Horsley & Effingham
Guildford 003 · 7 sub-areas · 10,002 residents
Guildford 003 is a settled, predominantly owner-occupied corner of Guildford, home to around 10,000 people. A typical two-bedroom home lets for about £1,507 a month — slightly above the UK median for a 2-bed but reflective of Surrey's premium over much of England. What stands out most is the demographics: this is one of the older, more established parts of the borough, with a high degree-educated population and very low crime.
Horsley & Effingham is a mid-density neighbourhood of Guildford in the South East 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; 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 Horsley & Effingham?
Greenspace is on the doorstep — a park or playing field is within walking distance of most homes; The streets feel safe by national standards — police-recorded crime is well below the country-wide median; rents sit firmly in the upper bracket nationally, with a typical home letting at around £1,698 a month; gigabit broadband is effectively universal.
Generated from the latest May 2026 data · refreshed automatically
Figures are aggregated across 7 sub-areas — population-weighted means for rates, sums for counts. Sources cited beneath each section.
Horsley & Effingham in Guildford
Living in Horsley & Effingham
Guildford 003 reads as one of the more established, residential parts of the borough — quiet streets, high home-ownership, and a population that skews noticeably older than you'd find in most UK towns. Around a quarter of residents are over 65, and nearly another quarter are between 50 and 64. That shapes the feel of the place: this isn't a neighbourhood of busy bars or student terraces.
On the cost side, you're paying Surrey prices. A 2-bed runs around £1,507 a month — meaningfully above the UK median, though still considerably less than equivalent commuter-belt properties closer to the M25. Rents have risen roughly 5% over the past year, in line with the wider regional trend. The median property price sits above £1 million, which tells you most of what you need to know about who owns here: this is deeply owner-occupied territory, with 85% of homes owner-occupied and only around 9% privately rented.
Who lives here? Mostly settled families and older couples — around 26% of households are couples with children, and just over a fifth are single-person. The degree-educated share is 52.6%, well above the national average, and a striking 56% of residents work from home, reflecting both the professional demographic and the nature of the jobs people here tend to hold. Ethnic diversity is low at 9.5 on the diversity index, and 87% of residents were born in the UK.
Practically speaking, the nearest mainline rail station is roughly 1.7 km away, giving access to London in around 55 minutes by public transport. Greenspace is within reach, with the nearest park or open space around 436 metres away and over 40% of the neighbourhood within comfortable walking distance of green areas. For sub-areas and individual streets within Guildford 003, see the streets and sub-areas listed below.
What you'll need on day one
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Frequently asked
- Is Guildford 003 a nice place to live?
- For the right person, yes. It's quiet, very safe, and well-connected to London by rail. The trade-off is cost — rents and property prices are high, council tax adds around £212 a month, and the area skews older and more settled, so it suits established professionals or families more than younger renters looking for a social scene.
- What is the rent in Guildford 003?
- A one-bedroom runs roughly £1,159 a month, a two-bedroom around £1,507, and a three-bedroom closer to £1,823. These are estimates scaled from borough-level data using local sale prices. Rents rose about 5% over the past year.
- Is Guildford 003 safe?
- Very much so. The crime rate is around 36.7 incidents per 1,000 residents per year — less than half the national average. It's among the lower-crime parts of the South East, and the area sits in the top 5% least deprived neighbourhoods in England.
- What's the commute from Guildford 003 to London?
- The nearest mainline station is about 1.7 km away, and the public transport journey to London takes around 55 minutes. It's a viable commuter location, though over half of residents here work from home.
- Who lives in Guildford 003?
- Predominantly older, owner-occupying households — around half the population is over 50. Most are long-established in the area, many are degree-educated professionals, and over half work from home. It's low-turnover, settled territory rather than a neighbourhood of transient renters.
- What schools are near Guildford 003?
- There are 10 schools within typical catchment distance, but only around 11% are rated Good or Outstanding — well below the national average of roughly 89%. The nearest Outstanding school is approximately 6.8 km away. Families should check catchment boundaries directly with Guildford's admissions team.
- Is Guildford 003 good for families?
- It has strong safety credentials, good greenspace access, and a high proportion of family households — about 26% are couples with children. The main concern for families is school quality within easy reach, which falls noticeably below the national benchmark. Property prices are also high, with the median above £1 million.