Westfield’s story
13 listed buildings, 1 of them Grade I
Historic England lists them inside Westfield’s built-up area.
15% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →
WestfieldEast Sussex
Home to 1,271 people, this village lies in East Sussex, South East.
7 places within 12 milesMap →
Photo: Julian P Guffogg · CC BY-SA 2.0
Population
1,271
Census 2021 · Rother council
Median home
£360K
31 sales in 3 years
Median age
46.3
27% are 65+ · East Sussex 22%
Degree level
25%
of residents 16+ · England 34%
Walk, cycle, bus
10%
of commuters · England 27%
Is Westfield a good place to live?
Schools are its strong suit (A) — primary results beat 84% of towns in England. Its lowest grade is for cost of living — homes sell for a median £360,000, about 7 times local household income. Natural hazards are less of a worry than in most UK towns (A). It lags on jobs & income as well (D) — the mean household earns £54,318 a year. Police record more crime here than in most towns: 40.4 violent or sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, plus 17.8 home and vehicle crimes. Among UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people, it has less crime per resident than 6%.
Figures: prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · flood risk, Environment Agency · income, ONS · claimants, DWP · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026. An overall grade needs 2,500 residents, so Westfield is graded subject by subject only.
How Westfield grades
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Westfield is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
Cost of livingRent £1,165 a monthD−Open →Jobs & income4.2% of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefitsDOpen →SchoolsPrimary results beat 84% of towns in EnglandAOpen →SafetyCrime runs among the highest comparedDOpen →Hazard risk0% of homes at high or medium risk of flooding from rivers or the seaAOpen →WalkabilityWeaker than most of the towns comparedC−Open →HealthLife expectancy 80.6 for men, 85.6 for womenBOpen →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
History15% of homes built before 1919BOpen →Outdoors100% live within 400 m of a park; 83% of land within 5 km is National Park or National LandscapeB+Open →Civic life3.1 local charities per 1,000 residents; 0% live within 1 km of a libraryB−Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
What makes Westfield stand out
The 3 things Westfield 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%)
Listed buildings per 10,000 residents
History
1 Grade I, including The Parish Church of St John the Baptist; 4.2 times the typical UK town for its size
Historic England’s list, October 2026.
Residents 65 and over
Who lives here
27% are 65 or over
Against 18% across England’s towns
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Westfield.
HousingCost of living grade D−
Private renting is less common in Westfield than in East Sussex’s towns or across England’s towns: 10%
£360Kmedian sale
Social housing holds just over a fifth of households. Nearly two thirds of households own their home, above both East Sussex’s towns (62%) and England’s towns (61%). 31 standard sales inside Westfield’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 put the median at £360,000.
Median sale price · Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
Westfield£360K
Typical UK town£277K
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £440,000 | 13 |
| Semi-detached | £337,750 | 10 |
| Terraced | £274,000 | 8 |
66%
of households own their home · England 61%
10%
rent privately · England 21%
£1,165
average private rent a month, Rother council area
£2,749
council tax, Band D, 2026–27
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
SchoolsA
School results in Westfield are better than in 88% of towns in England
ASchool Grade
69% of pupils at the 3 primary schools within 3 km met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). The one school in town appears below. Its one primary school teaches 180 pupils.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Westfield SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 180 | C |
Department for Education · GIAS, Key Stage 2 and GCSE resultsThe Schools page →
Who lives here
An older town: 27% of people in Westfield are 65 or over, more than in East Sussex’s towns or England’s towns
46.3median age
Graduates make up 25% of adults. The 15-to-24 age group: 11%, below East Sussex’s towns (12%) and England’s towns (12%) alike. The under-15s are 18% of the population here. Residents of Westfield have a median age of 46.3.
WestfieldEast SussexEngland
Ages · share of residents
27%
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications22%
Apprenticeship5%
A levels or similar17%
Degree level25%
Women and men · all residents
53% women, 47% men
About 90 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.
| Westfield | East Sussex | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 18% | 15% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 11% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 20% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 24% | 27% | 25% |
| 65+ | 27% | 22% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 22% | 16% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 4.9% | 4.9% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 17% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 25% | 36% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · East Sussex and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Safety
Among the 1,541 UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people, Westfield records more crime per resident than 94% of them
40.4violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a yearDSafety Grade
Police recorded 123 crimes inside Westfield’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 27 reports of anti-social behaviour. Of all the crimes, 52% were violence and sexual offences.
Compared with UK towns its sizeLess crime per resident than 6% of the 1,541 UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people: more crime than most for its size. Context only, not part of the grade.
Reports by type · Sep 2025 to Aug 2026
Violence & sexual64
Damage & arson29
Public order13
Other crime6
Other theft5
Burglary3
Robbery2
Vehicle crime1
Anti-social27
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.
40.4
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
17.8
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
15
anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 (not graded)
123
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.
Work & commuteJobs & income grade D
Fewer commuters in Westfield walk, cycle or take the bus or train than in East Sussex’s towns or England’s towns: 10%
10%walk, cycle or ride
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 26% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Westfield counts 0.4 jobs per working resident. 87% of commuters drove, higher than both East Sussex’s towns (66%) and England’s towns (70%). For 34% of commuters, work was under 5 km away.
How commuters got to work · March 2021
Driving87%
On foot6%
Train2%
Bus1%
Bicycle1%
34%
of commuters travel under 5 km · England 45%
26%
worked mainly from home in March 2021
£54K
mean household income, before tax
4.2%
of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits (2026)
C−
Walkability: more walkable than 23% of UK towns
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Health
Only 77% of people in Westfield say their health is good or very good, fewer than in East Sussex’s towns and England’s towns
77%good or very good healthBHealth Grade
Westfield has no GP practice of its own; the nearest is 2.4 miles away. 22% of residents in Westfield live with a disability. At the census, 6.3% of residents said their health was bad or very bad, higher than both East Sussex’s towns (5.6%) and England’s towns (5.2%).
General health, self-reported
Good or very good 77%Fair 16%Bad or very bad 6%
| Census 2021 | Westfield | East Sussex | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 77% | 81% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 6.3% | 5.6% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 22% | 20% | 17% |
80.6
life expectancy at birth, men (2019–23)
85.6
life expectancy at birth, women
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · The census answers take no account of age, so a young town looks healthier; the Health Grade relies on age-adjusted measures, life expectancy and early deaths among them.
History
More of the land in Westfield is conservation area than in East Sussex’s towns or England’s towns: 100%
13listed buildingsBHistory Grade
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
The top grade, Grade I, goes to 1 of them. Westfield’s listed buildings include The Parish Church of St John the Baptist, Grade I. It counts 13 listed buildings on the national list (Historic England): 1 Grade I. Scaled to its population, that is 102 listed buildings for every 10,000 people in the town.
Listed buildings by grade · Historic England
Grade I1
Grade II*0
Grade II12
Among them · Grade I
0
scheduled monuments
0
registered parks and gardens
15%
of homes built before 1919 · typical UK town 15%
102
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 Westfield
13pages on Westfield
The big questions
SafetyD40.4 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026Cost of livingD−Median home £360K · rent £1,165 a monthHousing8 sold in 12 months · busiest street Cottage LaneSchoolsA1 state schoolHealthBLife expectancy 80.6 (men), 85.6 (women)Work & commuteD50% of working residents work in the townFlood & hazardsA0% of homes at high or medium flood risk
Out and about
About Westfield
Village in East Sussex, England
Westfield is a built-up area of 1,271 people, in the Rother 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
- 1,271 (Census 2021)
- Council
- Rother
- County
- East Sussex
- Region
- South East
- Area
- 0.3 sq mi (0.8 km²)
- ONS code
- E63006345
Westfield’s neighbours
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
HastingsBattleFairlightNorthiamBexhill-on-SeaWinchelsea BeachNinfieldWestfield
How the neighbours grade
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Westfield | 1,271 | — | — | D− | D | B |
| Hastings | 91,497 | 2.8 | D | D− | D | D |
| Battle | 5,326 | 4 | B− | D− | C+ | B+ |
| Fairlight | 1,561 | 4.5 | — | D− | A+ | B+ |
| Northiam | 1,910 | 6.3 | — | D− | A− | B− |
| Bexhill-on-Sea | 43,750 | 6.4 | C− | D− | C | C− |
| Winchelsea Beach | 1,027 | 6.6 | — | D− | C+ | B− |
| Ninfield | 1,296 | 6.8 | — | D | B− | A |
Fairlight, Northiam, Winchelsea Beach and Ninfield have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Westfield
How many listed buildings are there in Westfield?
That is 4.2 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I building is The Parish Church of St John the Baptist.
How much is council tax in Westfield?
Band D council tax in Westfield is £2,749 for 2026–27, more than in 98% 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.
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.