United Kingdom · North East · Local Authority
Darlington
Unitary authority · North East, England · population ~107k · 42 state-funded schools
Accessible for renters but increasingly expensive for buyers, Darlington presents a mixed economic picture. While rent is a modest 21.8% of median gross pay, the median house price sits at 4.9 times annual earnings, making property ownership more costly than the regional median. Weekly earnings of £705.20 sit above the regional median, yet the area faces significant social challenges, with a deprivation score higher than 75% of England authorities. Crime rates are similarly high, also exceeding 75% of the national total. Those who can overlook these pressures will find a strong educational infrastructure, with 95.1% of pupils attending Good or Outstanding schools. This location suits those prioritising school quality and rental affordability over a lower cost of home ownership.
Written from the indicators on this page, 2026-10 data.
The signature
How Darlington ranks across 361 UK Local Authorities
Pay
£36,670/yr
Low
Worse than 78% of UK LAs
House price
£178,000
Most affordable
Better than 89% of UK LAs
Rent
£666/mo
Most affordable
Better than 95% of UK LAs
Council tax
£2,494/yr
Expensive
Worse than 68% of UK LAs
Crime
90.9/1k
High
Worse than 75% of UK LAs
Deprivation
25.7
High
Worse than 75% of UK LAs
Schools
95.2%
Strong
Better than 70% of UK LAs
Colour shows quintile position against 361 UK Local Authorities. Green is the best position for someone moving here; red is the worst. Direction is set per indicator — higher pay, lower rent, less crime, less deprivation are all green.
Schools
50 state-funded schools · Ofsted Sep 2026
40 of 42 (95.2%) rated Good or Outstanding under Ofsted's legacy framework. 8 schools are on the post-2024 report-card framework and don't roll up into the legacy total. How we count →
The map
42 schools · pins coloured by Ofsted grade
Grades, phase and pupil numbers for all 42 schools, sortable and filterable.
Schools in Darlington →Places with similar signatures
Nearest by quintile position across pay · housing · tax · crime · IMD · schools
What we don't know yet
Commute times · GP appointment availability · broadband speeds · air quality at LA level · green-space proximity · public transport coverage. These matter for a relocation decision. We'll add them when the source data is reliable nationally and consistent across LA boundaries.