Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A village of 622 in Cornwall, South West.
With fewer than 1,000 residents, Breage is too small for fair grades, though the figures on this page are real. One in ten commuters walk, cycle or take public transport. It has 34 listed buildings, 1 of them Grade I. Over-65s are 26% of the population.
The 3 things Breage does most differently from other towns.
Historic England lists 34 buildings inside Breage’s built-up area, 1 of them Grade I.
44% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Breage.
Line up the people of Breage by age and the one in the middle is 48.5. People 65 and over make up 26% of the town, above both Cornwall’s towns (24%) and England’s towns (18%). Among adults, 37% have a degree.
49% women, 51% men
About 106 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Breage | Cornwall | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 15% | 16% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 5.8% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 25% | 22% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 28% | 27% | 25% |
| 65+ | 26% | 24% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 17% | 17% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 5.9% | 6.7% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 20% | 19% | 17% |
| Degree level | 37% | 30% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Cornwall and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 19% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Household income came to £46K a year before tax, about level with Cornwall’s towns (£45K) and below England’s towns (£55K). Just over a fifth of commuters travelled under 5 km to work. Also worth knowing: about 3% of its commuters stay in Breage for work. Home was the main workplace for 19% of workers at the census.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Owners make up 72% of households. 11% live in social housing, below Cornwall’s towns (15%) and England’s towns (18%) alike. 24 standard sales inside Breage’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 put the median at £370,000.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £400,000 | 5 |
| Semi-detached | £397,000 | 12 |
| Terraced | £340,000 | 7 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
There were 3.5 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), lower than both Cornwall’s towns (6.8) and England’s towns (7.8). A year of reports to August 2026 adds up to 28 offences in Breage and 3 cases of nuisance behaviour. Violence and sexual offences made up 50% of the total.
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.
There is no GP practice in Breage: the nearest is 2.7 miles off. 19% of residents have a disability, lower than Cornwall’s towns (22%) yet higher than England’s towns (17%). The nearest A&E to Breage is Royal Cornwall Hospital, 15.2 miles away.
| Census 2021 | Breage | Cornwall | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 80% | 79% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 7.9% | 6.4% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 19% | 22% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Because the census answers ignore age, a younger population lifts them; that is why the Health Grade is built on age-adjusted measures like life expectancy and early deaths.
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Scaled to its population, that is 547 listed buildings for every 10,000 people in Breage. It is part of the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape World Heritage Site. Homes from before 1919 make up 44% of the total, higher than both Cornwall’s towns (24%) and England’s towns (16%). Its listed buildings include the Church of Saint Breaca, Grade I.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Breage. Best known first.
Historic house · National TrustGodolphin Estate3.5 km outside town, to the northwest
Heritage railwayHelston Railway2.5 km outside town, to the northeast
Historic houseTrevarno Gardens2.6 km outside town, to the northeast
MuseumMuseum of Cornish Life3.7 km outside town, to the east
Historic house · National TrustGodolphin House3.5 km outside town, to the northwestHistoric siteHistoric site771 NAS Search and Rescue Sea King4.8 km outside town, to the eastPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Breage | 622 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Porthleven | 3,118 | 1.7 | D | D− | B | B− |
| Helston | 11,366 | 2.7 | D | D | C+ | B− |
| Goldsithney | 1,346 | 4.9 | — | D− | B+ | C+ |
| Reawla | 1,117 | 5.2 | — | D | B+ | C |
| St Erth | 1,128 | 5.9 | — | D− | C | C+ |
| Marazion | 1,350 | 6.2 | — | D− | C+ | C |
| Troon | 1,402 | 6.5 | — | D | D | C− |
Goldsithney, Reawla, St Erth, Marazion and Troon have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 22.4 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I building is Church of Saint Breaca. Part of it is in the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape World Heritage Site.
An older village. At the 2021 Census, 26% of residents were 65 or over and 28% were 45 to 64, against 18% and 25% across England’s towns; 15% were under 15.
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £370,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: terraced houses £340,000, semi-detached houses £397,000 and detached houses £400,000. Private rents in the Cornwall council area averaged £1,000 a month in August 2026.
Village in Cornwall, England
Breage is a built-up area of 622 people, in the Cornwall 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.