Swindon’s story
13 listed buildings, 1 of them Grade II*
Historic England lists them inside Swindon’s built-up area.
5% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →
SwindonGloucestershire
Population 517: a village in Gloucestershire, South West.
7 places within 12 milesMap →
Photo: Griffp · CC BY-SA 4.0
Population
517
Census 2021 · Cheltenham council
Median home
£377K
36 sales in 3 years
Median age
56.5
36% are 65+ · Gloucestershire 20%
Degree level
39%
of residents 16+ · England 34%
Walk, cycle, bus
15%
of commuters · England 27%
Is Swindon a good place to live?
Grades need 1,000 residents, so Swindon has none; the figures on this page are still real. 13 listed buildings, 0 of them Grade I. It skews older: 36% of residents are 65 or over. Mortgage-free owners make up 66% of households.
What makes Swindon stand out
The 3 things Swindon does most differently from other towns.
Listed buildings per 10,000 residents
History
1 Grade II*, including Church of St Lawrence; 10.3 times the typical UK town for its size
Historic England’s list, October 2026.
Residents 65 and over
Who lives here
36% are 65 or over
Against 18% across England’s towns
Own outright
Housing
66% 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 Swindon.
Who lives here
Fewer children live in Swindon than in Gloucestershire’s towns or England’s towns: 9.8% are under 15
39% of adults hold a degree. People 65 and over make up 36% of the town, above both Gloucestershire’s towns (20%) and England’s towns (18%). Young adults of 15 to 24 are 7.5% of the population. Line up the people of Swindon by age and the one in the middle is 56.5.
56.5median age
SwindonGloucestershireEngland
Ages · share of residents
36%
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications16%
Apprenticeship7%
A levels or similar13%
Degree level39%
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
About 91 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.
| Swindon | Gloucestershire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 9.8% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 7.5% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 19% | 26% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 28% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 36% | 20% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 16% | 15% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 7.2% | 5.8% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 13% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 39% | 34% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Gloucestershire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Work & commute
Work is close at hand in Swindon: 61% of commuters travel under 5 km, more than in Gloucestershire’s towns and across England’s towns
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 42% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Households take home £51K a year before tax, on average. At the census, 15% went to work on foot, by bike or by public transport, below both Gloucestershire’s towns (20%) and England’s towns (27%). The 2026 claimant rate among 16 to 64s was 2.7%. About 2% of its commuters stay in Swindon for work.
15%walk, cycle or ride
How commuters got to work · March 2021
Driving84%
On foot9%
Bicycle5%
Underground, tram1%
61%
of commuters travel under 5 km · England 45%
42%
worked mainly from home in March 2021
£51K
mean household income, before tax
2.7%
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
Private renting is less common in Swindon than in Gloucestershire’s towns or across England’s towns: 7%
Owners make up 93% of households, above both Gloucestershire’s towns (68%) and England’s towns (61%). Private rents average £1,261 a month across the Cheltenham council area. 36 standard sales inside Swindon’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 put the median at £376,500.
£377Kmedian sale
Median sale price · Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
Swindon£377K
Typical UK town£277K
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £397,500 | 18 |
| Semi-detached | £325,000 | 17 |
93%
of households own their home · England 61%
7%
rent privately · England 21%
£1,261
average private rent a month, Cheltenham council area
£2,375
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
Homes in Swindon see more burglary and damage than in Gloucestershire’s towns or England’s towns: 14.4 per 1,000 a year
Violent crime comes to 13.6 per 1,000 residents a year. Swindon logged 9 reported offences in a year (to August 2026), plus 1 complaints of anti-social conduct. Anti-social behaviour, shown but not graded, came to 12.8 reports per 1,000, above both Gloucestershire’s towns (9.2) and England’s towns (7.8). Violence and sexual offences accounted for a third of recorded crime.
13.6violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a year
Reports by type · Sep 2025 to Aug 2026
Violence & sexual3
Burglary3
Damage & arson1
Public order1
Vehicle crime1
Shoplifting0
Other theft0
Drugs0
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.
13.6
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
14.4
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
12.8
anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 (not graded)
9
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
82% of residents say their health is good or very good
Seeing a GP means leaving Swindon: the nearest practice is 1.3 miles away. At the census, 18% of people here had a disability, above Gloucestershire’s towns (17%) and close to England’s towns (17%). The nearest A&E to Swindon is Cheltenham General Hospital, 2.4 miles away.
82%good or very good health
General health, self-reported
Good or very good 82%Fair 13%Bad or very bad 5%
| Census 2021 | Swindon | Gloucestershire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 82% | 83% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 4.7% | 4.5% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 18% | 17% | 17% |
80.8
life expectancy at birth, men (2019–23)
83.4
life expectancy at birth, women
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Read these answers with age in mind: they aren’t adjusted, so younger places do better. The Health Grade uses age-adjusted measures, life expectancy and early deaths among them.
History
Swindon is rich in listed buildings: 251 per 10,000 residents, more than in Gloucestershire’s towns and across England’s towns
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Grade II* covers 1 of them. 5% of its homes were built before 1919, lower than both Gloucestershire’s towns (19%) and England’s towns (16%).
13listed buildings
Listed buildings by grade · Historic England
Grade I0
Grade II*1
Grade II12
Among them · Grade II*
- Church of St Lawrence Grade II*
0
scheduled monuments
0
registered parks and gardens
5%
of homes built before 1919 · typical UK town 15%
251
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 →The Wilson and 3 more in and around Swindon
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Swindon. Best known first.
MuseumThe Wilson2.5 km outside town, to the southeastMuseumMuseumBritish Steeplechasing Hall of Fame1.4 km outside town, to the eastMuseumMuseumHolst Victorian House2.5 km outside town, to the southeastAttractionAttractionPittville Gates2.5 km outside town, to the southeastPlaces: © OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata
Photos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (1)
- The Wilson: Elliott Brown from Birmingham, United Kingdom, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Swindon
13pages on Swindon
The big questions
Safety13.6 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026Cost of livingMedian home £377K · rent £1,261 a monthHousing5 sold in 12 months · busiest street Furlong CloseSchoolsHealthLife expectancy 80.8 (men), 83.4 (women)Work & commute54% of working residents work in the townFlood & hazards0% of homes at high or medium flood risk
Swindon’s neighbours
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
CheltenhamBishop's CleevePrestburyGotheringtonShurdingtonChurchdownTewkesburySwindon
How the neighbours grade
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Swindon | 517 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Cheltenham | 115,941 | 1.9 | B− | C | C− | B− |
| Bishop's Cleeve | 16,323 | 2.4 | A | B+ | B | A− |
| Prestbury | 4,078 | 2.5 | A | D | A | A+ |
| Gotherington | 1,131 | 3.3 | — | C+ | A | A |
| Shurdington | 1,888 | 4.1 | — | B | B+ | B− |
| Churchdown | 13,480 | 4.6 | A− | B+ | B− | B+ |
| Tewkesbury | 14,387 | 4.9 | B− | A | C | C+ |
Gotherington and Shurdington have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Swindon
How many listed buildings are there in Swindon?
That is 10.3 times the typical UK town for its size.
Is Swindon expensive to live in?
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £376,500, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: semi-detached houses £325,000 and detached houses £397,500.
About Swindon
Village in Gloucestershire, England
Swindon is a built-up area of 517 people, in the Cheltenham 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
- 517 (Census 2021)
- Council
- Cheltenham
- County
- Gloucestershire
- Region
- South West
- Area
- 0.1 sq mi (0.3 km²)
- ONS code
- E63004112
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.