Wakefield Central
Wakefield 017 · 5 sub-areas · 10,165 residents
Wakefield 017 is a mixed residential area within Wakefield, home to around 10,200 people. A typical two-bedroom home lets for about £709 a month — well under half the UK national average for a two-bed, and one of the more affordable pockets in the Yorkshire and The Humber region. Nearly a quarter of residents rent from social landlords, giving the area a notably different tenure profile from the city as a whole.
Wakefield Central is a commuter neighbourhood within Wakefield — train into Leeds runs in around 25 minutes, and the rhythm of weekday mornings is shaped by it. The rental market is active and turnover is high — people move through rather than stay.
Overview
What's it like to live in Wakefield Central?
4 parks and 3 playgrounds are within five minutes' walk, so greenspace is reliably close at hand; food and drink within walking distance is workable but not dense — around 37 restaurants and 17 pubs in five minutes; 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; Public transport is genuinely strong; most errands and a fair share of social life don't need a car; 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.
Wakefield Central in Wakefield
Living in Wakefield Central
This part of Wakefield sits at the affordable end of the city's rental market. Two-bedroom homes run around £709 a month, and even a three-bedroom property averages under £850 — figures that look striking against the UK national median of around £1,200 for a two-bed. That affordability draws a wide mix of residents: young professionals, families, and longer-term social tenants who've settled here over decades.
The cost picture is genuinely accessible. With a median house price of around £136,000, the deposit gap is relatively small — a typical buyer here saves up in about 2.3 years, which is fast by any UK standard. Rents rose around 4.9% in the last year, so the direction of travel is upward, but the baseline remains low enough that it stays competitive against most northern cities.
Around 28% of residents are aged 18–34, slightly above what you'd expect in a predominantly family suburb, reflecting a mix of young renters and students in the private rented sector. Nearly 40% of households are single-person, which is fairly high and points to a neighbourhood of solo renters and older residents living independently. Owner-occupation sits at just under 40%, lower than the UK norm, while social renting at 23% is notably above average.
The nearest mainline rail station is roughly 1 km away — about a 13-minute walk — making it realistic to commute without a car. Public transport use is modest at around 12.5% of residents, while nearly half drive to work. About one in five works from home, which is consistent with a post-pandemic shift across mid-sized northern cities. See the streets and sub-areas below for more detail on how the neighbourhood breaks down.
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Frequently asked
- Is Wakefield 017 a nice place to live?
- It depends on your priorities. Rents are genuinely low — a two-bed averages around £709 a month — and the deposit-to-buy timeline is short at about 2.3 years. The trade-off is a crime rate that's above average and a lower share of Good or Outstanding schools nearby. It suits budget-conscious renters more than families prioritising school catchments.
- What is the rent in Wakefield 017?
- A one-bedroom property runs around £563 a month, a two-bed around £709, and a three-bed around £848. These are estimates scaled from city-level data using local sale prices. Rents rose about 4.9% in the last year, so they're edging up, but this remains well below the UK national median of around £1,200 for a two-bed.
- Is Wakefield 017 safe?
- The recorded crime rate is around 413 per 1,000 residents a year, which is substantially above the UK national rate. That's a meaningful consideration, though local crime figures at neighbourhood level can be inflated by non-residential activity like retail and nightlife. It's worth checking the specific offence breakdown on the Police UK data tool before deciding.
- What's the commute from Wakefield 017 to a major city?
- The nearest mainline rail station is roughly 1 km away — about a 13-minute walk. Manchester is around 61 minutes by rail, Birmingham around 110 minutes, and London around two hours. About half of residents drive to work rather than using public transport, so car access matters here.
- Who lives in Wakefield 017?
- A mixed community of younger renters, families, and longer-settled social tenants. Around 28% are aged 18–34, nearly 40% live alone, and social renting accounts for about 23% of households — above the regional norm. Owner-occupation is relatively low at under 40%, making it a predominantly renting neighbourhood.
- What schools are near Wakefield 017?
- There are 61 schools within 2 km, but only around 27% are rated Good or Outstanding by Ofsted — well below the national share of roughly 89%. The nearest Outstanding-rated school is about 2.2 km away. Families should check individual school ratings on the Ofsted website rather than relying on proximity alone.
- Is Wakefield 017 good for first-time buyers?
- The numbers are encouraging. The median house price is around £136,000 and a typical buyer saves a deposit in about 2.3 years — considerably faster than in most parts of England. The low entry price makes it one of the more realistic paths to ownership in Yorkshire, particularly for buyers with modest incomes.