Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
This town in Cambridgeshire, East of England has a population of 10,609.
Homes are affordable: homes sell for a median £271,750, about 4.5 times local household income. At B+ overall, Soham ranks #35 of 50 in Cambridgeshire. Nationally, it does better than just over two thirds of UK towns. What counts against it is health — life expectancy is 79.4 for men and 83.6 for women. Its remaining grades are unremarkable: B− for safety, B− for schools, C+ for jobs & income, B− for walkability and C+ for hazard risk.
Figures: prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · life expectancy and income, ONS · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · claimants, DWP · commuting, Census 2021 · flood risk, Environment Agency.
The thing Soham does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Soham is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 43 buildings inside Soham’s built-up area, 1 of them Grade I.
15% 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 Soham.
422 standard sales inside Soham’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 put the median at £271,750. Private rents average £1,038 a month across the East Cambridgeshire council area. Nearly three in five households own their home, near both Cambridgeshire’s towns (61%) and England’s towns (61%).
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £368,750 | 134 |
| Semi-detached | £267,000 | 122 |
| Terraced | £241,000 | 126 |
| Flat or maisonette | £156,750 | 40 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Of its 3 schools, two are shown below, each with the reason. Secondary results at the one secondary school within 3 km: an Attainment 8 score of 52.5, with 54% at grade 5 or above in English and maths. 55% of pupils at the town’s 2 primary schools met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| St Andrew's CofE Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 461 | A− |
| Soham Village CollegeLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 1,436 | A− |
The nearest A&E to Soham is Addenbrooke's and the Rosie Hospitals, 13.8 miles away. One GP practice serves the town; nearly nine in ten patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey. At the census, 16% of people here had a disability, near Cambridgeshire’s towns (16%) and lower than England’s towns (17%).
| Census 2021 | Soham | Cambridgeshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 83% | 84% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 4.2% | 4.4% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 16% | 16% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · No age adjustment applies to these census answers, which flatter younger towns; the Health Grade’s measures, life expectancy and early deaths among them, do allow for age.
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Soham’s listed buildings include the Church of St Andrew, Grade I. Relative to its size, Soham keeps 41 listed buildings per 10,000 residents, lower than Cambridgeshire’s towns (82) and near England’s towns (39). Also worth knowing: 15% of homes were built before 1919.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 25% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
85% of commuters took the car to work at the census. Short trips to work, under 5 km: 25%, below both Cambridgeshire’s towns (44%) and England’s towns (45%). A household here earns £54K a year before tax, on average. About 16% of its commuters stay in Soham for work.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Violent crime comes to 24.8 per 1,000 residents a year. Police figures for Soham’s built-up area: 456 crimes and 144 anti-social behaviour reports in the 12 months to August 2026. Anti-social behaviour, shown but not graded, came to 13.7 reports per 1,000, above both Cambridgeshire’s towns (8.7) and England’s towns (7.8). 55% of the crimes fell under violence and sexual offences.
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.
9.3% of residents are aged 15 to 24. Children under 15 make up 20%, above Cambridgeshire’s towns (18%) and England’s towns (18%) alike. Half of Soham is older than 38.9, half younger.
51% women, 49% men
About 96 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Soham | Cambridgeshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 20% | 18% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 9.3% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 30% | 28% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 24% | 25% | 25% |
| 65+ | 17% | 17% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 20% | 17% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 6.8% | 5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 17% | 16% | 17% |
| Degree level | 28% | 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 Soham. Best known first.
43 listed buildings in Soham, 1 of them Grade I.
The Fountain Public House: Photo: Bill Boaden · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Baptist Chapel: Photo: Hugh Venables · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Addison House: Photo: Keith Edkins · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geograph · War Memorial: Photo: Bill Boaden · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geograph
4 notable people were born in Soham.
Nick Pope: Charltonkyle, CC BY-SA 4.0
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soham | 10,609 | — | B+ | A | B− | C+ |
| Fordham | 2,566 | 2.9 | B+ | B+ | B− | B |
| Isleham | 2,287 | 3.5 | — | B+ | B+ | B+ |
| Burwell | 5,912 | 4.1 | A+ | B+ | B+ | A |
| Stretham | 2,070 | 4.8 | — | B+ | B+ | B+ |
| Exning | 2,049 | 5.1 | — | D | C | B |
| Ely | 19,185 | 5.5 | A | B+ | C+ | A− |
| Witchford | 2,386 | 6.5 | — | A− | C+ | B+ |
Isleham, Stretham, Exning and Witchford have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
It has less crime than most places its size: less crime per resident than 77% of the 645 UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people. Against all UK towns, most of them smaller, it grades B−.
Band D council tax in Soham is £2,492 for 2026–27, more than in 62% of UK towns (council, county, police and fire, plus the parish or town council). Your own bill depends on your home’s band; check it on GOV.UK.
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
Town in Cambridgeshire, England
Soham is a built-up area of 10,609 people, in the East Cambridgeshire 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
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.