London Fields & Mare Street
Hackney 023 · 6 sub-areas · 11,041 residents
Hackney 023 sits within the London borough of Hackney, home to around 11,000 people. A typical two-bedroom flat lets for about £2,430 a month — noticeably above the UK average but broadly in line with inner east London. The area stands out for its high degree-educated population and an unusually large share of residents working from home.
London Fields & Mare Street is a mid-density neighbourhood of Hackney in the London 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. The population skews young, with a high concentration of 18- to 34-year-olds; a high share of adults are degree-educated, which often shows up in the kind of jobs people commute to.
Overview
What's it like to live in London Fields & Mare Street?
The area is unusually green for its density — 7 parks and 10 playgrounds sit within five minutes' walk of the centroid; food and drink within walking distance is workable but not dense — around 49 restaurants and 6 pubs in five minutes; nightlife is genuinely on tap — 5 clubs within a kilometre; Recorded crime is higher than the national norm — common for built-up urban areas, but worth weighing if you're looking for a quieter base; Public transport is genuinely strong; most errands and a fair share of social life don't need a car; rents sit firmly in the upper bracket nationally, with a typical home letting at around £2,598 a month; 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.
London Fields & Mare Street in Hackney
Living in London Fields & Mare Street
Hackney 023 has the feel of a settled inner-London neighbourhood that's been through a decade of gentrification and come out the other side. It's dense, walkable, and demographically mixed — but skewed heavily towards young graduates and professionals. Around four in ten residents are aged 18 to 34, which is high even by inner-London standards, and nearly two-thirds hold a degree-level qualification.
On cost, it sits in the middle of the Hackney rent gradient. A two-bedroom flat runs about £2,430 a month, which is real money but below what you'd pay in the most expensive pockets of the borough. One-beds average closer to £1,950. The owned share is low — only about one in four households owns — with private renting and social housing splitting most of the rest almost evenly. That social housing concentration is meaningful: it means the neighbourhood has more economic range than its graduate demographics might suggest.
The demographic picture is genuinely mixed. The ethnic diversity index sits at 57.6, and just under 60% of residents were born in the UK. One-person households account for nearly a third of all homes, which shapes the kind of local economy you'll find — more coffee shops and gyms than family restaurants and toy shops. Couples with children make up only around one in eight households.
Practically, the area is well-served. The nearest mainline rail station is roughly 375 metres away — under a five-minute walk — putting central London within minutes. Crime is a real consideration at nearly 200 incidents per 1,000 residents annually, well above the UK average, though this is consistent with inner east London broadly. See the streets and sub-areas below for more detail on how conditions vary across the neighbourhood.
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Frequently asked
- Is Hackney 023 a nice place to live?
- It depends what you're after. It's well-connected, walkable, and has a strong young-professional community — but crime rates are high by UK standards, and affordability is a real stretch. Around 56% of residents work from home, which suggests people value the location enough to pay the premium. It suits people who want inner-London access without being priced into Zone 1.
- What is the rent in Hackney 023?
- A one-bedroom flat averages around £1,950 a month, a two-bed about £2,430, and a three-bed closer to £2,780. Rents rose roughly 2.5% over the past year. These are estimates scaled from borough-level data using local sale prices, so treat them as indicative rather than exact.
- Is Hackney 023 safe?
- Crime runs at around 199 incidents per 1,000 residents a year — more than double the UK national average of roughly 80. That's a meaningful difference and consistent with inner east London generally. It doesn't make the area dangerous in absolute terms, but street-level crime and antisocial behaviour will be more present than in lower-density parts of the city.
- What's the commute from Hackney 023 to central London?
- The nearest mainline rail station is roughly 375 metres away — about a four or five-minute walk — and from there you're within minutes of central London by public transport. It's one of the better-connected spots in east London, which helps explain why so many residents opt to work from home even with fast rail access on the doorstep.
- Who lives in Hackney 023?
- Mostly younger adults — around 40% of residents are aged 18 to 34 — with a high graduate share of 62%. Single-person households account for nearly a third of homes. There's a substantial social housing population alongside the private renters, and around 40% of residents were born outside the UK, making it one of the more ethnically diverse neighbourhoods in the borough.
- What schools are near Hackney 023?
- There are 359 schools within 2km of the neighbourhood, but only around 48% are rated Good or Outstanding — well below the national average of roughly 89%. The nearest Outstanding-rated school is about 536 metres away. Given the variable quality across such a large pool, it's worth checking individual Ofsted ratings and admissions catchment boundaries before settling on a specific address.
- Is Hackney 023 expensive compared to the rest of London?
- It sits in the middle tier for inner east London — not the cheapest part of Hackney, but not the priciest either. A two-bed at around £2,430 a month is well above the UK national median of roughly £1,200, but typical for this part of the city. The rent-to-take-home ratio is very tight, so financial headroom on a single salary is limited.