Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
This village in Cambridgeshire, East of England has a population of 1,655.
Where it does best is schools (A+) — primary results beat 95% of towns in England. Cost of living is another plus: a typical home costs £241,750 and rent runs £1,012 a month. Incomes are on the low side: households earn a mean £55,803 a year, and 3.8% of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits. It also trails on walkability (C−) — on the way to work, 9% walk, cycle or take a bus or train. Natural hazards weigh more here (D−): 28.9% of homes face a high or medium risk of river or sea flooding.
Figures: prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · income, ONS · claimants, DWP · commuting, Census 2021 · flood risk, Environment Agency. With fewer than 2,500 residents, Thorney has subject grades but no overall one.
The 3 things Thorney 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 Thorney is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists them inside Thorney’s built-up area.
21% 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 Thorney.
Below is its only school. The Duke of Bedford Primary School’s results beat just over four in five schools in England like it. 74% of pupils at the one primary school within 3 km met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Duke of Bedford Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 221 | A− |
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Thorney’s listed buildings include the Church of St Mary and St Botolph, Grade I. Historic England’s list names 41 listed buildings here: 2 Grade I, 2 Grade II*. Of the town’s land, 32% lies in conservation areas, above Cambridgeshire’s towns (13%) and England’s towns (7%) alike. Just over a fifth 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 28% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
7% of commuters who live in Thorney also work there. There are 0.4 jobs in Thorney for each resident in work. Home was the main workplace for 28% of workers at the census.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
At the census, 5.5% of residents said their health was bad or very bad, above Cambridgeshire’s towns (4.4%) and England’s towns (5.2%) alike. Just over four fifths of people in Thorney rate their own health good or very good. One GP practice serves the town; 65% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey. The nearest A&E to Thorney is Peterborough City Hospital, 7.9 miles away.
| Census 2021 | Thorney | Cambridgeshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 81% | 84% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 5.5% | 4.4% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 19% | 16% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · These shares come straight from the census, without allowing for age, and young towns benefit; the Health Grade instead weighs age-adjusted measures, including life expectancy and early deaths.
Owners make up 69% of households, higher than both Cambridgeshire’s towns (61%) and England’s towns (61%). Half of the 62 standard sales inside Thorney’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 went for more than £241,750. Council and housing-body homes hold 15% of households.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £292,500 | 7 |
| Semi-detached | £258,000 | 37 |
| Terraced | £200,000 | 18 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Among the 1,541 UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people, Thorney has more crime per resident than 83% of them. Burglary and damage add up to 11.1 per 1,000 residents each year. The 12 months to August 2026 brought 118 recorded crimes inside the town’s built-up area, and 21 reports of anti-social behaviour. Violence and sexual offences were 52% of the crimes.
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.
Half of Thorney is older than 44.2, half younger. Aged 15 to 24: 8.8% of residents. People 65 and over make up just over a fifth of the town, above Cambridgeshire’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (18%) alike.
53% women, 47% men
About 89 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Thorney | Cambridgeshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 18% | 18% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 8.8% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 24% | 28% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 29% | 25% | 25% |
| 65+ | 21% | 17% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 19% | 17% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 6.6% | 5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 19% | 16% | 17% |
| Degree level | 24% | 37% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Cambridgeshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thorney | 1,655 | — | — | B+ | C | C |
| Eye | 5,419 | 3.7 | C− | B+ | C+ | C |
| Whittlesey | 13,833 | 4.4 | D | C | C | C |
| Coates and Eastrea | 2,313 | 4.4 | — | C− | A | C |
| Crowland | 4,619 | 4.5 | D | C | C | B− |
| Newborough | 1,469 | 5.1 | — | B | A | B+ |
| Parson Drove | 1,197 | 6.1 | — | C− | B+ | C− |
| Peterborough | 190,592 | 7.1 | C | A− | D | C− |
Coates and Eastrea, Newborough and Parson Drove 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.
Primary results beat 95% of towns in England (Department for Education, Key Stage 2). One state school is inside the town; places are handled by Peterborough council.
That is 10.2 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I buildings include Thorney Abbey and Abbey House.
Village in Cambridgeshire, England
Thorney is a built-up area of 1,655 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
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.