Headington
Oxford 006 · 6 sub-areas · 10,257 residents
Oxford 006 is a residential neighbourhood within Oxford, home to around 10,300 people and sitting well above the national average for graduate residents — nearly six in ten hold a degree. A typical two-bedroom flat lets for around £1,650 a month, noticeably above the UK median for that size, and rents rose 7% in the past year. The area is one of Oxford's more affordable pockets relative to the city's overall price level.
Headington is a mid-density neighbourhood of Oxford 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. The population skews young, with a high concentration of 18- to 34-year-olds; the rental market is active and turnover is high — people move through rather than stay.
Overview
What's it like to live in Headington?
The area is unusually green for its density — 5 parks and 2 playgrounds sit within five minutes' walk of the centroid; food and drink within walking distance is workable but not dense — around 12 restaurants and 3 pubs in five minutes; 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 £1,952 a month.
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.
Headington in Oxford
Living in Headington
Oxford 006 has a distinctly mixed character — younger renters and families share the streets with longer-established owner-occupiers, and the degree-holding share of 58% gives it the feel of an educated, professionally settled community. Greenspace is genuinely close here: the nearest park or open space is under 300 metres away on average, and just over half of residents can reach meaningful greenspace on foot. That's a real quality-of-life advantage in a city where space is at a premium.
The cost picture is demanding. A two-bedroom flat runs around £1,650 a month, well above the UK median of roughly £1,200, and the median household is spending close to 78% of take-home pay on rent — one of the highest rent-to-income ratios you'll find outside central London. Council tax (Band D) adds £2,678 a year on top. If you're buying rather than renting, the median sale price sits at around £487,000, which means saving a deposit takes roughly six and a half years at typical local incomes.
Who lives here reflects Oxford's university-city profile: 35% of residents are aged 18–34, skewing younger than most UK neighbourhoods of this size. Owner-occupation at 51% is surprisingly high given the age mix, suggesting a settled middle layer of families and long-term residents alongside the younger renter cohort. Just over 11% are in social housing, and private renters make up 37% — a meaningful proportion, though lower than the most transient parts of the city.
For getting around, the nearest mainline rail station is roughly 3.6 km away — about a 45-minute walk or a short bus or cycle ride. That's the main connectivity point for longer journeys; the rail commute to London runs around 96 minutes. Within Oxford itself, nearly 39% of residents work from home, which partly explains why only 6.5% use public transport for their commute. See the streets and sub-areas below for more on how different parts of the neighbourhood compare.
What you'll need on day one
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Frequently asked
- Is Oxford 006 a nice place to live?
- It's a well-educated, green neighbourhood with good owner-occupier stability and genuine open space close by — the nearest greenspace is under 300 metres for most residents. The trade-off is cost: rents are high relative to incomes, and the Ofsted picture for nearby schools is below the national average. If you work from home and value a degree-rich, mixed community, it suits well.
- What is the rent in Oxford 006?
- A one-bedroom flat runs around £1,340 a month, a two-bedroom around £1,650, and a three-bedroom around £2,020. These are estimates scaled from city-level data using local sale prices. Rents rose 7% in the past year, so expect the market to stay competitive.
- Is Oxford 006 safe?
- The crime rate is around 95 per 1,000 residents annually, above the UK average of roughly 80. Anti-social behaviour and theft are the main drivers. The area scores in the top 10% nationally on the deprivation index, so the elevated rate reflects urban density rather than concentrated poverty or disadvantage.
- What's the commute from Oxford 006 to Oxford city centre?
- The nearest mainline rail station is around 3.6 km away — a short bus or cycle ride for most. Nearly 39% of residents work from home, which is unusually high. For those commuting out, the rail journey to London takes around 96 minutes and to Birmingham around 105 minutes by public transport.
- Who lives in Oxford 006?
- A mix of younger renters and settled owner-occupiers. Around 35% are aged 18–34, 58% hold a degree, and owner-occupation sits at 51% — high for an area with this many younger residents. Around 37% of residents were born outside the UK, making it one of Oxford's more internationally diverse neighbourhoods.
- What schools are near Oxford 006?
- There are 83 schools within 2 km, but only around 37% are rated Good or Outstanding — well below the national share of approximately 89%. The nearest Outstanding-rated school is roughly 3.3 km away. Families should research individual catchment boundaries carefully, as Ofsted ratings vary considerably across Oxford.
- How affordable is Oxford 006 compared to the rest of Oxford?
- It sits at the more affordable end of Oxford's price spectrum, but that's relative. Residents spend close to 78% of take-home pay on rent — one of the highest rent-to-income ratios outside central London. The median sale price is around £487,000, and saving a deposit takes roughly six and a half years at local income levels.