Highfield & University
Southampton 009 · 4 sub-areas · 7,183 residents
Southampton 009 is a central Southampton neighbourhood of around 7,200 residents with a notably young population — over 40% are aged 18 to 34. A typical two-bedroom flat lets for about £1,100 a month, broadly in line with the national median and competitive for a south-coast city of Southampton's size. Working from home is unusually common here, with nearly four in ten residents working remotely.
Highfield & University is a mid-density neighbourhood of Southampton 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 Highfield & University?
2 parks are within five minutes' walk, so greenspace is reliably close at hand; food and drink within walking distance is workable but not dense — around 20 restaurants and 2 pubs in five minutes; The streets feel safe by national standards — police-recorded crime is well below the country-wide median; Public transport is genuinely strong; most errands and a fair share of social life don't need a car; rents are roughly in line with the national norm, at around £1,246 a month for a typical home; gigabit broadband is effectively universal.
Generated from the latest May 2026 data · refreshed automatically
Figures are aggregated across 4 sub-areas — population-weighted means for rates, sums for counts. Sources cited beneath each section.
Highfield & University in Southampton
Living in Highfield & University
Southampton 009 stands out within Southampton for its youth. With over 40% of residents aged 18 to 34, it skews noticeably younger than the city as a whole, giving it an energy you feel day-to-day — more renters, more people mid-career, fewer long-settled families. The area sits comfortably in the upper half of the deprivation index, ranking in roughly the ninth decile nationally, which puts it among the less deprived parts of the country.
The cost picture is relatively accessible. A one-bedroom flat runs around £870 a month, a two-bed about £1,100, and a three-bed around £1,340. Those figures are roughly in line with the UK's national two-bed median of around £1,200, which is a reasonable position for a south-coast city with decent London rail access. Rents rose around 3.5% over the past year, steady rather than dramatic. Council tax for a Band D property is around £2,380 a year. The median property price of around £317,000 means a deposit is within reach for dual-income households — around 4.8 years of saving on typical local earnings.
The people who live here reflect that rental-heavy, younger profile. Almost half of homes are privately rented, with owner-occupation at around 50% and social housing making up a small 7%. Nearly half of residents hold a degree-level qualification, well above the national average, and the unemployment claimant rate of 4.3% is modest. One-person households account for nearly a third of all homes, consistent with a young professional and student-adjacent population.
Practically, the nearest mainline rail station is roughly 1.1 km away — about a 14-minute walk. The rail commute to London runs around 111 minutes on public transport. Working from home is a striking feature: nearly 44% of residents work from home, one of the higher shares you'll find in any Southampton neighbourhood. Gigabit broadband covers 100% of premises, so remote workers are well served. See the streets and sub-areas below for more on how the neighbourhood breaks down locally.
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Frequently asked
- Is Southampton 009 a nice place to live?
- It's one of the less deprived parts of Southampton, sitting in roughly the ninth national deprivation decile. Crime is below the UK average, broadband is excellent, and rents are competitive for the South East. The trade-off is that the school ratings profile is weaker than the national picture, and the rent-to-income ratio is high at around 57% of take-home pay.
- What is the rent in Southampton 009?
- A one-bedroom flat runs around £870 a month, a two-bedroom about £1,100, and a three-bedroom around £1,340. These figures are estimates scaled from city-level data using local sale prices. Rents rose roughly 3.5% over the past year.
- Is Southampton 009 safe?
- The crime rate here is around 61 incidents per 1,000 residents per year, noticeably below the UK national average of around 80. That makes it one of the calmer neighbourhoods in Southampton, particularly relative to the more deprived inner-city zones.
- What's the commute from Southampton 009 to Southampton city centre?
- The nearest mainline rail station is roughly 1.1 km away — about a 14-minute walk. Nearly 44% of residents work from home, which reflects both the area's graduate-professional profile and its 100% gigabit broadband coverage. Car use for commuting is around 33%.
- Who lives in Southampton 009?
- Predominantly young renters — over 40% of residents are aged 18 to 34, nearly half hold a degree, and close to half of homes are privately rented. One-person households make up nearly a third of all properties. It's a transient, graduate-heavy neighbourhood rather than a long-settled family area.
- What schools are near Southampton 009?
- There are 77 schools within 2 km of typical residents. Around half are rated Good or Outstanding by Ofsted — below the national share of roughly 89%. The nearest Outstanding-rated school is approximately 1.1 km away. Checking individual catchment boundaries carefully is advisable given the mixed ratings spread.
- How does rent in Southampton 009 compare to the rest of Southampton?
- At around £1,100 a month for a two-bedroom flat, Southampton 009 sits close to the national median for two-bed rents. It's broadly competitive within Southampton, and significantly cheaper than comparable areas in London or the broader South East commuter belt.