Llay’s biggest
Parc Gwledig Dyfroedd Alun
Park or garden
154 ha (381 acres)2.5 km of path
35 minto walk all 2.5 km of path
216 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
Centralin the middle of Llay
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Photo: Derek Harper · CC BY-SA 2.0B−Outdoors Grade
Outdoors in Llay · parks, paths & countryside
Llay has more park space per resident than 9 in 10 UK towns
Parks and playing fields in Llay add up to 10.6 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. The Bryniau Clwyd A Dyffryn Dyfrdwy/clwydian Range and Dee Valley National Landscape begins 4.2 mi from the town’s edge. Footpaths add up to 22 km in the town and the kilometre around it, 1.7 for every square kilometre. Llay grades B− for the outdoors: #25 of 39 in Clwyd. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Green space
10.6 ha
per 1,000 residents
Typical UK town 2.1
Near a park
85%
of residents within 400 m
Typical UK town 83%
Footpaths
22 km
1.7 km per km², town + 1 km
Typical UK town 3.0 per km²
Protected landscape
0%
of the land within 5 km
Bryniau Clwyd A Dyffryn Dyfrdwy/clwydian Range and Dee Valley starts 4.2 mi out, past the 5 km
Character
What kind of outdoors town is Llay?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Room to roam10.6 ha of parks and playing fields per 1,000 residents, more than 96% of UK towns.Countryside close byThe Bryniau Clwyd A Dyffryn Dyfrdwy/clwydian Range and Dee Valley National Landscape starts 4.2 mi south-west.
Llay’s strongest suit is plenty of park space, followed by the Bryniau Clwyd A Dyffryn Dyfrdwy/clwydian Range and Dee Valley National Landscape close by.
Outdoors grade
Llay grades B− for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Llay, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
B−
Better than 47% of UK towns#25 of 39 in Clwyd · 31st of 60 UK towns its size
Public green space10.6 haper 1,000 residents: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces
96out of
100
100
A park within a walk85%of residents within 400 m (a 5-minute walk)
57out of
100
100
National Park or National Landscape0%of the land within 5 km · Bryniau Clwyd A Dyffryn Dyfrdwy/clwydian Range and Dee Valley begins just past 5 km
31out of
100
100
Footpaths1.7 kmper km², the town and 1 km around it
23out of
100
100
The sea0%of the area within 5 km · Inland
42out of
100
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
Llay is 31st of 60 UK towns its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 4,500 to 4,800 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
Llay1.7
Towns its size2.7
Clwyd towns2.3
All UK towns3.0
Green space, ha per 1,000 residents
Llay10.6
Towns its size2.2
Clwyd towns1.9
All UK towns2.1
Residents within 400 m of a park
Llay85%
Towns its size76%
Clwyd towns83%
All UK towns83%
Against towns its size, Llay stands out most for park space per resident: only 2 of the other 59 have more. It falls furthest behind on path per km², where 45 of the others do better.
Show as a table
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hamble-le-Rice Hampshire | A+ | 12.7 | 67% | 3.6 | 7% |
| 2 | Marple Bridge Greater Manchester | A | 9.9 | 80% | 4.4 | 13% |
| 3 | Monkton Heathfield Somerset | A | 2.4 | 100% | 4.4 | 8% |
| 4 | Huntington Staffordshire | A | 3.7 | 74% | 4.6 | 27% |
| 5 | Fortuneswell Dorset | A | 1.1 | 100% | 4.6 | 0% |
| 6 | Writtle Essex | A− | 5.8 | 100% | 3.3 | 0% |
| 7 | Stanton Hill and Skegby Nottinghamshire | A− | 16.1 | 83% | 5.3 | 0% |
| 8 | Cringleford Norfolk | A− | 1.7 | 94% | 7.4 | 0% |
| 9 | Nantyglo Gwent | A− | 2.5 | 82% | 3.7 | 29% |
| 10 | Dersingham Norfolk | A− | 3.1 | 76% | 1.9 | 39% |
| 11 | Brampton South Yorkshire | A− | 4.4 | 100% | 3.1 | 0% |
| 12 | Liss Hampshire | A− | 2.3 | 87% | 2.6 | 98% |
| 13 | Saxmundham Suffolk | B+ | 3.3 | 100% | 1.9 | 3% |
| 14 | Hugglescote Leicestershire | B+ | 4.2 | 91% | 3.6 | 0% |
| 15 | Borough Green Kent | B+ | 2.5 | 93% | 1.9 | 50% |
| 16 | Winscombe and Sandford Somerset | B+ | 3.5 | 52% | 3.6 | 38% |
| 17 | Bodicote Oxfordshire | B+ | 10.2 | 86% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 18 | Kings Worthy Hampshire | B+ | 3.9 | 66% | 3 | 23% |
| 19 | Blackhall Colliery County Durham | B | 1.1 | 95% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 20 | Callington Cornwall | B | 2.1 | 100% | 1.1 | 21% |
| 21 | Whaley Bridge Derbyshire | B | 1.6 | 44% | 4.3 | 53% |
| 22 | Coedpoeth Clwyd | B | 1.4 | 100% | 1.9 | 24% |
| 23 | Lyneham Wiltshire | B− | 1.5 | 94% | 2.7 | 6% |
| 24 | Lenham and Harrietsham Kent | B− | 1.4 | 88% | 2.4 | 47% |
| 25 | High Lane Greater Manchester | B− | 1.5 | 67% | 4.6 | 12% |
| 26 | Chalfont St Giles Buckinghamshire | B− | 1.8 | 57% | 3.5 | 37% |
| 27 | Kelvedon and Feering Essex | B− | 3.5 | 94% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 28 | Finedon Northamptonshire | B− | 3.9 | 95% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 29 | Astley Greater Manchester | B− | 3.5 | 78% | 3.1 | 0% |
| 30 | Bromham Bedfordshire | B− | 3.8 | 87% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 31 | Llay Clwyd | B− | 10.6 | 85% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 32 | Cleadon Tyne and Wear | B− | 2.1 | 63% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 33 | Bramley Hampshire | C+ | 2.8 | 100% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 34 | Blaina Gwent | C+ | 2.1 | 53% | 3.1 | 13% |
| 35 | Loughor West Glamorgan | C+ | 2.1 | 70% | 1.2 | 6% |
| 36 | Kennington Oxfordshire | C+ | 2.1 | 58% | 5.5 | 0% |
| 37 | Howden East Riding of Yorkshire | C+ | 3.6 | 94% | 1.2 | 0% |
| 38 | Ripponden West Yorkshire | C+ | 2.1 | 75% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 39 | Southminster Essex | C+ | 1.8 | 92% | 1.1 | 0% |
| 40 | Edwalton Nottinghamshire | C+ | 2.1 | 58% | 4.5 | 0% |
| 41 | Minster (Thanet) Kent | C | 2.3 | 64% | 1.2 | 0% |
| 42 | Makeney Derbyshire | C | 2.1 | 56% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 43 | Mynydd Isa Clwyd | C | 0.9 | 87% | 2 | 3% |
| 44 | Winterton Lincolnshire | C | 1.6 | 82% | 1.1 | 0% |
| 45 | Kinver Staffordshire | C | 3.1 | 60% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 46 | Woodhall Spa Lincolnshire | C− | 1.9 | 61% | 3 | 0% |
| 47 | Barton-under-Needwood Staffordshire | C− | 2.3 | 70% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 48 | Preesall and Knott End-on-Sea Lancashire | C− | 0.7 | 69% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 49 | Bricket Wood Hertfordshire | C− | 1.7 | 43% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 50 | Middleton St George County Durham | C− | 1.8 | 94% | 1 | 0% |
| 51 | Sowerby North Yorkshire | C− | 1.5 | 77% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 52 | Bailrigg Lancashire | C− | 0 | 0% | 3.4 | 18% |
| 53 | Stretton Staffordshire | C− | 3.7 | 49% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 54 | Crowland Lincolnshire | C− | 2.8 | 70% | 1.2 | 0% |
| 55 | Markfield Leicestershire | D | 0.8 | 63% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 56 | Welton Lincolnshire | D | 2 | 57% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 57 | Ynysybwl Mid Glamorgan | D | 2.3 | 60% | 0.7 | 0% |
| 58 | Lakenheath Suffolk | D | 1.1 | 57% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 59 | Elm and Emneth Norfolk | D | 2.2 | 45% | 0.7 | 0% |
| 60 | Chilton County Durham | D− | 1.1 | 68% | 1 | 0% |
The map
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Llay’s built-up area.
Green space: parks, gardens, playing fields and play spaces, named or not.© OpenStreetMap contributors · Contains OS data © Crown copyright · Natural England / NRW
Places to walk
Parks to walk in, in and around Llay
The biggest is Parc Gwledig Dyfroedd Alun, 154 ha (381 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
Close to home
9 in 10 Llay 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 (85%)Further (15%)
Llay85%
Towns its size76%
Clwyd towns83%
All UK towns83%
About 700 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 18 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 259 residents.
National Parks & National Landscapes
The Bryniau Clwyd A Dyffryn Dyfrdwy/clwydian Range and Dee Valley National Landscape is 4.2 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
National Landscape
Bryniau Clwyd A Dyffryn Dyfrdwy/clwydian Range and Dee Valley
4.2 mi south-west389 km²since 2011
Protected landscape begins just outside the 5 km ring the Outdoors Grade measures, so Llay scores 0% on it even though the Bryniau Clwyd A Dyffryn Dyfrdwy/clwydian Range and Dee Valley National Landscape is 4.2 mi away.
Footpaths & waymarked walks
2 waymarked walks pass through or near Llay
22 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Llay and the kilometre around it, 1.7 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the town.
RegionalLocal
Llwybr Clawdd Wat8.7 km
Wales Link Path2.6 km
The regional route here is the Llwybr Clawdd Wat.
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 Llay: 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) | 8.1 | 9.8 | 11.7 | 13.9 | 15.8 | 16.9 | 16.5 | 14.7 | 12.6 | 10.5 | 8.5 | 7.6 |
| High (°C) | 8 | 8 | 10 | 13 | 16 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 18 | 14 | 10 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 70 | 65 | 60 | 60 | 60 | 65 | 60 | 66 | 67 | 87 | 90 | 91 |
April is the driest month (60 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 20 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 91 mm of rain falls in December, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 41 nights a year. The climate in Llay →
Things to do
18 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.
The nearest beaches
Llay is inland. These are the nearest named beaches, measured from the edge of the town.
Tranmere Beach19 mi from Llay’s edge
DirectionsEast Hoyle Bank21 mi from Llay’s edge
DirectionsBrazil Bank24 mi from Llay’s edge
DirectionsRhyl Sands25 mi from Llay’s edge
DirectionsHorton's Nose Nature Reserve25 mi from Llay’s edge
DirectionsGood to know
Check the water before you swim. Natural Resources Wales tests designated bathing waters from May to September and publishes a rating for each beach.
Up high. Caer Estyn, at 150 m, is the highest named top within 2 km of Llay.
Every named place, with directions
Hills and peaks 6
Caer Estyn150 m (492 ft) · 0.6 mi from town
DirectionsGresford Bank105 m (344 ft) · 0.7 mi from town
DirectionsBradley Hill70 m (230 ft) · 0.8 mi from town
DirectionsCaergwrle Castle137 m (449 ft) · 0.9 mi from town
DirectionsMarford Rofft Mount50 m (164 ft) · 1.0 mi from town
DirectionsWindy Hill170 m (558 ft) · 1.1 mi from town
DirectionsNature reserves 2
Maes y Pant29 ha · 0.7 mi from town
DirectionsPlus 1 nature reserve without a name on the map.
Picnic sites 2
Plus 2 picnic sites without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 18
Willows Play Area1.0 mi from town
DirectionsPlus 17 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Dog parks 1
Plus 1 dog park without a name on the map.
Next door
The outdoors in nearby towns
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 12 miles. Tap a town for its outdoors page.
BradleyGresfordGwersylltHopeBryntegRossettLlay
ABCDOutdoors Grade
Brynteg, 2.6 miles away, grades A, the best next door: every resident lives within 400 m of a park. Bradley has at least twice Llay’s green space per resident.
Questions about the outdoors in Llay
What is the biggest park in Llay?
Parc Gwledig Dyfroedd Alun, 154 ha (381 acres), with 2.5 km of path. 1 named park, garden or playing field is in the town or within 400 m of it.
Is Llay near a National Park?
The nearest protected landscape is the Bryniau Clwyd A Dyffryn Dyfrdwy/clwydian Range and Dee Valley National Landscape, 4.2 mi south-west of the town’s edge. It covers 389 km² and was designated in 2011.
What are the best walks near Llay?
2 waymarked walking routes pass within 2 km of the town, including the Llwybr Clawdd Wat and Wales Link Path. Parc Gwledig Dyfroedd Alun alone has 2.5 km of path.
What is the nearest beach to Llay?
Tranmere Beach, 19 mi from the edge of the town, then East Hoyle Bank (21 mi). Llay itself is inland.
How many people in Llay live near a park?
85% 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 Llay?
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Llay good for walking?
Paths are thinner than most towns: 1.7 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 23% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 96% (10.6 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 Llay’s overall grade.
Sources
Where Llay’s outdoors figures come from
- Parks and green space: Ordnance Survey OS Open Greenspace (parks and gardens, playing fields, play spaces, and their access points). Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- National Parks and National Landscapes: Natural England and Natural Resources Wales boundaries, areas and designation dates, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Footpaths, walking routes, beaches and things to do: © OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database License (ODbL), via Geofabrik, 16 October 2026.
- Historic parks, listed buildings and monuments: Historic England, National Heritage List for England, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Rain and temperature: Met Office HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages for the town; daylight calculated from its latitude.
- The sea: ONS Countries (December 2024) boundaries clipped to mean high water. Residents near a park: ONS Census 2021 output areas.
- Grade: TownRatings’ Outdoors Grade, ranked against UK towns only.
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.