Wattstown’s story
1 listed building
Cadw lists them inside Wattstown’s built-up area.
65% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →
WattstownMid Glamorgan
Population 1,105: a village in Mid Glamorgan, Wales.
7 places within 12 milesMap →
Photo: John Lord · CC BY-SA 2.0
Population
1,105
Census 2021 · Rhondda Cynon Taf council
Median home
£91K
34 sales in 3 years
Median age
38.9
17% are 65+ · Mid Glamorgan 20%
Degree level
16%
of residents 16+ · Wales 31%
Walk, cycle, bus
12%
of commuters · Wales 16%
Is Wattstown a good place to live?
Wattstown’s best grade is for cost of living: homes sell for a median £91,000, about 2.1 times local household income. Health is its weak spot (D−): 10.4% of residents report bad or very bad health, and 25.4% are disabled. It lags on jobs & income as well (D−) — households earn a mean £39,821 a year, and 3.6% of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits. Safety is weaker too: police record 54.3 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, and 13.3 home and vehicle crimes. Only 4% of UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people have more crime per resident.
Figures: prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · health, Census 2021 (the grade adjusts for age) · income, ONS · claimants, DWP · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026. Wattstown has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
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.
What makes Wattstown stand out
The 3 things Wattstown does most differently from other towns.
Homes built before 1919
History
Against 15% in the typical UK town
Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period.
Median sale, £ thousands
Housing
67% below the typical UK town’s £277K
Standard sales, September 2023 to August 2026.
Degree level, 16+
Education
Degree-level qualifications, residents 16+ (Wales’s towns 31%)
Mid Glamorgan 28%.
How Wattstown grades
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within Wales), ordered by how far Wattstown is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
Jobs & incomeAmong the weakest of the towns comparedD−Open →HealthBased on how healthy residents are for their agesD−Open →SafetyCrime runs among the highest comparedDOpen →Cost of livingBetter than most of the towns comparedB+Open →Hazard risk1.1% of homes at high or medium risk of flooding from rivers or the seaCOpen →WalkabilityBased on walking, cycling and transit to everyday placesC+Open →
SchoolsNot published in Wales–
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
History1 listed buildingC+Open →Outdoors26% live within 400 m of a park; 3.1 ha of public green space per 1,000 residentsDOpen →Civic life0 local charities per 1,000 residents; 0% live within 1 km of a libraryD−Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Wattstown.
Who lives here
Fewer people in Wattstown hold a degree than in Mid Glamorgan’s towns or Wales’s towns: 16%
17% of residents are 65 or over, below both Mid Glamorgan’s towns (20%) and Wales’s towns (21%). Young adults of 15 to 24 are 14% of the population. Half of Wattstown is older than 38.9, half younger. Children under 15 count for 19% of the people here.
38.9median age
WattstownMid GlamorganWales
Ages · share of residents
14%
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications34%
Apprenticeship7%
A levels or similar13%
Degree level16%
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
About an even split. Across Wales, 51% of residents are women.
| Wattstown | Mid Glamorgan | Wales | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 19% | 17% | 17% |
| 15–24 | 14% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 25% | 25% | 25% |
| 45–64 | 26% | 27% | 26% |
| 65+ | 17% | 20% | 21% |
| No qualifications | 34% | 24% | 20% |
| Apprenticeship | 6.6% | 5.3% | 5.6% |
| A levels or similar | 13% | 16% | 17% |
| Degree level | 16% | 28% | 31% |
ONS Census 2021 · Mid Glamorgan and Wales: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Health
Only 70% of people in Wattstown say their health is good or very good, fewer than in Mid Glamorgan’s towns and across Wales’s towns
A disability affects 25% of people in Wattstown. At the census, 10% of residents said their health was bad or very bad, higher than both Mid Glamorgan’s towns (8.2%) and Wales’s towns (7.1%). Life expectancy here is 80.8 for women and 75.5 for men (2019–23). Also worth knowing: this Mid Glamorgan town has no GP practice of its own; the nearest is 0.7 miles away.
70%good or very good healthD−Health Grade
General health, self-reported
Good or very good 70%Fair 19%Bad or very bad 10%
| Census 2021 | Wattstown | Mid Glamorgan | Wales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 70% | 77% | 78% |
| Bad or very bad health | 10% | 8.2% | 7.1% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 25% | 23% | 22% |
75.5
life expectancy at birth, men (2019–23)
80.8
life expectancy at birth, women
Welsh towns’ Health Grades use 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’ also use OHID’s small-area early deaths, hospital admissions and child obesity, which OHID publishes for England only.
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · ONS, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Because the census answers ignore age, a younger population lifts them; that is why the Health Grade is built on age-adjusted measures like life expectancy.
Safety
Wattstown has more crime per resident than 96% of the 1,541 UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people
Violence and sexual offences made up 58% of the total. Wattstown logged 119 reported offences in a year (to August 2026), plus 11 complaints of anti-social conduct. There were 15.7 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), higher than both Mid Glamorgan’s towns (9.3) and Wales’s towns (10.4).
54.3violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a yearDSafety Grade
Compared with UK towns its sizeLess crime per resident than 4% 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 & sexual69
Public order13
Vehicle crime11
Damage & arson7
Drugs7
Other crime6
Other theft4
Weapons2
Anti-social11
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.
54.3
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
13.3
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
15.7
anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 (not graded)
119
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.
HousingCost of living grade B+
Wattstown is a renters’ town: 25% of households rent privately, more than in Mid Glamorgan’s towns and across Wales’s towns
55% of households own their home, below Mid Glamorgan’s towns (68%) and Wales’s towns (65%) alike. Private rents average £754 a month across the Rhondda Cynon Taf council area. 34 standard sales inside Wattstown’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 put the median at £91,000.
£91Kmedian sale
Median sale price · Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
Wattstown£91K
Typical UK town£277K
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Terraced | £91,000 | 34 |
55%
of households own their home · Wales 65%
25%
rent privately · Wales 17%
£754
average private rent a month, Rhondda Cynon Taf council area
£2,289
council tax, Band D, 2026–27
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
History
Old homes shape Wattstown: 65% were built before 1919, more than in Mid Glamorgan’s towns and across Wales’s towns
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Wattstown has 1 listed building on Cadw’s list, all Grade II. Scaled to its population, Wattstown has 9 listed buildings per 10,000 people, above Mid Glamorgan’s towns (8) but below Wales’s towns (18).
1listed buildingsC+History Grade
Listed buildings by grade · Cadw
Grade I0
Grade II*0
Grade II1
0
scheduled monuments
0
registered parks and gardens
65%
of homes built before 1919 · typical UK town 15%
9
listed buildings per 10,000 residents · typical UK town 24
Cadw list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Work & commuteJobs & income grade D−
Under 5 km to work: 22% in Wattstown, fewer than in Mid Glamorgan’s towns and across Wales’s towns
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 12% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Just over one in ten workers worked mainly from home, below both Mid Glamorgan’s towns (21%) and Wales’s towns (24%). The 2026 claimant rate among 16 to 64s was 3.6%. About 1% of its commuters stay in Wattstown for work. There are 0.2 jobs in Wattstown for each resident in work.
12%walk, cycle or ride
How commuters got to work · March 2021
Driving86%
On foot5%
Bus4%
Train3%
22%
of commuters travel under 5 km · Wales 41%
12%
worked mainly from home in March 2021
£40K
mean household income, before tax
3.6%
of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits (2026)
C+
Walkability: more walkable than 40% of UK towns
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Wattstown
15pages on Wattstown
The big questions
SafetyD54.3 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026Cost of livingB+Median home £91K · rent £754 a monthHousing10 sold in 12 months · busiest street Pleasant ViewSchoolsHealthD−Work & commuteD−29% of working residents work in the townFlood & hazardsC1.1% of homes at high or medium flood risk
Out and about
Wattstown’s neighbours
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
Tylorstown and PontygwaithPorthTonypandyFerndaleRhonddaYnysybwlMountain AshWattstown
How the neighbours grade
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wattstown | 1,105 | — | — | B+ | D | D− |
| Tylorstown and Pontygwaith | 3,551 | 0.8 | D | A− | D | D− |
| Porth | 13,352 | 1.7 | D | B+ | D | D− |
| Tonypandy | 17,209 | 1.9 | C− | B+ | C− | D− |
| Ferndale | 4,301 | 2.2 | C | B+ | C | D− |
| Rhondda | 13,271 | 2.5 | D | B+ | C− | D− |
| Ynysybwl | 4,580 | 2.7 | C− | B+ | C+ | D |
| Mountain Ash | 13,002 | 3.5 | D | B+ | D | D− |
People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Wattstown
Is Wattstown expensive to live in?
Homes cost less than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £91,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town.
Is Wattstown safe?
Burglary was rare, with 0 reports in the year.
How many listed buildings are there in Wattstown?
1 on Cadw’s list.
About Wattstown
Village in Mid Glamorgan, Wales
Wattstown is a built-up area of 1,105 people, in the Rhondda Cynon Taf 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
- 1,105 (Census 2021)
- Council
- Rhondda Cynon Taf
- County
- Mid Glamorgan
- Region
- Wales
- Area
- 0.1 sq mi (0.2 km²)
- ONS code
- W45000509
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.