Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
5,375 people live in this town in Cambridgeshire, East of England.
Some subjects shine; others lag. Its standout strength is jobs & income (A−): households earn a mean £62,661 a year, and 2.2% of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits. Waterbeach grades A− overall, better than 85% of UK towns. It ranks #19 of 50 in Cambridgeshire. Walkability is a strength too (A−) — on the way to work, 22% walk, cycle or take a bus or train. Natural hazards weigh more here (C): 1.2% of homes at high or medium risk of flooding from rivers or the sea. A median £386,500 buys a home here, 5.3 times what households in the South Cambridgeshire council area earn in a year. Its other grades sit near the middle: C+ for safety and B for health.
Figures: income and life expectancy, ONS · claimants, DWP · commuting, Census 2021 · flood risk, Environment Agency · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026.
The 3 things Waterbeach 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 Waterbeach is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 16 buildings inside Waterbeach’s built-up area, 1 of them Grade II*.
9% 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 Waterbeach.
19% are under 15, above both Cambridgeshire’s towns (18%) and England’s towns (18%). Young adults of 15 to 24 account for 7.3% of the town. Waterbeach has a median age of 38.1.
52% women, 48% men
About 94 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Waterbeach | Cambridgeshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 19% | 18% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 7.3% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 35% | 28% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 22% | 25% | 25% |
| 65+ | 16% | 17% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 12% | 17% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 5.1% | 5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 14% | 16% | 17% |
| Degree level | 49% | 37% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Cambridgeshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
GCSE results at the one secondary school within 3 km: 57% of pupils get a strong pass (grade 5+) in English and maths, and the Attainment 8 average is 52.9. The one school in town appears below. Key Stage 2 results at the 2 primary schools within 3 km: three in five pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waterbeach Community Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 521 | C− |
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 46% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
46% of workers worked mainly from home, above Cambridgeshire’s towns (34%) and England’s towns (31%) alike. Waterbeach counts 0.9 jobs per working resident. Of the commuters living in the town, 11% work in the town itself.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
218 standard sales inside Waterbeach’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 put the median at £386,500. 63% of households own their home, about level with Cambridgeshire’s towns (61%) and above England’s towns (61%). Private rents average £1,408 a month across the South Cambridgeshire council area.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £540,000 | 73 |
| Semi-detached | £371,250 | 65 |
| Terraced | £348,500 | 72 |
| Flat or maisonette | £238,000 | 8 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Nearly a tenth of its homes were built before 1919, lower than both Cambridgeshire’s towns (12%) and England’s towns (16%). Grade II* covers 1 of them. Scaled to its population, that is 30 listed buildings for every 10,000 people in Waterbeach.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Of all the crimes, 50% were violence and sexual offences. Waterbeach logged 284 reported offences in a year (to August 2026), plus 60 complaints of anti-social conduct. Violent crime ran at 23.5 per 1,000 residents a year, above both Cambridgeshire’s towns (19.1) 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.
Self-reported good health: 86% of Waterbeach’s residents. The nearest A&E to Waterbeach is Addenbrooke's and the Rosie Hospitals, 7 miles away. One GP practice serves the town; 53% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey.
| Census 2021 | Waterbeach | Cambridgeshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 86% | 84% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 3.3% | 4.4% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 15% | 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.
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Waterbeach. Best known first.
MuseumWaterbeach Military Heritage Museumin town
Abbey or priory · English HeritageDenny Abbey and Farmland Museum600 m outside town, to the north
Abbey or priory · National TrustAnglesey Abbey3.9 km outside town, to the southeast
MuseumCambridge Science Centre3.9 km outside town, to the southwestAttractionAttraction · National TrustLode water mill3.7 km outside town, to the southeastAttractionAttractionThe Wild Place3.1 km outside town, to the southwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
16 listed buildings in Waterbeach.
Small Barn to South of Denny House: Photo: Dave.Dunford · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Berry House: Photo: Dave.Dunford · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Box Tree Cottage: Photo: Dave.Dunford · CC BY-SA 4.0 · The Gables: Photo: Dave.Dunford · CC BY-SA 4.0
3 notable people were born in Waterbeach.
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Waterbeach | 5,375 | — | A− | A− | C+ | B |
| Milton | 4,150 | 2.4 | A+ | B+ | B | A+ |
| Cottenham | 6,156 | 3.2 | A | B+ | B− | B |
| Histon and Impington | 7,781 | 4 | A+ | B | B | B+ |
| Bottisham | 1,990 | 4.4 | — | B− | A− | B |
| Oakington | 1,494 | 5.2 | — | A− | A | B+ |
| Cambridge | 152,742 | 5.3 | B+ | C− | C− | B+ |
| Girton | 4,384 | 5.3 | A+ | C+ | A | A+ |
Bottisham and Oakington have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
At the 2021 Census, 7.3% of Waterbeach’s 5,375 residents were 15 to 24 and 16% were 65 or over, against 12% and 18% across England’s towns.
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £386,500, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £238,000, terraced houses £348,500, semi-detached houses £371,250 and detached houses £540,000. Household incomes are higher than in 75% of UK towns, so cost of living still grades A−.
About the middle for its size: 58% of the 1,308 UK towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people report less crime per resident. Against all UK towns, it grades C+.
Town in Cambridgeshire, England
Waterbeach is a built-up area of 5,375 people, in the South 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.