Cosham North
Portsmouth 003 · 4 sub-areas · 6,959 residents
Portsmouth 003 is a predominantly owner-occupied corner of Portsmouth, home to around 6,960 people and notably older in profile than the wider city. A typical two-bedroom flat lets for about £1,124 a month — comfortably below the UK national median for a two-bed — and more than four in five households here own their home outright or with a mortgage.
Cosham North is a mid-density neighbourhood of Portsmouth in the South East region. It sits between busier and quieter parts of the local authority and isn't dominated by a single use — there's a mix of workplaces, housing and local services. The population skews older, with a long-settled feel and a high share of retirees; most homes are owner-occupied, so turnover is low and many residents have been here a long time.
Overview
What's it like to live in Cosham North?
Greenspace is on the doorstep — a park or playing field is within walking distance of most homes; The streets feel safe by national standards — police-recorded crime is well below the country-wide median; Public transport is genuinely strong; most errands and a fair share of social life don't need a car; rents are roughly in line with the national norm, at around £1,357 a month for a typical home; gigabit broadband is effectively universal.
Generated from the latest May 2026 data · refreshed automatically
Figures are aggregated across 4 sub-areas — population-weighted means for rates, sums for counts. Sources cited beneath each section.
Cosham North in Portsmouth
Living in Cosham North
Portsmouth 003 sits at the quieter, more settled end of what is otherwise a young, densely rented city. Where much of Portsmouth skews heavily towards private rentals and student households, this neighbourhood is dominated by homeowners — an unusual characteristic that shapes the feel of the streets: less transient, more rooted. The age profile reinforces this; nearly three in ten residents are aged 65 or over, and fewer than one in six is in the 18–34 bracket.
On cost, the neighbourhood compares well. A two-bedroom home runs around £1,124 a month, which is slightly below the UK national median for a two-bed. The three-bed figure — roughly £1,345 — offers reasonable value for families who need the space. Council tax at Band D comes to around £2,292 a year, broadly in line with the Portsmouth average. The rent-to-take-home ratio here is high at around 62%, which reflects the broader Portsmouth affordability challenge rather than anything specific to this part of the city; resident salaries run to roughly £31,000 a year, and rents are priced accordingly.
Families and older owner-occupiers make up the backbone of the community. Around one in five households is a couple with children, and single-person households account for just over a quarter — many of them likely older residents living independently. The ethnic diversity index is low at 14.6, and over 90% of residents were born in the UK, making this one of the less diverse parts of Portsmouth.
Practically speaking, the nearest mainline rail station is roughly 1,400 metres away — about a 17-minute walk — connecting into Portsmouth's main line services. The greenspace gap isn't dramatic; the nearest open space is around 560 metres away, though only about 15% of the neighbourhood area is classified as walkable green space. See the streets and sub-areas below for more on what this part of Portsmouth looks like on the ground.
What you'll need on day one
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Frequently asked
- Is Portsmouth 003 a nice place to live?
- It's one of the more settled and lower-crime parts of Portsmouth, with a strong owner-occupier community and good broadband. The trade-off is limited public transport and a schools picture that's below the national average. It suits people looking for a quieter, residential side of the city rather than its busier urban core.
- What is the rent in Portsmouth 003?
- A one-bedroom flat runs around £893 a month, a two-bed around £1,124, and a three-bed around £1,345. These are estimates scaled from city-level data. Rents rose about 2.7% in the past year. Council tax at Band D adds roughly £2,292 annually.
- Is Portsmouth 003 safe?
- Yes, relatively. The crime rate is around 37.8 incidents per 1,000 residents a year — less than half the UK national rate of roughly 80 per 1,000. The neighbourhood sits in the ninth deprivation decile nationally, meaning it's among the least deprived 20% of areas in England, which generally correlates with lower crime.
- What's the commute from Portsmouth 003 to the city centre?
- The nearest mainline rail station is about a 17-minute walk away. For longer-distance travel, the rail journey to London takes roughly 109 minutes by public transport. Most residents here commute by car — around 52% — rather than public transport, which only accounts for 2.7% of commuters.
- Who lives in Portsmouth 003?
- Predominantly older, owner-occupying households. Nearly 29% of residents are aged 65 or over, and over 83% of homes are owner-occupied — unusually high for Portsmouth. Single-person households make up about 27%, and couples with children account for around 20%.
- What schools are near Portsmouth 003?
- There are 44 schools within typical catchment distance, though only around 32% are rated Good or Outstanding by Ofsted — well below the national average of approximately 89%. The nearest Outstanding-rated school is roughly 1,480 metres away. Check Portsmouth City Council's admissions pages for current catchment boundaries and inspection results.
- Is Portsmouth 003 a good area for families?
- It has some family-friendly qualities — low crime, owner-occupied streets, good broadband, and greenspace within 560 metres. The schools picture is weaker than the national average, though, with fewer than a third of nearby schools rated Good or Outstanding. Families should research specific school catchments carefully before deciding.