Westbourne
Westminster 010 · 5 sub-areas · 10,024 residents
Westminster 010 is a dense residential patch of central London, home to around 10,000 people and defined by one of the most unusual tenure profiles in the capital. A typical two-bedroom flat lets for about £3,200 a month — well above the London average — yet nearly six in ten households here are in social housing, making it a neighbourhood of sharp contrasts between public and private renters.
Westbourne is a workplace corner of Westminster — daytime population swells with commuters, the streetscape leans busy and built-up rather than residential, and most residents who do live here rent rather than own.
Overview
What's it like to live in Westbourne?
4 parks and 12 playgrounds are within five minutes' walk, so greenspace is reliably close at hand; there's a serious food scene on the doorstep — 89 restaurants and lots of variety within a five-minute walk; Recorded crime is higher than the national norm — common for built-up urban areas, but worth weighing if you're looking for a quieter base; Public transport is genuinely strong; most errands and a fair share of social life don't need a car; rents sit firmly in the upper bracket nationally, with a typical home letting at around £3,122 a month; gigabit broadband is effectively universal.
Generated from the latest May 2026 data · refreshed automatically
Figures are aggregated across 5 sub-areas — population-weighted means for rates, sums for counts. Sources cited beneath each section.
Westbourne in Westminster
Living in Westbourne
Westminster 010 sits squarely in central London, and the numbers reflect exactly that. What makes this corner of Westminster stand out isn't the price — expensive is expected this close to the centre — it's the unusually high concentration of social housing sitting alongside some of the most expensive private rents in the country. Nearly 58% of households are in social tenancies, a share you'd typically associate with outer-borough estates, not Zone 1. The result is a neighbourhood that feels more mixed and grounded than the postcode might suggest.
The cost picture is steep for private renters. A one-bedroom runs around £2,500 a month, a two-bedroom closer to £3,200, and a three-bedroom roughly £3,800. These figures sit clearly above the wider London private market. Council tax is comparatively low — Band D comes to about £1,050 a year, one of the lowest rates in England — but that does little to soften the rent burden. The rent-to-take-home ratio of 122% tells the story plainly: the median private tenant here spends more than their entire take-home pay on rent, which means only high earners or those sharing can realistically afford to rent privately.
The population skews younger than much of Westminster, with just under 30% of residents aged 18–34, alongside a meaningful under-18 share of around 21%. Single-person households account for about a third of all homes. The degree-holder share sits at around 42%, above the London average, though the economic diversity created by the large social-renting population means this isn't uniformly a graduate professional area.
Practically speaking, the location is hard to beat for connectivity. The nearest underground station is under 350 metres away — a four or five minute walk — and the neighbourhood sits within roughly 16 minutes of the nearest major job hub by public transport. Nearly 100% of premises have access to gigabit broadband. For those who can make the numbers work, the central position is the obvious draw. See the streets and sub-areas below for more on how conditions vary within Westminster 010.
What you'll need on day one
Compare Westbourne with
Frequently asked
- Is Westminster 010 a nice place to live?
- It depends heavily on your housing situation. Social tenants benefit from a genuinely central location at subsidised rents. Private renters face some of the highest rents in London — around £3,200 a month for a two-bedroom — and the crime rate is elevated relative to the national average. The transport links and central position are hard to beat, but the private market here is only viable for higher earners.
- What is the rent in Westminster 010?
- A one-bedroom typically runs around £2,500 a month, a two-bedroom around £3,200, and a three-bedroom roughly £3,800. These are estimates scaled from council-level ONS data using local sale prices. Rents fell around 4.7% year-on-year, so conditions have eased slightly from their recent peak.
- Is Westminster 010 safe?
- The recorded crime rate is around 149 per 1,000 residents annually — roughly double the UK average. This is consistent with other dense central London neighbourhoods where high footfall pushes up theft and antisocial behaviour figures. It's less a sign of a dangerous area and more a reflection of urban intensity. Day-to-day, most residents find it manageable.
- What's the commute from Westminster 010 to central London?
- Effectively minimal. The nearest underground station is under 350 metres away, and the neighbourhood is around 16 minutes from the nearest major job hub by public transport. Around 37% of residents work from home, which is high even by London standards. For those who do commute, the central location is a genuine advantage.
- Who lives in Westminster 010?
- It's a genuinely mixed area. Nearly 58% of households are in social housing, so there's a large long-term residential population including many families. Private renters and owner-occupiers make up the remainder. Around 42% of residents hold a degree-level qualification, and just under half were born in the UK — reflecting a highly diverse, internationally mixed community.
- What schools are near Westminster 010?
- There are around 260 schools within 2km, so choice isn't the issue. Around half are rated Good or Outstanding by Ofsted — below the national share of around 89%. The nearest Outstanding-rated school is under 300 metres away. Families should check individual school catchments with Westminster City Council rather than assuming proximity guarantees a place.
- Why is the rent-to-income ratio so high in Westminster 010?
- The rent-to-take-home ratio here is around 122% — meaning the median private tenant would spend more than their entire take-home pay on rent. This reflects the gap between central London private rents and median local salaries. In practice, private renters in this area are typically higher earners, sharers, or partly subsidised by employers. The large social-housing population faces a very different cost picture.