Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A large town of 51,318 in Tyne and Wear, North East.
Washington’s weakest subject is health (D) — life expectancy is 77.4 for men and 82.3 for women. Cost of living is its strong suit: a typical home costs £150,000 and rent runs £707 a month. Overall, that makes a B−, good for #17 of 34 in Tyne and Wear. Set against the rest, it does better than 45% of UK towns. The rest of its grades are middling: B− for schools and B for hazard risk.
Figures: prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · life expectancy, ONS · flood risk, Environment Agency.
Northumbria Police published 34 of the 36 months; rates are per year over the months published.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Washington is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The 2 things Washington does most differently from other towns.
Historic England lists 19 buildings inside Washington’s built-up area, 2 of them Grade I, and 1 scheduled monument.
4% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →19 listed buildings in Washington, 2 of them Grade I.
Church of Holy Trinity: Photo: Steve McShane · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Washington and Barmston War Memorial: Photo: Des Blenkinsopp · CC BY-SA 2.0 · F Pit Winding House: Photo: Stanley John James · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Church of Our Blessed Lady Immaculate and Presbytery Adjoining: Photo: hannah barrett · CC BY-SA 2.0
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Washington.
At the census, 7.3% of people here described their health as bad or very bad. 77% of Washington’s residents described their health as good or very good at the census, about level with Tyne and Wear’s towns (78%) and below England’s towns (82%). 7 GP practices serve the town; nearly four in five patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey.
| Census 2021 | Washington | Tyne and Wear | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 77% | 78% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 7.3% | 7.1% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 23% | 21% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · No age adjustment applies to these census answers, which flatter younger towns; the Health Grade’s measures, life expectancy and early deaths among them, do allow for age.
63% of pupils at the town’s 17 primary schools met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). Below are three of its 24 schools, each with why it was picked. GCSE results at the town’s 4 secondary schools: 44% of pupils get a strong pass (grade 5+) in English and maths, and the Attainment 8 average is 44.5.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rickleton Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 450 | A |
| St Robert of Newminster Catholic School and Sixth Form College, WashingtonLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 1,527 | C+ |
| Fatfield AcademyTop results in townPrimary | Primary | 233 | A− |
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
4% of its homes were built before 1919, below Tyne and Wear’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (16%) alike. Washington’s listed buildings include Lodge to West of Washington Old Hall, Grade I. One scheduled monument lies locally.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
27% of households rent from a council or housing body. Half of the 1,529 standard sales inside Washington’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 went for more than £150,000. Owners make up 60% of households, higher than Tyne and Wear’s towns (57%) and near England’s towns (61%).
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £320,000 | 343 |
| Semi-detached | £167,000 | 467 |
| Terraced | £125,000 | 524 |
| Flat or maisonette | £53,000 | 195 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Town centres with shops, stations and nightlife record more crime per resident: police.uk counts crimes where they happen, not where victims live.
Over the year to August 2026, 3,519 offences were reported in Washington, along with 757 incidents of anti-social behaviour. Violent crime ran at 32.7 per 1,000 residents a year, higher than both Tyne and Wear’s towns (30.2) and England’s towns (22). Violence and sexual offences made up 36% of the total.
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.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 25% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Households had £45K a year before tax, about level with Tyne and Wear’s towns (£45K) and below England’s towns (£55K). At the census, just over three quarters of commuters went by car. 41% of commuters who live in Washington also work there. Unemployment benefit claims reached 3.2% of 16 to 64s in 2026.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Residents of Washington have a median age of 44.4. 22% of residents are 65 or over, above Tyne and Wear’s towns (19%) and England’s towns (18%) alike. People aged 15 to 24 make up a tenth of the town.
52% women, 48% men
About 94 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Washington | Tyne and Wear | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 17% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 10% | 13% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 24% | 26% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 27% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 22% | 19% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 21% | 20% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 7% | 6.6% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 17% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 24% | 30% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Tyne and Wear and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Washington. Best known first.
Museum · National TrustWashington Old Hallin town
CastleLumley Castle2.3 km outside town, to the south
Castle · English HeritageHylton Castle2 km outside town, to the northeast
CastleLambton Castle800 m outside town, to the south
Art galleryShipley Art Gallery5 km outside town, to the northwest
MuseumBowes Railway1.1 km outside town, to the northwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
40 notable people were born in Washington.
Jordan Pickford: Bryan Berlin, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Gertrude Bell: Khayr al-Din al-Zirikli, Public domain · Bryan Ferry: Joyce11, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Alan Price: Richard William Laws, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Rebecca Welch: Original: EL Loko Foto Derivative work: Danyele, CC BY 4.0
Large town in Tyne and Wear, England
Washington is a built-up area of 51,318 people, in the Sunderland 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
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington | 51,318 | — | B− | A− | C− | D |
| Springwell | 2,141 | 1.7 | — | B+ | B+ | C |
| Birtley | 13,840 | 1.8 | C | C+ | C− | D |
| Shiney Row and Penshaw | 16,900 | 2.7 | B− | B+ | C+ | C− |
| Bournmoor | 1,991 | 3.2 | — | C | D | C− |
| Pelton and Ouston | 7,305 | 3.4 | C | B+ | C− | C− |
| Urpeth | 2,048 | 3.5 | — | A− | A | B |
| Kibblesworth | 1,500 | 3.7 | — | B− | B− | D |
Springwell, Bournmoor, Urpeth and Kibblesworth have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Homes cost less than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £150,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £53,000, terraced houses £125,000, semi-detached houses £167,000 and detached houses £320,000.
It has less crime than most places its size: less crime per resident than 69% of the 207 UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more. Against all UK towns, most of them far smaller, it grades C−.
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.