Widemouth Bay’s story
No listed buildings inside Widemouth Bay’s built-up area
27% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →
Widemouth BayCornwall
A village of 330 in Cornwall, South West.
3 places within 12 milesMap →
Photo: Des Blenkinsopp · CC BY-SA 2.0
Population
330
Census 2021 · Cornwall council
Median home
£507K
24 sales in 3 years
Median age
54.9
33% are 65+ · Cornwall 24%
Degree level
40%
of residents 16+ · England 34%
Walk, cycle, bus
14%
of commuters · England 27%
Is Widemouth Bay a good place to live?
Widemouth Bay has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures on this page are still real.
What makes Widemouth Bay stand out
The 3 things Widemouth Bay does most differently from other towns.
Walk, cycle or public transport
Getting around
14% leave the car
of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport (England’s towns 27%)
Residents 65 and over
Who lives here
33% are 65 or over
Against 18% across England’s towns
Median sale, £ thousands
Housing
1.8 times the typical UK town’s £277K
Standard sales, September 2023 to August 2026.
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Widemouth Bay.
Who lives here
Widemouth Bay skews older, with 33% of residents 65 or over, more than Cornwall’s towns or England’s towns
Aged 15 to 24: 5.5% of residents. Children under 15 make up 12%, below Cornwall’s towns (16%) and England’s towns (18%) alike. Widemouth Bay has a median age of 54.9 years. Two in five adults hold a degree.
54.9median age
Widemouth BayCornwallEngland
Ages · share of residents
33%
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications15%
Apprenticeship8%
A levels or similar12%
Degree level40%
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Widemouth Bay | Cornwall | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 12% | 16% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 5.5% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 19% | 22% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 30% | 27% | 25% |
| 65+ | 33% | 24% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 15% | 17% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 7.6% | 6.7% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 12% | 19% | 17% |
| Degree level | 40% | 30% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Cornwall and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Work & commute
Walking, cycling and public transport carry fewer commuters in Widemouth Bay than in Cornwall’s towns or England’s towns: 14%
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 30% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Just over four in five commuters took the car to work at the census. Short trips to work, under 5 km: 37%, below Cornwall’s towns (42%) and England’s towns (45%) alike. Households take home £45K a year before tax, on average.
14%walk, cycle or ride
How commuters got to work · March 2021
Driving82%
On foot12%
Bus2%
37%
of commuters travel under 5 km · England 45%
30%
worked mainly from home in March 2021
£45K
mean household income, before tax
2.3%
of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits (2026)
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Housing
Homes in Widemouth Bay cost more than in Cornwall’s towns or across England’s towns, with a median sale of £507K
Owners make up 85% of households, higher than both Cornwall’s towns (64%) and England’s towns (61%). Social housing holds 1% of households. Private tenants account for 14% of households.
£507Kmedian sale
Median sale price · Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
Widemouth Bay£507K
Typical UK town£277K
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £575,000 | 19 |
| Terraced | £85,000 | 5 |
85%
of households own their home · England 61%
14%
rent privately · England 21%
£1,000
average private rent a month, Cornwall council area
£2,473
council tax, Band D, 2026–27
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Safety
Widemouth Bay records less violent crime per resident than Cornwall’s towns or England’s towns, at 6.6 per 1,000 a year
A fifth of the crimes fell under violence and sexual offences. Burglary and damage came to 5.5 per 1,000 residents a year, below both Cornwall’s towns (7.6) and England’s towns (9.4). Police recorded 5 crimes inside Widemouth Bay’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 1 reports of anti-social behaviour.
6.6violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a year
Reports by type · Sep 2025 to Aug 2026
Damage & arson2
Burglary2
Violence & sexual1
Shoplifting0
Public order0
Other theft0
Drugs0
Vehicle crime0
Anti-social1
Not gradedAnti-social behaviour, shoplifting and other theft are shown but left out of the Safety Grade, which counts violence and crimes against homes and vehicles per resident.
6.6
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
5.5
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
2.2
anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 (not graded)
5
crimes recorded in the 12 months to August 2026
data.police.uk street-level crime · points inside the ONS built-up-area boundary · OGL · The police category of violence and sexual offences includes harassment and stalking.
Health
Widemouth Bay is 30.2 miles from the nearest A&E
Poor health, by residents’ own account, affects 6.7% of the town. Widemouth Bay has no GP practice of its own; the nearest is 2.7 miles away. At the census, just over a fifth of people here had a disability, close to Cornwall’s towns (22%) and above England’s towns (17%).
80%good or very good health
General health, self-reported
Good or very good 80%Fair 13%Bad or very bad 7%
| Census 2021 | Widemouth Bay | Cornwall | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 80% | 79% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 6.7% | 6.4% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 22% | 22% | 17% |
83
life expectancy at birth, men (2019–23)
84
life expectancy at birth, women
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Because the census answers ignore age, a younger population lifts them; that is why the Health Grade is built on age-adjusted measures like life expectancy and early deaths.
History
Widemouth Bay keeps more of its old housing than Cornwall’s towns or England’s towns: 27% built before 1919
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Historic England’s list has no building inside Widemouth Bay’s built-up area.
0listed buildings
Listed buildings by grade · Historic England
Grade I0
Grade II*0
Grade II0
0
scheduled monuments
0
registered parks and gardens
27%
of homes built before 1919 · typical UK town 15%
0
listed buildings per 10,000 residents · typical UK town 24
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Nearby attractions
All attractions →MONSTER SLIP AND SLIDE BUDE, CORNWALL and 4 more in and around Widemouth Bay
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Widemouth Bay. Best known first.
Water parkWater parkMONSTER SLIP AND SLIDE BUDE, CORNWALL1.6 km outside town, to the east
MuseumThe Castle Heritage Centre3.9 km outside town, to the northAttractionAttractionThe Venue4 km outside town, to the northAttractionAttractionBude Tunnel4.2 km outside town, to the northMuseumMuseumCanal Barge Workshop1.8 km outside town, to the northeast
MuseumThe Castle Heritage Centre3.9 km outside town, to the northAttractionAttractionThe Venue4 km outside town, to the northAttractionAttractionBude Tunnel4.2 km outside town, to the northMuseumMuseumCanal Barge Workshop1.8 km outside town, to the northeastPlaces: © OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata
Photos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (1)
- The Castle Heritage Centre: Richard Law, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Widemouth Bay
13pages on Widemouth Bay
The big questions
Safety6.6 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026Cost of livingMedian home £507K · rent £1,000 a monthHousing7 sold in 12 months · busiest street Madeira DriveSchoolsHealthLife expectancy 83 (men), 84 (women)Work & commute47% of working residents work in the townFlood & hazards0.5% of homes at high or medium flood risk
Widemouth Bay’s neighbours
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
BudeStrattonHolsworthyWidemouth Bay
How the neighbours grade
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Widemouth Bay | 330 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Bude | 7,347 | 2.6 | D− | D− | C− | C+ |
| Stratton | 1,928 | 3 | — | D− | B− | C+ |
| Holsworthy | 3,472 | 8.8 | D | D | C+ | C+ |
Stratton has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Widemouth Bay
Is Widemouth Bay expensive to live in?
By type: terraced houses £85,000 and detached houses £575,000. Private rents in the Cornwall council area averaged £1,000 a month in August 2026.
How much is council tax in Widemouth Bay?
Band D council tax in Widemouth Bay is £2,473 for 2026–27, more than in 58% of UK towns (council, county, police and fire, plus the parish or town council). Your own bill depends on your home’s band; check it on GOV.UK.
About Widemouth Bay
Village in Cornwall, England
Widemouth Bay is a built-up area of 330 people, in the Cornwall council area. TownRatings uses ONS’s 2022 built-up areas as towns: the physical town, as people mean the word, rather than a council district, so its figures cover the town itself.
Built from ONS geography and Census 2021
- Population
- 330 (Census 2021)
- Council
- Cornwall
- County
- Cornwall
- Region
- South West
- Area
- 0.1 sq mi (0.2 km²)
- ONS code
- E63006592
Sources: ONS Census 2021, output areas summed to the ONS 2022 built-up area · HM Land Registry Price Paid (standard sales, September 2023 to August 2026) · ONS Price Index of Private Rents (August 2026, by council) · MHCLG and Welsh Government council tax, Band D 2026–27 (with parish precepts in England) · data.police.uk street-level crime, 36 months to August 2026, points inside the built-up-area boundary · ONS small-area life expectancy and healthy life expectancy, 2019 to 2023 (England and Wales), OHID Fingertips small-area indicators (England) and Census 2021 health, adjusted for age · ONS small-area income estimates (financial year ending 2023) · DWP claimant count via Nomis (January to August 2026) · Historic England, National Heritage List for England (listed buildings, scheduled monuments, registered parks and gardens, battlefields, World Heritage Sites), October 2026, inside the ONS 2022 built-up-area boundary · Valuation Office Agency, Council Tax: stock of properties by build period (31 March 2025) · TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranked against UK towns only. All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.