South Woodham Ferrers South
Chelmsford 020 · 6 sub-areas · 7,862 residents
Chelmsford 020 is a residential area of Chelmsford, home to around 7,800 people with a notably high owner-occupancy rate. A typical two-bedroom home lets for about £1,300 a month — close to the national median for a two-bed, and considerably cheaper than what you'd pay closer to London. The area sits well above average on deprivation indices, pointing to a settled, relatively comfortable community.
South Woodham Ferrers South is a mid-density neighbourhood of Chelmsford in the East of England region. It sits between busier and quieter parts of the local authority and isn't dominated by a single use — there's a mix of workplaces, housing and local services. Most homes are owner-occupied, so turnover is low and many residents have been here a long time.
Overview
What's it like to live in South Woodham Ferrers South?
2 parks and 2 playgrounds are within five minutes' walk, so greenspace is reliably close at hand; The streets feel safe by national standards — police-recorded crime is well below the country-wide median; rents are roughly in line with the national norm, at around £1,442 a month for a typical home; gigabit broadband is effectively universal.
Generated from the latest May 2026 data · refreshed automatically
Figures are aggregated across 6 sub-areas — population-weighted means for rates, sums for counts. Sources cited beneath each section.
South Woodham Ferrers South in Chelmsford
Living in South Woodham Ferrers South
Chelmsford 020 has the feel of a well-established suburban neighbourhood — predominantly owner-occupied, fairly quiet, and skewed towards families and older residents rather than the transient renter crowd you'd find closer to the city centre. Around three in four households own their home, which is unusually high even by Essex standards, and that shapes the character of the place considerably.
Rents here are moderate by the standards of the broader Chelmsford area. A two-bed runs about £1,300 a month, which is broadly in line with the national average for that size and noticeably cheaper than commuter-belt areas closer to the M25. For renters, that relative affordability is one of the main draws — though with private rentals making up under 15% of the housing stock, supply can be tight and properties don't tend to sit around long.
The population spread is fairly even across age groups, but there's a slight tilt towards the 50–64 bracket — around one in five residents — alongside a meaningful share of under-18s, which suggests plenty of established family households. The degree-educated share sits at just over 28%, slightly below what you'd see in more professional-commuter-heavy parts of Chelmsford, but unemployment is low at under 3%.
Practically speaking, the nearest mainline rail station is roughly 1.4 km away — about an 18-minute walk — giving access to London Liverpool Street in just over an hour by public transport. Most residents drive rather than commute by rail: over half travel by car, and nearly 37% work from home, which has clearly reshaped how people use the area day to day. See the streets and sub-areas below for more on how the neighbourhood breaks down.
What you'll need on day one
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Frequently asked
- Is Chelmsford 020 a nice place to live?
- For the right person, yes. It's a quiet, owner-occupied suburban neighbourhood with low crime and good broadband — ideal if you want stability and space rather than city-centre energy. The trade-off is that school quality within easy reach is more variable than average, and public transport options are limited, so a car is almost essential.
- What is the rent in Chelmsford 020?
- A one-bed runs around £1,060 a month, a two-bed around £1,300, and a three-bed around £1,550. These are estimates scaled from council-level data. Rents rose about 7.7% over the past year. Private rental stock is limited — under 15% of homes are privately rented — so supply can be tight.
- Is Chelmsford 020 safe?
- Yes, relatively. The crime rate is around 26 incidents per 1,000 residents a year, well below the UK national average of roughly 80. The area sits in the lower-deprivation bracket nationally, and there are no particular safety concerns flagged for the neighbourhood.
- What's the commute from Chelmsford 020 to London?
- By public transport it takes around 66 minutes to London. The nearest mainline rail station is about 1.4 km away — roughly an 18-minute walk. That said, most residents here drive rather than commute by rail, and nearly 37% work from home.
- Who lives in Chelmsford 020?
- Mostly owner-occupiers — nearly 77% of households own their home. The population skews older, with the 50–64 age group the largest cohort. Families with children are well represented too. It's a settled, long-established community with low transience compared to more central parts of Chelmsford.
- What schools are near Chelmsford 020?
- There are 40 schools within typical catchment distance, but only around 15% are rated Good or Outstanding — considerably below the national average. The nearest Outstanding-rated school is just under 6.5 km away. Families with school-age children should research individual schools carefully before moving here.
- How good is broadband in Chelmsford 020?
- Excellent — 100% of premises have access to gigabit-speed broadband, and no properties fall below the minimum universal service standard. Given that nearly 37% of residents work from home, that's a genuinely useful feature of the area.