# Pontefract

Town in Wakefield, Yorkshire and The Humber.

Pontefract is a town in Wakefield, Yorkshire and The Humber. Median sale price £212,250 in 2025. Recorded crime 120.2 per 1,000 people. About 34,171 people.

Town. Code E63000957. In: [Towns](https://openindex.co.uk/places/towns) › [Wakefield](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield)

Pontefract is an ONS built-up area: the land built up as one town, whatever council it is in. Figures for Pontefract add up the census output areas (or, for claimants, the neighbourhoods) that sit mostly inside it, so they are close to, but not exactly, the town’s own.

## Key figures

- **Median sale price: £212,250** (2025). The median price paid for a home in Pontefract was £212,250 in 2025. Joint 288th cheapest of 1,092. Source: Worked out by Open Index from HM Land Registry Price Paid Data. Published 28 September 2026. https://openindex.co.uk/town/pontefract#f-house-sales-median-price
- **Population: 32,982** (2021). Pontefract had 32,982 usual residents at the census (ONS Census 2021). 341st most populated of 1,209. 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/town/pontefract#f-population
- **People in radon Affected Area squares: 100%** (2022). About 100% of people in Pontefract 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/town/pontefract#f-radon-affected-share
- **Gigabit broadband coverage: 87.9%** (January 2026). In Pontefract, 87.9% 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/town/pontefract#f-gigabit-coverage

## On the map

- [Radon Affected Area by town](https://openindex.co.uk/map/radon-affected-areas?place=E63000957) (Worked out by Open Index · 2022): About 100% of people in Pontefract live in a 1 km square that the radon atlas marks as a radon Affected Area.
- [Sales per year by town](https://openindex.co.uk/map/house-sales-per-year?place=E63000957) (Worked out by Open Index · 2025): 472 homes were sold in Pontefract in 2025.
- [Crime and ASB by town](https://openindex.co.uk/map/recorded-crime?place=E63000957) (Police recorded crime and outcomes (data.police.uk) · August 2026): Crime and anti-social behaviour for Pontefract.
- [Population by town](https://openindex.co.uk/map/population?place=E63000957) (Census 2021, England and Wales): Pontefract had 32,982 usual residents at the census.

## How Pontefract compares

Each town against every other town the measure covers.

| Measure | Pontefract | Rank | Compared with |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Median sale price | £212,250 | 53rd most expensive | 114 towns, Yorkshire and The Humber · 2025 |
| Population | 32,982 | 23rd most populated | 114 towns, Yorkshire and The Humber · 2021 |
| People in radon Affected Area squares | 100% | joint most people in radon Affected Areas | 114 towns, Yorkshire and The Humber · 2022 |
| Gigabit broadband coverage | 87.9% | 11th lowest | 114 towns, Yorkshire and The Humber · Jan 2026 |

## Is Pontefract safe? What police records show

In the 12 months to August 2026, police recorded crimes and anti-social behaviour in Pontefract at a rate of 120.2 per 1,000 people.
That compares with 108.4 per 1,000 people across Yorkshire and The Humber.
Across England as a whole, the recorded crime rate was 96.3 per 1,000 people.
In August 2026 alone, 385 cases of crime and anti-social behaviour were recorded in Pontefract.
In the 12 months to August 2026, the most common types were violence and sexual offences (1,744), other crime (675) and anti-social behaviour (542).
A year earlier, the recorded crime rate in Pontefract was 124.8 per 1,000 people.
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.

## Deprivation in Pontefract, neighbourhood by neighbourhood

- Deprivation is ranked by neighbourhood, so Pontefract has no single figure. Of its 19 neighbourhoods with a rank:
- Decile 1 (England’s most deprived 10%): 3 neighbourhoods
- Decile 2: 2 neighbourhoods
- Decile 3: 4 neighbourhoods
- Decile 4: 1 neighbourhood
- Decile 5: 2 neighbourhoods
- Decile 6: 2 neighbourhoods
- Decile 8: 1 neighbourhood
- Decile 9: 3 neighbourhoods
- Decile 10 (England’s least deprived 10%): 1 neighbourhood

Source: English Indices of Deprivation 2025. Decile 1 is the most deprived tenth of neighbourhoods in England.

## Neighbourhoods in Pontefract

| Area | People (census) | Recorded crime per 1,000 | Deprivation decile | Gigabit broadband |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Wakefield 012A](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/neighbourhood/e01011835) | 2,159 | 42.0 per 1,000 | 8 | 98.5% |
| [Wakefield 012B](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/neighbourhood/e01011836) | 1,456 | 187.0 per 1,000 | 5 | 95.7% |
| [Wakefield 012C](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/neighbourhood/e01011839) | 2,541 | 105.4 per 1,000 | 5 | 99.9% |
| [Wakefield 012D](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/neighbourhood/e01011843) | 1,713 | 94.2 per 1,000 | 3 | 100.0% |
| [Wakefield 012E](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/neighbourhood/e01011844) | 1,944 | 46.3 per 1,000 | 9 | 99.6% |
| [Wakefield 015A](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/neighbourhood/e01011834) | 2,007 | 71.9 per 1,000 | 4 | 96.5% |
| [Wakefield 015B](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/neighbourhood/e01011837) | 1,693 | 550.7 per 1,000 | 2 | 54.9% |
| [Wakefield 015C](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/neighbourhood/e01011838) | 1,941 | 144.0 per 1,000 | 1 | 47.5% |
| [Wakefield 015D](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/neighbourhood/e01011841) | 2,194 | 136.3 per 1,000 | 6 | 92.8% |
| [Wakefield 015E](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/neighbourhood/e01011842) | 1,369 | 142.1 per 1,000 | 1 | 71.8% |
| [Wakefield 018A](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/neighbourhood/e01011840) | 1,785 | 107.1 per 1,000 | 3 | 78.9% |
| [Wakefield 018B](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/neighbourhood/e01011850) | 1,606 | 106.5 per 1,000 | 1 | 98.6% |
| [Wakefield 018C](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/neighbourhood/e01011852) | 1,715 | 153.1 per 1,000 | 2 | 98.3% |
| [Wakefield 018D](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/neighbourhood/e01011853) | 1,379 | 109.9 per 1,000 | 3 | 100.0% |
| [Wakefield 023A](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/neighbourhood/e01011845) | 1,806 | 26.3 per 1,000 | 10 | 99.2% |
| [Wakefield 023B](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/neighbourhood/e01011846) | 1,349 | 62.2 per 1,000 | 6 | 98.6% |
| [Wakefield 023C](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/neighbourhood/e01011847) | 1,416 | 65.4 per 1,000 | 9 | 98.7% |
| [Wakefield 023D](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/neighbourhood/e01011848) | 1,431 | 50.3 per 1,000 | 9 | 81.9% |
| [Wakefield 023E](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/neighbourhood/e01011851) | 1,469 | 95.3 per 1,000 | 3 | 98.7% |

## Your MP

- [Pontefract, Castleford and Knottingley](https://openindex.co.uk/constituency/pontefract-castleford-and-knottingley): Yvette Cooper (Labour), MP since July 2024.

As of 18 October 2026. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0. Source: UK Parliament, Members API.

## Council

[Wakefield](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield)

## Postcode districts covering Pontefract

[WF8](https://openindex.co.uk/postcode/wf8)

## Middle areas in Pontefract

[Pontefract North East](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/pontefract-north-east), [Pontefract North West](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/pontefract-north-west), [Pontefract South East](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/pontefract-south-east), [Pontefract South West](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield/pontefract-south-west)

## Towns near Pontefract

[Castleford](https://openindex.co.uk/town/castleford), [Knottingley](https://openindex.co.uk/town/knottingley), [Featherstone](https://openindex.co.uk/town/featherstone), [Normanton](https://openindex.co.uk/town/normanton), [Hemsworth](https://openindex.co.uk/town/hemsworth), [Kippax](https://openindex.co.uk/town/kippax)

## Pontefract in brief

Pontefract is a town in Wakefield, Yorkshire and The Humber.
About 34,171 people lived in Pontefract in mid-2024 (worked out by Open Index from ONS small-area estimates); the median price paid for a home was £212,250 in 2025 across 472 sales (HM Land Registry) and police recorded crimes and anti-social behaviour at a rate of 120.2 per 1,000 people in the 12 months to August 2026 (police.uk).
The median price paid for a home in Pontefract was £212,250 in 2025.
Pontefract had 32,982 usual residents at the census.
About 100% of people in Pontefract live in a 1 km square that the radon atlas marks as a radon Affected Area.
In Pontefract, 87.9% of homes and businesses could get gigabit-capable broadband in January 2026.

## About

- Type: Town
- Code: E63000957
- Constituency: [Pontefract, Castleford and Knottingley †](https://openindex.co.uk/constituency/pontefract-castleford-and-knottingley)
- Council: [Wakefield †](https://openindex.co.uk/wakefield)
- Region: [Yorkshire and The Humber](https://openindex.co.uk/yorkshire-and-the-humber)
- Nation: [England](https://openindex.co.uk/england)
- Area: 8.24 km²
- People, mid-2024: 34,171*
- Neighbourhoods: 19
- Output areas: 109

* People: worked out by Open Index from neighbourhood estimates, shared out by where people lived at the census (by area in Northern Ireland). This area's edges do not follow neighbourhood edges, so the figure is close but not exact.
† Best fit: the constituency and council this town mostly lies in. Its edges do not follow theirs.

## Next door

[Castleford](https://openindex.co.uk/town/castleford), [Knottingley](https://openindex.co.uk/town/knottingley), [Featherstone](https://openindex.co.uk/town/featherstone), [Normanton](https://openindex.co.uk/town/normanton), [Hemsworth](https://openindex.co.uk/town/hemsworth), [Kippax](https://openindex.co.uk/town/kippax)

## Latest updates for Pontefract

- 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/E63000957

## How to cite

Source: Open Index, openindex.co.uk. Link to this page, https://openindex.co.uk/town/pontefract, or to one figure with its anchor, https://openindex.co.uk/town/pontefract#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/town/pontefract