Houses located near schools in Castleford more expensive than elsewhere in UK, research finds

In an effort to ensure fair access, British education systems are said to skew most heavily towards the ‘distance from the school’ criteria, favouring those who live closer when it comes to school places.As a result, having a school in a specific catchment area can significantly affect house prices.

This led to Online Money Advisor compiling a list of the most expensive areas that have the biggest difference in price when it comes to living closer to schools.

The research found homes of the same size and looked at whether they were within 0.5 miles of a school before calculating the potential price difference based on the distance factor.

Northwich was named as the area with the biggest price jump between homes that are close to schools and those that are not, with the average price for a home near a school being 22.49% more than for a home further away.

With 19 schools in the area, Castleford came fifth in the ranking with an average price difference of 16.46%.

This was just behind Grimsby, who came in fourth, with a difference of 16.56%.

The data also found that, across England, it is in Yorkshire and the Humber where the demand to live near schools is the greatest with the average house prices being 5.67% higher for homes located within 0.5 miles of schools.