LA1 1AY Lancaster
Live postcode, introduced June 2002. Ward: Castle. Region: North West.
Streets
- Waterside, Lancaster: 63 addresses
- Water Street, Lancaster: 1 address
- Morecambe Road, Lancaster: 1 address
- Waterside, Lancaster: 1 address
- Unnamed street near St George's Quay, Lancaster: 1 address
- Unnamed street near Waterside, Lancaster: 1 address
Council tax
What each band costs in Lancaster in 2026-27: Band D £2,503 a year on average, including the police, fire and any county and parish charges.
| A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £1,669 | £1,947 | £2,225 | £2,503 | £3,059 | £3,616 | £4,172 | £5,006 |
Homes by band in the neighbourhood around this postcode: most are in band A (74% of about 1,600 homes).
Planning and heritage
- Conservation area: yes, Lancaster (council page). Extensions, demolition, some windows and doors, and work on trees need consent.
- Listed buildings within 100 m of this postcode: 5.
- Article 4 direction (removing permitted development rights): none recorded, though not every council has published theirs.
- Tree preservation orders: none recorded, though not every council has published theirs.
- Green belt: no.
Listed buildings
- 1 AND 3, CABLE STREET, grade II
- 1, WATER STREET, grade II
- 5, CABLE STREET, grade II
- 9 AND 11, CABLE STREET, grade II
- THE THREE MARINERS PUBLIC HOUSE, grade II
Brownfield land registered for housing within 1 km (0.6 miles)
- Damside Street Car Park, North Of 50-62 Church Street, Lancaster, LA1 1LH, not permissioned (180 m)
- 47-51 North Road: up to 35 homes, permissioned (270 m)
- Tramway Hotel, 127 St Leonards Gate, Lancaster, LA1 1NL, not permissioned (330 m)
- Land At Corner Of Bulk Road And St Leonards Gate: up to 4 homes, not permissioned (440 m (0.3 miles))
- Canal Corridor North Development Site, Lancaster, not permissioned (440 m (0.3 miles))
- Canal Quarter, Lancaster: up to 400 homes, not permissioned (440 m (0.3 miles))
- 5-11 Brock Street: up to 35 homes, not permissioned (480 m (0.3 miles))
- J Wedlake and Son, Wheatfield Street, permissioned (530 m (0.3 miles))
Flood risk
Rivers, the sea or surface water: in this postcode, 3 addresses are in areas at high risk, 0 at medium risk and 38 at low risk. Each address counts once, at the higher of its rivers-and-sea and surface-water risk.
Rivers and the sea alone: of the 57 homes the Environment Agency counts, 2 are in areas at high risk, 0 medium, 38 low and 0 very low.
High: 3.3% (1 in 30) or more chance of flooding a year. Medium: 1% to 3.3%. Low: 0.1% to 1%. Very low: under 0.1%. The rivers and sea figures allow for flood defences. Counts cover whole postcodes, which can include other streets.
Flood zone for planning: no postcode centre is in flood zone 2 or 3.
Height above sea level
The postcode's 68 addresses are between -3 m and 7 m above sea level (3 m on average).
Broadband
Superfast 100%, ultrafast 0%, gigabit 0% of premises; 0% cannot get 10 Mbit/s. Ofcom Connected Nations, data as at January 2026.
Getting around
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| Railway stations | Lancaster 2.2 million journeys in 2024–25 | 510 m (0.3 miles) |
| Bare Lane 119,000 journeys in 2024–25 | 3.4 km (2.1 miles) | |
| Morecambe 175,000 journeys in 2024–25 | 4.9 km (3 miles) | |
| Bus stops | 9 stops within 400 m (0.2 miles), 54 within 800 m (0.5 miles); nearest Greyhound Bridge Skerton | 180 m |
| Bus or coach station | Bus Station Lancaster City Centre | 120 m |
| Ferry terminal | Heysham Ferry Terminal | 7.5 km (4.7 miles) |
| Car parks | 4 within 800 m (0.5 miles); nearest Lodge Street Car Park | 430 m (0.3 miles) |
| EV charging points | 3 within 1.6 km (1 mile); nearest bp pulse Charging Station | 540 m (0.3 miles) |
| Airport with scheduled flights | Leeds Bradford Airport LBA | 77.7 km (48 miles) |
Local services
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| GP surgeries | 2 practices within 1.6 km (1 mile); nearest Lancaster Medical Practice | 540 m (0.3 miles) |
| Pharmacies | 5 pharmacies within 1.6 km (1 mile); nearest Boots | 360 m |
| NHS dentists | 10 practices within 1.6 km (1 mile); nearest Bay Dental Partnership | 280 m |
| Hospital | Royal Lancaster Infirmary | 1 km (0.6 miles) |
| Police station | Lancaster Police Station | 620 m (0.4 miles) |
| Cash machines | 2 machines within 800 m (0.5 miles); nearest Payzone | 270 m |
Parks and green space
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| Park or garden | 7 within 800 m (0.5 miles); nearest Vicarage Field 6.4 ha | 140 m |
| Largest park within 800 m (0.5 miles) | Ryelands Park 19 ha | 420 m (0.3 miles) |
| Play area | 7 within 800 m (0.5 miles); nearest Unnamed 390 m² | 170 m |
| Playing field | 2 within 800 m (0.5 miles); nearest Quay Meadow Sports Ground 2.3 ha | 390 m |
| Allotments | Fairfield Allotments 2.2 ha | 900 m (0.6 miles) |
Within 800 m (0.5 miles): 7 parks and gardens, 49 hectares in all.
Landmarks
The nearest historic landmark is National Westminster Bank, a listed building (Grade II*), 190 m south. 271 listed buildings are within 1 km (0.6 miles), 3 of them Grade I and 20 of them Grade II*.
| Name | What it is | From the postcode's centre |
|---|---|---|
| National Westminster Bank | Listed building, Grade II* | 190 m south |
| 78 and 80, Church Street | Listed building, Grade II* | 190 m south-west |
| Conservative Club and Attached Railings | Listed building, Grade II* | 190 m south |
| 42 and 44, Church Street | Listed building, Grade II* | 220 m south |
| Part of a Roman fort and its associated vicus and remains of a pre-Conquest monastery and a Benedictine priory on Castle Hill | Scheduled monument | 270 m west |
| Glass melting and annealing workshop; part of Shrigley and Hunt's stained glass manufacturing workshops | Scheduled monument | 300 m south-west |
| Skerton Bridge | Scheduled monument | 450 m (0.3 miles) north-east |
| Ashton Memorial Gardens and Williamson Park | Registered park or garden, Grade II | 1.5 km (0.9 miles) south-east |
| Lancaster Cemetery | Registered park or garden, Grade II | 1.6 km (1 mile) east |
| Name | What it is | From the postcode's centre |
|---|---|---|
| Freeman's Wood | Wood | 2 km (1.2 miles) west |
| Ridge Wood | Wood | 2 km (1.2 miles) north-east |
| Black Wood | Wood | 2.3 km (1.5 miles) south-east |
| Oxcliffe Hill | Hill | 2.6 km (1.6 miles) west |
| Oxcliffe Marsh | Wetland | 2.6 km (1.6 miles) west |
| Langthwaite Reservoir | Lake or reservoir | 3.7 km (2.3 miles) south-east |
Air quality
| Pollutant | Here | UK limit | WHO guideline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) | 7.5 | 40 | 10 |
| Fine particles (PM2.5) | 5.6 | 20 | 5 |
| Particles (PM10) | 9.0 | 40 | 15 |
All three are within the UK legal limits; PM2.5 is above the WHO guideline, as in most towns and cities.
Road and rail noise
| Level | Road traffic | Railways |
|---|---|---|
| 60 to 64 | 29 | 0 |
| 55 to 59 | 27 | 0 |
| Under 55 | 12 | 68 |
56 of the postcode's 68 addresses are modelled at 55 dB or more from road traffic, above the WHO guidelines.
Climate, daylight and earthquakes
Monthly temperatures and rainfall, sunrise and sunset through the year, and earthquakes recorded nearby since 1970 are much the same across the area, so they are worked out once for Lancaster: see them on the Lancaster page.
People and work
Who lives here
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Median age | 24 | 40 |
| Children under 15 | 3% | 17% |
| Aged 65 and over | 5% | 18% |
Homes
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Owned (outright or with a mortgage) | 13% | 61% |
| Owned outright | 9% | 33% |
| Shared ownership | 3% | 1% |
| Social rented | 21% | 17% |
| Private rented | 62% | 21% |
Work and commuting
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Adults (16 and over) in work | 28% | 57% |
| Unemployment (of those working or looking for work) | 19% | 6% |
| Retired (of adults) | 6% | 22% |
| Long-term sick or disabled (of adults) | 4% | 4% |
| Work mainly from home (of those in work) | 37% | 32% |
| Travel to work by car or van | 22% | 48% |
| By train, Underground, metro or tram | 3% | 4% |
| By any public transport, including bus | 12% | 8% |
| On foot or by bicycle | 27% | 10% |
| Work within 10 km (6 miles) of home (of those who travel to work) | 84% | 65% |
| Work 30 km (19 miles) or more away | 13% | 8% |
Education and languages
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Degree or other higher qualification, Level 4+ (of adults) | 42% | 34% |
| No qualifications | 9% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship as highest qualification | 2% | 5% |
| Main language English (aged 3 and over) | 71% | 91% |
| Cannot speak English well or at all | 2% | 2% |
Deprivation
The neighbourhood around this postcode is in decile 5 of 10 on the English Indices of Deprivation 2025, where 1 is the most deprived tenth of England's 33,755 neighbourhoods and 10 the least.
The full dossier for this postcode's main street is on Waterside.