Neighbourhood · Birmingham · West Midlands
West Heath
Birmingham 131 · 5 sub-areas · 8,048 residents
Verdict
How are these scored? →Best for Couples (80/100)Watch-out: Families (62/100)Liveability 94/100 · Best 10%Commuter neighbourhood
West Heath is a commuter neighbourhood within Birmingham — train into Birmingham runs in around 32 minutes, and the rhythm of weekday mornings is shaped by it. Most homes are owner-occupied, so turnover is low and many residents have been here a long time.
Liveability
94/100
Best 10%
Overview
Overview
What's it like to live in West Heath?
A snapshot of West Heath
Greenspace is reachable but isn't on the immediate doorstep — most residents walk a few blocks to reach a park; 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 £1,086 a month for a typical home; 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.
West Heath in Birmingham
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FAQ
Frequently asked
- What's the median rent in West Heath?
- The median monthly rent across West Heath is £1,086.
- How safe is West Heath?
- West Heath has a safety score of — out of 100, where higher is safer. The score is the national percentile rank of police-recorded crimes per 1,000 residents per year, inverted.
- How well-connected is West Heath?
- Transport score: — out of 100. Combines walking time to the nearest rail station, walking time to the nearest metro stop, and public-transport time to clusters with 5,000+ jobs. The nearest rail station is roughly 12 minutes' walk.
- What schools are near West Heath?
- There are 15 schools within 2 km of West Heath, of which 33% are rated Good or Outstanding by Ofsted. The nearest Outstanding-rated school is approximately 2793 m away.
- What is the council tax band in West Heath?
- The most common council tax band in West Heath is B, with the typical Band D annual charge around £1,918. Council tax is set by Birmingham council and applies to every property in the area.
- How long is the commute from West Heath to London?
- By the fastest direct train, the journey from West Heath to central London is approximately 107 minutes. This is the fastest no-change rail journey from the local area centroid; door-to-door times will vary with walking time to the station.
- Is gigabit broadband available in West Heath?
- 100% of premises in West Heath are gigabit-capable according to Ofcom Connected Nations 2025. Most properties can already buy gigabit packages.
- What is the deprivation rank of West Heath?
- West Heath sits in IMD decile 6 of 10, where 1 is the most deprived 10% of local areas nationally and 10 is the least deprived. The Index of Multiple Deprivation combines income, employment, education, health, crime, barriers and environment.
- What's the tenure mix in West Heath?
- 82% of households in West Heath are owner-occupied. The remainder is split between private renting and social housing — see the Demographics section for the full breakdown from Census 2021.
- What is the average property price in West Heath?
- The average property price across Birmingham (the local authority covering West Heath) is approximately £232,266, per HM Land Registry's House Price Index. Per-local area prices vary; see the cost-of-living section for medians by property type.
- Is West Heath a commuter town or workplace hub?
- Commuter town — most working residents travel out for work. (0.49 jobs per working-age resident. Median resident salary £30,180.)
- Which local areas are part of West Heath?
- West Heath contains 5 local areas: Birmingham 131A, Birmingham 131D, Birmingham 131E, Birmingham 131C, Birmingham 131B.
FAQ
Frequently asked about West Heath
Short answers anchored in the data above. Each link goes to the relevant section or methodology page.
- What is the average rent in West Heath?
- The estimated median monthly rent in West Heath is £1,086. This is derived from the council-area ONS rental figure scaled by the local sale-price gradient — see the Cost section for the breakdown by bedroom count and the affordability ratio against local salaries.
- Is West Heath a safe place to live?
- West Heath has a safety score of 83/100. The score is the national percentile rank of police-recorded crime per 1,000 residents, inverted so 100 is the safest 1% of England + Wales. The Safety section below shows the breakdown by category.
- What schools are near West Heath?
- 33% of schools within 2 km of West Heath are rated Good or Outstanding by Ofsted. The Schools section lists individual schools with inspection ratings.
- How long is the commute from West Heath?
- Public-transport commute time from West Heath to central London is approximately 107 minutes. The Transport section has commute times to every major UK city hub.
- How is West Heath different from the rest of Birmingham?
- West Heath contains 5 sub-areas. The "Sub-areas" section below lets you drill into each one individually — they often vary by 20%+ on rent and demographics within the same neighbourhood.
- Where does West Heath rank in Birmingham?
- West Heath scores 94/100 on our composite liveability index. To see how it stacks up against every other neighbourhood in Birmingham, see the Cities table on the Birmingham page.
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