Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
In Gwent, Wales, this town has 5,250 residents.
Safety lags: 56 violent and sexual offences and 27.3 home and vehicle crimes per 1,000 residents a year. Among UK towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people, it has less crime per resident than 3%. With a D− overall, Brynmawr is behind almost every UK town and ranks #33 of 38 in Gwent. It takes 3.8 years of household income in the Blaenau Gwent council area to buy the median home, at £145,000. Floods and other hazards weigh less here (B+). Health lags (D−): 8.9% of residents report bad or very bad health, and 24.3% are disabled. Incomes are on the low side (D−): the mean household earns £37,171 a year.
Figures: flood risk, Natural Resources Wales · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · incomes, ONS · health, Census 2021 (the grade adjusts for age) · claimants, DWP.
This town's Health Grade uses ONS's small-area life expectancy and healthy life expectancy for 2019 to 2023, and two Census 2021 measures, bad health and disability, adjusted for age. English towns' grades also use OHID's small-area early deaths, hospital admissions and child obesity, which OHID publishes for England only.
The 3 things Brynmawr does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within Wales), ordered by how far Brynmawr is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Cadw lists 2 buildings inside Brynmawr’s built-up area, 1 of them Grade II*.
40% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
The archive holds 3 old photos and postcards going back to 1905.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Brynmawr.
The 12 months to August 2026 brought 714 recorded crimes inside Brynmawr’s built-up area, and 207 reports of anti-social behaviour. There were 30 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), above Gwent’s towns (15) and Wales’s towns (10.4) alike. 45% of the crimes fell under violence and sexual offences.
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.
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.
Two of them are below, each with the reason it’s listed. Some 1,281 pupils attend Brynmawr’s three primaries and one secondary.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blaen-Y-Cwm C.P. SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 274 | – |
| Brynmawr Foundation SchoolLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 569 | – |
Asked at the census, nearly three quarters of residents of Brynmawr said they were in good or very good health. Nearly a quarter of residents have a disability, above Gwent’s towns (22%) and Wales’s towns (22%) alike. One GP practice serves the town. The nearest A&E to Brynmawr is Prince Charles Hospital, 9.2 miles away.
| Census 2021 | Brynmawr | Gwent | Wales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 74% | 77% | 78% |
| Bad or very bad health | 8.9% | 7.7% | 7.1% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 24% | 22% | 22% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · ONS, 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 among them.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 13% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
The census found 10% of commuters going to work on foot, by bike or by public transport. 11% of commuters who live in Brynmawr also work there. There are 0.7 jobs in Brynmawr for each resident in work. Short trips to work, under 5 km: 34%, below Gwent’s towns (39%) and Wales’s towns (41%) alike.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Brynmawr counts 2 listed buildings on the national list (Cadw): 1 Grade II*. For its size, Brynmawr has 4 listed buildings per 10,000 residents, lower than both Gwent’s towns (11) and Wales’s towns (18).
Cadw list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
25% of households rent from a council or housing body. Behind the median of £145,000: 162 standard sales inside Brynmawr’s built-up area, September 2023 to August 2026. Private rents average £681 a month across the Blaenau Gwent council area.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £290,000 | 24 |
| Semi-detached | £157,500 | 52 |
| Terraced | £124,000 | 82 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Under-15s account for 16% of the population. 9.7% of residents are 15 to 24, lower than both Gwent’s towns (11%) and Wales’s towns (12%). Ages in Brynmawr split evenly at 44.7: half are older, half younger.
50% women, 50% men
About an even split. Across Wales, 51% of residents are women.
| Brynmawr | Gwent | Wales | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 16% | 18% | 17% |
| 15–24 | 9.7% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 24% | 26% | 25% |
| 45–64 | 29% | 27% | 26% |
| 65+ | 21% | 20% | 21% |
| No qualifications | 27% | 23% | 20% |
| Apprenticeship | 5.5% | 5.4% | 5.6% |
| A levels or similar | 16% | 16% | 17% |
| Degree level | 23% | 28% | 31% |
ONS Census 2021 · Gwent and Wales: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Brynmawr. Best known first.
MuseumBrynmawr and District Museumin townMuseumMuseumEbbw Vale Works Museum2.3 km outside town, to the southwestMuseumMuseumTredegar Museum4.7 km outside town, to the southwestMuseumMuseumTredegar Medical Aid Society Heritage Centre4.8 km outside town, to the southwestMuseumMuseumBig Pit: National Coal Museum4.9 km outside town, to the southeastAttractionAttractionRhymney Brewery & Visitors Centre4.9 km outside town, to the southeastPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
6 notable people were born in Brynmawr.
Marina Diamandis: Daniel Åhs Karlsson, CC BY 3.0 · Adrian Street: Jim from Florida, USA, CC BY 2.0 · Mac Adams: George Quasha, CC BY 3.0
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brynmawr | 5,250 | — | D− | B− | D− | D− |
| Nantyglo | 4,548 | 1 | D− | C+ | D | D− |
| Ebbw Vale | 19,635 | 1.8 | D− | C+ | D− | D |
| Blaina | 4,553 | 2.4 | D− | B− | D | D− |
| Tredegar | 14,534 | 3.3 | D− | B− | D− | D− |
| Cwm | 2,507 | 4 | D− | B | C− | D |
| Gilwern | 2,184 | 4.1 | — | C− | B | B− |
| Blaenavon | 5,637 | 4.5 | D− | B | D− | D |
Gilwern has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
2 on Cadw’s list, 1 of them Grade II*.
Homes cost less than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £145,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: terraced houses £124,000, semi-detached houses £157,500 and detached houses £290,000.
Town in Gwent, Wales
Brynmawr is a built-up area of 5,250 people, in the Blaenau Gwent 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
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) · Cadw listed buildings, scheduled monuments and registered historic parks and gardens via DataMapWales, 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.