Living in SW5, Kensington and Chelsea
What the open data says about house prices, schools, crime and flood risk around SW5 in Kensington and Chelsea. Built from the same sources as every property report on this site, not opinion or marketing copy.
- Homes on the streets around central SW5 sold at a median of £1,010,000 across 92 recorded sales, above the England average of £290,000 (HM Land Registry).
- Prices across Kensington and Chelsea are down 14.1% on a year ago (UK House Price Index). The index for Kensington and Chelsea rests on 68 recorded sales in May 2026, the newest month with a count. July 2026 is a first estimate, which HM Land Registry revises as more sales are registered.
- Of the 231 schools within about 3 miles, 89% are rated Good or Outstanding, against 90% of state schools in England (Ofsted).
- The centre of SW5 is in flood zone 1 (low probability), on the Environment Agency flood map for planning.
- A Band D household in Kensington & Chelsea pays £1,667 in council tax for 2026-27, every precept included (MHCLG).
- Police recorded 1,289 crimes within roughly a mile of the centre in August 2026, most commonly anti social behaviour (Police.uk).
Figures gathered 10 October 2026, each from the source named in its section.
House prices
Average price in Kensington and Chelsea: £1,232,640, down 14.1% on a year ago (July 2026). The index for Kensington and Chelsea rests on 68 recorded sales in May 2026, the newest month with a count. July 2026 is a first estimate, which HM Land Registry revises as more sales are registered. The wider London average is £550,037.
Check sold prices for a specific address in SW5 →
See where SW5 ranks across London →
Council tax at Band D in Kensington and Chelsea: £1,667 a year (2026-27). Running costs by postcode: council tax, energy, tenure, and the estate charge no listing shows →
Compare SW5 with another district
Sold prices, the price trend, schools, flood zone, Band D council tax and crime for SW5 against any other district, each from the source the section below names.
What actually sold around SW5
92 recorded home sales on the streets around central SW5 in the last 2 years, with a median of £1,010,000 and a range from £194,000 to £4,410,500. Mostly flats and maisonettes.
| Address | Type | Sold for | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 32 Kenway Road, SW5 0RR | Terraced | £1,275,000 | 12 Aug 2026 |
| Flat 2 29 Earls Court Gardens, SW5 0TR | Flat or maisonette | £425,000 | 31 Jul 2026 |
| Flat 2 51 Barkston Gardens, SW5 0ES | Flat or maisonette | £1,630,000 | 26 Jun 2026 |
| Basement Flat 284 Earls Court Road, SW5 9AS | Flat or maisonette | £900,000 | 26 Jun 2026 |
| Flat 3 24 Hogarth Road, SW5 0PT | Flat or maisonette | £525,000 | 23 Jun 2026 |
| Flat 14 4 The Mansions, SW5 9BW | Flat or maisonette | £255,000 | 1 Jun 2026 |
How to read this
Source: HM Land Registry Price Paid Data. Every sale of a registered property in England and Wales appears here once it completes, so the most recent weeks are always still filling in.
Source: HM Land Registry Price Paid Data
Schools nearby
231 schools within 3 miles , of which 89% are rated Outstanding or Good by Ofsted.
| Nearest well-rated schools | Stage | Ofsted | Distance | Admitted from |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avonmore Primary School | Primary | Outstanding | 0.5 mi away | no figure |
| Fulham Primary School | Primary | Outstanding | 0.6 mi away | no figure |
| The London Oratory School | Secondary | Outstanding | 0.7 mi away | no figure |
| Oratory Roman Catholic Primary School | Primary | Outstanding | 0.9 mi away | 0.72 mi 2025/26 |
| Fox Primary School | Primary | Outstanding | 1.1 mi away | no figure |
| Christ Church CofE Primary School | Primary | Outstanding | 1.3 mi away | 0.44 mi 2025/26 |
Schools in SW5 with a published admission distance
How far away the last child offered a place lived, as the council published it. Tightest first; each name opens the school's page and its postcode checker.
| School | Stage | Admitted from | Round |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bousfield Primary School | Primary | 0.34 mi | 2025/26 |
Will an address here get a place? How far Kensington and Chelsea schools admitted from, school by school →
101 state primary and 26 state secondary schools within range, plus 74 fee-paying schools.
Private schools
74 fee-paying schools within 3 miles: Arnold House School, Ashbourne College, Azbuka Russian-English Bilingual School, Bales College, Bassett House School, Brighton College Prep Kensington and others.
All 74 fee-paying schools near SW5, with ages and admissions →
Fee-paying schools are inspected by the Independent Schools Inspectorate, not Ofsted, and the ISI publishes no open data feed. That is why they carry no rating here. A missing grade means we cannot see one, not that the school was judged poorly.
Universities
6 higher education institutions within 3 miles: Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, Institute of Cancer Research, London Business School, Royal Academy of Music, Royal College of Art, Royal College of Music.
Relevant beyond study: a large student population shapes rental demand, and term-time letting is a different market from family letting.
What people here do for work
The most common occupations among working residents, from the 2021 Census. This is occupation rather than industry: it says what people do, not which industries employ them.
| Occupation group | Share of workers |
|---|---|
| Managers, directors and senior officials | 30.9% |
| Professional occupations | 30.0% |
| Associate professional and technical | 17.0% |
| Administrative and secretarial | 5.7% |
| Caring, leisure and other service | 5.7% |
Source: ONS Census 2021, table TS063, for this district's small area.
How SW5 has changed since 2011
The biggest move: degree-level adults, up 10.3 points since 2011, with England's change beside each line.
How to read this
The census neighbourhood at the centre of SW5 (E01002849, 1,542 residents in 2021, up 1.1% on 2011) on the 2011 and 2021 censuses, with England's own change over the same decade for scale. Each line is a share of the neighbourhood's households or residents, so a growing area and a shrinking one compare fairly. The biggest move here: degree-level adults, up 10.3 points.
| Measure | 2011 | 2021 | Change | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 43.1% | 33.6% | -9.5 pts | -2.0 pts |
| Households renting privately | 41.8% | 50.9% | +9.1 pts | +3.7 pts |
| Households renting socially | 13.0% | 15.0% | +2.0 pts | -0.6 pts |
| Residents under 15 | 13.6% | 15.8% | +2.2 pts | -0.3 pts |
| Residents 65 and over | 9.4% | 11.7% | +2.3 pts | +2.1 pts |
| Adults with a degree or equivalent | 59.6% | 69.9% | +10.3 pts | +6.5 pts |
| Residents born outside the UK | 60.1% | 61.3% | +1.2 pts | +3.6 pts |
| Residents in good or very good health | 87.5% | 91.6% | +4.1 pts | +0.8 pts |
| Residents in a white ethnic group | 72.2% | 72.2% | 0.0 pts | -4.4 pts |
Office for National Statistics, Census 2011 and Census 2021, Open Government Licence. A district holds many neighbourhoods; the full report for an address shows the one it sits in.
Crime
1,289 crimes recorded within roughly a mile of central SW5 in August 2026, most commonly anti social behaviour.
Flood risk
Zone 1 (low probability). This is the Environment Agency's flood zone for the area's centre point, an individual property's own risk can differ, especially near a specific watercourse.
Deprivation
This area falls in decile 6 of 10 on the Index of Multiple Deprivation (moderately deprived ), based on Kensington and Chelsea's figures.
Buses from the centre of SW5
Best-served stop: Earl's Court Station, with 21.4 buses an hour on weekday daytimes.
Evenings, Sundays and routes
The best-served stop within 800 m of the centre of SW5 is Earl's Court Station: 21.4 buses an hour on a weekday daytime, 20.8 in the evening and 24.6 on Sunday daytime; first bus 00:03, last 00:33. Routes there: 328, 74, C1, C3. 5 stops with a scheduled service within that distance.
Departures a passenger can board, from the timetables operators publish to the Department for Transport's Bus Open Data Service, for Tuesday 8 Sep 2026 and Sunday 13 Sep 2026. Scheduled, not observed. Two stops on opposite sides of a road are two stops. The full report does this for the stops within 500 m of an address.
Source: operators' timetables on the Bus Open Data Service (Department for Transport)
GP practices and A&E
3 GP practices within 3.0 km of the centre of SW5. The nearest, Earls Court Medical Centre, has 6,673 registered patients and 1,383 patients per fully qualified GP, against an England median of 2,186.
| Practice | From the centre | Patients | Per qualified GP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Earls Court Medical Centre | 79 yd | 6,673 | 1,383 |
| Health and Wellbeing Centre, Earls Court | 159 yd | 9,507 | 3,495 |
| Brompton Medical Centre | 0.2 mi | 4,900 | 2,964 |
Nearest A&E: Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust, where 70.3% of type 1 attendances were seen within four hours in July 2026; then Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust at 73.1%.
How to read this
NHS England: patients registered at a GP practice (1 Aug 2026), the general practice workforce (July 2026), and A&E attendances by provider, monthly. Fully qualified GPs exclude trainees. Practices are matched by postcode.
Source: NHS England, monthly releases
Council tax and the council's finances
A Band D household in Kensington & Chelsea pays £1,667 for 2026-27, all precepts included, a rise of 4.7% on the year before against an England median rise of 4.8%. Every band for Kensington & Chelsea, and how it compares.
| Year | Band D bill | Rise |
|---|---|---|
| 2021-22 | £1,331 | +6.1% |
| 2022-23 | £1,382 | +3.8% |
| 2023-24 | £1,442 | +4.3% |
| 2024-25 | £1,530 | +6.1% |
| 2025-26 | £1,592 | +4.1% |
| 2026-27 | £1,667 | +4.7% |
Exceptional Financial Support. Kensington & Chelsea was agreed support by government for 2023-24 (£51.8m), 2022-23 (£23.2m). Support is permission to borrow, or to spend capital receipts, on day-to-day services because the council could not otherwise set a balanced budget. Councils in this position tend to cut services and raise council tax by the most the rules allow.
How to read this
A home's own band is on its council tax bill, free to look up at gov.uk/council-tax-bands; the report shows every band's bill at the council beside the home's other checks.
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, live council tax tables (Band D, area averages) and the Exceptional Financial Support lists published each year; section 114 notices as published by the councils.
Source: MHCLG live council tax tables and Exceptional Financial Support lists
Common questions about SW5
What is the average house price in SW5?
The average sold price in Kensington and Chelsea is £1,232,640 as of July 2026, according to the UK House Price Index.
Are house prices rising in SW5?
Prices in Kensington and Chelsea are down 14.1% on a year ago (UK House Price Index). The index for Kensington and Chelsea rests on 68 recorded sales in May 2026, the newest month with a count. July 2026 is a first estimate, which HM Land Registry revises as more sales are registered.
What do houses actually sell for in SW5?
The median of 92 recorded sales around central SW5 in the last 2 years is £1,010,000, ranging from £194,000 to £4,410,500 (HM Land Registry Price Paid Data).
Are the schools good in SW5?
231 schools sit within 3 miles of central SW5, and 89% are rated Outstanding or Good by Ofsted.
How much crime is there in SW5?
1,289 crimes were recorded within roughly a mile of central SW5 in August 2026, most commonly anti social behaviour (Police.uk).
Is SW5 at risk of flooding?
Central SW5 sits in Zone 1 (low probability) for river and sea flooding (Environment Agency). Individual addresses vary, so check the full report for a specific property.
Is SW5 a good place to live?
That depends on what you need, so here is what the official data says rather than an opinion: 89% of nearby schools are rated Outstanding or Good by Ofsted; the median home sells for £1,010,000; the area sits in decile 6 of 10 on the Index of Multiple Deprivation; 1,289 crimes were recorded within about a mile. Every one of those figures names its source on this page.
Is SW5 safe?
1,289 crimes were recorded within roughly a mile of central SW5 in August 2026, according to Police.uk. The most common category was anti social behaviour. Crime counts follow how many people are around, so a busy district records more than a quiet one of the same size.
Neighbouring districts
Want the full picture for a specific property?
This page covers SW5 as a whole. For sold price history, EPC rating, exact-address crime and flood risk, school catchment areas and 30+ other checks on one specific property, search its full postcode.