Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Anderton Boat Lift, aqueduct, basins, meter building, toll houses and buried remains of salt chutes, inclined planes, the east basin and dockside features · Photo: Mike Peel · CC BY-SA 4.0Parks and playing fields in Barnton add up to 10.0 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. Footpaths add up to 46 km in the town and the kilometre around it, 3.8 for every square kilometre. 94% of residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park or playing field. Barnton grades A− for the outdoors: #5 of 46 in Cheshire. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Barnton’s strongest suit is plenty of park space, followed by dense footpaths.
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Barnton, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
Graded, never part of the overall grade (like History and Civic life). It measures what is mapped: OS Open Greenspace leaves out woodland and open-access land that isn’t a park, and OpenStreetMap’s rural paths are more complete in some places than others.
The 60 UK towns and cities of 5,900 to 6,600 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Against towns its size, Barnton stands out most for park space per resident: only 3 of the other 59 have more.
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Netley Hampshire | A+ | 16.3 | 100% | 4.1 | 4% |
| 2 | Stone Kent | A+ | 3.1 | 100% | 6.2 | 0% |
| 3 | Wingerworth Derbyshire | A | 9 | 86% | 4 | 0% |
| 4 | Shotton Clwyd | A | 4.5 | 100% | 4.7 | 0% |
| 5 | Boldon Colliery Tyne and Wear | A | 5.3 | 95% | 5.4 | 0% |
| 6 | Bedwas Gwent | A | 4.4 | 100% | 4 | 0% |
| 7 | Barnton Cheshire | A− | 10 | 94% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 8 | Marston Moretaine Bedfordshire | A− | 17.4 | 88% | 4.2 | 0% |
| 9 | Alcester Warwickshire | A− | 4.1 | 100% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 10 | Ackworth Moor Top West Yorkshire | A− | 4.6 | 91% | 4.6 | 0% |
| 11 | Paulton Somerset | A− | 2.1 | 96% | 4.1 | 0% |
| 12 | Burghfield Common Berkshire | A− | 2.1 | 100% | 2.9 | 8% |
| 13 | Broadbridge Heath West Sussex | B+ | 1.6 | 95% | 4.3 | 3% |
| 14 | Milford and Witley Surrey | B+ | 2.6 | 54% | 3.7 | 78% |
| 15 | Cawston Warwickshire | B+ | 3.6 | 98% | 3 | 0% |
| 16 | Little Chalfont Buckinghamshire | B+ | 1.5 | 83% | 3.6 | 45% |
| 17 | Crofton West Yorkshire | B+ | 3.6 | 95% | 2.9 | 0% |
| 18 | Axminster Devon | B | 0.9 | 100% | 2.4 | 66% |
| 19 | Hindhead Surrey | B | 1.7 | 37% | 5.9 | 66% |
| 20 | Galleywood Essex | B | 10.3 | 61% | 4.2 | 0% |
| 21 | Throckley Tyne and Wear | B | 3.1 | 89% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 22 | Wixams Bedfordshire | B | 5.3 | 100% | 1.6 | 0% |
| 23 | East Wittering West Sussex | B | 1.1 | 78% | 1.9 | 27% |
| 24 | Oundle Northamptonshire | B− | 2.4 | 100% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 25 | Bovey Tracey Devon | B− | 2.2 | 66% | 2.5 | 55% |
| 26 | Yapton West Sussex | B− | 1.8 | 63% | 2 | 15% |
| 27 | Upton West Yorkshire | B− | 2.2 | 100% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 28 | Danbury Essex | B− | 3.9 | 34% | 4.3 | 0% |
| 29 | Ushaw Moor and Bearpark County Durham | C+ | 1.6 | 82% | 4.6 | 0% |
| 30 | South Molton Devon | C+ | 2.2 | 96% | 1.3 | 0% |
| 31 | Annesley Woodhouse Nottinghamshire | C+ | 1.1 | 96% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 32 | Kirby Cross Essex | C+ | 2.4 | 44% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 33 | Waltham Lincolnshire | C+ | 2.2 | 84% | 1.3 | 19% |
| 34 | Oakdale Gwent | C+ | 5.2 | 79% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 35 | Lower Willingdon East Sussex | C+ | 0.8 | 57% | 4.2 | 33% |
| 36 | Tetbury Gloucestershire | C+ | 1.2 | 66% | 2.6 | 88% |
| 37 | Malton North Yorkshire | C+ | 2.3 | 43% | 2.4 | 24% |
| 38 | Strensall North Yorkshire | C | 1.3 | 89% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 39 | Bowdon Greater Manchester | C | 1.8 | 81% | 3 | 0% |
| 40 | Cross Hands and Pen-y-groes Dyfed | C | 9.7 | 70% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 41 | Ottery St Mary Devon | C− | 1.2 | 71% | 1.7 | 34% |
| 42 | Gildersome West Yorkshire | C− | 1.2 | 81% | 2.9 | 0% |
| 43 | Studley Warwickshire | C− | 1.6 | 63% | 3.3 | 0% |
| 44 | Ashingdon Essex | C− | 1.3 | 61% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 45 | Great Shelford and Stapleford Cambridgeshire | C− | 2.6 | 63% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 46 | Weaverham Cheshire | C− | 0.7 | 81% | 3 | 0% |
| 47 | Stainforth South Yorkshire | C− | 2.2 | 80% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 48 | Boston Spa West Yorkshire | C− | 1.2 | 86% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 49 | Cottenham Cambridgeshire | D | 1.3 | 86% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 50 | Washingborough and Heighington Lincolnshire | D | 1.8 | 66% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 51 | Staplehurst Kent | D | 1.3 | 70% | 1.4 | 1% |
| 52 | Arlesey Bedfordshire | D | 0.9 | 51% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 53 | Werrington Staffordshire | D | 1.1 | 42% | 2.9 | 0% |
| 54 | Wem Shropshire | D | 1.2 | 77% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 55 | Aintree Merseyside | D | 1.3 | 43% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 56 | Selston Nottinghamshire | D | 0.9 | 61% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 57 | Earls Barton Northamptonshire | D | 1.5 | 71% | 1.2 | 0% |
| 58 | Thurcroft South Yorkshire | D− | 0.5 | 56% | 2 | 0% |
| 59 | Abercynon Mid Glamorgan | D− | 1.1 | 55% | 1.6 | 0% |
| 60 | Tadcaster North Yorkshire | D− | 0.6 | 58% | 1.7 | 0% |
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Barnton’s built-up area.
The biggest is Marbury Country Park, 320 ha (791 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
Each square is 1 in 100 residents: green lives within 400 m of a public park, garden or playing field (Census 2021 output areas against OS Open Greenspace).
About 400 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 17 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 367 residents.
Protected landscapes within 30 km, by direction and distance from the edge of the built-up area; circle size shows each one’s area. National Landscapes were called Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty until 2023.
Peak District National Park covers 1,438 km² and has been a National Park since 1951.
46 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Barnton and the kilometre around it, 3.8 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the town.
4 regional routes pass through, including the North Cheshire Way, Weaver Way, Cheshire Circuit and Dane Valley Way.
Waymarked walks are OpenStreetMap walking routes. Public rights of way are only as complete as the map in each area.
The town’s 1991–2020 averages (Met Office HadUK-Grid) and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have 12½+ hours of daylight, highs of 15 °C or more and little rain for the town.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 8.0 | 9.7 | 11.7 | 13.9 | 15.8 | 17.0 | 16.5 | 14.8 | 12.6 | 10.4 | 8.5 | 7.5 |
| High (°C) | 8 | 9 | 11 | 14 | 17 | 20 | 22 | 21 | 19 | 15 | 11 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 66 | 56 | 53 | 55 | 54 | 67 | 68 | 72 | 72 | 86 | 79 | 82 |
March is the driest month (53 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 22 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 86 mm of rain falls in October, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 29 nights a year. The climate in Barnton →
Mapped within 2 km of the town in OpenStreetMap, against the typical UK town its size per resident. Named places are listed with directions; unnamed ones are only counted.
Barnton is inland. These are the nearest named beaches, measured from the edge of the town.
Check the water before you swim. The Environment Agency tests designated bathing waters from May to September and publishes a rating for each beach.
Plus 1 viewpoint without a name on the map.
Plus 12 picnic sites without a name on the map.
Plus 15 playgrounds without a name on the map.
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 12 miles. Tap a town for its outdoors page.
Northwich, 1.6 miles away, grades A, the best next door: 92% of its residents live within 400 m of a park. None of the neighbours has a protected landscape within 5 km either.
Marbury Country Park, 320 ha (791 acres), with 22.2 km of path. Anderton Nature Park (33 ha) is second. 2 named parks, gardens and playing fields are in the town or within 400 m of it.
Yes. Peak District National Park begins 18 mi east of the town’s edge. It covers 1,438 km² and has been a National Park since 1951.
6 waymarked walking routes pass within 2 km of the town, including the North Cheshire Way, Weaver Way and Cheshire Circuit. Marbury Country Park alone has 22.2 km of path.
Tranmere Beach, 20 mi from the edge of the town, then Wader Point (22 mi). Barnton itself is inland.
94% of residents live within 400 m, about a 5-minute walk, of a public park, garden or playing field (Census 2021 output areas against OS Open Greenspace). The typical UK town is 83%.
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
For paths, yes: 3.8 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 77% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 96% (10.0 ha per 1,000 residents).
From five measures, each placed among UK towns of 1,000 or more: public green space per resident, the share living near a park, National Park or National Landscape within 5 km, footpaths per square kilometre, and the sea within 5 km. It is a character grade and isn’t part of Barnton’s overall grade.
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.