At B− overall, Nantwich ranks #30 of 46 in Cheshire. On that grade it does better than 53% of UK towns. Its strongest is walkability: on the way to work, 18% walk, cycle or take a bus or train. It takes 5 years of household income in the Cheshire East council area to buy the median home, at £265,000. Police record more crime here than in most towns: police record 39.5 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, and 8.8 home and vehicle crimes. Only 43% of UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people have more crime per resident. Elsewhere it is close to typical: B− for schools, C+ for health, B− for jobs & income and B− for hazard risk.
Figures: commuting, Census 2021 · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · incomes and life expectancy, ONS · claimants, DWP · flood risk, Environment Agency.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Nantwich is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Nantwich.
Who lives here
An older town: 24% of people in Nantwich are 65 or over, more than in Cheshire’s towns or England’s towns
46.1median age
Graduates make up 39% of adults. Children under 15 make up 15%, lower than both Cheshire’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (18%). Aged 15 to 24: 9.2% of residents. The middle age in Nantwich is 46.1.
NantwichCheshireEngland
Ages · share of residents
24%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications15%
Apprenticeship6%
A levels or similar16%
Degree level39%
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
WomenEnglandMen
About 94 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
ONS Census 2021 · Cheshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
SchoolsB−
Exam results at Nantwich’s schools top 53% of towns in England
B−School Grade
60% of pupils at the town’s 7 primary schools met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). Three of its 10 schools are below, each with the reason it’s listed. Secondary results at the town’s 2 secondary schools: an Attainment 8 score of 48, with 48% at grade 5 or above in English and maths.
Department for Education · GIAS, Key Stage 2 and GCSE resultsSee all 10 schools →
Safety
More crimes per resident in Nantwich than in 77% of UK towns
39.5violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a yearC−Safety Grade
1,471 crimes and 167 reports of anti-social behaviour: that is what police recorded inside Nantwich’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026. 55% of the crimes fell under violence and sexual offences. There were 7.8 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), about level with England’s towns (7.8) and above Cheshire’s towns (3.6).
Compared with UK towns its sizeLess crime per resident than 43% of the 645 UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people: about the middle for its size. Context only, not part of the grade.
More crimeLess crime
Reports by type · Sep 2025 to Aug 2026
Violence & sexual805
Public order155
Damage & arson101
Other theft91
Shoplifting81
Drugs76
Burglary44
Vehicle crime37
Anti-social167
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.
39.5
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
8.8
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
7.8
anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 (not graded)
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.
History
Listed buildings in Nantwich: 129, with 3 at Grade I
129listed buildingsA−History Grade
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Conservation areas cover 100% of Nantwich’s land, near Cheshire’s towns (100%) and higher than England’s towns (7%). The town’s listed buildings include the Church of St Mary, Grade I. Scaled to its population, that is 69 listed buildings for every 10,000 people locally.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Work & commuteJobs & income grade B−
Long commutes are the norm in Nantwich: just 34% travel under 5 km, below Cheshire’s towns and England’s towns
18%walk, cycle or ride
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 34% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
The car took 79% of commuters, near Cheshire’s towns (80%) and higher than England’s towns (70%). Before tax, the average household brings in £50K a year. About nearly a quarter of its commuters stay in Nantwich for work. There are 0.8 jobs in Nantwich for each resident in work.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
HousingCost of living grade B
Nantwich gets a B for cost of living grade
£265Kmedian sale
13% live in social housing, below both Cheshire’s towns (16%) and England’s towns (18%). Private rents average £985 a month across the Cheshire East council area. 1,088 standard sales inside Nantwich’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 put the median at £265,000.
Median sale price · Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
Nantwich£265K
Typical UK town£277K
By type
Median
Sales
Detached
£412,500
336
Semi-detached
£268,750
266
Terraced
£220,000
293
Flat or maisonette
£135,000
193
67%
of households own their home · England 61%
19%
rent privately · England 21%
£985
average private rent a month, Cheshire East council area
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Health
Good or very good health: 82% of Nantwich’s residents
82%good or very good healthC+Health Grade
3 GP practices serve the town; three quarters of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey. The nearest A&E to Nantwich is Leighton Hospital, 4 miles away. Poor health, by residents’ own account, affects 5% of the town.
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · A young population flatters these answers, which are not age-adjusted; the Health Grade instead uses measures that allow for age, such as life expectancy and early deaths.
Ashley Westwood: Bryan Berlin, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wilfred White: photographer of IOC, Public domain · Emily Hollinshead: Katie Chan, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Janusz Bugajski: Hotnews.ro, CC BY 3.0
About Nantwich
Town in Cheshire, England
Nantwich is a built-up area of 18,741 people, in the Cheshire East 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.
Audlem, Bunbury and Winterley have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Nantwich
How many listed buildings are there in Nantwich?
That is 2.8 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I buildings include Church of St Mary.
Is Nantwich safe?
About the middle for its size: 57% of the 645 UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people report less crime per resident. Against all UK towns, most of them smaller, it grades C−.
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.
