Airedale
Wakefield 003 · 5 sub-areas · 8,171 residents
Wakefield 003 is a residential area within Wakefield, home to around 8,200 people and notably affordable even by Yorkshire standards. A typical two-bedroom home lets for roughly £710 a month — well below the UK national median for a two-bed — and you can save a deposit in just over three years. The trade-off is that car ownership is almost essential here, with public transport used by fewer than one in twenty residents.
Airedale is a commuter neighbourhood within Wakefield — train into Leeds runs in around 52 minutes, and the rhythm of weekday mornings is shaped by it.
Overview
What's it like to live in Airedale?
Greenspace is on the doorstep — a park or playing field is within walking distance of most homes; Recorded crime is higher than the national norm — common for built-up urban areas, but worth weighing if you're looking for a quieter base; rents are below the national norm, with a typical home letting at around £787 a month; 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.
Airedale in Wakefield
Living in Airedale
This part of Wakefield sits firmly in owner-occupier territory, with around six in ten households owning their home — a higher share than you'd expect in most urban neighbourhoods. The streets have a settled, family-oriented feel: over a fifth of residents are under 18, and couples with children make up a significant slice of households. It doesn't have the city-centre buzz of parts of Leeds or Manchester, but that's not what most people here are looking for.
Rents are genuinely low. A two-bed at around £710 a month sits comfortably below the national median of roughly £1,200, and even a three-bed comes in under £850. For buyers, the median sale price of around £185,000 means a deposit is achievable — roughly three years of saving at typical local incomes, which is a realistic target compared to most of southern England.
The area has a relatively high social housing concentration — around 30% of homes are social rented, which is well above the national average. That shapes the tenure and income mix, and it's reflected in the deprivation picture: an IMD score of 39.4 puts this neighbourhood in the lower deciles nationally, indicating real pockets of economic pressure. Unemployment claimant rates sit at around 3.8%, broadly in line with the wider Wakefield district.
Practically speaking, the nearest mainline rail station is roughly 1.9 km away — about a 24-minute walk, though most residents drive. Nearly 70% of commuters travel by car, and with a nearest major employment hub reachable in around 51 minutes, this is commuter-belt territory for those working across West Yorkshire. See the streets and sub-areas below for more detail on specific pockets within Wakefield 003.
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Frequently asked
- Is Wakefield 003 a nice place to live?
- It depends what you're after. It's genuinely affordable, settled, and owner-occupied in character — good for families and people who want space without a big rent bill. The deprivation indicators and below-average school ratings are real considerations, though, and you'll need a car for most day-to-day journeys.
- What is the rent in Wakefield 003?
- A one-bed runs roughly £560 a month, a two-bed around £710, and a three-bed about £850. These are estimates scaled from district-level data using local sale prices, but they give a reliable ballpark. Rents rose around 4.9% over the past year.
- Is Wakefield 003 safe?
- The crime rate sits at around 107 incidents per 1,000 residents annually, which is above the UK national rate of roughly 80. It's not exceptional for urban West Yorkshire, but it's worth factoring in. The settled residential streets tend to be calmer than the main arterial routes.
- What's the commute from Wakefield 003 to Wakefield centre?
- Most residents drive — nearly 70% commute by car. The nearest mainline rail station is about 1.9 km away (roughly a 24-minute walk). The nearest major employment hub is around 51 minutes away by car or public transport from here.
- Who lives in Wakefield 003?
- Mostly settled families and older residents — over 40% of the population is aged 50 or above, and there's a strong under-18 presence too. Around 61% own their home, and roughly 30% are in social housing. It's a predominantly UK-born, working-to-middle-income community.
- What schools are near Wakefield 003?
- There are 50 schools within 2 km of typical residents, so choice isn't the issue — quality is. Only around 33% are rated Good or Outstanding by Ofsted, well below the national share of roughly 89%. The nearest Outstanding-rated school is just under 4 km away, so catchment planning is important.
- Is Wakefield 003 good for families?
- It has real appeal for families on a budget — three-bed homes under £850 a month, a deposit achievable in around three years, and green space within easy reach (roughly 65% of residents are within walking distance of greenspace). The school quality picture is the main caveat to weigh up.