Findings where this place differs most from its surroundings, with the evidence behind each one. A difference is not a verdict: it is a prompt to look closer.
Homeshigh confidence
Lower than England: Average monthly private rent
Average monthly private rent is £821 in Herefordshire, County of (Aug 2026), compared with £1,459 in England (44% lower).
£821 here£1,459 England
How do we know this?
- Source
- Office for National Statistics: Price Index of Private Rents, UK: monthly price statistics (Open Government Licence v3.0)
- Period
- Aug 2026
- Geography
- Council area, compared with England
- Method
- Private rents (PIPR). The ONS Price Index of Private Rents measures the change in rents paid by private tenants, and publishes an average (mean) monthly rent per local authority from the same data. The figure is a mean, not a median, so a few very high rents pull it up, especially in London and where there are few lettings. It covers rents paid for homes let on the private market (not social rents) and reflects all tenancies in the stock, not only new lets, except in Scotland where the underlying data are mainly advertised new lets, which makes Scotland not directly comparable with England and Wales. Annual change is the change in the rental price index, not in the cash average. Rents are in cash terms, not adjusted for inflation. Averages by number of bedrooms are held for the latest month only.
- Limitations
Neighbourhoodshigh confidence
Lower than West Midlands: Share of residents living in the 10% most deprived neighbourhoods in England (overall)
Share of residents living in the 10% most deprived neighbourhoods in England (overall) is 0.8% in Herefordshire, County of (2025), compared with 16.8% in West Midlands (16.0 percentage points lower; n = 191,047).
0.8% here16.8% West Midlands
How do we know this?
- Source
- Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government: English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (LSOA 2021 ranks and deciles) (Open Government Licence v3.0)
- Period
- 2025
- Geography
- Council area, compared with West Midlands
- Method
- Summarising deprivation for an area. The Indices of Deprivation rank every LSOA in England; decile 1 contains the most deprived 10 per cent of LSOAs nationally. Ranks and deciles are ordinal, so they are never averaged. An area is described by (1) how many of its LSOAs fall in each national decile, (2) how many of its residents live in LSOAs of each decile (mid-2024 population apportioned to output areas, see the area apportioning method), (3) the share of residents in the most deprived 10 and 20 per cent of LSOAs nationally, and (4) the median decile of residents. IoD is a relative measure of small areas, not of individuals: most people in a deprived LSOA are not deprived and many deprived people live elsewhere. England only. Where an area straddles the England-Wales border the figures cover the English part only and are not published unless 90 per cent of residents are covered.
- Limitations
- none recorded
Educationhigh confidence
Lower than West Midlands: Pupils eligible for free school meals
Pupils eligible for free school meals is 18.9% in Herefordshire, County of (2025/26), compared with 30.6% in West Midlands (11.7 percentage points lower; n = 24,826).
18.9% here30.6% West Midlands
How do we know this?
- Source
- Department for Education (Get Information about Schools) via WhatSchool data: Establishment records, pupil numbers, FSM, SEN, absence; Ofsted outcomes (Open Government Licence v3.0 (DfE Get Information about Schools and Ofsted data, via WhatSchool))
- Period
- 2025/26
- Geography
- Council area, compared with West Midlands
- Method
- Pupil-weighted school measures. FSM, SEN and absence percentages are school-level figures averaged with school roll (January 2026 census) as the weight; KS2 and KS4 measures are averaged with the number of eligible pupils (KS2) or the KS4 cohort as the weight. This equals the share of pupils in the area's schools, not of pupils living in the area. The England value uses the same method on the same files and is the comparator. Suppressed school values are skipped, so coverage differs by measure (the number of schools used is in the notes). Ofsted outcomes are the latest overall grade on record at 31 August 2026; schools inspected under the new report-card framework may carry no single grade.
- Limitations
- Share of pupils at schools in the area; pupil-weighted. From 109 schools. Schools are counted where they are located, not where pupils live.
Homesmedium confidence
Lower than similar council areas: Minor and other planning applications decided on time
Minor and other planning applications decided on time is 79.8% in Herefordshire, County of (Year to Jun 2026), compared with 91.3% across five council areas with a similar profile (Arun, Breckland, Teignbridge, Wychavon, East Suffolk); 11.5 percentage points lower. It lies outside the range of all five (83.5% to 99.0%).
79.8% here91.3% five similar council areas: Arun, Breckland, Teignbridge, Wychavon, East Suffolk
How do we know this?
- Source
- Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (now Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government): Planning application statistics: live tables PS1 and PS2 (district matters) (Open Government Licence v3.0)
- Period
- Year to Jun 2026
- Geography
- Council area, compared with five similar council areas: Arun, Breckland, Teignbridge, Wychavon, East Suffolk
- Method
- Planning application decisions. Local planning authorities report to government every quarter how many applications for planning permission (district matters: housing, commercial and other development, excluding minerals and waste) they decided, how many they granted and refused, and how many were decided within the statutory time or an agreed extension. We add the four most recent complete quarters (July 2025 to June 2026) and compare with the four before. Percentage granted is granted divided by all decisions, which includes applications withdrawn only if reported as decided; it is a measure of the mix of applications a council receives, not of how fair or permissive it is, because many applications are refused for good reason or amended before decision. Speed is the share decided in time among decisions not covered by a planning performance agreement, shown separately for major developments (10 or more homes, or sites over 1 hectare) and for minor and other applications. Few major decisions are made each year in most authorities, so major-development figures rest on small numbers. National Park authorities and development corporations are separate planning authorities and are not included in the council totals. Wales (Welsh Government development management survey): major plus minor and householder applications over April 2025 to March 2026, summed from four quarterly returns; other consents, pre-application cases and non-material amendments are excluded. "Decided in time" covers all applications and consents decided within the statutory period or an agreed extension. Denbighshire did not supply data. Scotland (Scottish Government annual planning statistics): all applications decided in the financial year 2024/25 (the 2025/26 annual release is not yet out); the share approved is of all applications decided; "local developments decided within two months" and average weeks are for local developments without a processing agreement. Northern Ireland (Department for Infrastructure): applications received and decided by each council in 2025/26, and the share approved of those decided. Each nation counts and classifies applications differently, so the figures describe each nation's own system and should not be compared across borders.
- Limitations
- Planning performance agreements excluded.
- Coverage: England: local planning authorities (district matters), councils only here. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own sources.
- Covers the 12-month window Year to Jun 2026 only.
- Similar areas are the five council areas closest on population size, share aged 65 and over, share aged under 16, share of neighbourhoods in the most deprived 20%, median house price (standardised); this is a convenience comparison, not a like-for-like guarantee.
Communitymedium confidence
Higher than West Midlands: Charities based in the area per 1,000 residents
Charities based in the area per 1,000 residents is 5.37 per 1,000 in Herefordshire, County of (Oct 2026), compared with 2.23 per 1,000 in West Midlands (about 2.4 times the West Midlands rate; n = 191,047).
5.4 per 1,000 here2.2 per 1,000 West Midlands
How do we know this?
- Source
- Charity Commission for England and Wales; OSCR (Scotland); Charity Commission for Northern Ireland: Registers of charities (registered address, latest income, charitable purposes) (Open Government Licence v3.0 (Charity Commission, OSCR and CCNI terms apply: not the register itself, no direct marketing))
- Period
- Oct 2026
- Geography
- Council area, compared with West Midlands
- Method
- Charities in an area. A charity is placed by the postcode of its registered/contact address (or the nearest postcode to its geocoded address; some are placed by the nearest postcode to a geocoded address), so counts show where charities are based, not where they work: a national charity with a London address is counted in London. Income is the latest annual income on the register, summed; it is dominated by a few very large charities. "Declaring the area" counts charities that name the local authority (or its county) as an area of operation on the register; it does not mean services are delivered everywhere in that area. Registered charities only; unregistered community groups, small charities below the registration threshold and removed charities are not counted.
- Limitations
- A charity's recorded location is not necessarily where its services are delivered.
Economyhigh confidence
Increase between 2022 and 2025: Median weekly pay of full-time employees who live in the area
Median weekly pay of full-time employees who live in the area in Herefordshire, County of went from £563 (2022) to £713 (2025): up 27% (not adjusted for inflation), compared with up 18.7% in England.
£713 here£563 same place, 2022
How do we know this?
- Source
- Office for National Statistics: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE), via Nomis: tables 7 (place of work) and 8 (place of residence) (Open Government Licence v3.0)
- Period
- 2025
- Geography
- Council area, compared with same place, 2022
- Method
- Earnings from the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings. ASHE is a 1% sample of employee jobs from HMRC PAYE records, with a reference week in April. We hold the median gross pay of full-time employees, by place of residence (where the employee lives) and by place of work (where the job is), for the latest survey year and the years back to 2015. Median weekly pay is gross pay before tax for the pay period that includes the reference date; annual pay is gross annual pay for the year to April. Pay is in cash terms: it is not adjusted for inflation, so changes over time include price rises. Survey estimates have a margin of error that grows as areas get smaller; each value carries its coefficient of variation and values with a CV above 10% are marked low quality. Estimates ONS judges too unreliable (CV above about 40%) are not published and appear here as absent. Self-employed people are not covered. Residence-based figures describe people who live in the area wherever they work; workplace-based figures describe jobs located in the area wherever the employee lives. The two can differ a lot in commuter areas and city centres.
- Limitations
- Coefficient of variation 3.2%. Coefficient of variation 5.0%.
- Prices are nominal and not adjusted for inflation or for changes in the mix of homes sold.