Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A village of 1,461 in Cambridgeshire, East of England.
Castor and Ailsworth’s strongest is jobs & income: the mean household earns £66,219 a year. Residents are healthier than most: life expectancy 83.2 for men, 83.8 for women. Housing is expensive: homes sell for a median £460,000, about 8.6 times local household income. Its remaining grades are unremarkable: B for safety, B− for schools and B− for walkability.
Figures: income and life expectancy, ONS · claimants, DWP · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · commuting, Census 2021. An overall grade needs 2,500 residents, so Castor and Ailsworth is graded subject by subject only.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Castor and Ailsworth is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
An overall grade needs 2,500 residents, so Castor and Ailsworth is graded subject by subject only.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The 3 things Castor and Ailsworth does most differently from other towns.
Historic England lists them inside Castor and Ailsworth’s built-up area, along with 1 scheduled monument.
25% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Castor and Ailsworth.
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Of Castor and Ailsworth’s 82 listed buildings on Historic England’s list, Grade I counts 1 and Grade II* 3. The town’s listed buildings include the Church of St Kyneburgha, Grade I. 25% of its homes were built before 1919, above both Cambridgeshire’s towns (12%) and England’s towns (16%).
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Its only school is listed below. Key Stage 2 results at the 3 primary schools within 3 km: 61% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). 185 pupils attend Castor and Ailsworth’s one primary school.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Castor CofE Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 185 | C |
9% of households live in social housing. From September 2023 to August 2026, 55 homes sold inside Castor and Ailsworth’s built-up area at standard prices; the middle one went for £460,000. Private rents average £1,012 a month across the Peterborough council area.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £564,000 | 38 |
| Semi-detached | £300,000 | 14 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Women here live to 83.8 on average and men to 83.2 (2019–23). One GP practice serves the town; 71% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey. The nearest A&E to Castor and Ailsworth is Peterborough City Hospital, 2.9 miles away.
| Census 2021 | Castor and Ailsworth | Cambridgeshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 84% | 84% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 4.9% | 4.4% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 17% | 16% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Young towns look healthier on these answers, which aren’t adjusted for age; the Health Grade uses measures that are, such as life expectancy and early deaths.
Just over two fifths of the crimes fell under violence and sexual offences. Police figures for Castor and Ailsworth’s built-up area: 36 crimes and 16 anti-social behaviour reports in the 12 months to August 2026. Violence came to 17.1 per 1,000 residents a year, below both Cambridgeshire’s towns (19.2) and England’s towns (22).
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.
data.police.uk street-level crime · points inside the ONS built-up-area boundary · OGL · The police category of violence and sexual offences includes harassment and stalking.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 42% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
13% of commuters walked, cycled or took the bus or train at the census, lower than both Cambridgeshire’s towns (25%) and England’s towns (27%). The census counted 42% of workers working mainly from home. Work in town: 6% of resident commuters. The 2026 claimant rate among 16 to 64s was 1.5%.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Children are 15% of the town. Young adults of 15 to 24 are 9.1% of residents, below Cambridgeshire’s towns (12%) and England’s towns (12%) alike. Half the people of Castor and Ailsworth are older than 49.7.
50% women, 50% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Castor and Ailsworth | Cambridgeshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 15% | 18% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 9.1% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 20% | 28% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 32% | 25% | 25% |
| 65+ | 25% | 17% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 14% | 17% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 5.6% | 5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 16% | 16% | 17% |
| Degree level | 38% | 37% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Cambridgeshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Castor and Ailsworth. Best known first.
Castle · English HeritageLongthorpe Tower3.3 km outside town, to the east
Heritage railwayNene Valley Railway500 m outside town, to the southAttractionAttractionSacrewell Farm & Country Centre3.7 km outside town, to the westMuseumMuseumOld Farm Equipment3.8 km outside town, to the westPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Village in Cambridgeshire, England
Castor and Ailsworth is a built-up area of 1,461 people, in the Peterborough 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
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Castor and Ailsworth | 1,461 | — | — | C− | B | A− |
| Peterborough | 190,592 | 3.7 | C | A− | D | C− |
| Helpston | 1,249 | 4.2 | — | C | A | A |
| Wittering | 2,678 | 4.6 | A+ | A− | B | A− |
| Barnack | 1,007 | 4.8 | — | C | C+ | A− |
| Glinton | 1,743 | 4.9 | — | B− | C | B+ |
| Warmington | 1,045 | 5.4 | — | D | A | A |
| Yaxley | 9,403 | 5.4 | B+ | A+ | B− | B− |
Helpston, Barnack, Glinton and Warmington have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 23 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I building is Church of St Kyneburgha. It also has 1 scheduled monument.
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £460,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: semi-detached houses £300,000 and detached houses £564,000.
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
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.
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.