Westlea & Shaw
Swindon 014 · 4 sub-areas · 6,539 residents
Swindon 014 is a residential area within Swindon, home to around 6,500 people. A typical two-bedroom home lets for about £975 a month — noticeably below the UK national median for a 2-bed — and nearly seven in ten households own their home, giving the area a settled, owner-occupier character that sets it apart from much of the surrounding town.
Westlea & Shaw is a mid-density neighbourhood of Swindon in the South West 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.
Overview
What's it like to live in Westlea & Shaw?
Day-to-day life sits close to greenery — a park or playing field is within easy walking distance of most addresses; The streets feel safe by national standards — police-recorded crime is well below the country-wide median; rents are roughly in line with the national norm, at around £1,082 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.
Westlea & Shaw in Swindon
Living in Westlea & Shaw
This part of Swindon has a grounded, residential feel: mostly owner-occupied streets, a relatively spread age profile, and none of the transient churn you get in higher-density rental markets. Around 68% of households own their home outright or with a mortgage — well above the national average — which gives the area a stability that shows in its lower crime rate and steady demographic mix.
Rents sit noticeably below the UK average here. A 2-bed comes in at roughly £975 a month, compared to a national median of around £1,200, and even a 3-bed averages just over £1,200. That affordability comes with a trade-off: nearly a third of monthly take-home pay goes on rent even at these prices, so this isn't a soft landing if you're earning at or below the median resident salary of around £33,100 a year.
The population skews towards a broad working-age and family demographic. Children and teenagers make up almost one in five residents, and the largest adult groups are spread fairly evenly across the 18–34, 35–49 and 50–64 brackets. Single-person households account for about 30% — lower than many urban areas — and just over one in five households is a couple with children. Around 79% of residents were born in the UK, and the ethnic diversity index sits at 29, which is moderate for a southern English town.
For day-to-day practicalities: the nearest mainline rail station is roughly 2.7 km away (about a 34-minute walk or a short drive), and the public transport commute to London runs at around 81 minutes by rail. Most residents drive — just over half commute by car — while a notable 35% work from home. Greenspace is genuinely close, with the nearest open space under 300 metres away and nearly two-thirds of residents within easy walking distance of a park. See the streets and sub-areas below for more.
What you'll need on day one
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Frequently asked
- Is Swindon 014 a nice place to live?
- It depends on what you're looking for. It's a quieter, owner-occupier area with below-average crime, good broadband and easy access to greenspace. The trade-off is limited public transport and Ofsted results that are below the national average. For families or professionals who drive and work from home, it's a solid, affordable option.
- What is the rent in Swindon 014?
- A one-bedroom home runs around £810 a month, a two-bedroom around £975, and a three-bedroom just over £1,200. These are estimates scaled from council-level data using local sale prices. Rents rose around 3.3% over the past year.
- Is Swindon 014 safe?
- The crime rate here is around 60 incidents per 1,000 residents a year, which is noticeably below the UK national rate of roughly 80 per 1,000. By that measure it's one of the more reassuring parts of Swindon, and the settled owner-occupier character of the streets tends to keep antisocial behaviour relatively low.
- What's the commute from Swindon 014 to London?
- By public transport — primarily rail — the journey to London takes around 81 minutes. The nearest mainline station is roughly 2.7 km away, so most residents drive to the station. About 35% of residents work from home, so for many the commute question is less relevant than it used to be.
- Who lives in Swindon 014?
- Mostly owner-occupiers — around 68% of households own their home — with a broad spread of working-age adults and a meaningful share of families with children. Around 31% of residents hold a degree-level qualification. It's a predominantly UK-born area, with around 79% of residents born in the UK.
- What schools are near Swindon 014?
- There are 48 schools within 2 km of typical residents, so access isn't an issue. However, only around 25% of those nearby schools are rated Good or Outstanding by Ofsted — well below the national average of roughly 89%. The nearest Outstanding school is about 2.7 km away. Check individual school ratings on the Ofsted portal before committing.
- How far is Swindon 014 from a train station?
- The nearest mainline rail station is about 2.7 km away in a straight line — roughly a 34-minute walk, though most residents drive. From the station, London is around 81 minutes by rail, and Birmingham around 136 minutes.