Outdoors in Northwich · parks, paths & countryside
Northwich has more park space per resident than 9 in 10 UK towns
Parks and playing fields in Northwich add up to 8.8 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. 124 km of footpaths run through the town and the kilometre around it, 4.8 for every square kilometre. A park or playing field is within a 5-minute walk for 92% of residents. Northwich grades A for the outdoors: #2 of 46 in Cheshire. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Northwich’s strongest suit is plenty of park space, followed by dense footpaths.
Outdoors grade
Northwich grades A for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Northwich, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
A
Better than 88% of UK towns#2 of 46 in Cheshire · 11th of 60 UK towns its size
Public green space8.8 haper 1,000 residents: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces
95out of 100
A park within a walk92%of residents within 400 m (a 5-minute walk)
71out of 100
National Park or National Landscape0%of the land within 5 km · None within 5 km
31out of 100
Footpaths4.8 kmper km², the town and 1 km around it
91out of 100
The sea0%of the area within 5 km · Inland
42out of 100
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.
Towns its size
Northwich is 11th of 60 UK towns its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 17,400 to 20,100 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Outdoors score: the share of UK towns each one beats
Footpath, km per km²
Northwich4.8
Towns its size3.5
Cheshire towns2.5
All UK towns3.0
Green space, ha per 1,000 residents
Northwich8.8
Towns its size2.1
Cheshire towns1.8
All UK towns2.1
Residents within 400 m of a park
Northwich92%
Towns its size86%
Cheshire towns82%
All UK towns83%
Against towns its size, Northwich stands out most for park space per resident: only 2 of the other 59 have more.
The biggest is Marbury Country Park, 320 ha (791 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
All 9 named parks by size: 382 ha (944 acres) and 33 km of path
Parks & gardens 380 haPlaying fields 2.1 haPlay spaces 0.4 ha
The two biggest, Marbury Country Park and Anderton Nature Park, are 93% of the named green space and carry 27 km of path between them. 4 of the 9 are under 2 ha: small gardens, play spaces and pitches.
9 in 10 Northwich residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park
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).
Within 400 m (92%)Further (8%)
Northwich92%
Towns its size86%
Cheshire towns82%
All UK towns83%
About 1,400 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 71 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 263 residents.
National Parks & National Landscapes
The Peak District National Park is 16 mi away
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.
National ParkNational LandscapeThe 5 km the grade counts
Peak District National Park covers 1,438 km² and has been a National Park since 1951.
Footpaths & waymarked walks
6 waymarked walks pass through or near Northwich
124 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Northwich and the kilometre around it, 4.8 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the town.
RegionalOther waymarked
Cheshire Ring Canal Walk12.3 km
Weaver Way12.0 km
Cheshire Circuit11.7 km
North Cheshire Way8.0 km
Saltscape Trail7.9 km
Dane Valley Way5.2 km
4 regional routes pass through, including the Weaver Way, Cheshire Circuit, North Cheshire Way and Dane Valley Way.
Waymarked walks are OpenStreetMap walking routes. Public rights of way are only as complete as the map in each area.
When to get out
The best walking months in Northwich: May to September
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
16.9
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)
65
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 Northwich →
Things to do
2 viewpoints, 71 playgrounds and the nearest beaches
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.
Northwich grades higher for the outdoors than every neighbour in the table. None of the neighbours has a protected landscape within 5 km either.
Questions about the outdoors in Northwich
What is the biggest park in Northwich?
Marbury Country Park, 320 ha (791 acres), with 22.2 km of path. Anderton Nature Park (33 ha) is second. 9 named parks, gardens and playing fields are in the town or within 400 m of it.
Is Northwich near a National Park?
Yes. Peak District National Park begins 16 mi east of the town’s edge. It covers 1,438 km² and has been a National Park since 1951.
What are the best walks near Northwich?
6 waymarked walking routes pass within 2 km of the town, including the Cheshire Ring Canal Walk, Weaver Way and Cheshire Circuit. Marbury Country Park alone has 22.2 km of path.
What is the nearest beach to Northwich?
Tranmere Beach, 21 mi from the edge of the town, then Wader Point (22 mi). Northwich itself is inland.
How many people in Northwich live near a park?
92% 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%.
When is the best time of year for walking in Northwich?
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Northwich good for walking?
For paths, yes: 4.8 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 91% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 95% (8.8 ha per 1,000 residents).
How is the Outdoors Grade worked out?
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 Northwich’s overall grade.
National Parks and National Landscapes: Natural England and Natural Resources Wales boundaries, areas and designation dates, Open Government Licence v3.0.
Photo: Dave Bevis · CC BY-SA 2.0