Small towns in Cornwall – some characteristics

The data from the ‘Understanding towns in England and Wales’ report from ONS includes 20 Cornish urban areas, 19 of which are towns.

 

14 of these urban areas were in the higher income deprived category with 6 in the medium deprived.  Apart from Saltash and Torpoint all were in the ‘Further from a major town or city’ category.

 

Median house prices vary across Cornwall, from £394,000 in St. Ives to £194,500 in Launceston.  Highest increases in prices between 2001 and 2023 were in St. Ives and Newquay, both at 3.7.  Both areas are tourist areas with a high share of unoccupied properties.  Newquay has also seen dramatic increases in housebuilding – undermining the myth that building more houses will lower prices!

 

 

BUA	Income deprivation type	2023 Median House Price £	Change in median house price 2001-2023
St Ives	3	394000	3.7
Wadebridge	3	344000	3.2
Newquay	3	330000	3.7
Falmouth	2	328000	3.6
Truro	2	295250	3.0
Hayle	3	282500	3.6
Looe	2	267875	3.4
Penryn	2	265000	3.4
Penzance	3	260000	3.3
Helston	2	255000	3.1
St Austell	3	250000	3.1
Saltash	2	235000	3.0
Redruth	3	230000	3.4
Pool	3	230000	3.4
Bodmin	3	227750	3.1
Liskeard	3	226750	3.4
St Blazey	3	214500	3.2
Torpoint	3	207500	3.5
Camborne	3	200000	3.3
Launceston	3	194500	2.5

 

 Analysis of the data looking at population change, house prices, house prices in 2023 compared to 2001, and unoccupied dwellings provide some interesting points. St. Ives and Torpoint both saw falls in population while there was little change in Looe, Penzance and St. Blazey.  In contrast Bodmin recorded an increase of 31% while both Truro and Redruth reported increases of 27%. 

 

St. Ives had the highest share of unoccupied dwellings at 33.9% reflecting usage for second homes and holiday lets.  Looe followed at 27.4%.  St. Ives saw a fall in population while Looe was stable. Again, the holiday sector impacts on house prices in these areas.

 

BUA	Pop 21 compared to 01	2023 Median House Price	2001-2023	Unoccupied
	%	£	Price ratio	%
St Ives	85.9	394000	3.7	33.9
Wadebridge	117.1	344000	3.2	8.6
Newquay	125.5	330000	3.7	14.6
Falmouth	114.6	328000	3.6	10.0
Truro	127.0	295250	3.0	4.8
Hayle	119.6	282500	3.6	10.6
Looe	100.6	267875	3.4	27.4
Penryn	179.8	265000	3.4	6.6
Penzance	100.2	260000	3.3	11.9
Helston	114.7	255000	3.1	5.5
St Austell	121.5	250000	3.1	5.7
Saltash	107.9	235000	3.0	4.0
Pool	125.6	230000	3.4	4.9
Redruth	127.3	230000	3.4	5.0
Bodmin	131.2	227750	3.1	5.1
Liskeard	125.9	226750	3.4	5.4
St Blazey	101.0	214500	3.2	5.0
Torpoint	92.5	207500	3.5	5.8
Camborne	120.7	200000	3.3	4.6
Launceston	118.2	194500	2.5	7.1

  

Notes

 Built up areas and MSOA or LSOA areas - which are used for dwelling characteristics, will be different in extent and dwelling numbers but are sufficiently close to provide comparable analysis.

Income Deprivation. 1= lower deprivation; 2 = medium deprivation; 3 = higher deprivation.

 

Sources

Office for National Statistics (ONS), released 15 May 2026, ONS website, article, Understanding towns in England and Wales, investigating socioeconomic trends: May 2026.

 

Office for National Statistics, (27 October 2023), Number of vacant and second homes, England and Wales: Census 2021, licensed under the Open Government Licence. 

  

Office for National Statistics (ONS), (30 March 2023), Number of dwellings by housing characteristics in England and Wales, 2021 compared with 2011, Census 2021, licensed under the Open Government Licence.