Welney’s story
1 listed building, 1 of them Grade II*
Historic England lists them inside Welney’s built-up area.
26% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →
WelneyNorfolk
A village of 263 in Norfolk, East of England.
7 places within 12 milesMap →
Photo: David Howard · CC BY-SA 2.0
Population
263
Census 2021 · King's Lynn and West Norfolk council
Median home
£370K
12 sales in 3 years
Median age
56.7
32% are 65+ · Norfolk 24%
Degree level
26%
of residents 16+ · England 34%
Walk, cycle, bus
5%
of commuters · England 27%
Is Welney a good place to live?
Welney has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures on this page are still real.
What makes Welney stand out
The 3 things Welney does most differently from other towns.
Walk, cycle or public transport
Getting around
5% leave the car
of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport (England’s towns 27%)
Residents 65 and over
Who lives here
32% are 65 or over
Against 18% across England’s towns
Homes built before 1919
History
26% of homes built before 1919
Against 15% in the typical UK town
Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period.
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Welney.
Who lives here
An older town: 32% of people in Welney are 65 or over, more than in Norfolk’s towns or England’s towns
That puts Welney above both Norfolk’s towns (24%) and England’s towns (18%). Under-15s account for 13% of the population. Welney has a median age of 56.7.
56.7median age
WelneyNorfolkEngland
Ages · share of residents
32%
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications22%
Apprenticeship6%
A levels or similar15%
Degree level26%
Women and men · all residents
48% women, 52% men
About 110 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Welney | Norfolk | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 13% | 16% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 6.8% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 18% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 31% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 32% | 24% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 22% | 21% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 6.2% | 6.4% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 15% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 26% | 26% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Norfolk and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Work & commute
Fewer commuters in Welney walk, cycle or take the bus or train than in Norfolk’s towns or England’s towns: 5%
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 30% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
On this, Welney is below both Norfolk’s towns (20%) and England’s towns (27%). 7% of commuters travelled under 5 km to work.
5%walk, cycle or ride
How commuters got to work · March 2021
Driving95%
On foot5%
7%
of commuters travel under 5 km · England 45%
30%
worked mainly from home in March 2021
£44K
mean household income, before tax
3.4%
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
Welney is a town of owners: 83% of households own their home, above Norfolk’s towns and England’s towns
In the comparison, Welney comes above both Norfolk’s towns (64%) and England’s towns (61%). Social housing holds 6% of households.
£370Kmedian sale
Median sale price · Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
Welney£370K
Typical UK town£277K
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £377,500 | 10 |
83%
of households own their home · England 61%
11%
rent privately · England 21%
£941
average private rent a month, King's Lynn and West Norfolk council area
£2,519
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
Violent crime runs high in Welney: 35.5 per 1,000 residents a year, above Norfolk’s towns and England’s towns
For Welney, that is above both Norfolk’s towns (18.9) and England’s towns (22). Police recorded 8 crimes inside Welney’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 2 reports of anti-social behaviour. Violence and sexual offences were 50% of the crimes; the police category includes harassment and stalking.
35.5violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a year
Reports by type · Sep 2025 to Aug 2026
Violence & sexual4
Other theft3
Vehicle crime1
Shoplifting0
Damage & arson0
Public order0
Burglary0
Drugs0
Anti-social2
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.
35.5
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
6.3
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
3.8
anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 (not graded)
8
crimes recorded in the 12 months to August 2026
data.police.uk street-level crime · points inside the ONS built-up-area boundary · OGL
Health
80% of residents say their health is good or very good
80% of Welney’s residents described their health as good or very good in 2021, against 79% across Norfolk’s towns. These answers aren’t adjusted for age, so young towns look healthier; the Health Grade uses age-adjusted measures, including life expectancy and early deaths.
80%good or very good health
General health, self-reported
Good or very good 80%Fair 14%Bad or very bad 5%
| Census 2021 | Welney | Norfolk | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 80% | 79% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 5.3% | 5.6% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 21% | 20% | 17% |
79.4
life expectancy at birth, men (2019–23)
84.6
life expectancy at birth, women
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL
History
Welney keeps more of its old housing than Norfolk or England’s towns: 26% built before 1919
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Welney sits above both Norfolk’s towns (14%) and England’s towns (16%) on this measure. Welney has 1 listed building on Historic England’s list: 0 Grade I, 1 Grade II*.
1listed buildings
Listed buildings by grade · Historic England
Grade I0
Grade II*1
Grade II0
Among them · Grade II*
- Church of St Mary the Virgin Grade II*
0
scheduled monuments
0
registered parks and gardens
26%
of homes built before 1919 · typical UK town 15%
38
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 Welney
12pages on Welney
The big questions
Safety35.5 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026Cost of livingMedian home £370K · rent £941 a monthHousing6 sold in 12 monthsSchoolsHealthLife expectancy 79.4 (men), 84.6 (women)Work & commute51% of working residents work in the townFlood & hazards71.5% of homes at high or medium flood risk
Welney’s neighbours
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
ManeaLittleportUpwell and OutwellSoutheryLittle DownhamMarchDoddington and WimblingtonWelney
How the neighbours grade
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Welney | 263 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Manea | 2,638 | 4 | D− | C− | B− | C− |
| Littleport | 9,170 | 4.9 | C | A | C | C |
| Upwell and Outwell | 3,664 | 5.9 | D− | C | C | C |
| Southery | 1,258 | 6.1 | — | C− | A− | C |
| Little Downham | 1,234 | 6.1 | — | A | A | B+ |
| March | 21,345 | 6.9 | D− | C+ | C− | C− |
| Doddington and Wimblington | 4,279 | 7.2 | D | C− | B− | C |
Southery and Little Downham have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Welney
How many listed buildings are there in Welney?
1 on Historic England’s list, 1 of them Grade II*. That is 1.6 times the typical UK town for its size.
Is Welney expensive to live in?
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £369,500, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. Private rents in the King's Lynn and West Norfolk council area averaged £941 a month in August 2026.
About Welney
Village in Norfolk, England
Welney is a built-up area of 263 people, in the King's Lynn and West Norfolk 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
- 263 (Census 2021)
- Council
- King's Lynn and West Norfolk
- County
- Norfolk
- Region
- East of England
- Area
- 0.1 sq mi (0.2 km²)
- ONS code
- E63002795
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.