Photo: Michael FORD · CC BY-SA 2.0Upper Basildon is inside the North Wessex Downs National Landscape
No park or playing field is mapped within a 5-minute walk of homes in Upper Basildon. Footpaths add up to 29 km in the village and the kilometre around it, 2.0 for every square kilometre. Upper Basildon grades C+ for the outdoors. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
What kind of outdoors village is Upper Basildon?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Upper Basildon’s strongest suit is a protected landscape all round, followed by the European walking route E2 west, UK, South East England. Where it falls short is how far some homes are from a park.
Upper Basildon grades C+ for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Upper Basildon, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
100
100
100
100
100
Graded, never part of the overall grade (like History and Civic life). It measures what is mapped: OS Open Greenspace leaves out woodland and open-access land that isn’t a park, and OpenStreetMap’s rural paths are more complete in some places than others.
Upper Basildon is 41st of 60 UK villages its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 1,000 to 1,100 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Upper Basildon falls furthest behind on homes near a park, where 53 of the 59 others do better.
Show as a table
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Giggleswick North Yorkshire | A+ | 14.2 | 100% | 4.1 | 75% |
| 2 | Lympne Kent | A+ | 4 | 100% | 2.7 | 34% |
| 3 | Frampton on Severn Gloucestershire | A+ | 11 | 100% | 3.6 | 0% |
| 4 | Bromham Wiltshire | A+ | 5.8 | 100% | 3.3 | 13% |
| 5 | Blagdon Somerset | A | 3.3 | 100% | 2.9 | 62% |
| 6 | Colney Heath Hertfordshire | A | 8.7 | 100% | 7.4 | 0% |
| 7 | Alston Cumbria | A | 5.8 | 100% | 2.1 | 100% |
| 8 | Heather Leicestershire | A | 16.9 | 100% | 4.7 | 0% |
| 9 | Blockley Gloucestershire | A | 2.9 | 100% | 2.5 | 86% |
| 10 | Silverdale Lancashire | A | 2.3 | 46% | 3.9 | 76% |
| 11 | North Curry Somerset | A | 6.2 | 100% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 12 | Furness Vale Derbyshire | A− | 2 | 78% | 5 | 36% |
| 13 | Old Langho Lancashire | A− | 7.6 | 73% | 2.9 | 20% |
| 14 | Plumpton Green East Sussex | A− | 4.6 | 54% | 3.6 | 37% |
| 15 | Winford Isle of Wight | A− | 1.7 | 0% | 4.4 | 39% |
| 16 | Cwmgwrach West Glamorgan | B+ | 3.2 | 100% | 1.7 | 6% |
| 17 | Calver Derbyshire | B+ | 2.2 | 44% | 4.8 | 99% |
| 18 | North Thoresby Lincolnshire | B+ | 3.7 | 100% | 0.8 | 21% |
| 19 | Bethel Gwynedd | B+ | 1.6 | 100% | 1.4 | 10% |
| 20 | Groombridge East Sussex | B+ | 2.3 | 77% | 2.8 | 92% |
| 21 | Blackfordby Leicestershire | B+ | 3.5 | 100% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 22 | Five Ash Down East Sussex | B+ | 2.8 | 0% | 4.1 | 43% |
| 23 | Fishtoft Lincolnshire | B | 2.3 | 100% | 1.1 | 0% |
| 24 | Holt Clwyd | B | 0.9 | 100% | 5.1 | 0% |
| 25 | Milborne St Andrew Dorset | B | 3.3 | 71% | 2.1 | 33% |
| 26 | Pentre Halkyn Clwyd | B | 1.3 | 59% | 3.6 | 3% |
| 27 | Nanpean Cornwall | B | 4.4 | 100% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 28 | Sharnford Leicestershire | B− | 1.9 | 100% | 2.9 | 0% |
| 29 | Challock Kent | B− | 3 | 62% | 2 | 88% |
| 30 | Tackley Oxfordshire | B− | 1.9 | 100% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 31 | Twyning Gloucestershire | B− | 1 | 100% | 2.5 | 10% |
| 32 | Ettington Warwickshire | B− | 3.3 | 100% | 1.6 | 0% |
| 33 | South Wingfield Derbyshire | B− | 5.4 | 75% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 34 | Coopersale Essex | B− | 1.1 | 100% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 35 | Beeford East Riding of Yorkshire | C+ | 3.9 | 100% | 0.4 | 0% |
| 36 | Carleton-in-Craven North Yorkshire | C+ | 0.4 | 100% | 2.3 | 10% |
| 37 | Chillington Devon | C+ | 0.6 | 78% | 1.3 | 55% |
| 38 | Milford Derbyshire | C+ | 1.4 | 100% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 39 | Draycott Somerset | C+ | 2.1 | 68% | 2.1 | 46% |
| 40 | Sutterton Lincolnshire | C+ | 2.8 | 100% | 0.4 | 0% |
| 41 | Upper Basildon Berkshire | C+ | 2.3 | 0% | 2 | 97% |
| 42 | Lower Shiplake Oxfordshire | C+ | 3 | 0% | 2 | 28% |
| 43 | Weston Staffordshire | C+ | 1.3 | 100% | 1 | 4% |
| 44 | Huby (Hambleton) North Yorkshire | C | 2.4 | 75% | 1.5 | 2% |
| 45 | Charlton Marshall Dorset | C | 0.5 | 78% | 2 | 50% |
| 46 | Kimbolton Cambridgeshire | C− | 2.4 | 50% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 47 | Pattishall and Astcote Northamptonshire | C− | 2.9 | 39% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 48 | Stebbing Essex | C− | 2.4 | 70% | 2 | 0% |
| 49 | North Leverton with Habblesthorpe Nottinghamshire | C− | 0.5 | 100% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 50 | Tolleshunt Knights Essex | C− | 3.4 | 41% | 1.8 | 0% |
| 51 | Gorefield Cambridgeshire | D | 2.9 | 67% | 0.5 | 0% |
| 52 | Crundale Dyfed | D | 1.5 | 57% | 0.5 | 5% |
| 53 | Napton on the Hill Warwickshire | D | 0.4 | 69% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 54 | Aberporth Dyfed | D | 0.6 | 38% | 0.8 | 0% |
| 55 | Wisbech St Mary Cambridgeshire | D | 1.8 | 69% | 0.2 | 0% |
| 56 | Hockliffe Bedfordshire | D− | 1.2 | 49% | 1.8 | 0% |
| 57 | South Hykeham Lincolnshire | D− | 0.2 | 0% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 58 | Pencader Dyfed | D− | 1.2 | 30% | 0.1 | 0% |
| 59 | Netheravon Wiltshire | D− | 0.4 | 0% | 1.3 | 0% |
| 60 | Leeming Bar North Yorkshire | D− | 0.7 | 0% | 0.9 | 0% |
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Upper Basildon’s built-up area.
Few Upper Basildon residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park
Each square is 1 in 100 residents: green lives within 400 m of a public park, garden or playing field (Census 2021 output areas against OS Open Greenspace).
About 1,100 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 10 playgrounds are mapped in and around the village, about one for every 107 residents.
National Parks and National Landscapes around Upper Basildon
Protected landscapes within 30 km, by direction and distance from the edge of the built-up area; circle size shows each one’s area. National Landscapes were called Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty until 2023.
North Wessex Downs
97% of the land within 5 km of Upper Basildon is National Park or National Landscape, more than 98% of UK towns.
Upper Basildon is on the European walking route E2 west, UK, South East England
29 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Upper Basildon and the kilometre around it, 2.0 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the village.
The European walking route E2 west, UK, South East England, a national route, passes Upper Basildon. 2 regional routes pass through, including the The Roman Way and St Frideswide’s Way.
Waymarked walks are OpenStreetMap walking routes. Public rights of way are only as complete as the map in each area.
A registered historic park in Upper Basildon
Historic England’s register of parks and gardens, and the listed buildings and scheduled monuments that stand inside Upper Basildon’s named parks.
A listed building or monument counts when it sits inside the park’s OS Open Greenspace outline (to about 15 m), so a few at the boundary are included. Historic England, National Heritage List for England.
The best walking months in Upper Basildon: May to September
The village’s 1991–2020 averages (Met Office HadUK-Grid) and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have 12½+ hours of daylight, highs of 15 °C or more and little rain for the town.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 8.3 | 9.9 | 11.7 | 13.8 | 15.6 | 16.6 | 16.2 | 14.6 | 12.5 | 10.5 | 8.8 | 7.9 |
| High (°C) | 8 | 9 | 11 | 14 | 17 | 20 | 23 | 22 | 19 | 15 | 11 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 70 | 51 | 44 | 52 | 48 | 47 | 49 | 56 | 52 | 74 | 80 | 70 |
March is the driest month (44 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 23 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 80 mm of rain falls in November, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 50 nights a year. The climate in Upper Basildon →
3 viewpoints, 10 playgrounds and the nearest beaches
Mapped within 2 km of the village in OpenStreetMap, against the typical UK village its size per resident. Named places are listed with directions; unnamed ones are only counted.
The nearest beaches
Upper Basildon is inland. These are the nearest named beaches, measured from the edge of the village.
Check the water before you swim. The Environment Agency tests designated bathing waters from May to September and publishes a rating for each beach.
Every named place, with directions
Viewpoints 3
Plus 3 viewpoints without a name on the map.
Picnic sites 6
Plus 6 picnic sites without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 10
Plus 8 playgrounds without a name on the map.
The outdoors in nearby towns
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 12 miles. Tap a town for its outdoors page.
Theale, 4.6 miles away, grades A+, the best next door: every resident lives within 400 m of a park. Theale has at least twice Upper Basildon’s green space per resident.
Questions about the outdoors in Upper Basildon
What are the best walks near Upper Basildon?
10 waymarked walking routes pass within 2 km of the village, including the Boundary Walk, Basildon Park, Hidden Valley, Basildon Park and The Roman Way.
What is the nearest beach to Upper Basildon?
Penguin Beach, 24 mi from the edge of the village, then The Leys Park (25 mi). Upper Basildon itself is inland.
How many people in Upper Basildon live near a park?
0% of residents live within 400 m, about a 5-minute walk, of a public park, garden or playing field (Census 2021 output areas against OS Open Greenspace). The typical UK town is 83%.
When is the best time of year for walking in Upper Basildon?
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Which parks in Upper Basildon are historic?
Basildon Park (Grade II) is on Historic England’s register of parks and gardens.
Is Upper Basildon good for walking?
Paths are thinner than most towns: 2.0 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 32% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 54% (2.3 ha per 1,000 residents).
How is the Outdoors Grade worked out?
From five measures, each placed among UK towns of 1,000 or more: public green space per resident, the share living near a park, National Park or National Landscape within 5 km, footpaths per square kilometre, and the sea within 5 km. It is a character grade and isn’t part of Upper Basildon’s overall grade.
Where Upper Basildon’s outdoors figures come from
- Parks and green space: Ordnance Survey OS Open Greenspace (parks and gardens, playing fields, play spaces, and their access points). Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- National Parks and National Landscapes: Natural England and Natural Resources Wales boundaries, areas and designation dates, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Footpaths, walking routes, beaches and things to do: © OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database License (ODbL), via Geofabrik, 16 October 2026.
- Historic parks, listed buildings and monuments: Historic England, National Heritage List for England, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Rain and temperature: Met Office HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages for the town; daylight calculated from its latitude.
- The sea: ONS Countries (December 2024) boundaries clipped to mean high water. Residents near a park: ONS Census 2021 output areas.
- Grade: TownRatings’ Outdoors Grade, ranked against UK towns only.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.