Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
13,815 people call this town in Somerset, South West home. It skews older: 24% of residents are 65 or over.
More weak spots than strong ones. Overall, Wellington earns a D, better than 15% of UK towns. That places it #38 of 49 in Somerset. Its weakest subject is schools — primary results beat 14% of towns in England; secondary results beat 24% of towns in England. The median home sold for £260,000, 5.2 times what households in the Somerset West and Taunton council area earn in a year. Walkability is its strong suit — nearly a quarter of commuters get to work on foot, by bike or by public transport.
Figures: commuting, Census 2021 · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · incomes, ONS.
ONS publishes one rent for all of Somerset, so this town's Cost Grade uses house prices and council tax only.
The 3 things Wellington does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Wellington is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 111 buildings inside Wellington’s built-up area, 1 of them Grade I.
18% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Wellington.
53% of pupils at the town’s 3 primary schools met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). Below are two of its 5 schools, each with why it was picked. Wellington’s four primaries and one secondary have 1,873 pupils between them.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Isambard Kingdom Brunel Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 278 | – |
| Court Fields SchoolLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 861 | C |
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 21% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Working mainly from home: 21% of workers, below Somerset’s towns (29%) and England’s towns (31%) alike. 2.7% of people aged 16 to 64 were on unemployment benefits in 2026. By car: that was how three quarters of commuters travelled at the census.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Degrees are held by 29% of adults. Wellington has a median age of 45 years. Over-65s are nearly a quarter of the population.
52% women, 48% men
About 94 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.
| Wellington | Somerset | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 17% | 16% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 9.9% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 24% | 23% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 26% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 24% | 23% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 18% | 16% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 6.4% | 6.1% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 18% | 19% | 17% |
| Degree level | 29% | 32% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Somerset and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
At the top of the list, 1 are Grade I and 4 Grade II*. Wellington’s listed buildings include the Church of St John the Baptist, Grade I. It has 2 registered historic parks and gardens.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Violence and sexual offences were 62% of the crimes. 952 crimes and 186 reports of anti-social behaviour: that is what police recorded inside Wellington’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026. Among the 645 UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people, Wellington has more crime per resident than 60% of them.
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.
17% of households are private tenants. From September 2023 to August 2026, 649 homes sold inside Wellington’s built-up area at standard prices; the middle one went for £260,000. The social rented sector houses 18% of households.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £382,500 | 171 |
| Semi-detached | £268,750 | 166 |
| Terraced | £230,000 | 235 |
| Flat or maisonette | £145,000 | 77 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
The nearest A&E to Wellington is Musgrove Park Hospital, 5.1 miles away. One GP practice serves the town; 79% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey. At the census, nearly a fifth of people here had a disability, about level with Somerset’s towns (18%) and above England’s towns (17%).
| Census 2021 | Wellington | Somerset | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 81% | 82% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 5% | 5.1% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 19% | 18% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · These shares come straight from the census, without allowing for age, and young towns benefit; the Health Grade instead weighs age-adjusted measures, including life expectancy and early deaths.
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Wellington. Best known first.
MuseumWellington Museumin town
Historic houseCothay Manor4 km outside town, to the westPark or estatePark or estate · National TrustWellington Monument2.1 km outside town, to the southAttractionAttractionSheppy's Cider3 km outside town, to the eastPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
111 listed buildings in Wellington, 1 of them Grade I.
Tonedale Mills (west complex): Photo: Martin Bodman · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wellington Park: Photo: Joseph French · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geograph · Town Hall Offices of Wellington Weekly News: Photo: Neil Owen · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Former Squirrel Hotel: Photo: roger geach · CC BY-SA 2.0
22 notable people were born in Wellington.
Simon Singh: Richardc39, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Harry Cording: unknown (Universal Pictures), Public domain · Thomas Spencer Baynes: Lowes Cato Dickinson, Public domain · Tom Nichols: Mattythewhite, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Henry Fox: Maull and Fox, Piccadilly., Public domain
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wellington | 13,815 | — | D | C | C− | C+ |
| Rockwell Green | 2,854 | 1 | D | C− | C | B− |
| Milverton | 1,112 | 3.3 | — | C− | A− | B |
| Hemyock | 1,674 | 4.5 | — | C+ | A− | A− |
| Cotford St Luke | 2,411 | 4.5 | — | C+ | C+ | B+ |
| Trull | 1,427 | 4.8 | — | D | A | A |
| Norton Fitzwarren | 3,770 | 4.9 | B− | B | C | C |
| Wiveliscombe | 2,316 | 5.7 | — | B− | C+ | B |
Milverton, Hemyock, Cotford St Luke, Trull and Wiveliscombe have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 3.3 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I building is Church of St John the Baptist.
Band D council tax in Wellington is £2,632 for 2026–27, more than in 91% of UK towns (council, county, police and fire, plus the parish or town council). Your own bill depends on your home’s band; check it on GOV.UK.
Town in Somerset, England
Wellington is a built-up area of 13,815 people, in the Somerset West and Taunton 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) · 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.