WC2N 5AE Westminster
Live postcode, introduced July 2011. Ward: St James's. Region: London.
Streets
- Northumberland Avenue, City of Westminster: 3 addresses
- Whitehall Place, City of Westminster: 1 address
Council tax
What each band costs in Westminster in 2026-27: Band D £1,050 a year on average, including the police, fire and any county and parish charges.
| A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £700 | £816 | £933 | £1,050 | £1,283 | £1,516 | £1,749 | £2,099 |
Homes by band in the neighbourhood around this postcode: most are in band H (38% of about 1,490 homes).
Planning and heritage
- Conservation area: yes, Whitehall (council page). Extensions, demolition, some windows and doors, and work on trees need consent.
- Listed buildings within 100 m of this postcode: 13.
- Article 4 direction (removing permitted development rights): Article 4 Basement Development Permitted Rights Removed.
- Tree preservation orders: none recorded, though not every council has published theirs.
- Green belt: no.
Listed buildings
- THE NATIONAL LIBERAL CLUB, grade II*
- 1 Embankment Place, grade II
- 1, CRAVEN PASSAGE WC2, grade II
- 11 AND 12, CRAVEN STREET WC2, grade II
- 13 AND 14, CRAVEN STREET WC2, grade II
- 25-30, CRAVEN STREET WC2, grade II
- 31, CRAVEN STREET WC2, grade II
- 32, CRAVEN STREET WC2, grade II
- 33 AND 34, CRAVEN STREET WC2, grade II
- Cabmen's Shelter, Northumberland Avenue, grade II
- NIGERIA HOUSE, grade II
- PLAYHOUSE THEATRE, grade II
- STATUE OF SIR JAMES OUTRAM, grade II
Brownfield land registered for housing within 1 km (0.6 miles)
- Old War Office Whitehall London SW1A 2EU, permissioned (140 m)
- Old War Office Whitehall London SW1A 2EU, permissioned (150 m)
- Old War Office Whitehall London SW1A 2EU, permissioned (150 m)
- 5 Strand London WC2N 5AF, pending decision (170 m)
- 5 Strand London WC2N 5AF, pending decision (170 m)
- 49 Charing Cross London SW1A 2DX, permissioned (240 m)
- 49 Charing Cross London SW1A 2DX, permissioned (240 m)
- Admiralty Arch The Mall London SW1A 2DY, permissioned (300 m)
Flood risk
Rivers, the sea or surface water: in this postcode, 1 address is in areas at high risk, 0 at medium risk and 0 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: 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 100%, gigabit 100% of premises; 0% cannot get 10 Mbit/s. Ofcom Connected Nations, data as at January 2026.
Getting around
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| Railway stations | London Charing Cross 20 million journeys in 2024–25 | 150 m |
| London Waterloo 70 million journeys in 2024–25 | 860 m (0.5 miles) | |
| Tottenham Court Road 68 million journeys in 2024–25 | 1.1 km (0.7 miles) | |
| Underground, metro or tram | Embankment Underground Station | 120 m |
| Charing Cross Underground Station | 220 m | |
| Leicester Square Underground Station | 600 m (0.4 miles) | |
| Bus stops | 28 stops within 400 m (0.2 miles), 76 within 800 m (0.5 miles); nearest Northumberland Avenue Westminster | 40 m |
| Bus or coach station | Victoria Station | 1.9 km (1.2 miles) |
| Ferry terminal | Embankment Pier | 220 m |
| Car parks | 10 within 800 m (0.5 miles); nearest Q-Park Trafalgar | 340 m |
| EV charging points | 54 within 1.6 km (1 mile); nearest Shell Recharge | 320 m |
| Airport with scheduled flights | London City Airport LCY | 12.5 km (7.7 miles) |
| Nearest large airport | London Heathrow Airport LHR | 23.6 km (15 miles) |
Local services
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| GP surgeries | 12 practices within 1.6 km (1 mile); nearest Kings College Health Centre | 770 m (0.5 miles) |
| Pharmacies | 24 pharmacies within 1.6 km (1 mile); nearest Superdrug Pharmacy | 290 m |
| NHS dentists | 31 practices within 1.6 km (1 mile); nearest Covent Garden Dental Clinic | 350 m |
| Hospital | Evelina London Children's Hospital | 1 km (0.6 miles) |
| Police station | Mounted Police | 120 m |
| Cash machines | 6 machines within 800 m (0.5 miles); nearest Strand NatWest | 260 m |
Parks and green space
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| Park or garden | 9 within 800 m (0.5 miles); nearest Victoria Embankment Gardens 3.8 ha | 140 m |
| Largest park within 800 m (0.5 miles) | St James's Park 23 ha | 420 m (0.3 miles) |
| Play area | 2 within 800 m (0.5 miles); nearest Unnamed 690 m² | 530 m (0.3 miles) |
| Playing field | Unnamed 4,070 m² | 1.2 km (0.8 miles) |
| Allotments | Lamlash Street Allotments 880 m² | 2 km (1.2 miles) |
Within 800 m (0.5 miles): 9 parks and gardens, 31 hectares in all.
Landmarks
The nearest historic landmark is The National Liberal Club, a listed building (Grade II*), 70 m south-east. 897 listed buildings are within 1 km (0.6 miles), 89 of them Grade I and 128 of them Grade II*.
| Name | What it is | From the postcode's centre |
|---|---|---|
| The National Liberal Club | Listed building, Grade II* | 70 m south-east |
| 36, Craven Street Wc2 | Listed building, Grade I | 110 m north |
| Whitehall Court | Listed building, Grade II* | 140 m south |
| Harrington House | Listed building, Grade II* | 150 m west |
| Victoria Embankment Gardens | Registered park or garden, Grade II* | 250 m north-east |
| Trafalgar Square | Registered park or garden, Grade I | 300 m north-west |
| Palace of Westminster, Westminster Abbey and St. Margaret's Church | World Heritage Site | 850 m (0.5 miles) south |
| The Chapter House and Pyx Chamber in the abbey cloisters, Westminster Abbey | Scheduled monument | 880 m (0.5 miles) south |
| The Jewel Tower | Scheduled monument | 920 m (0.6 miles) south |
| Inner Temple Hall Buttery | Scheduled monument | 1.2 km (0.7 miles) north-east |
| Name | What it is | From the postcode's centre |
|---|---|---|
| King's Reach | Tidal water | 360 m south-east |
| Pelican Pool | Lake or reservoir | 560 m (0.3 miles) south-west |
| Duck Island | Island | 610 m (0.4 miles) south-west |
| St James's Park Lake | Lake or reservoir | 810 m (0.5 miles) south-west |
| Paddington Green | Wood | 3.8 km (2.4 miles) north-west |
| Barrow Hill | Hill | 4.3 km (2.7 miles) north-west |
Air quality
| Pollutant | Here | UK limit | WHO guideline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) | 33.1 | 40 | 10 |
| Fine particles (PM2.5) | 10.5 | 20 | 5 |
| Particles (PM10) | 17.4 | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 70 to 74 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 65 to 69 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 60 to 64 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Under 55 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
4 of the postcode's 4 addresses are modelled at 55 dB or more from road traffic, and 4 from railways, above the WHO guidelines.
People and work
Who lives here
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Median age | 27 | 40 |
| Children under 15 | 5% | 17% |
| Aged 65 and over | 11% | 18% |
Homes
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Owned (outright or with a mortgage) | 55% | 61% |
| Owned outright | 37% | 33% |
| Shared ownership | 3% | 1% |
| Social rented | under 1% | 17% |
| Private rented | 42% | 21% |
Work and commuting
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Adults (16 and over) in work | 42% | 57% |
| Unemployment (of those working or looking for work) | 12% | 6% |
| Retired (of adults) | 8% | 22% |
| Long-term sick or disabled (of adults) | under 1% | 4% |
| Work mainly from home (of those in work) | 64% | 32% |
| Travel to work by car or van | 7% | 48% |
| By train, Underground, metro or tram | 8% | 4% |
| By any public transport, including bus | 10% | 8% |
| On foot or by bicycle | 18% | 10% |
| Work within 10 km (6 miles) of home (of those who travel to work) | 89% | 65% |
| Work 30 km (19 miles) or more away | 6% | 8% |
Education and languages
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Degree or other higher qualification, Level 4+ (of adults) | 73% | 34% |
| No qualifications | 4% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship as highest qualification | 0% | 5% |
| Main language English (aged 3 and over) | 70% | 91% |
| Cannot speak English well or at all | 0% | 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 Northumberland Avenue.