Reading grades B− overall against UK towns: better than 50% of UK towns, and #27 of 30 in Berkshire. Its strongest subject is walkability (A+): 36% of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport. Its weakest is safety (C−): 39.6 violent and sexual offences and 15.5 home and vehicle crimes per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026. Among UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more, it has less crime per resident than 65%. The median home sold for £355,000 in the last three years, 5.7 times what households in the Reading council area earn in a year.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Reading is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
Department for Education · GIAS, Key Stage 2 and GCSE resultsSee all 71 schools →
Safety
Reading has more crime per resident than 84% of UK towns
Town centres with shops, stations and nightlife record more crime per resident: police.uk counts crimes where they happen, not where victims live.
Violent crime ran at 39.6 per 1,000 residents a year, above both Berkshire’s towns (20.2) and England’s towns (22). Police recorded 19,774 crimes inside Reading’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 2,145 reports of anti-social behaviour. Violence and sexual offences were 40% of the crimes; the police category includes harassment and stalking.
39.6violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a yearC−Safety Grade
Compared with UK towns its sizeLess crime per resident than 65% of the 207 UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more: about the middle for its size. Context only, not part of the grade.
More crimeLess crime
Reports by type · Sep 2025 to Aug 2026
Violence & sexual7,843
Shoplifting3,364
Other theft1,766
Public order1,726
Damage & arson1,317
Vehicle crime941
Burglary644
Drugs586
Anti-social2,145
Not gradedAnti-social behaviour, shoplifting and other theft are shown but left out of the Safety Grade, which counts violence and crimes against homes and vehicles per resident.
39.6
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
15.5
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
10.8
anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 (not graded)
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
History
463 listed buildings, 5 of them Grade I
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Reading has 463 listed buildings on Historic England’s list: 5 Grade I, 24 Grade II*. Reading’s listed buildings include Abbey Gate, Grade I. 19% of its homes were built before 1919, above both Berkshire’s towns (14%) and England’s towns (16%).
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Health
86% of residents say their health is good or very good
86% of Reading’s residents described their health as good or very good in 2021, against 87% across Berkshire’s towns. These answers aren’t adjusted for age, so young towns look healthier; the Health Grade uses age-adjusted measures, including life expectancy and early deaths.
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL
Who lives here
Reading skews young, with 15% of residents aged 15 to 24, more than Berkshire’s towns or England’s towns
In the comparison, Reading comes above both Berkshire’s towns (11%) and England’s towns (12%). 13% of residents are 65 or over. Reading has a median age of 35.7.
35.7median age
ReadingBerkshireEngland
Ages · share of residents
15%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications15%
Apprenticeship4%
A levels or similar17%
Degree level39%
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
WomenEnglandMen
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
Kate Winslet: Colleen Sturtevant, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Catherine, Princess of Wales: Daniel Torok/White House, Public domain · Ricky Gervais: Thomas Atilla Lewis at https://www.flickr.com/people/51761894@N00, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Sam Mendes: Frankie Fouganthin, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Natalie Dormer: Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Mike Oldfield: Mike_Oldfield_by_Alexander_Schweigert.jpg: Alexander Schweigert derivative work: Lošmi, CC BY 2.0
Sonning has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Reading
Who lives in Reading?
A young city. At the 2021 Census, 18% of residents were under 15 and 32% were 25 to 44, against 18% and 27% across England’s towns; only 13% were 65 or over.
Is Reading safe?
About the middle for its size: 35% of the 207 UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more report less crime per resident. Against all UK towns, most of them far smaller, it grades C−.
Are schools in Reading good?
Secondary schools stand out: GCSE results beat 85% of towns in England. Primary results are closer to the middle, beating 59%.
Does Reading flood?
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
About Reading
City in Berkshire, England
Reading is a built-up area of 203,789 people, in the Reading council area. TownRatings uses ONS’s 2022 built-up areas as towns: the physical town, as people mean the word, rather than a council district, so its figures cover the town itself.
Built from ONS geography and Census 2021
Population
203,789 (Census 2021)
Council
Reading (mostly)
County
Berkshire
Region
South East
Area
16.4 sq mi (42.5 km²)
ONS code
E63005074
Sources: ONS Census 2021, output areas summed to the ONS 2022 built-up area · HM Land Registry Price Paid (standard sales, September 2023 to August 2026) · ONS Price Index of Private Rents (August 2026, by council) · MHCLG and Welsh Government council tax, Band D 2026–27 (with parish precepts in England) · data.police.uk street-level crime, 36 months to August 2026, points inside the built-up-area boundary · ONS small-area life expectancy and healthy life expectancy, 2019 to 2023 (England and Wales), OHID Fingertips small-area indicators (England) and Census 2021 health, adjusted for age · ONS small-area income estimates (financial year ending 2023) · DWP claimant count via Nomis (January to August 2026) · Historic England, National Heritage List for England (listed buildings, scheduled monuments, registered parks and gardens, battlefields, World Heritage Sites), October 2026, inside the ONS 2022 built-up-area boundary · Valuation Office Agency, Council Tax: stock of properties by build period (31 March 2025) · TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranked against UK towns only. All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
