SW3 4BD Kensington and Chelsea
Live postcode, introduced January 1980. Ward: Royal Hospital. Region: London.
Streets
- Shawfield Street, Chelsea: 33 addresses
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 H (60% of about 800 homes).
Planning and heritage
- Conservation area: yes, Royal Hospital (council page). Extensions, demolition, some windows and doors, and work on trees need consent.
- Listed buildings within 100 m of this postcode: 4.
- Article 4 direction (removing permitted development rights): Article 4 - No 100.
- Tree preservation orders: in a protected area: 29.
- Green belt: no.
Listed buildings
- 9-37, SHAWFIELD STREET SW3, grade II
- FORMER MOTORCAR GARAGE, grade II
- Former Temperance Billiard Hall, grade II
- Violet Melchett Centre, grade II
Brownfield land registered for housing within 1.0 km
- 196 to 222 King's Road: up to 39 homes, permissioned (170 m)
- 196 to 222 King's Road: up to 20 homes, permissioned (170 m)
- Chelsea Delivery Office, 232 King's Road and 18-20 Chelsea Manor Street, London SW3 3UH: up to 23 homes, permissioned (220 m)
- Chelsea Farmers' Market - Sydney Street: up to 59 homes, not permissioned (290 m)
- Chelsea Farmers' Market - Sydney Street: up to 59 homes, permissioned (290 m)
- 2 Dovehouse Street (Thamesbrook): up to 55 homes, pending decision (330 m)
- Emmanuel Kaye, King's Road: up to 10 homes, not permissioned (360 m)
- 2 Lucan Place, London, SW3 3PB: up to 32 homes, permissioned (510 m)
Flood risk
Rivers, the sea or surface water: in this postcode, 0 addresses are in areas at high risk, 7 at medium risk and 13 at low risk. Each address counts once, at the higher of its rivers-and-sea and surface-water risk.
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: no postcode centre is in flood zone 2 or 3.
Height above sea level
The postcode's addresses are about 6 m above sea level.
Broadband
Superfast 100%, ultrafast 96%, gigabit 96% 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 | 1.7 km |
| Battersea Park 2.2 million journeys in 2024–25 | 1.7 km | |
| Imperial Wharf 2.9 million journeys in 2024–25 | 1.8 km | |
| Underground, metro or tram | Sloane Square Underground Station | 840 m |
| South Kensington Underground Station | 1.0 km | |
| Gloucester Road Underground Station | 1.4 km | |
| Bus stops | 12 stops within 400 m, 50 within 800 m; nearest Chelsea Old Town Hall | 130 m |
| Bus or coach station | Victoria Station | 1.7 km |
| Ferry terminal | Cadogan Pier Chelsea | 460 m |
| Car parks | 2 within 800 m; nearest National Car Parks | 410 m |
| EV charging points | 64 within 1.6 km; nearest Shell Recharge | 60 m |
| Airport with scheduled flights | London City Airport LCY | 15.5 km |
| Nearest large airport | London Heathrow Airport LHR | 20.5 km |
Local services
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| GP surgeries | 12 practices within 1.6 km; nearest Health Partners At Violet Melchett | 110 m |
| Pharmacies | 21 pharmacies within 1.6 km; nearest Boots | 190 m |
| NHS dentists | 20 practices within 1.6 km; nearest Violet Melchett Clinic | 110 m |
| Hospital | Royal Brompton Hospital | 450 m |
| Police station | Chelsea Police Station | 520 m |
| Cash machines | 2 machines within 800 m; nearest M&S ATM | 180 m |
Parks and green space
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| Park or garden | 17 within 800 m; nearest Unnamed 1,910 m² | 150 m |
| Largest park within 800 m | Battersea Park 80 ha | 700 m |
| Play area | 3 within 800 m; nearest Unnamed 210 m² | 120 m |
| Playing field | 2 within 800 m; nearest Unnamed 1.6 ha | 320 m |
| Allotments | Unnamed 760 m² | 2.1 km |
Within 800 m: 17 parks and gardens, 93 hectares in all.
Landmarks
The nearest historic landmark is Old Vestry Hall (Part of Chelsea Town Hall), a listed building (Grade II*), 190 m west. 409 listed buildings are within 1.0 km, 6 of them Grade I and 46 of them Grade II*.
| Name | What it is | From the postcode's centre |
|---|---|---|
| Old Vestry Hall (Part of Chelsea Town Hall) | Listed building, Grade II* | 190 m west |
| Argyle House and Gates and Railings | Listed building, Grade II* | 330 m west |
| St Luke's Garden | Registered park or garden, Grade II | 340 m north-west |
| 213 and 215, Kings Road Sw3 | Listed building, Grade II* | 350 m west |
| 217, King's Road | Listed building, Grade II* | 350 m west |
| Chelsea Physic Garden | Registered park or garden, Grade I | 390 m south-east |
| Palace of Westminster, Westminster Abbey and St. Margaret's Church | World Heritage Site | 3.0 km north-east |
| Name | What it is | From the postcode's centre |
|---|---|---|
| Chelsea Reach | Tidal water | 580 m south-east |
| Ransome's Dock | Lake or reservoir | 810 m south |
| Fountain Lake | Lake or reservoir | 900 m south-east |
| Duck Pond | Lake or reservoir | 1.2 km south-east |
| Ladies Pond | Lake or reservoir | 1.2 km south-east |
| Holland Park | Wood | 3.2 km north-west |
Air quality
| Pollutant | Here | UK limit | WHO guideline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) | 24.9 | 40 | 10 |
| Fine particles (PM2.5) | 9.6 | 20 | 5 |
| Particles (PM10) | 15.9 | 40 | 15 |
All three are within the UK legal limits; all three are above the WHO guideline, as in most towns and cities.
Road and rail noise
Noise figures are still being loaded.
People and work
Who lives here
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Median age | 44 | 40 |
| Children under 15 | 16% | 17% |
| Aged 65 and over | 16% | 18% |
Homes
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Owned (outright or with a mortgage) | 59% | 61% |
| Owned outright | 43% | 33% |
| Shared ownership | 0% | 1% |
| Social rented | 1% | 17% |
| Private rented | 39% | 21% |
Work and commuting
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Adults (16 and over) in work | 64% | 57% |
| Unemployment (of those working or looking for work) | 4% | 6% |
| Retired (of adults) | 17% | 22% |
| Long-term sick or disabled (of adults) | under 1% | 4% |
| Work mainly from home (of those in work) | 73% | 32% |
| Travel to work by car or van | 5% | 48% |
| By train, Underground, metro or tram | 9% | 4% |
| By any public transport, including bus | 10% | 8% |
| On foot or by bicycle | 10% | 10% |
| Work within 10 km of home (of those who travel to work) | 92% | 65% |
| Work 30 km or more away | 4% | 8% |
Education and languages
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Degree or other higher qualification, Level 4+ (of adults) | 72% | 34% |
| No qualifications | 3% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship as highest qualification | under 1% | 5% |
| Main language English (aged 3 and over) | 88% | 91% |
| Cannot speak English well or at all | under 1% | 2% |
Deprivation
The neighbourhood around this postcode is in decile 8 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 Shawfield Street.