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.
Neighbourhoodsmedium confidence
Wide range between wards in Worcester: Share of residents living in the 20% most deprived neighbourhoods in England (overall)
Share of residents living in the 20% most deprived neighbourhoods in England (overall) (2025) varies within Worcester: from 0.0% in Arboretum to 79.4% in Warndon & Elbury Park, across 16 wards. The upper tenth of wards is 47.4 percentage points above the lower tenth.
Warndon & Elbury Park figure
79.4% Warndon & Elbury Park0% Arboretum
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
- Ward, compared with lowest-value ward (Arboretum)
- 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
- This figure is an estimate; see the methodology.
- Ward and neighbourhood boundaries differ in size; the range shows variation within the area, not a ranking of places.
Educationhigh confidence
Lower than West Midlands: Pupils eligible for free school meals
Pupils eligible for free school meals is 20.3% in Worcester (2025/26), compared with 30.6% in West Midlands (10.3 percentage points lower; n = 17,609).
20.3% 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 36 schools. Schools are counted where they are located, not where pupils live.
Homeshigh confidence
Lower than England: Average monthly private rent
Average monthly private rent is £977 in Worcester (Aug 2026), compared with £1,459 in England (33% lower).
£977 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
Homeshigh confidence
Lower than similar council areas: Households that own their home
Households that own their home is 61.4% in Worcester (2021), compared with 69.8% across five council areas with a similar profile (Chorley, Cannock Chase, Erewash, North West Leicestershire, Tamworth); 8.4 percentage points lower. It lies outside the range of all five (67.0% to 72.1%).
61.4% here69.8% five similar council areas: Chorley, Cannock Chase, Erewash, North West Leicestershire, Tamworth
How do we know this?
- Source
- Office for National Statistics (Census 2021): Census 2021 housing and household summary by Output Area (tenure, accommodation type, cars, overcrowding, household size, general health) (Open Government Licence v3.0)
- Period
- 2021
- Geography
- Council area, compared with five similar council areas: Chorley, Cannock Chase, Erewash, North West Leicestershire, Tamworth
- Method
- Census 2021 housing summary. Percentages by output area are converted back to counts using the OA household total (or usual residents for health) and rolled up as in the area apportioning method, so area figures are household-weighted. England only: Welsh OAs are not in the loaded table, so Welsh and Scottish places have no value. Labelled 2021.
- Limitations
- Census 2021 is a snapshot taken in March 2021 and may have changed since.
- 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.
Economyhigh confidence
Decrease between Jul 2024 and Jul 2026: People claiming unemployment-related benefits
People claiming unemployment-related benefits in Worcester went from 2,750 (Jul 2024) to 2,295 (Jul 2026): down 16.5%.
2,295 here2,750 same place, Jul 2024
How do we know this?
- Source
- Office for National Statistics (Department for Work and Pensions data): Claimant count by sex and age, via Nomis (NM_162_1) (Open Government Licence v3.0)
- Period
- Jul 2026
- Geography
- Council area, compared with same place, Jul 2024
- Method
- Claimant count. The claimant count is the number of people claiming benefit mainly for being unemployed: Jobseeker's Allowance plus those Universal Credit claimants who are required to look for work. It is not the same as unemployment as measured by surveys: it misses people who are out of work but do not claim and counts some who are working part-time but claim. Under Universal Credit, more people have to look for work than under the old system, so figures after 2013 are not comparable with earlier years. The rate is claimants as a share of residents aged 16 to 64. Figures are for the month shown and are revised slightly the following month; the latest revised month is used.
- Limitations
- Claimant count, aged 16 and over.
Communitymedium confidence
Higher than similar council areas: Charities based in the area per 1,000 residents
Charities based in the area per 1,000 residents is 2.76 per 1,000 in Worcester (Oct 2026), compared with 1.58 per 1,000 across five council areas with a similar profile (Chorley, Cannock Chase, Erewash, North West Leicestershire, Tamworth); about 1.7 times the average for similar areas. It lies outside the range of all five (0.95 per 1,000 to 2.19 per 1,000).
2.8 per 1,000 here1.6 per 1,000 five similar council areas: Chorley, Cannock Chase, Erewash, North West Leicestershire, Tamworth
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 five similar council areas: Chorley, Cannock Chase, Erewash, North West Leicestershire, Tamworth
- 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.
- 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.