Compare

Orwell

Ward

South east Babergh. About 2,756 people (mid-2024 estimate) in 34 square kilometres.

Open in map

Radon Affected Area by ward

Worked out by Open Index · 2022

Under 1%90% or more

About 89% of people in Orwell live in a 1 km square that the radon atlas marks as a radon Affected Area.

Population
2,514
Joint 657th least populated of 8,397
ONS Census 2021 · 2021
People in radon Affected Area squares
89%
UK 44%
Worked out by Open Index
Gigabit broadband coverage
45.2%
UK 87.8%
Ofcom · Jan 2026
Claimant rate
2.5%
UK 3.9%
ONS via Nomis · Aug 2026

How Orwell compares

Each dot is a ward. The black line marks the middle one.

OrwellMiddle
Population24 wards, Babergh · 2021
Population: every ward in Babergh24 areas from 2,289 to 9,950. The middle area is 2,991. Orwell is 2,514.
2,5143rd least populated
People in radon Affected Area squares24 wards, Babergh · 2022
People in radon Affected Area squares: every ward in Babergh24 areas from 0.0% to 100.0%. The middle area is 46.0%. Orwell is 89.0%.
89%2nd most people in radon Affected Areas
Gigabit broadband coverage24 wards, Babergh · Jan 2026
Gigabit broadband coverage: every ward in Babergh24 areas from 28.1% to 97.6%. The middle area is 76.8%. Orwell is 45.2%.
45.2%4th lowest
Claimant rate24 wards, Babergh · Aug 2026
Claimant rate: every ward in Babergh24 areas from 0.5% to 4.4%. The middle area is 2.2%. Orwell is 2.5%.
2.5%joint 7th highest

Is Orwell safe? What police records show

In the 12 months to August 2026, police recorded crimes and anti-social behaviour in Orwell at a rate of 43.4 per 1,000 people.

That compares with 45.6 per 1,000 people across Babergh.

Across England as a whole, the recorded crime rate was 96.3 per 1,000 people.

In August 2026 alone, 8 cases of crime and anti-social behaviour were recorded in Orwell.

In the 12 months to August 2026, the most common types were violence and sexual offences (44), other crime (21) and criminal damage and arson (14).

Worked out by Open Index from police.uk crime records and ONS and NISRA population estimates.

Rates are per resident, so places that many people work in or visit, such as Westminster, the City of London and other city centres, have far higher rates than their residents alone would suggest.

Figures for the whole of Babergh

These figures are published for the whole of Babergh, not for each ward, so they describe all of Babergh and not Orwell alone. See Babergh

Average house price
£331,207
Up 0.9% in a year
HM Land Registry · Aug 2026
Median full-time pay
£33,904
30th lowest paid of 348
ONS earnings survey · 2025
House price to pay
9.8×
59th least affordable of 348
Worked out by Open Index
Deprivation score
15.4
104th least deprived of 296
MHCLG · England only
Orwell in brief

Orwell had 2,514 usual residents at the census.

About 89% of people in Orwell live in a 1 km square that the radon atlas marks as a radon Affected Area.

In Orwell, 45.2% of homes and businesses could get gigabit-capable broadband in January 2026.

In Orwell, 2.5% of residents aged 16 to 64 were claiming out-of-work benefits in August 2026.