Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Some 2,203 people live in this village, in West Midlands.
Hazard risk is its strong suit (A). Health is a strength too — life expectancy 82.7 for men, 86.1 for women. Safety is its weak spot — 27.8 violent and sexual offences and 28.1 home and vehicle crimes per 1,000 residents a year. Among UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people, it has less crime per resident than 6%. Homes sell for a median £342,500, about 5.6 years of what households in the Solihull council area earn. Its remaining grades are unremarkable: B− for schools, B for jobs & income and C+ for walkability.
Figures: flood risk, Environment Agency · life expectancy and incomes, ONS · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · claimants, DWP · commuting, Census 2021. An overall grade needs 2,500 residents, so Meriden is graded subject by subject only.
The 3 things Meriden 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 Meriden is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists them inside Meriden’s built-up area, along with 1 scheduled monument.
9% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →Meriden, Connecticut, is named after Meriden.
USUS editionMeriden, Connecticut, settled in 1806, takes its name from this village.
Named after: each U.S. town’s Wikipedia article. Grades compare each town with towns in its own country, so they aren’t a head-to-head.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Meriden.
Police recorded 136 crimes inside Meriden’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 3 reports of anti-social behaviour. 47% of the crimes fell under violence and sexual offences. Anti-social behaviour, shown but not graded, came to 3.8 reports per 1,000, below West Midlands’ towns (6.2) and England’s towns (7.8) alike.
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 one school in town appears below. At the 3 primary schools within 3 km, 62% of pupils reach the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). The town’s primary school has 187 pupils.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meriden Church of England Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 187 | C+ |
Degrees are held by a third of adults, higher than West Midlands’ towns (28%) and near England’s towns (34%). Aged 15 to 24: nearly one in ten residents. Half of Meriden is older than 46.4, half younger. 17% of residents are children under 15.
51% women, 49% men
About 95 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Meriden | West Midlands | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 17% | 20% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 8.3% | 14% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 23% | 27% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 27% | 24% | 25% |
| 65+ | 25% | 16% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 21% | 24% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 5.5% | 4.6% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 15% | 17% | 17% |
| Degree level | 33% | 28% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · West Midlands and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Disability touches a fifth of Meriden’s population. The town has no GP practice of its own; the nearest is 2.5 miles away. 6.4% of residents described their health as bad or very bad, higher than both West Midlands’ towns (6%) and England’s towns (5.2%). The nearest A&E to Meriden is Birmingham Heartlands Hospital, 8.3 miles away.
| Census 2021 | Meriden | West Midlands | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 79% | 80% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 6.4% | 6% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 20% | 18% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · 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.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 40% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
13% of commuters walked, cycled or took the bus or train at the census, below West Midlands’ towns (23%) and England’s towns (27%) alike. The census counted two in five workers working mainly from home. In 2026, 3.1% of 16 to 64s were claiming unemployment benefits.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Two thirds of households are owner-occupiers. Private rents average £1,279 a month across the Solihull council area. Behind the median of £342,500: 70 standard sales inside Meriden’s built-up area, September 2023 to August 2026.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £470,000 | 25 |
| Semi-detached | £333,750 | 24 |
| Terraced | £291,500 | 16 |
| Flat or maisonette | £165,000 | 5 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Relative to its size, Meriden keeps 104 listed buildings per 10,000 residents. Homes from before 1919 make up 9% of the total, above West Midlands’ towns (7%) but below England’s towns (16%). Historic England’s list names 23 listed buildings here: 1 Grade II*.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Meriden. Best known first.
MuseumNational Motorcycle Museum3.5 km outside town, to the west · 250K visitors a year
CastleCastle (site of)5 km outside town, to the east
Historic houseNailcote Hall4.3 km outside town, to the southeastHistoric houseHistoric houseHampton Manor3.6 km outside town, to the westMuseumMuseumVillage Museum2.2 km outside town, to the southPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
8 notable people were born in Meriden.
Adam Walker: TheRealWilG, CC BY-SA 4.0
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Meriden | 2,203 | — | — | B− | C− | B+ |
| Hampton in Arden | 1,867 | 2.4 | — | C | C+ | A− |
| Balsall Common | 7,094 | 3.3 | A− | C | B+ | A |
| Burton Green | 1,556 | 4.5 | — | C | B | A |
| Keresley Newlands | 3,631 | 5 | D | C− | D | D |
| Coleshill | 6,744 | 5 | C | C | D | C+ |
| New Arley | 1,666 | 5.7 | — | B | C | C |
| Knowle and Dorridge | 19,323 | 5.8 | A | C | B | A |
Hampton in Arden, Burton Green and New Arley have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 4.3 times the typical UK town for its size. It also has 1 scheduled monument.
Village in West Midlands, England
Meriden is a built-up area of 2,203 people, in the Solihull 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.