Wardle’s story
10 listed buildings
Historic England lists them inside Wardle’s built-up area.
20% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →
WardleGreater Manchester
Some 2,112 people live in this village, in Greater Manchester, North West. 41% of households own their home with no mortgage.
7 places within 12 milesMap →
Photo: David Dixon · CC BY-SA 2.0
Population
2,112
Census 2021 · Rochdale council
Median home
£215K
78 sales in 3 years
Median age
45.2
22% are 65+ · Greater Manchester 16%
Degree level
30%
of residents 16+ · England 34%
Walk, cycle, bus
11%
of commuters · England 27%
Is Wardle a good place to live?
Wardle’s strongest subject is jobs & income (B): mean household income £52,094; 2.2% of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits. Buying in is costly: a typical home costs £215,000 and rent runs £855 a month. Its other grades sit near the middle: B− for schools and B− for health. Natural hazards weigh more here: 3.1% of homes at high or medium risk of flooding from rivers or the sea.
Figures: income and life expectancy, ONS · claimants, DWP · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · flood risk, Environment Agency. Greater Manchester Police doesn’t publish street-level crime to police.uk, so Wardle has no Safety Grade and, without it, no overall grade. Its other subjects still get grades, below.
What makes Wardle stand out
The 3 things Wardle does most differently from other towns.
Walk, cycle or public transport
Getting around
11% leave the car
of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport (England’s towns 27%)
46% of commuters travel under 5 km.
Own outright
Housing
41% own outright
of households own their home with no mortgage (England’s towns 32%)
Residents 65 and over
Who lives here
22% are 65 or over
Against 18% across England’s towns
How Wardle grades
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Wardle is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
Greater Manchester Police doesn’t publish street-level crime to police.uk, so Wardle has no Safety Grade and, without it, no overall grade. Its other subjects still get grades, below.
Cost of livingMedian sale £215,000, 5.1 years of area incomeDOpen →Hazard riskAmong the most exposed to natural hazardsC−Open →WalkabilityBehind most towns comparedCOpen →Jobs & incomeClose to the middle of the towns comparedBOpen →SchoolsPrimary results beat 62% of towns in England; secondary results beat 32% of towns in EnglandB−Open →HealthGraded on how healthy residents areB−Open →
SafetyNo police.uk data–
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
HistoryGraded on historic places and the town’s ageB−Open →Outdoors100% live within 400 m of a park; 1 ha of public green space per 1,000 residentsB−Open →Civic life1.9 local charities per 1,000 residents; 100% live within 1 km of a libraryA−Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Wardle.
HousingCost of living grade D
Most households in Wardle own their home: 78%, more than in Greater Manchester’s towns and across England’s towns
16% rent privately, below Greater Manchester’s towns (21%) and England’s towns (21%) alike. Social housing holds 5% of households. From September 2023 to August 2026, 78 homes sold inside Wardle’s built-up area at standard prices; the middle one went for £215,000.
£215Kmedian sale
Median sale price · Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
Wardle£215K
Typical UK town£277K
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £435,000 | 9 |
| Semi-detached | £235,000 | 27 |
| Terraced | £205,000 | 39 |
78%
of households own their home · England 61%
16%
rent privately · England 21%
£855
average private rent a month, Rochdale council area
£2,601
council tax, Band D, 2026–27
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
SchoolsB−
Results at Wardle’s schools trail 54% of towns in England
Key Stage 2 results at the 19 primary schools within 3 km: 64% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). Its one school is below. GCSE results at the one secondary school within 3 km: 38% of pupils get a strong pass (grade 5+) in English and maths, and the Attainment 8 average is 44.6.
B−School Grade
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| St James' Church of England Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 210 | B |
Department for Education · GIAS, Key Stage 2 and GCSE resultsThe Schools page →
Who lives here
Few people in Wardle are 15 to 24: 8.9%, fewer than in Greater Manchester’s towns and across England’s towns
22% of residents are 65 or over. Children under 15 make up 17%, lower than Greater Manchester’s towns (19%) and near England’s towns (18%). Residents of Wardle have a median age of 45.2. Graduates make up 30% of adults.
45.2median age
WardleGreater ManchesterEngland
Ages · share of residents
22%
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications17%
Apprenticeship9%
A levels or similar19%
Degree level30%
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Wardle | Greater Manchester | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 17% | 19% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 8.9% | 13% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 24% | 28% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 28% | 24% | 25% |
| 65+ | 22% | 16% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 17% | 20% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 8.7% | 5.6% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 19% | 17% | 17% |
| Degree level | 30% | 32% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Greater Manchester and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Work & commuteJobs & income grade B
Walking, cycling and public transport carry fewer commuters in Wardle than in Greater Manchester’s towns or England’s towns: 11%
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 24% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
The car took 86% of commuters, above Greater Manchester’s towns (72%) and England’s towns (70%) alike. Work in town: 2% of resident commuters. There are 0.4 jobs in Wardle for each resident in work.
11%walk, cycle or ride
How commuters got to work · March 2021
Driving86%
On foot6%
Bus3%
Train1%
Bicycle1%
24%
worked mainly from home in March 2021
£52K
mean household income, before tax
2.2%
of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits (2026)
C
Walkability: more walkable than 34% of UK towns
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Health
Bad health is less common in Wardle than in Greater Manchester’s towns or across England’s towns: 4.7% of residents
Life expectancy here is 86.4 for women and 80.6 for men (2019–23). There is no GP practice in Wardle: the nearest is 1.2 miles off. The nearest A&E to Wardle is Fairfield General Hospital, 6.1 miles away.
83%good or very good healthB−Health Grade
General health, self-reported
Good or very good 83%Fair 12%Bad or very bad 5%
| Census 2021 | Wardle | Greater Manchester | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 83% | 81% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 4.7% | 5.9% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 18% | 18% | 17% |
80.6
life expectancy at birth, men (2019–23)
86.4
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
Listed buildings in Wardle: 10
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Conservation areas cover 16% of Wardle’s land, above both Greater Manchester’s towns (3%) and England’s towns (7%). Scaled to its population, that is 47 listed buildings for every 10,000 people locally. Homes from before 1919 make up 20% of the total.
10listed buildingsB−History Grade
Listed buildings by grade · Historic England
Grade I0
Grade II*0
Grade II10
0
scheduled monuments
0
registered parks and gardens
20%
of homes built before 1919 · typical UK town 15%
47
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 Wardle
15pages on Wardle
The big questions
SafetyNo police.uk data for Greater ManchesterCost of livingDMedian home £215K · rent £855 a monthHousing22 sold in 12 months · busiest street Ramsden RoadSchoolsB−1 state schoolHealthB−Life expectancy 80.6 (men), 86.4 (women)Work & commuteB42% of working residents work in the townFlood & hazardsC−3.1% of homes at high or medium flood risk
Out and about
Famous people from Wardle
3 notable people were born in Wardle.
C
Craig WilkinsonEnglish cricketer (born 1963)A
Alan MiddlebroughEnglish footballer (1925-2004)Photo credits
Chris Schofield: Gareth Williams from Redhill, England, CC BY 2.0
Wardle’s neighbours
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
LittleboroughWhitworthSummitRochdaleMilnrowNewheyBacupWardle
How the neighbours grade
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wardle | 2,112 | — | — | D | — | B− |
| Littleborough | 12,164 | 1.3 | — | D | — | C |
| Whitworth | 6,713 | 1.9 | C− | B− | C− | C− |
| Summit | 1,728 | 2 | — | C− | — | C− |
| Rochdale | 111,258 | 2.5 | — | C− | — | D |
| Milnrow | 9,237 | 2.7 | — | D | — | C− |
| Newhey | 2,711 | 3.6 | — | C− | — | C− |
| Bacup | 13,559 | 4.3 | C− | B | D | D |
Summit has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Littleborough, Summit, Rochdale, Milnrow and Newhey have no Safety Grade: Greater Manchester Police doesn’t publish to police.uk. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Wardle
Does Wardle flood?
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
Is Wardle safe?
We can’t say from police.uk: Greater Manchester Police doesn’t publish street-level crime data there, so Wardle has no Safety Grade. Greater Manchester Police’s own figures cover whole boroughs, not towns.
Is Wardle expensive to live in?
Homes cost less than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £215,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: terraced houses £205,000, semi-detached houses £235,000 and detached houses £435,000.
About Wardle
Village in Greater Manchester, England
Wardle is a built-up area of 2,112 people, in the Rochdale 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
- 2,112 (Census 2021)
- Council
- Rochdale
- County
- Greater Manchester
- Region
- North West
- Area
- 0.1 sq mi (0.4 km²)
- ONS code
- E63001018
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.