SW1W 8ED Kensington and Chelsea
Live postcode, introduced January 1980. Ward: Royal Hospital. Region: London.
Streets
- Holbein Place, City of Westminster: 51 addresses
- Lower Sloane Street, Chelsea: 1 address
Council tax
What each band costs in Kensington and Chelsea in 2026-27: Band D £1,667 a year on average, including the police, fire and any county and parish charges.
| A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £1,111 | £1,296 | £1,481 | £1,667 | £2,037 | £2,407 | £2,778 | £3,333 |
Homes by band in the neighbourhood around this postcode: most are in band G (44% of about 1,220 homes).
Planning and heritage
- Conservation area: yes, Sloane Square (council page). Extensions, demolition, some windows and doors, and work on trees need consent.
- Listed buildings within 100 m of this postcode: 1.
- Article 4 direction (removing permitted development rights): Article 4 - No 100.
- Tree preservation orders: in a protected area: 22.
- Green belt: no.
Listed buildings
Brownfield land registered for housing within 1 km (0.6 miles)
- Development Site Bounded By Ebury Street, Pimlico Road, Avery Farm Row, Ebury Square And Cundy Street, London, pending decision (370 m)
- Ebury Square Johnson House, not permissioned (420 m (0.3 miles))
- Ebury Square Johnson House, not permissioned (420 m (0.3 miles))
- 48-56 Ebury Bridge Road SW1, not permissioned (430 m (0.3 miles))
- 48-56 Ebury Bridge Road SW1, not permissioned (430 m (0.3 miles))
- Ebury Bridge House 10 Ebury Bridge Road London SW1W 8PZ, permissioned (440 m (0.3 miles))
- Development Site At Chelsea Barracks Chelsea Bridge Road London, permissioned (440 m (0.3 miles))
- 118 - 124 Ebury Street London SW1W 9QQ, permissioned (510 m (0.3 miles))
Flood risk
No address in this postcode is in an area at high, medium or low risk of flooding from rivers, the sea or surface water. The rest are in areas at very low risk: less than a 0.1% (1 in 1,000) chance a year.
Rivers and the sea alone: no home is in an area at risk.
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: the postcode centre is in flood zone 2. Zone 2 is between 0.1% and 1% a year from rivers (0.1% and 0.5% from the sea), ignoring defences.
Height above sea level
The postcode's addresses are about 6 m above sea level.
Broadband
Superfast 100%, ultrafast 87%, gigabit 87% of premises; 0% cannot get 10 Mbit/s. Ofcom Connected Nations, data as at January 2026.
Getting around
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| Railway stations | London Victoria 54 million journeys in 2024–25 | 1 km (0.6 miles) |
| Battersea Park 2.2 million journeys in 2024–25 | 1.6 km (1 mile) | |
| Queenstown Road (Battersea) 806,000 journeys in 2024–25 | 1.9 km (1.2 miles) | |
| Underground, metro or tram | Sloane Square Underground Station | 180 m |
| Victoria Underground Station | 1.1 km (0.7 miles) | |
| Knightsbridge Underground Station | 1.3 km (0.8 miles) | |
| Bus stops | 21 stops within 400 m (0.2 miles), 60 within 800 m (0.5 miles); nearest Royal Hospital Road Chelsea | 80 m |
| Bus or coach station | Victoria Station | 1 km (0.6 miles) |
| Ferry terminal | Battersea Power Station Pier | 1.1 km (0.7 miles) |
| Car parks | 3 within 800 m (0.5 miles); nearest Apex Parking - Victoria | 510 m (0.3 miles) |
| EV charging points | 62 within 1.6 km (1 mile); nearest Shell Recharge | 80 m |
| Airport with scheduled flights | London City Airport LCY | 14.8 km (9.2 miles) |
| Nearest large airport | London Heathrow Airport LHR | 21.2 km (13 miles) |
Local services
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| GP surgeries | 9 practices within 1.6 km (1 mile); nearest Belgrave Medical Centre | 370 m |
| Pharmacies | 25 pharmacies within 1.6 km (1 mile); nearest Boots | 280 m |
| NHS dentists | 20 practices within 1.6 km (1 mile); nearest The No8 Partnership | 160 m |
| Hospital | Lister Hospital | 630 m (0.4 miles) |
| Police station | Police.uk | 520 m (0.3 miles) |
| Cash machines | 2 machines within 800 m (0.5 miles); nearest Cashpoint® 33-33A Kings Road Lloyds Bank | 320 m |
Parks and green space
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| Park or garden | 16 within 800 m (0.5 miles); nearest Unnamed 2,050 m² | 210 m |
| Largest park within 800 m (0.5 miles) | Ranelagh Gardens 5.7 ha | 280 m |
| Play area | 6 within 800 m (0.5 miles); nearest Unnamed 400 m² | 510 m (0.3 miles) |
| Playing field | 1 within 800 m (0.5 miles); nearest Unnamed 1.6 ha | 350 m |
| Allotments | Unnamed 760 m² | 2.2 km (1.4 miles) |
Within 800 m (0.5 miles): 16 parks and gardens, 15 hectares in all.
Landmarks
The nearest historic landmark is Duke of York's Headquarters, a listed building (Grade II*), 150 m west. 463 listed buildings are within 1 km (0.6 miles), 11 of them Grade I and 45 of them Grade II*.
| Name | What it is | From the postcode's centre |
|---|---|---|
| Duke of York's Headquarters | Listed building, Grade II* | 150 m west |
| Church of St Mary | Listed building, Grade II* | 230 m north-east |
| Peter Jones Store | Listed building, Grade II* | 250 m north-west |
| Church of Holy Trinity | Listed building, Grade I | 290 m north |
| ROYAL HOSPITAL, CHELSEA and RANELAGH GARDENS | Registered park or garden, Grade II | 390 m south |
| Cadogan Place | Registered park or garden, Grade II | 660 m (0.4 miles) north |
| Palace of Westminster, Westminster Abbey and St. Margaret's Church | World Heritage Site | 2.3 km (1.4 miles) north-east |
| Name | What it is | From the postcode's centre |
|---|---|---|
| Chelsea Reach | Tidal water | 890 m (0.6 miles) south |
| Fountain Lake | Lake or reservoir | 1.2 km (0.8 miles) south |
| Duck Pond | Lake or reservoir | 1.3 km (0.8 miles) south |
| Ladies Pond | Lake or reservoir | 1.4 km (0.8 miles) south |
| Ransome's Dock | Lake or reservoir | 1.4 km (0.9 miles) south-west |
| Paddington Green | Wood | 3.5 km (2.2 miles) north |
Air quality
| Pollutant | Here | UK limit | WHO guideline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) | 24.7 | 40 | 10 |
| Fine particles (PM2.5) | 9.7 | 20 | 5 |
| Particles (PM10) | 16.4 | 40 | 15 |
All three are within the UK legal limits; all three are above the WHO guideline, as in most towns and cities.
Road, rail and aircraft noise
| Level | Road traffic | Railways | Aircraft |
|---|---|---|---|
| 75 dB or more | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 70 to 74 | 12 | 0 | 0 |
| 65 to 69 | 13 | 0 | 0 |
| 60 to 64 | 17 | 0 | 0 |
| 55 to 59 | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| Under 55 | 0 | 52 | 52 |
52 of the postcode's 52 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 Kensington and Chelsea: see them on the Kensington and Chelsea page.
People and work
Who lives here
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Median age | 43 | 40 |
| Children under 15 | 11% | 17% |
| Aged 65 and over | 13% | 18% |
Homes
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Owned (outright or with a mortgage) | 31% | 61% |
| Owned outright | 20% | 33% |
| Shared ownership | 0% | 1% |
| Social rented | 6% | 17% |
| Private rented | 63% | 21% |
Work and commuting
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Adults (16 and over) in work | 61% | 57% |
| Unemployment (of those working or looking for work) | 15% | 6% |
| Retired (of adults) | 10% | 22% |
| Long-term sick or disabled (of adults) | 0% | 4% |
| Work mainly from home (of those in work) | 64% | 32% |
| Travel to work by car or van | 5% | 48% |
| By train, Underground, metro or tram | 10% | 4% |
| By any public transport, including bus | 14% | 8% |
| On foot or by bicycle | 15% | 10% |
| Work within 10 km (6 miles) of home (of those who travel to work) | 91% | 65% |
| Work 30 km (19 miles) or more away | 5% | 8% |
Education and languages
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Degree or other higher qualification, Level 4+ (of adults) | 76% | 34% |
| No qualifications | 7% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship as highest qualification | 2% | 5% |
| Main language English (aged 3 and over) | 73% | 91% |
| Cannot speak English well or at all | 0% | 2% |
Deprivation
The neighbourhood around this postcode is in decile 6 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 Holbein Place.