Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Population 20,321: a large town in West Midlands.
Wednesbury’s lowest grade is for safety: 51.6 violent and sexual offences and 30.8 home and vehicle crimes per 1,000 residents a year. Only 5% of UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people have more crime per resident. Health lags (D−): men here can expect to live to 74.6, women to 80.1. A median £215,000 buys a home here, 5 times what households in the Sandwell council area earn in a year. Getting around on foot or by bus is easy: on the way to work, 19% walk, cycle or take a bus or train. The overall grade comes out at D−, behind almost every UK town.
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.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Wednesbury is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The 3 things Wednesbury does most differently from other towns.
Historic England lists 11 buildings inside Wednesbury’s built-up area.
11% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →11 listed buildings in Wednesbury.
Old Blue Ball Public House: Photo: Anti Colonial · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Church of St Bartholomew: Photo: Brianboru100 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · District Public Library Wednesbury: Photo: Brianboru100 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Horse and Jockey: Photo: Anti Colonial · CC BY-SA 4.0
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Wednesbury.
Young adults of 15 to 24 are just over a tenth of the population. The middle age in Wednesbury is 39.1. The under-15s are 20% of the population here.
50% women, 50% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Wednesbury | West Midlands | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 20% | 20% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 12% | 14% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 26% | 27% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 26% | 24% | 25% |
| 65+ | 17% | 16% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 30% | 24% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 5.5% | 4.6% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 15% | 17% | 17% |
| Degree level | 19% | 28% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · West Midlands and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Between them, eight primaries and three secondaries teach 5,826 pupils in Wednesbury. Of its 11 schools, two are shown below, each with the reason. 55% of pupils at the town’s 7 primary schools met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Old Park Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 471 | B− |
| Wood Green AcademyLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 1,518 | C+ |
Town centres with shops, stations and nightlife record more crime per resident: police.uk counts crimes where they happen, not where victims live.
2,495 crimes and 77 reports of anti-social behaviour: that is what police recorded inside Wednesbury’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026. Violence and sexual offences were just over a third of the crimes. There were 8.1 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), higher than West Midlands’ towns (6) and near 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.
Of the 40 towns in West Midlands, Wednesbury has the second-largest share in bad or very bad health: 7.8%. 76% of the town’s residents described their health as good or very good at the census, below both West Midlands’ towns (80%) and England’s towns (82%). Also worth knowing: 3 GP practices serve the town; 69% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey.
| Census 2021 | Wednesbury | 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 · Because the census answers ignore age, a younger population lifts them; that is why the Health Grade is built on age-adjusted measures like life expectancy and early deaths.
15% rent privately, below both West Midlands’ towns (20%) and England’s towns (21%). Private rents average £953 a month across the Sandwell council area. Behind the median of £215,000: 452 standard sales inside Wednesbury’s built-up area, September 2023 to August 2026.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £277,500 | 53 |
| Semi-detached | £225,000 | 235 |
| Terraced | £204,000 | 113 |
| Flat or maisonette | £120,000 | 51 |
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.
The register of parks and gardens lists one in Wednesbury. Of the town’s land, 1% lies in conservation areas, below both West Midlands’ towns (4%) and England’s towns (7%). Relative to its size, Wednesbury keeps 5 listed buildings per 10,000 residents.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 17% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Households had £42K a year before tax, lower than both West Midlands’ towns (£48K) and England’s towns (£55K). 14% of commuters who live in Wednesbury also work there. There are 1 jobs in Wednesbury for each resident in work.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Wednesbury. Best known first.
MuseumWednesbury Museum & Art Galleryin town
CastleDudley Castle5 km outside town, to the southwest
Art galleryThe New Art Gallery2.4 km outside town, to the northeast
MuseumBlack Country Living Museum4.3 km outside town, to the southwest
MuseumThe Leather Museum2.7 km outside town, to the northeast
MuseumBliston Craft Gallery and Library2.6 km outside town, to the westPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
62 notable people were born in Wednesbury.
Alan Hinton: Noelle Noble, CC BY 2.0 · Joanne Shaw Taylor: Steve Knight from Halstead, United Kingdom, CC BY 2.0 · William Paget, 1st Baron Paget: Master of the Stätthalterin Madonna (floruit 1549), Public domain · Kathleen Garman: Andy Mabbett, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Simon Brown: https://www.flickr.com/photos/jamesboyes/, CC BY 2.0
Large town in West Midlands, England
Wednesbury is a built-up area of 20,321 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
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesbury | 20,321 | — | D− | C− | D− | D− |
| Darlaston | 21,541 | 1.2 | D− | C | D− | D− |
| West Bromwich | 103,099 | 1.9 | D− | D | D− | D |
| Walsall | 70,777 | 2 | D | C− | D− | D |
| Bilston | 34,631 | 2.5 | D− | C− | D− | D− |
| Tipton | 47,202 | 2.5 | D− | C− | D | D− |
| Willenhall | 49,582 | 2.9 | D− | C | D | D |
| Coseley | 25,206 | 3.6 | C− | A− | C− | D |
People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
It has more crime per resident than most places its size: 95% of the 645 UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people report less.
At the 2021 Census, 12% of Wednesbury’s 20,321 residents were 15 to 24 and 17% were 65 or over, against 12% and 18% across England’s towns.
GCSE results trail 75% of towns in England, and primary results trail 81% (Department for Education, Attainment 8 and Key Stage 2).
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
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.