Wensley Fold
Blackburn with Darwen 005 · 5 sub-areas · 9,781 residents
Blackburn with Darwen 005 is a dense residential neighbourhood within Blackburn with Darwen, home to around 9,800 people. A typical two-bedroom home lets for about £655 a month — well under half the UK national median for a two-bed — and the median house price sits below £130,000, making this one of the more affordable corners of the North West.
Wensley Fold is a green, lower-density part of Blackburn with Darwen — parks within walking distance of most addresses, a slower weekday rhythm, and a population skewed toward longer-tenure households rather than transient renters. The demographic profile leans family-aged, with a clear share of households with school-age children.
Overview
What's it like to live in Wensley Fold?
Greenspace is on the doorstep — a park or playing field is within walking distance of most homes; 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 are below the national norm, with a typical home letting at around £707 a month; gigabit broadband is effectively universal.
Generated from the latest May 2026 data · refreshed automatically
Figures are aggregated across 5 sub-areas — population-weighted means for rates, sums for counts. Sources cited beneath each section.
Wensley Fold in Blackburn with Darwen
Living in Wensley Fold
This neighbourhood sits firmly at the affordable end of what Blackburn with Darwen has to offer. Streets here are largely made up of terraced housing stock, with a strong owner-occupier base — around 55% own their home — alongside a meaningful private rental sector and a social housing presence that's higher than the regional norm. It's a practical, working neighbourhood rather than a polished one, and that's reflected in both the price point and the community feel.
The cost picture is one of the neighbourhood's clearest draws. At around £655 a month for a two-bed and a median sale price of roughly £127,000, you're looking at a deposit-to-income ratio of just 2.3 years — unusually fast by any measure outside the very cheapest parts of England. Rents rose around 7% in the past year, so they're not immune to wider market pressures, but in cash terms the base remains low.
Who lives here skews young and family-heavy. Nearly 29% of residents are under 18 — a noticeably high share — and couples with children account for over a quarter of households. The ethnic diversity index of 44.4 and a UK-born population of around 68% point to a genuinely mixed community, with established South Asian communities alongside more recent arrivals. The degree-qualified share, at around 24%, is moderate rather than high.
Practically speaking, the nearest mainline rail station is roughly 1.2 km away — about a 15-minute walk — giving access to Manchester in around an hour by public transport. Most residents drive: 60% commute by car, and just under 4% use public transport. Broadband coverage here is excellent, with 100% gigabit availability and no properties below the universal service obligation threshold. See the streets and sub-areas below for more.
What you'll need on day one
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Frequently asked
- Is Blackburn with Darwen 005 a nice place to live?
- It depends what you prioritise. It's affordable and family-oriented, with a strong community character and excellent broadband. The trade-off is a crime rate above the national average and a below-average share of Good or Outstanding schools within catchment. It suits buyers and renters who want low costs and don't mind trading polish for practicality.
- What is the rent in Blackburn with Darwen 005?
- A one-bedroom property runs around £529 a month, a two-bed about £655, and a three-bed roughly £773. These are estimates scaled from council-level data. Rents rose around 7% in the past year, but the absolute level remains well under half the UK national median for a two-bed.
- Is Blackburn with Darwen 005 safe?
- Crime runs at around 110 incidents per 1,000 residents annually, noticeably above the UK national rate of roughly 80 per 1,000. The area sits in the most deprived decile nationally, which correlates with higher crime. It's worth checking street-level crime data for specific roads you're considering, as rates vary within the neighbourhood.
- What's the commute from Blackburn with Darwen 005 to Manchester?
- By public transport, Manchester takes around 60 minutes. The nearest mainline rail station is about 1.2 km away — roughly a 15-minute walk. Most residents commute by car rather than public transport, with around 60% driving to work and only 4% using public transport.
- Who lives in Blackburn with Darwen 005?
- Primarily families — couples with children account for over a quarter of households, and nearly 29% of residents are under 18. It's an ethnically diverse community, with a mix of established South Asian families and UK-born residents. Most are owner-occupiers, though around 16% live in social housing and 28% in private rentals.
- What schools are near Blackburn with Darwen 005?
- There are 122 schools within 2 km of typical residents, so choice is wide. Around 45% are rated Good or Outstanding by Ofsted — below the national average of roughly 89%. The nearest Outstanding-rated school is about 545 metres away. Check the DfE school finder and Ofsted directly to identify specific schools and catchment boundaries.
- How affordable is buying a home in Blackburn with Darwen 005?
- Very affordable by national standards. The median house price is around £127,000, and it takes roughly 2.3 years of median local earnings to save a deposit — one of the faster timescales in England. That said, local median salaries of around £27,500 mean monthly budgets are still tight once rent or mortgage payments are factored in.