# Cottonmill & Sopwell

South St Albans. 7,838 people (mid-2024 estimate) in 3.1 square kilometres.

Cottonmill & Sopwell had 7,710 usual residents at the census (ONS Census 2021).

Middle area. Code E02004940. In: [East of England](https://openindex.co.uk/east-of-england) › [St Albans](https://openindex.co.uk/st-albans)

## Key figures

- **Median sale price: £550,000** (2025). The median price paid for a home in Cottonmill & Sopwell was £550,000 in 2025. Joint 698th most expensive of 7,259. Source: Worked out by Open Index from HM Land Registry Price Paid Data. Published 28 September 2026. https://openindex.co.uk/st-albans/cottonmill-and-sopwell#f-house-sales-median-price
- **Population: 7,710** (2021). Cottonmill & Sopwell had 7,710 usual residents at the census (ONS Census 2021). Joint 4,049th most populated of 9,448. Source: Census 2021, England and Wales and Scotland's Census 2022 and Census 2021, Northern Ireland, 2021. Published 21 July 2026. https://openindex.co.uk/st-albans/cottonmill-and-sopwell#f-population
- **People in radon Affected Area squares: 100%** (2022). About 100% of people in Cottonmill & Sopwell live in a 1 km square that the radon atlas marks as a radon Affected Area. UK 44%. Source: Worked out by Open Index from the UKHSA and BGS radon atlas and census output areas. Published 1 December 2022. https://openindex.co.uk/st-albans/cottonmill-and-sopwell#f-radon-affected-share
- **Gigabit broadband coverage: 94.0%** (January 2026). In Cottonmill & Sopwell, 94.0% of homes and businesses could get gigabit-capable broadband in January 2026 (Ofcom). UK 87.8%. Source: Connected Nations (Ofcom), January 2026. Published 13 May 2026. https://openindex.co.uk/st-albans/cottonmill-and-sopwell#f-gigabit-coverage

## On the map

- [Radon Affected Area by middle area](https://openindex.co.uk/map/radon-affected-areas?place=E02004940) (Worked out by Open Index · 2022): About 100% of people in Cottonmill & Sopwell live in a 1 km square that the radon atlas marks as a radon Affected Area.
- [Sales per year by middle area](https://openindex.co.uk/map/house-sales-per-year?place=E02004940) (Worked out by Open Index · 2025): 107 homes were sold in Cottonmill & Sopwell in 2025.
- [Crime and ASB by middle area](https://openindex.co.uk/map/recorded-crime?place=E02004940) (Police recorded crime and outcomes (data.police.uk) · August 2026): Crime and anti-social behaviour for Cottonmill & Sopwell.
- [Population by middle area](https://openindex.co.uk/map/population?place=E02004940) (Census 2021, England and Wales): Cottonmill & Sopwell had 7,710 usual residents at the census.

## Recorded crime in Cottonmill & Sopwell

In the 12 months to August 2026, police recorded crimes and anti-social behaviour in Cottonmill & Sopwell at a rate of 115.7 per 1,000 people.
That compares with 79.2 per 1,000 people across St Albans.
Worked out by Open Index from police.uk crime records and ONS and NISRA population estimates.

| Kind of crime, 12 months to August 2026 | Count |
| --- | --- |
| Anti-social behaviour | 236 |
| Violence and sexual offences | 195 |
| Other crime | 163 |
| Shoplifting | 142 |
| Criminal damage and arson | 54 |
| Vehicle crime | 46 |
| Burglary | 38 |
| Drug offences | 20 |
| Robbery | 8 |
| Theft from the person | 5 |

Source: police.uk, 12 months to August 2026.

## How Cottonmill & Sopwell compares

Each middle area against every other middle area the measure covers.

| Measure | Cottonmill & Sopwell | Rank | Compared with |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Median sale price | £550,000 | 6th cheapest | 20 middle areas, St Albans · 2025 |
| Population | 7,710 | 9th most populated | 20 middle areas, St Albans · 2021 |
| People in radon Affected Area squares | 100% | joint most people in radon Affected Areas | 20 middle areas, St Albans · 2022 |
| Gigabit broadband coverage | 94.0% | 10th highest | 20 middle areas, St Albans · Jan 2026 |

## Is Cottonmill & Sopwell safe? What police records show

In the 12 months to August 2026, police recorded crimes and anti-social behaviour in Cottonmill & Sopwell at a rate of 115.7 per 1,000 people.
That compares with 79.2 per 1,000 people across St Albans.
Across England as a whole, the recorded crime rate was 96.3 per 1,000 people.
In August 2026 alone, 91 cases of crime and anti-social behaviour were recorded in Cottonmill & Sopwell.
In the 12 months to August 2026, the most common types were anti-social behaviour (236), violence and sexual offences (195) and other crime (163).
Worked out by Open Index from police.uk crime records and ONS and NISRA population estimates.
Rates are per resident, so places that many people work in or visit, such as Westminster, the City of London and other city centres, have far higher rates than their residents alone would suggest.

## Figures for the whole of St Albans

These figures are published for the whole of St Albans, not for each middle area, so they describe all of St Albans and not Cottonmill & Sopwell alone. [See St Albans](https://openindex.co.uk/st-albans)

- **Average house price: £655,974** (August 2026). St Albans’s average house price was £655,974 in August 2026 (HM Land Registry). Up 3.2% in a year. Source: UK House Price Index, August 2026. Published 21 October 2026.
- **Median full-time pay: £57,396** (2025). Full-time workers living in St Albans earned a median of £57,396 in 2025 (ONS earnings survey). Highest paid of 348. Source: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, 2025. Published 23 October 2025.
- **House price to pay: 11.4×** (2025). A home in St Albans costs 11.4 times local full-time pay. Joint 29th least affordable of 348. Source: Worked out by Open Index from the UK House Price Index and the ONS earnings survey. Published 21 October 2026.
- **Deprivation score: 8.1** (2025). St Albans has a deprivation score of 8.1 in the English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG). Joint 7th least deprived of 296. Source: English Indices of Deprivation 2025, 2025. Published 30 October 2025.

## Cottonmill & Sopwell in brief

The median price paid for a home in Cottonmill & Sopwell was £550,000 in 2025.
Cottonmill & Sopwell had 7,710 usual residents at the census.
About 100% of people in Cottonmill & Sopwell live in a 1 km square that the radon atlas marks as a radon Affected Area.
In Cottonmill & Sopwell, 94.0% of homes and businesses could get gigabit-capable broadband in January 2026.

## About

- Type: Middle area
- Code: E02004940
- Ward: [Sopwell †](https://openindex.co.uk/st-albans/ward/sopwell)
- Constituency: [St Albans †](https://openindex.co.uk/constituency/st-albans)
- Council: [St Albans](https://openindex.co.uk/st-albans)
- Region: [East of England](https://openindex.co.uk/east-of-england)
- Nation: [England](https://openindex.co.uk/england)
- Area: 3.05 km²
- People, mid-2024: 7,838*
- Neighbourhoods: 5
- Output areas: 23

* People: worked out by Open Index by adding up the neighbourhood estimates inside this area.
† Best fit: the ward and constituency this middle area mostly lies in. Its edges do not follow theirs.

## Next door

[Verulam Park](https://openindex.co.uk/st-albans/verulam-park), [How Wood & Park Street](https://openindex.co.uk/st-albans/how-wood-and-park-street), [The Camp & Cunningham](https://openindex.co.uk/st-albans/the-camp-and-cunningham), [St Albans Central](https://openindex.co.uk/st-albans/st-albans-central)

## Latest updates for Cottonmill & Sopwell

- August 2026 house prices published: HM Land Registry and partners · Oct 2026.
- September 2026 rent published: ONS private rents · Oct 2026.
- Dental practices updated: NHS England · Oct 2026.
- Schools updated: Ofsted · Oct 2026.

The same figures as JSON: https://openindex.co.uk/v1/places/E02004940

## How to cite

Source: Open Index, openindex.co.uk. Link to this page, https://openindex.co.uk/st-albans/cottonmill-and-sopwell, or to one figure with its anchor, https://openindex.co.uk/st-albans/cottonmill-and-sopwell#f-house-sales-median-price.

Open Index's own text and the figures it works out are licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Source data keeps its publishers' licences, named with each figure. Give each figure's period and source with it.

Snapshot 2026.10.9. The HTML page: https://openindex.co.uk/st-albans/cottonmill-and-sopwell