Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
With 1,608 residents, it is a village in Cambridgeshire, East of England.
Residents are healthier than most: men here can expect to live to 83.9, women to 87.9. Work and incomes are strong: households earn a mean £72,956 a year, and 1.3% of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits. The median home sold for £540,000, 7.5 times what households in the South Cambridgeshire council area earn in a year. Its listed buildings number 29, with 1 at Grade I.
Figures: life expectancy and income, ONS · claimants, DWP · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years. Whittlesford is graded on each subject, but towns under 2,500 get no overall grade.
The 3 things Whittlesford 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 Whittlesford is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
Whittlesford is graded on each subject, but towns under 2,500 get no overall grade.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists them inside Whittlesford’s built-up area, along with 1 scheduled monument.
18% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Whittlesford. Best known first.
MuseumIWM Duxford1.7 km outside town, to the southwest · 401K visitors a year (2019)
MuseumAirborne Assault1.3 km outside town, to the south
MuseumAmerican Air Museum2 km outside town, to the southwestMuseumMuseumRoyal Anglian Regiment Museum1.3 km outside town, to the southMuseumMuseumBritish Airliner Collection1.8 km outside town, to the southwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Whittlesford.
At the census, 15% of people here had a disability, below Cambridgeshire’s towns (16%) and England’s towns (17%) alike. There is no GP practice in Whittlesford: the nearest is 1.1 miles off. Asked at the census, 86% of residents of Whittlesford said they were in good or very good health.
| Census 2021 | Whittlesford | Cambridgeshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 86% | 84% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 4.1% | 4.4% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 15% | 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.
William Westley Church of England VC Primary School’s results beat nearly four in five schools in England like it. Secondary results at the one secondary school within 3 km: an Attainment 8 score of 54.2, with 60% at grade 5 or above in English and maths. There is one school here; it is shown below. Key Stage 2 results at the 5 primary schools within 3 km: 61% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| William Westley Church of England VC Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 185 | A− |
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Of Whittlesford’s land, 29% lies in conservation areas, above both Cambridgeshire’s towns (13%) and England’s towns (7%). Its listed buildings include the Parish Church of St Mary and St Andrew, Grade I. Homes from before 1919 make up 18% of the total. The top grade, Grade I, goes to 1 of them.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 45% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Four in five commuters drove to work at the census. Working mainly from home: 45% of workers, higher than both Cambridgeshire’s towns (34%) and England’s towns (31%). About 6% of its commuters stay in Whittlesford for work. The town counts 1.3 jobs per working resident.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
A year of reports to August 2026 adds up to 76 offences in Whittlesford and 10 cases of nuisance behaviour. Of all the crimes, 32% were violence and sexual offences. Anti-social behaviour, shown but not graded, came to 6 reports per 1,000, 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.
72% of households own their home. Private rents average £1,408 a month across the South Cambridgeshire council area. The £540,000 median rests on 44 standard sales inside the built-up area (September 2023 to August 2026).
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £773,750 | 20 |
| Semi-detached | £460,000 | 17 |
| Terraced | £275,000 | 7 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Those aged 15 to 24 account for 7.7% of residents. The middle age in Whittlesford is 48. 24% of residents are 65 or over. Children under 15 make up 18%, close to Cambridgeshire’s towns (18%) and above England’s towns (18%).
51% women, 49% men
About 96 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Whittlesford | Cambridgeshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 18% | 18% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 7.7% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 19% | 28% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 30% | 25% | 25% |
| 65+ | 24% | 17% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 12% | 17% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 4.3% | 5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 14% | 16% | 17% |
| Degree level | 51% | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whittlesford | 1,608 | — | — | B− | B+ | A+ |
| Duxford | 2,216 | 1.2 | — | B− | A | A+ |
| Sawston | 7,270 | 1.5 | A− | B+ | B | B− |
| Great Shelford and Stapleford | 6,159 | 2.8 | A+ | C+ | A | A+ |
| Hauxton | 1,322 | 3.2 | — | B− | A | A+ |
| Fowlmere | 1,295 | 3.2 | — | B− | B+ | A |
| Harston | 1,827 | 3.3 | — | B− | B | A+ |
| Foxton | 1,275 | 3.5 | — | C+ | B− | A+ |
Duxford, Hauxton, Fowlmere, Harston and Foxton have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 7.4 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I building is Parish Church of St Mary and St Andrew. It also has 1 scheduled monument.
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £540,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: terraced houses £275,000, semi-detached houses £460,000 and detached houses £773,750. Household incomes are higher than in 93% of UK towns, so cost of living still grades B−.
Secondary schools stand out: GCSE results beat 90% of towns in England. Primary results are closer to the middle, trailing 53%. One state school is inside the town; places are handled by Cambridgeshire council.
Village in Cambridgeshire, England
Whittlesford is a built-up area of 1,608 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.