Winscales’s story
1 listed building
Historic England lists them inside Winscales’ built-up area.
9% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →
WinscalesCumbria
It is a village of 216 residents in Cumbria, North West.
7 places within 12 milesMap →
Photo: Alexander P Kapp · CC BY-SA 2.0
Population
216
Census 2021 · Allerdale council
Median age
59.6
41% are 65+ · Cumbria 23%
Degree level
22%
of residents 16+ · England 34%
Walk, cycle, bus
10%
of commuters · England 27%
Is Winscales a good place to live?
Grades need 1,000 residents, so Winscales has none; the figures on this page are still real. On the way to work, 10% walk, cycle or take a bus or train. It skews older: 41% of residents are 65 or over. 60% of households own their home outright.
What makes Winscales stand out
The 3 things Winscales does most differently from other towns.
Walk, cycle or public transport
Getting around
10% leave the car
of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport (England’s towns 27%)
Residents 65 and over
Who lives here
41% are 65 or over
Against 18% across England’s towns
Own outright
Housing
60% own outright
of households own their home with no mortgage (England’s towns 32%)
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Winscales.
Who lives here
Winscales has fewer young adults than Cumbria’s towns or England’s towns: 5.1% are 15 to 24
People 65 and over make up 41% of the town, above both Cumbria’s towns (23%) and England’s towns (18%). Under-15s account for 9.7% of the population. At 59.6, the median resident of Winscales sits in the middle of the age range. Among adults, 22% have a degree.
59.6median age
WinscalesCumbriaEngland
Ages · share of residents
41%
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications33%
Apprenticeship6%
A levels or similar11%
Degree level22%
Women and men · all residents
53% women, 47% men
About 87 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
| Winscales | Cumbria | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 9.7% | 15% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 5.1% | 9.9% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 15% | 23% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 29% | 28% | 25% |
| 65+ | 41% | 23% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 33% | 19% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 6.2% | 8% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 11% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 22% | 28% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Cumbria and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Work & commute
Winscales is a driving town: 90% of commuters go by car, above Cumbria’s towns and England’s towns
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 38% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
0.4% of 16 to 64s claimed unemployment benefits in 2026, below Cumbria’s towns (1.6%) and England’s towns (2.3%) alike. For 41% of commuters, work was under 5 km away. At the census, 38% of workers worked mainly from home.
10%walk, cycle or ride
How commuters got to work · March 2021
Driving90%
On foot10%
41%
of commuters travel under 5 km · England 45%
38%
worked mainly from home in March 2021
£47K
mean household income, before tax
0.4%
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
More households own their home in Winscales than in Cumbria’s towns or across England’s towns: 89%
1% live in social housing, below both Cumbria’s towns (16%) and England’s towns (18%). Renting privately is how 10% of households live. Private rents average £681 a month across the Cumberland council area.
£0Kmedian sale
Median sale price · Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
Winscales£0K
Typical UK town£277K
89%
of households own their home · England 61%
10%
rent privately · England 21%
£681
average private rent a month, Cumberland council area
£2,570
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
Violence is recorded more often in Winscales than in Cumbria’s towns or across England’s towns: 100.3 per 1,000 residents a year
Violence and sexual offences made up 39% of the total. Homes saw 20.1 burglaries and acts of damage per 1,000 residents a year, higher than both Cumbria’s towns (8.5) and England’s towns (9.4). Over the year to August 2026, 44 offences were reported in Winscales.
100.3violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a year
Reports by type · Sep 2025 to Aug 2026
Violence & sexual17
Other theft6
Damage & arson4
Public order4
Drugs4
Shoplifting3
Vehicle crime3
Other crime3
Anti-social0
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.
100.3
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
20.1
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
9.3
anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 (not graded)
44
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
More people in Winscales live with a disability than in Cumbria’s towns or across England’s towns: 29%
Poor health, by residents’ own account, affects 4.6% of the town. Just over two thirds of Winscales’ residents described their health as good or very good at the census, below both Cumbria’s towns (79%) and England’s towns (82%). There is no GP practice locally: the nearest is 1.7 miles off.
68%good or very good health
General health, self-reported
Good or very good 68%Fair 27%Bad or very bad 5%
| Census 2021 | Winscales | Cumbria | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 68% | 79% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 4.6% | 6.1% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 29% | 20% | 17% |
78.7
life expectancy at birth, men (2019–23)
80.7
life expectancy at birth, women
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · These answers aren’t adjusted for age, so young towns look healthier; the Health Grade uses age-adjusted measures, including life expectancy and early deaths.
History
Winscales’s one listed building is Grade II
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Scaled to its population, Winscales has 46 listed buildings per 10,000 people, about level with Cumbria’s towns (46) and above England’s towns (39).
1listed buildings
Listed buildings by grade · Historic England
Grade I0
Grade II*0
Grade II1
0
scheduled monuments
0
registered parks and gardens
9%
of homes built before 1919 · typical UK town 15%
46
listed buildings per 10,000 residents · typical UK town 24
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Winscales
11pages on Winscales
The big questions
Winscales’s neighbours
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
High HarringtonWorkingtonDistingtonStainburnSeatonMoresby ParksGreat Broughton and Little BroughtonWinscales
How the neighbours grade
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winscales | 216 | — | — | — | — | — |
| High Harrington | 1,574 | 1 | — | D− | A+ | C+ |
| Workington | 21,276 | 1.7 | D− | B− | D− | D |
| Distington | 1,375 | 1.7 | — | B | C+ | D |
| Stainburn | 2,120 | 1.8 | — | D− | A | C+ |
| Seaton | 5,051 | 3 | C− | C− | A− | C |
| Moresby Parks | 1,180 | 4.1 | — | B | A+ | C− |
| Great Broughton and Little Broughton | 1,763 | 5 | — | C− | A | B |
High Harrington, Distington, Stainburn, Moresby Parks and Great Broughton and Little Broughton have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Winscales
How much is council tax in Winscales?
Band D council tax in Winscales is £2,570 for 2026–27, more than in 81% 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.
How many listed buildings are there in Winscales?
1 on Historic England’s list. That is 1.9 times the typical UK town for its size.
About Winscales
Village in Cumbria, England
Winscales is a built-up area of 216 people, in the Allerdale 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
- 216 (Census 2021)
- Council
- Allerdale
- County
- Cumbria
- Region
- North West
- Area
- 0.6 sq mi (1.7 km²)
- ONS code
- E63000285
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.