What it's like to live in Lichfield

Lichfield is a strongly owner-occupied area. Across the council area, 73.3% of homes are owned outright or on a mortgage, 12.7% are privately rented and 13% are social rented, a little below the England figure of 17.1%. Only 1.6% is council housing; most social homes are housing association.

Bromford Housing Association is by far the biggest landlord with around 5,182 homes, followed by Midland Heart with 651, Platform Housing with 352, Walsall Housing Group with 199 and Orbit with 193.

Rents are moderate. Average weekly social rents in the council area for 2024/25 were about £95 for a one bed, £111 for two beds and £123 for three. For context on supply, 583 households were on the council's housing register at 31 March 2025 and 319 social homes were let through the council in 2024-25 - which is why exchanging can be a realistic route in.

There is a good spread of primary schools close to the centre. Five Spires Academy and St Michael's C of E Primary are both around 0.3 miles away, with St Joseph's RC, St Chad's C of E and St Peter's & St Paul's RC all within about 0.6 miles. Check current admissions and Ofsted reports yourself, as catchments and ratings change.

For secondary, King Edward VI School is around 0.6 miles from the centre and The Friary School just over a mile. Queen's Croft High School and The Bridge Academy are also close by.

For days out and after school, Stowe Fields and the Garden of Remembrance give you open ground near the middle, and there are Scout groups in the city, with the 6th and 7th Lichfield Scouts both within a mile. The Lichfield Hub and Cruck House run as community spaces nearby.

Lichfield does well on trains for a city its size. Lichfield City station is about 0.2 miles from the centre, so genuinely walkable, and Lichfield Trent Valley is roughly a mile out. Two stations give you options, which matters if you commute or visit family regularly.

Buses run from Lichfield bus station and the Old Library stop, both a couple of minutes from the shops, with further stops at The Whytmore and Agincourt Road towards the edges of the city.

On foot, the centre is compact and most everyday errands are within half a mile of each other. If you drive, there is retail parking at Imperial Retail Park about 0.9 miles out, though the old streets in the middle are tight and parking in the centre takes patience. Plenty of people here manage without a car; plenty keep one for work.

The Lichfield Garrick Theatre sits right in the centre and is the main venue for shows and screenings. Around it you get a decent little cluster of pubs, bars and places to eat: The George IV, 55 Wade Street, Faro Lounge, Ricco & Loren and The Dirty Cow are all within a few minutes' walk, with Bar Home for a later night.

Green space is close at hand. Minster Pool, the Garden of Remembrance and the Franciscan Friary grounds are all within a quarter of a mile of the centre, and the Lichfield Food Festival is a fixture in the calendar.

If you exercise, there are several gyms in and around the centre, including Gymophobics and energie fitness, plus outdoor public gym equipment. Heart Of The Country Village, a couple of miles out, adds somewhere different for a weekend wander.

In the wider Lichfield council area, 57% of adults are in work, almost exactly the England figure of 57.4%. Unemployment is lower than average at 2.4%, and benefit claimants among 16 to 64 year olds run at 2.4% against 4% for England. On paper, it is a steady local economy.

Much of that steadiness comes from people commuting out. With two stations and a position in the West Midlands, working elsewhere while living here is normal rather than unusual.

In the city itself, jobs lean towards shops, hospitality, schools and health services, with Samuel Johnson Community Hospital and the Three Spires centre among the bigger employers of local people. Worth checking travel times and costs to your own workplace before you commit to a swap.