covers 36 towns with local open-data for the whole authority.
On deprivation, Wakefield is more deprived than the average in England (IoD2025). It is home to around 353,364 residents at roughly 1,044 people per km².
My Area Score
Mixed
Ranked 231st of 294 English council areas — better than 21% of them.
A percentile blend of eight open measures (100 = best in England); bars show this area’s England-wide percentile on each. See the rankings · methodology
Weather
9°CPatchy rain nearby
- Today: 12° / 8° · 64% rain
- Tomorrow: 11° / 8° · Patchy rain nearby
Source: WeatherAPI
Daylight
Sunrise 07:11Sunset 16:27
9h 16m of daylight today
Next bank holiday: Christmas Day, Fri 25 Dec
Source: sunrise-sunset.org · gov.uk
Air quality
22US AQI · Good
Main pollutant: fine particles (PM2.5)
Source: WAQI · Leeds Centre, United Kingdom
Air pollution (PM2.5)
- 7.1 µg/m³ average fine-particle (PM2.5) concentration
- 5.3% of adult (30+) deaths estimated attributable to fine-particle pollution
Lower is better for both figures.
Source: OHID Fingertips · 2024
Crime
37 reported · August 2026▼ 12% YoY
- Violence & sexual offences14
- Anti-social behaviour5
- Criminal damage & arson5
- Other theft4
1 stop & searches · mostly offensive weapons
Neighbourhood team: Wakefield West · West Yorkshire
Local policing priorities
- Anti-social vehicle use and speeding We will increase patrols in identified areas of demand and run speeding operations at these location…
- Anti-social behaviour Anti-social behaviour including youths abusing members of the public and the illegal use of motor bikes in the loca…
Source: data.police.uk (within ~1 mile)
Road safety
555 reported road collisions (2025)
167 killed or seriously injured · 722 casualties · 15.7 collisions per 10,000 residents
Source: DfT reported road collisions (STATS19)
Food hygiene
94 food businesses within 2 miles
- 83 rated 4–5 ★ (63 top)
- 2 rated 0–2 (poor)
Source: Food Standards Agency
Flood risk
Buses & trains
- Nearest station: Streethouse (1.5 km)
- 17 bus stops within ~½ mile
Live trains from Streethouse (1.5 km):
Loading live departures…
Source: OpenStreetMap, National Rail
House prices
£199,283 average▲ 2.9% YoY
Across Wakefield · to 2026-08
Source: UK House Price Index (HM Land Registry)
Private rents
£806 average monthly rent▲ 5.9% YoY
- 1 bed £576
- 2 bed £726
- 3 bed £869
Source: ONS Price Index of Private Rents · to 2026-08
Affordability
5.6× house price to earnings
A typical home costs 5.6 times median annual pay (5.5× for cheaper homes vs lower pay).
Source: ONS house price to workplace earnings ratio · 2025
Property sales
4,321 property sales in the last 12 months
12 months to May 2026
A busier or quieter market is not by itself good or bad. Monthly counts are small and volatile, so only the annual total is shown.
Source: HM Land Registry UK HPI, 12 months to 2026-05
Fuel prices
- Cheapest petrol: 154.9p · Esso (5.7 km)
- Cheapest diesel: 189.9p · Asda (11.5 km)
12 stations within ~8 miles
Source: CMA fuel price scheme
EV charging
49 charging locations within ~8 km
- 29 with rapid charging (50 kW+)
- Fastest nearby: 300 kW
- Nearest: West Street Car Park (3.3 km)
Source: Open Charge Map
Sport & leisure
- Sports pitches9
- Playgrounds5
Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)
Population
353,364 residents in Wakefield · 1,044/km²
- Under 16: 19%
- 16–64: 63%
- 65+: 19%
Source: ONS Census 2021 (local authority)
Internal migration
- Moves in from elsewhere in the UK15,357
- Moves out to elsewhere in the UK13,379
- Net moves+1,978
Residential moves between local authorities (counts of moves, not people) · ONS Internal migration, YE Jun 2025
Deprivation
More deprived than the average in England
Ranked 63 of 296 English local authorities (1 = most deprived)
17% of neighbourhoods are in England’s most deprived 10%
Source: English Indices of Deprivation 2025
Council tax
£2,297 a year · Band D, 2026-27
Most homes here are Band A (48% of 165,130)
Source: VOA council-tax stock · MHCLG band levels 2026-27
Schools
157 schools · 56,122 pupils
113 primary · 18 secondary · 26 other
Ofsted: 51 of 61 graded schools rated Good or Outstanding (84%)
141 inspected under Ofsted’s 2024+ framework (graded by area, no single overall grade)
Secondary schools:
- De Lacy AcademyOutstanding
- Trinity Academy CathedralOutstanding
- Ark the King's SchoolGood
- Crofton AcademyGood
- Horbury AcademyGood
- Ossett Academy and Sixth Form CollegeGood
- Outwood Academy City FieldsGood
- Outwood Grange AcademyGood
- St Thomas à Becket Catholic Secondary School, A Voluntary AcademyGood
- Airedale AcademyRequires improvement
- Ark Carleton High School
- Castleford Academy
- Kettlethorpe High School
- Minsthorpe Community College
- Outwood Academy Freeston
- Outwood Academy Hemsworth
- St Wilfrid's Catholic High School & Sixth Form College: A Voluntary Academy
- The Featherstone Academy
Source: DfE Get Information about Schools · Ofsted · Wakefield
Care & health services
302 CQC-registered services
- Care homes97
- GP practices42
- Dentists60
- Homecare agencies83
- Hospitals & hospices6
CQC ratings: 87% of rated services Good or Outstanding · 9 Inadequate
Source: Care Quality Commission · Wakefield
Heritage & planning
- Within the Green Belt
- 11 listed buildings within ~1.5 km
Source: planning.data.gov.uk (England)
Planning decisions
307 applications decided
93.5% granted · 287 granted, 20 refused
Source: MHCLG planning statistics (PS2) · 2026 Q2
Council control
Reform UK majority
- Lab 1
- Con 1
- LD 2
- Grn 1
- Ref 55
- Oth 3
Source: Open Council Data UK (CC BY-SA)
Amenities nearby
- Schools7
- GPs & clinics1
- Pharmacies1
- Parks & greens4
- Restaurants & cafés15
Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)
Local businesses
12,570 active business enterprises in the area
Source: ONS UK Business Counts (2026)
Jobs
1,181 jobs advertised · £41,245 avg
e.g. Market Research Field Interviewer Car Required Part-time, HLTA, Senior Paraplanner
Source: Adzuna
Local economy
£689 median full-time weekly pay
3.8% of residents aged 16–64 claim unemployment-related benefits
£21,460 disposable income per head (2024)
Source: ONS / Nomis (claimant count · ASHE) · ONS regional GDHI
Energy efficiency
42% of homes rated EPC C or above
Most common band: D · 204,474 certificates
13.7% of households were in fuel poverty (2023)
Source: MHCLG EPC statistics · DESNZ sub-regional fuel poverty
Health
Life expectancy: 82.2 yrs women · 77.7 yrs men
Healthy life expectancy: 53.8 women · 54 men
73% of adults overweight or obese
Source: OHID Fingertips · 2025
Wellbeing
- Life satisfaction7.4
- Feeling worthwhile7.7
- Happiness yesterday7.2
- Anxiety yesterday (lower is better)3.4
Average rating out of 10 · ONS personal well-being 2022-23
Local petitions
Open UK Parliament petitions most signed in Normanton and Hemsworth:
- Change surrogacy law to recognise intended parents from birth262 local signatures · 113,305 nationwide
- Protect legal right to support for children with SEND172 local signatures · 111,357 nationwide
- Launch a public inquiry into illegal migration in the UK164 local signatures · 78,478 nationwide
- Fund second stem cell transplants on NHS for relapse within 12 months157 local signatures · 30,826 nationwide
- Fund £20,000 a year (term time) wage for Teaching Assistants144 local signatures · 39,730 nationwide
Source: petition.parliament.uk · as of 2026-10-05
Notable places nearby
Sharlston · 0.4 kmSharlston is a village and civil parish, situated 4 miles (6.4 km) east of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England, and includes the settlements of Old Sharlston, Sharlston Common and New Sharlston. Its population at the…
Sharlston railway station · 1.1 kmSharlston railway station is a closed railway station on the Pontefract Line in West Yorkshire, England. The station was opened in 1869 by the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway to service a new mining community at Sharls…
- Streethouse · 1.3 km
Streethouse is a semi-rural village in West Yorkshire, England, situated to the east of Wakefield, the west of Featherstone and the south-west of Castleford. It is also situated on a Roman road. Streethouse is current…
Crofton railway station · 1.4 kmCrofton Station was the smaller of two stations serving Crofton. It was next to Doncaster Road, on the current Pontefract Line, behind the Crofton Arms Public House.
Crofton, West Yorkshire · 1.5 kmCrofton is a village in West Yorkshire, England, about 4 miles (6 km) south-east of Wakefield, some 6 miles (10 km) to the west of the town of Pontefract, and 4 miles (6 km) from the town of Featherstone. The populati…
Streethouse railway station · 1.5 kmStreethouse railway station serves the village of Streethouse in West Yorkshire, England. It lies on the Pontefract Line, operated by Northern Trains and is 4 miles (6 km) east of Wakefield Kirkgate station.
Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA)
Towns in Wakefield
- Ackworth Moor Top
- Badsworth
- Bottom Boat
- Brotherton
- Coxley (Wakefield)
- Crigglestone and Durkar
- Crofton
- Darrington
- Darton
- Featherstone (Wakefield)
- Fitzwilliam and Kinsley
- Hall Green
- Havercroft and Ryhill
- Hemsworth
- High Ackworth
- Holmfield
- Horbury
- Knottingley
- Low Ackworth
- Middlestown and Overton
- Netherton (Wakefield)
- Normanton (Wakefield)
- Notton (Wakefield)
- Pontefract
- Royston (Barnsley)
- Sharlston
- South Elmsall
- South Hiendley
- South Kirkby
- Streethouse
- Thorpe Audlin
- Upton (Wakefield)
- Wakefield
- Walton (Wakefield)
- West Bretton
- Woolley