Photo: Rbirkby · CC BY-SA 3.0Parks and walks in Stone
The Chilterns National Landscape begins 3.7 mi from the village’s edge. 57% of residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park or playing field. Footpaths add up to 19 km in the village and the kilometre around it, 2.2 for every square kilometre. Stone grades D for the outdoors. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
What kind of outdoors village is Stone?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Stone’s strongest suit is the Chilterns National Landscape close by. Where it falls short is how far some homes are from a park.
Stone grades D for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Stone, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
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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.
Stone is 48th of 60 UK villages its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 2,000 to 2,200 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Stone falls furthest behind on homes near a park, where 42 of the 59 others do better.
Show as a table
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hay-on-Wye Powys | A+ | 9.3 | 100% | 3.8 | 21% |
| 2 | Wye Kent | A+ | 4.7 | 100% | 3.1 | 71% |
| 3 | Crickhowell Powys | A+ | 4.3 | 100% | 2.9 | 100% |
| 4 | Seaview and Nettlestone Isle of Wight | A+ | 3.6 | 89% | 2.8 | 8% |
| 5 | Charlton Hampshire | A+ | 5.6 | 87% | 5.2 | 19% |
| 6 | Chigwell Row Essex | A | 30.3 | 100% | 4.7 | 0% |
| 7 | Eton Wick Berkshire | A | 17.4 | 100% | 4.1 | 0% |
| 8 | Highfields Caldecote Cambridgeshire | A− | 4.1 | 100% | 3.7 | 0% |
| 9 | Marldon Devon | A− | 4.1 | 70% | 2.7 | 3% |
| 10 | Bishops Lydeard Somerset | A− | 3.2 | 100% | 1.8 | 23% |
| 11 | Chipping Campden Gloucestershire | A− | 2.1 | 100% | 2 | 74% |
| 12 | Culverstone Green Kent | B+ | 5.3 | 61% | 2.7 | 42% |
| 13 | Bermuda Warwickshire | B | 4.7 | 100% | 2 | 0% |
| 14 | Alveston Gloucestershire | B | 2.5 | 100% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 15 | Bickington Devon | B | 1.4 | 100% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 16 | Meppershall Bedfordshire | B | 2.3 | 83% | 3 | 2% |
| 17 | Needingworth Cambridgeshire | B− | 4.6 | 85% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 18 | Bishop's Tachbrook Warwickshire | B− | 2.5 | 100% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 19 | Uffculme Devon | B− | 2.8 | 86% | 1.3 | 14% |
| 20 | Edenfield Lancashire | B− | 2.7 | 69% | 4.4 | 0% |
| 21 | Wardle Greater Manchester | B− | 1 | 100% | 3.7 | 0% |
| 22 | Exning Suffolk | B− | 3.6 | 82% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 23 | Westoning Bedfordshire | B− | 1.1 | 100% | 1.9 | 10% |
| 24 | Aspley Guise Bedfordshire | B− | 2.2 | 69% | 4.9 | 0% |
| 25 | Brantham Suffolk | C+ | 1 | 27% | 2.6 | 42% |
| 26 | Kintbury Berkshire | C+ | 1.9 | 71% | 1.8 | 92% |
| 27 | Gregson Lane Lancashire | C+ | 1.7 | 86% | 3.3 | 0% |
| 28 | Pembrey Dyfed | C+ | 0.3 | 48% | 2.6 | 11% |
| 29 | Read Lancashire | C+ | 1.6 | 71% | 2.5 | 21% |
| 30 | Hixon Staffordshire | C+ | 0.8 | 100% | 1.3 | 11% |
| 31 | Market Bosworth Leicestershire | C | 10.9 | 25% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 32 | Galgate Lancashire | C | 1.1 | 58% | 3.4 | 12% |
| 33 | Bredon Worcestershire | C | 2.1 | 66% | 1.6 | 25% |
| 34 | Benllech Gwynedd | C | 0.1 | 17% | 1.8 | 27% |
| 35 | Maesycwmmer Gwent | C− | 1.9 | 73% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 36 | Barrowby Lincolnshire | C− | 3.5 | 66% | 1.8 | 0% |
| 37 | Micklefield West Yorkshire | C− | 2.1 | 48% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 38 | Seamer (Scarborough) North Yorkshire | C− | 2.2 | 58% | 1 | 18% |
| 39 | Carlton North Yorkshire | C− | 0.7 | 100% | 1.8 | 0% |
| 40 | Crich Derbyshire | C− | 0.6 | 69% | 4.1 | 0% |
| 41 | Sutton Bonington Nottinghamshire | C− | 2.7 | 28% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 42 | Stainburn Cumbria | C− | 0.1 | 72% | 2 | 0% |
| 43 | Urpeth County Durham | C− | 1.3 | 0% | 4.8 | 0% |
| 44 | Radley Oxfordshire | C− | 2.1 | 36% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 45 | Winwick Cheshire | C− | 3.2 | 48% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 46 | Ilchester Somerset | C− | 3.5 | 40% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 47 | Scholar Green Cheshire | C− | 0.7 | 65% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 48 | Stone Buckinghamshire | D | 2.2 | 57% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 49 | Bardney Lincolnshire | D | 4.1 | 49% | 1 | 0% |
| 50 | Stretham Cambridgeshire | D | 1.4 | 60% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 51 | Merriott Somerset | D | 1.1 | 39% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 52 | Hersden Kent | D | 2 | 63% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 53 | Meden Vale Nottinghamshire | D | 0.3 | 58% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 54 | Haxey Lincolnshire | D | 1.6 | 46% | 2 | 0% |
| 55 | Preston East Riding of Yorkshire | D | 0.6 | 52% | 1.1 | 0% |
| 56 | Great Eccleston Lancashire | D | 1.2 | 72% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 57 | West Hill Devon | D | 0 | 0% | 1.2 | 27% |
| 58 | Wymott Lancashire | D− | 0.3 | 10% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 59 | Keelby Lincolnshire | D− | 1 | 71% | 1.1 | 0% |
| 60 | Wythall Worcestershire | D− | 0.2 | 0% | 2 | 0% |
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Stone’s built-up area.
6 in 10 Stone 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 900 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 14 playgrounds are mapped in and around the village, about one for every 149 residents.
The Chilterns National Landscape is 3.7 mi away
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.
Protected landscape begins just outside the 5 km ring the Outdoors Grade measures, so Stone scores 0% on it even though the Chilterns National Landscape is 3.7 mi away.
7 waymarked walks pass through or near Stone
19 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Stone and the kilometre around it, 2.2 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the village.
4 regional routes pass through, including the North Bucks Way, Midshires Way, Aylesbury Ring and Bernwood Jubilee Way.
Waymarked walks are OpenStreetMap walking routes. Public rights of way are only as complete as the map in each area.
The best walking months in Stone: 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 | 16.7 | 16.2 | 14.6 | 12.6 | 10.5 | 8.7 | 7.8 |
| High (°C) | 8 | 8 | 11 | 14 | 17 | 20 | 23 | 22 | 19 | 15 | 11 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 59 | 46 | 39 | 46 | 53 | 47 | 49 | 58 | 52 | 70 | 68 | 61 |
March is the driest month (39 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 23 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 70 mm of rain falls in October, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 44 nights a year. The climate in Stone →
14 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
Stone 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
Playgrounds 14
Plus 6 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.
Broughton, 4.2 miles away, grades A+, the best next door: every resident lives within 400 m of a park. Stoke Mandeville, Bierton and Broughton have at least twice Stone’s green space per resident.
Questions about the outdoors in Stone
Is Stone near a National Park?
The nearest protected landscape is the Chilterns National Landscape, 3.7 mi south-east of the village’s edge. It covers 838 km² and was designated in 1990.
What are the best walks near Stone?
7 waymarked walking routes pass within 2 km of the village, including the North Bucks Way, Midshires Way and Aylesbury Ring.
What is the nearest beach to Stone?
The Beach, 20 mi from the edge of the village, then Hog Hole (33 mi). Stone itself is inland.
How many people in Stone live near a park?
57% 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 Stone?
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Stone good for walking?
Paths are thinner than most towns: 2.2 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 35% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 50% (2.2 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 Stone’s overall grade.
Where Stone’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.