Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Some 6,950 people live in this town, in West Midlands.
Safety lags (D−): 63.9 violent and sexual offences and 22.1 home and vehicle crimes per 1,000 residents a year. Only 3% of UK towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people have more crime per resident. At D− overall, Blackheath is better than 2% of UK towns and ranks #29 of 35 in West Midlands. Health is a weak point: life expectancy 76.1 for men, 81.1 for women. Getting around on foot or by bus is easy: on the way to work, 22% walk, cycle or take a bus or train. Buying the median home, at £194,250, takes 4.5 years of household income in the Sandwell council area.
Figures: commuting, Census 2021 · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · life expectancy and incomes, ONS · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years.
The 3 things Blackheath 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 Blackheath is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 1 building inside Blackheath’s built-up area.
12% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
The archive holds 1 old photo or postcard going back to 1908.
Explore the history →Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Blackheath. Best known first.
CastleDudley Castle4.2 km outside town, to the northwest
Abbey or priory · English HeritageHalesowen Abbey3.2 km outside town, to the south
MuseumBlack Country Living Museum4.6 km outside town, to the northwest
GardenWarley Woods2.8 km outside town, to the east
MuseumThe Oak House Museum3.9 km outside town, to the northeast
Abbey or prioryPriory Ruins4.6 km outside town, to the northwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Blackheath.
Young adults of 15 to 24 are 11% of residents, below West Midlands’ towns (14%) and England’s towns (12%) alike. Blackheath has a median age of 39.8. One measure of family life: 18% of residents are under 15.
51% women, 49% men
About 95 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Blackheath | West Midlands | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 18% | 20% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 11% | 14% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 27% | 27% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 26% | 24% | 25% |
| 65+ | 18% | 16% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 29% | 24% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 5.4% | 4.6% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 15% | 17% | 17% |
| Degree level | 20% | 28% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · West Midlands and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Of its 2 schools, one is shown below, with the reason. Key Stage 2 results at the town’s 2 primary schools: 56% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). Secondary results at the 12 secondary schools within 3 km: an Attainment 8 score of 43.9, with 39% at grade 5 or above in English and maths.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blackheath Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 456 | C |
Over the year to August 2026, 1,208 offences were reported in Blackheath, along with 20 incidents of anti-social behaviour. Violence and sexual offences accounted for 33% of recorded crime. Anti-social behaviour, shown but not graded, came to 8.7 reports per 1,000, above both West Midlands’ towns (6) and England’s towns (7.8).
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 heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
12% of Blackheath’s homes date from before 1919, and Historic England’s list holds 1 listed building inside its built-up area.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
At the census, just over a fifth of people here had a disability, above both West Midlands’ towns (18%) and England’s towns (17%). Asked at the census, just over three quarters of residents of Blackheath said they were in good or very good health. Also worth knowing: women here live to 81.1 on average and men to 76.1 (2019–23). One GP practice serves the town; 46% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey.
| Census 2021 | Blackheath | West Midlands | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 76% | 80% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 7.8% | 6% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 21% | 18% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · A young population flatters these answers, which are not age-adjusted; the Health Grade instead uses measures that allow for age, such as life expectancy and early deaths.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 19% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Working mainly from home: nearly a fifth of workers, below West Midlands’ towns (24%) and England’s towns (31%) alike. For every resident in work, Blackheath has 0.9 jobs. 7% of commuters who live in Blackheath also work there. Income per household averages £42K a year, before tax.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
16% of households rent privately. Owners make up 54% of households, lower than both West Midlands’ towns (57%) and England’s towns (61%). Only one of the 35 towns in West Midlands costs less to buy into than Blackheath, whose median sale is £194,250.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £310,000 | 29 |
| Semi-detached | £205,000 | 89 |
| Terraced | £180,000 | 79 |
| Flat or maisonette | £121,000 | 23 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
4 notable people were born in Blackheath.
Glenn Tipton: Zach Petersen ( http://zach.e53.org/ ), CC BY-SA 2.0
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blackheath | 6,950 | — | D− | C− | D− | D |
| Oldbury | 45,188 | 1.3 | D− | D | D | D |
| Cradley Heath | 18,819 | 1.3 | D− | C− | D | D |
| Rowley Regis | 39,052 | 1.5 | D | C− | C− | D |
| Halesowen | 60,103 | 1.7 | B− | B+ | C | C |
| Dudley | 64,277 | 2.9 | C− | A | D− | D |
| Smethwick | 56,343 | 2.9 | D | C− | D | D |
| Brierley Hill | 32,311 | 3.6 | C | A | D | C− |
People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
GCSE results trail 69% of towns in England, and primary results trail 77% (Department for Education, Attainment 8 and Key Stage 2). Blackheath has 2 state schools; places are handled by Sandwell council.
Homes cost less than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £194,250, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £121,000, terraced houses £180,000, semi-detached houses £205,000 and detached houses £310,000. Household incomes are lower than in 88% of UK towns, so cost of living grades C−.
Town in West Midlands, England
Blackheath is a built-up area of 6,950 people, in the Sandwell 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.