Smelly Places Index

Written by James Andrews, Senior Editor, Personal FinanceEdited by Atousa Cunnell, Content Producer - Mortgages, 31 May 2022

From exhaust fumes to air pollution, and cigarette smoke to fly-tipping, there are lots of things that can give cities an odious odour, but where in the UK are these smelly places located?

When looking for a new place to live, be sure to compare mortgages to ensure you're getting the best deal.

Looking at some of the country’s major cities, which locations can claim the dubious disSTINKtion of being the stinkiest?

To find out, our experts have analysed factors such as pollution levels, smoking prevalence and fly-tipping incidents to reveal England’s smelliest places.

England’s smelliest places

1. Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire & the Humber - 6.75/10 Smelly score

Taking the unfortunate title of the smelliest place is Kingston upon Hull, in the East Riding of Yorkshire.

The city has some of the worst congestion in the country, with the average journey being delayed by 83 seconds per mile, which contributes to air pollution, as well as a high level of smokers, with 17.2% of the adult population currently saying that they smoke.

2. Maidstone, South East - 6.27/10 Smelly score

The second smelliest place is the Kent town of Maidstone, which received 132 complaints about foul odours in 2021, which equates to 76.2 per 100,000 people in the town.

Maidstone is also served by Southern Water, which is the second-worst water supplier when it comes to sewage pollution, with 102 incidents per 10,000km of the entire Southern Water area.

3. Blackpool, North West - 6.15/10 Smelly score

With Blackpool coming in third place, each of the top three smelly places is located by the coast, with the seaside resort scoring 6.15 out of 10.

Blackpool has a very high smoking rate, with just under one in five adults currently smokers, which can have a negative impact on air pollution and also has one of the highest levels of smell complaints, with 81.7 per 100,000 people.

Rank	Local authority	Region	CO2 emissions per capita (t)	Average delay on 'A' roads (seconds per mile)	Fly-tipping incidents per 1,000 people	Smoking prevalence in adults	Total pollution incidents per 10,000km (in water region)	Odour complaints Total	Odour complaints Per 100,000 people	Smelly score /10
1	Kingston upon Hull	Yorkshire & the Humber	4.2	83	23.3	17.20%	24	66	25.5	6.75
2	Maidstone	South East	4.4	33.5	17.1	14.10%	102	132	76.2	6.27
3	Blackpool	North West	3.4	64.3	28.2	19.80%	19	113	81.7	6.15
4	Birmingham	West Midlands	3.6	73.1	19.9	16.90%	21	649	56.9	5.95
4	Manchester	North West	3.7	76.5	26.8	20.80%	19	119	21.4	5.95
6	Portsmouth	South East	3.5	66.2	3.4	14.30%	102	166	77.3	5.87
7	Blackburn with Darwen	North West	4.4	57.8	43.4	15.10%	19	28	18.7	5.83
8	Plymouth	South West	3.3	74	26.7	14.60%	131	20	7.6	5.79
9	Leeds	Yorkshire & the Humber	4.9	43.8	21	13.30%	24	362	45.3	5.72
10	Stoke-on-Trent	West Midlands	4.9	56.5	17.6	12.80%	21	860	335.1	5.68
11	Bradford	Yorkshire & the Humber	3.8	57.8	33.2	13.20%	24	163	30.1	5.64
12	Chelmsford	East of England	4.6	32	1.7	16.40%	28	136	75.7	5.56
12	Doncaster	Yorkshire & the Humber	6.4	33.2	3.8	18.30%	24	135	43.2	5.56
12	Nottingham	East Midlands	3.3	94.2	33.1	13.40%	21	139	41.2	5.56
12	Gateshead	North East	5.1	55.8	47.1	13.00%	14	56	27.7	5.56
12	Bristol	South West	3.2	77.8	19.9	15.80%	25	88	18.9	5.56
17	Sunderland	North East	4.2	48.4	42.3	14.60%	14	110	39.6	5.52
18	Liverpool	North West	3.6	83.7	48.6	15.60%	19	36	7.2	5.48
19	Preston	North West	4.9	37.8	24.1	11.20%	19	145	100.6	5.2
19	Milton Keynes	South East	4.8	22.3	21.5	13.40%	28	70	25.9	5.2
21	Peterborough	East of England	5.5	22.3	48.1	13.30%	28	10	4.9	5.16
22	Swindon	South West	4.6	42.7	3.3	12.30%	27	192	86.1	5.12
23	Brighton and Hove	South East	2.8	107.3	5.2	13.90%	102	54	18.5	5
24	Worthing	South East	2.8	33.6	6.9	16.00%	102	58	52.4	4.88
24	Newcastle upon Tyne	North East	4.1	69.8	52.6	13.60%	14	6	2	4.88
26	Leicester	East Midlands	3.4	66.7	28.2	12.20%	21	101	28.5	4.72
27	Basildon	East of England	3.9	32	23.3	11.10%	28	89	47.5	4.64
28	Southend-on-Sea	East of England	2.9	58.7	7.8	12.10%	28	135	73.9	4.56
29	Watford	East of England	3.4	34.5	13	15.40%	27	21	21.7	4.52
30	Colchester	East of England	3.9	32	12	11.80%	28	132	66.9	4.45
31	Luton	East of England	3	57.1	21.6	15.30%	27	12	5.6	4.44
32	Derby	East Midlands	4.1	57.5	28.1	11.50%	21	32	12.5	4.37
33	Bolton	North West	4.2	49.5	4.3	15.70%	19	44	15.3	4.17
34	Cambridge	East of England	3.9	24.4	16.7	13.70%	28	14	11.2	4.01
35	Coventry	West Midlands	3.4	43.1	28.3	13.10%	21	50	13.2	3.93
36	Sheffield	Yorkshire & the Humber	3.8	46.5	20.6	10.30%	24	90	15.3	3.85
37	Oxford	South East	4	33.6	17.9	11.50%	27	12	7.9	3.73
38	Exeter	South West	3.1	24.2	7.9	4.90%	131	88	66	3.61
39	Ipswich	East of England	2.8	25.3	4.6	20.20%	28	13	9.6	3.49
40	York	Yorkshire & the Humber	3.8	41.3	8.6	9.60%	24	34	16.1	3.22
41	Wolverhampton	West Midlands	3.5	71.1	11.6	9.90%	21	11	4.2	2.94
42	Middlesbrough	North East	4.2	33.1	18.3	12.80%	14	8	5.7	2.9
43	Cheltenham	South West	3.3	32	3.9	7.30%	21	17	14.6	1.55

The worst place for emissions

Doncaster - 6.4 tonnes per capita

CO2 emissions don’t just add to air pollution, they can cause a stink in the air too. For this factor, the smelliest place is Doncaster, South Yorkshire.

The town produces around 6.4 tonnes of CO2 per person, mainly due to heavy levels of congestion in the town centre.

The worst place for congestion

Brighton and Hove - average delay of 107.3 seconds per mile

Congestion is, of course, one of the biggest contributors to air pollution and subsequently smells, with static cars spouting high levels of exhaust fumes into the atmosphere.

The smelliest place when it comes to congestion is the city of Brighton and Hove, where the average vehicle experiences a delay of 107.3 seconds for every mile travelled.

The worst place for fly-tipping

Newcastle upon Tyne - 52.6 incidents per 1,000 people

Fly-tipping is a practice that unfortunately saw a significant increase during the lockdowns caused by the coronavirus pandemic, with rubbish piled high on the streets and causing foul smells.

Newcastle is the worst offender when it comes to fly-tipping, with over 50 incidents per 1,000 people in the North East city.

The local council in Newcastle even took the step of banning vehicles from back lanes in the city’s West End, where the problem was particularly prevalent.

The worst place for smoking

Manchester - 20.8% smoking prevalence

The smell of tobacco smoke is another common feature of the country’s cities, even after measures such as the indoor smoking ban were introduced.

Of the cities studied here, Manchester has the highest ratio of smokers, with over one in five adults saying that they are smokers here. Manchester also has one of the youngest populations in the country’s cities.

The worst area for water and sewage pollution

South West Water - 131 pollution incidents per 10,000km

One of the worst offenders when it comes to nasty smells hanging over a town or city is pollution in local rivers and other bodies of water.

While data for this isn’t available at a city or town level, the worst performing area is South West Water, which covers Devon, Cornwall, and some parts of Dorset and Somerset, with 131 pollution incidents per 10,000km.

The worst place for odour complaints

Stoke-on-Trent - 335.1 per 100,000 people

Finally, according to Freedom of Information requests to each town and city, Stoke-on-Trent received the most complaints about nasty smells in 2021, with 860.

This equates to 335.1 per 100,000 people and is far more than any other council that responded to the request.

London’s most pungent boroughs

1. Westminster - 8.96 out of 10

Looking specifically at the capital, Westminster is the smelliest place in London, scoring far higher than second-placed Kensington & Chelsea.

Westminster is of course one of the busiest parts of London, so it's no surprise that it was the worst ranking borough when it comes to both emissions (6.5 tonnes per capita) and smell complaints (168.6 per 100,000 people).

2. Kensington and Chelsea - 7.70 out of 10

Following Westminster is another very central borough, the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.

Kensington and Chelsea is actually the most affluent area in the whole country, but it appears it's also one of the smelliest places, with the second-highest emissions in London (4.8 tonnes per capita), as well as the second-highest rate of smell complaints (94.3 per 100,000 people).

3. Camden - 7.56 out of 10

Camden comes in third place and is ranked as the worst place for two different factors: its congestion (average delay of 201.1 seconds per mile) and its fly-tipping (131.3 per 100,000 people).

Despite this, Camden actually scored quite well when it comes to its smoking prevalence at just 9.3%.

Rank	Local authority	CO2 emissions per capita (t)	Average delay on 'A' roads (seconds per mile)	Fly-tipping incidents per 1,000 people	Smoking prevalence in adults	Odour complaints Total	Odour complaints Per 100,000 people	Smelly score /10
1	Westminster	6.5	171.4	42.5	17.30%	455	168.6	8.96
2	Kensington and Chelsea	4.8	162.5	51.3	10.50%	148	94.3	7.63
3	Camden	3.6	201.1	131.3	9.30%	77	27.5	7.56
4	Southwark	2.9	171	66.8	15.20%	108	33.7	7.33
5	Hounslow	3.6	75.2	113.7	11.30%	147	54.1	6.82
6	Tower Hamlets	3.6	108.9	22.7	13.10%	57	17.2	6.08
7	Merton	2.9	126.3	76.8	13.50%	12	5.8	5.85
8	Islington	2.7	183.2	8	18.90%	52	21	5.7
9	Bexley	3.3	61.7	22.8	12.90%	179	71.8	5.48
9	Brent	2.8	89.8	102.1	11.20%	40	12.2	5.48
9	Haringey	2.4	144.9	82.4	14.90%	14	5.3	5.48
12	Hammersmith and Fulham	3.5	122.7	91.7	10.10%	5	2.7	5.41
12	Hillingdon	4.6	40.1	30.2	10.10%	298	96.4	5.41
14	Newham	2.9	87	58.4	14.10%	22	6.2	5.26
15	Enfield	3.3	103.9	21.9	10.20%	60	18	5.04
16	Hackney	2.2	144.4	48.4	10.90%	58	20.6	4.89
17	Lambeth	2.7	170.3	15.7	11.80%	15	4.7	4.37
18	Ealing	3.2	74.1	38.5	8.40%	82	24.1	4.3
19	Greenwich	2.7	94.8	15.1	15.50%	14	4.8	4.15
20	Havering	3.6	44.9	12.4	9.10%	95	36.4	4
21	Sutton	2.7	107.7	21.6	8.90%	13	6.3	3.41
22	Barking and Dagenham	2.6	83.9	16.3	15.90%	3	1.4	3.33
23	Waltham Forest	2.3	81.9	31.1	11.00%	12	4.3	3.11
24	Wandsworth	2.6	158.1	11.9	8.10%	26	7.9	2.96
24	Redbridge	2.6	62.9	85.2	9.40%	8	2.6	2.96
26	Barnet	3.1	81.8	10.6	6.80%	50	12.5	2.74
27	Richmond upon Thames	3.1	90.8	15	6.20%	7	3.5	2.59
28	Kingston upon Thames	3.3	60.1	12.3	8.70%	4	2.2	2

The worst borough for emissions

Westminster - 6.5 tonnes per capita

When it comes to CO2 emissions, Westminster is the smelliest place in London, although this perhaps isn’t too surprising given that it is a hugely busy area.

As well as serving as the home of the British Government, Westminster is the location of loads of tourist attractions such as Trafalgar Square, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey and more, which draw thousands of tourists.

The worst borough for congestion

Camden - average delay of 201.1 seconds per mile

Congestion is such a problem in London that a congestion charge was introduced in 2003 and further restrictions on vehicles continue to be added.

The borough with the worst congestion problem is Camden, where the average journey has a delay of 201.1 seconds for every mile.

The worst borough for fly-tipping

Camden - 131.3 incidents per 1,000 people

Again, Camden is the smelliest place, this time for incidents of fly-tipping, with 131.3 incidents per 1,000 people.

The borough has recently taken action on this issue, deploying enforcement officers and waste collection vehicles specifically dedicated to combating fly-tipping.

The worst borough for smoking

Islington - 18.9% smoking prevalence

When it comes to smoking, it’s those who live in the borough of Islington that is the worst offenders, with 18.9% of adults being smokers.

That’s around three times higher than in the borough with the fewest smokers, Richmond upon Thames.

The worst borough for odour complaints

Westminster - 168.6 per 100,000 people

Westminster also has the highest number of complaints about bad smells, with 168.6 per 100,000 people, which is far more than Kensington and Chelsea in second with 94.3.

Again, this is perhaps to be expected with the sheer number of people that live and work in Westminster as well as the large number of tourists that visit.

FAQ's

What is air pollution?

Air pollution refers to the contamination of the air around us due to the presence of harmful substances.

These substances can either damage our health or potentially have adverse effects on the climate of the earth.

Generally, air pollution is caused by things such as gases and particulates, such as those resulting from vehicle congestion.

How to reduce air pollution?

There are lots of ways to reduce air pollution, such as making better use of public transport to reduce congestion, turning off appliances when they’re not in use, and recycling and reusing wherever possible.

Small steps such as using a reusable shopping bag, or switching to more sustainable toiletries and beauty products can also help to reduce the amount of air pollution.

Where is the congestion charge zone?

London introduced a congestion charge in 2003 to try and reduce air pollution. Drivers who pass through the zone have to pay a charge of £15 during charging times.

The congestion charge zone is one of the biggest in the world and covers the area within the London Inner Ring Road, including the City of London and the West End.

The congestion zone also previously included a Western Extension although this was dropped in 2011.

What is fly-tipping?

Fly-tipping is sometimes referred to as fly dumping or just illegal dumping and refers to dumping waste without using an authorized method such as taking it to the dump or having it collected from outside your house.

People often fly-tip to avoid the costs of having their waste disposed of, but it has a negative impact on air pollution, especially when large amounts of waste are dumped from commercial businesses.

Why does London smell?

London is one of the biggest and busiest cities in the world, so it’s not that surprising that it might have a bit of a strange smell at times.

The traffic congestion in the capital is a big contributor to its air pollution, and subsequently its aroma.

Going back even further, London suffered from an event known as the “Great Stink” in 1858, when the sheer levels of waste dumped in the River Thames led to a smell so bad that people were unable to leave their homes.

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Methodology and sources

For both rankings, data was analysed from the following sources, with each city or borough being given a normalised score out of ten for each factor before an average of these scores was taken.

CO2 emissions

The total CO2 emissions per capita for 2019 according to the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy’s UK local authority and regional carbon dioxide emissions national statistics.

Congestion

The average delay on local 'A' roads (in seconds per vehicle per mile) according to the Department for Transport’s travel time measures for the Strategic Road Network and local ‘A’ roads 2021.

Fly-tipping

The number of fly-tipping incidents per 1,000 people according to the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs’ fly-tipping incidents and actions taken in England data.

Smoking

The percentage of current smokers amongst adults according to Public Health England’s Local Tobacco Control Profiles.

Water pollution

The total pollution incidents per 10,000km according to the Environment Agency’s Water and sewerage companies Environmental Performance Assessment 2020. Note that these relate just to the wider area covered by the local water and sewage companies, as opposed to the town or city itself.

Odour complaints

Freedom of Information requests were submitted to the councils of the 50 most populated towns and cities in England (excluding London) as well as each London borough, requesting the number of nuisance smell complaints received in 2021.

These were then calculated per 100,000 people according to the Office for National Statistics’ estimates of the population for the UK, England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

A handful of councils did not respond to the request and were omitted from the research.

About James Andrews

James has spent the past 15 years writing and editing personal finance news, specialising in consumer rights, pensions, insurance, property and investments - picking up a series of awards for his journalism along the way.

View James Andrews's full biography here or visit the money.co.uk press centre for our latest news.