Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Over-65s are 33% of the population. It is a village of 1,336 residents in Cambridgeshire, East of England.
Crime is low: 8.2 violent or sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, plus 7.2 home and vehicle crimes. Natural hazards weigh more here: 44.6% of homes face a high or medium risk of river or sea flooding. Buying the median home, at £317,500, takes 6 years of household income in the Peterborough council area. It also trails on walkability: just over one in ten commuters walk, cycle or take public transport.
Figures: crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · flood risk, Environment Agency · commuting, Census 2021 · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · incomes, ONS. Northborough is graded on each subject, but towns under 2,500 get no overall grade.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Northborough is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
Northborough is graded on each subject, but towns under 2,500 get no overall grade.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The 3 things Northborough does most differently from other towns.
Historic England lists them inside Northborough’s built-up area, along with 1 scheduled monument.
11% 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 Northborough.
Northborough has a median age of 53.4 years. 15% are under 15, lower than both Cambridgeshire’s towns (18%) and England’s towns (18%). The share aged 15 to 24 is 8.2%.
51% women, 49% men
About 96 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Northborough | Cambridgeshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 15% | 18% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 8.2% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 16% | 28% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 29% | 25% | 25% |
| 65+ | 33% | 17% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 17% | 17% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 8.2% | 5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 18% | 16% | 17% |
| Degree level | 26% | 37% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Cambridgeshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Northborough Primary School’s results beat 81% of schools in England like it. The one school in town appears below. Attainment 8 at the 2 secondary schools within 3 km averages 43.2, and just over two in five pupils get grade 5 or above in English and maths.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northborough Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 187 | A− |
Violence and sexual offences made up 35% of the total. A year of reports to August 2026 adds up to 23 offences in Northborough and 6 cases of nuisance behaviour. For its size, Northborough records less crime per resident than 85% of the 1,541 UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people. There were 4.7 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), lower than both Cambridgeshire’s towns (9.3) and England’s towns (7.8).
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 nearest A&E to Northborough is Peterborough City Hospital, 5.4 miles away. There is no GP practice here: the nearest is 1.8 miles off. Poor health, by residents’ own account, affects 4.2% of the town.
| Census 2021 | Northborough | Cambridgeshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 82% | 84% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 4.2% | 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.
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Conservation areas cover just over a fifth of Northborough’s land, above both Cambridgeshire’s towns (13%) and England’s towns (7%). The town’s listed buildings include the Church of St Andrew, Grade I. Historic England’s list names 28 listed buildings in the town: 3 Grade I.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 32% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Household income came to £61K a year before tax, between Cambridgeshire’s towns (£66K) and England’s towns (£55K). At the census, 11% of commuters walked, cycled or took the bus or train. About 3% of its commuters stay in Northborough for work. Unemployment benefit claims reached 1.2% of 16 to 64s in 2026.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Social housing holds 2% of households, below Cambridgeshire’s towns (16%) and England’s towns (18%) alike. Home ownership stands at 91% of households. The median sale, £317,500, comes from 66 standard sales inside Northborough’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £365,000 | 38 |
| Semi-detached | £241,500 | 28 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Village in Cambridgeshire, England
Northborough is a built-up area of 1,336 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northborough | 1,336 | — | — | B− | A | B+ |
| Deeping St James | 7,255 | 1 | A | A | A− | A− |
| Glinton | 1,743 | 1.6 | — | B− | C | B+ |
| Market Deeping | 6,533 | 1.7 | B | A− | B− | B− |
| Helpston | 1,249 | 2.8 | — | C | A | A |
| Langtoft | 2,010 | 3.2 | — | B | A+ | A |
| Newborough | 1,469 | 3.5 | — | B | A | B+ |
| Baston | 1,576 | 4.4 | — | B | A+ | A |
Glinton, Helpston, Langtoft, Newborough and Baston have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
That is 8.6 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I buildings include Church of St Andrew. It also has 1 scheduled monument.
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.