Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 7,786 in County Durham, North East.
Annfield Plain grades D overall against UK towns: better than 11% of UK towns, and #45 of 52 in County Durham. Its strongest subject is cost of living (A−): median sale £110,000, 2.6 years of area income; rent £650 a month. Its weakest is health (D−): life expectancy 76.8 for men, 78.5 for women.
The 3 things Annfield Plain does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Annfield Plain is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 9 buildings inside Annfield Plain’s built-up area.
36% 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 Annfield Plain.
Poor health, by residents’ own account, affects nearly a tenth of the town. At the census, just over a quarter of people here had a disability, above County Durham’s towns (22%) and England’s towns (17%) alike. Also worth knowing: men in Annfield Plain can expect to live to 76.8, women to 78.5 (2019–23). The nearest A&E to Annfield Plain is University Hospital North Durham, 7.7 miles away.
| Census 2021 | Annfield Plain | County Durham | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 73% | 77% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 9% | 7.3% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 26% | 22% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · These shares come straight from the census, without allowing for age, and young towns benefit; the Health Grade instead weighs age-adjusted measures, including life expectancy and early deaths.
Key Stage 2 results at the town’s 2 primary schools: 53% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). Of its 4 schools, one is shown below, with the reason. Attainment 8 at the 3 secondary schools within 3 km averages 46, and 43% of pupils get grade 5 or above in English and maths.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Catchgate Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 206 | C− |
A year of reports to August 2026 adds up to 858 offences in Annfield Plain and 167 cases of nuisance behaviour. Each year, 50.6 violent crimes are recorded per 1,000 residents. Among the 1,308 UK towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people, Annfield Plain has more crime per resident than 96% of them. Anti-social behaviour, shown but not graded, came to 18.8 reports per 1,000, higher than both County Durham’s towns (16) and England’s towns (7.8).
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
Social housing holds just over a fifth of households, above both County Durham’s towns (20%) and England’s towns (18%). Nearly a quarter of households rent privately. 316 standard sales inside Annfield Plain’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 put the median at £110,000.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £190,000 | 46 |
| Semi-detached | £133,997 | 82 |
| Terraced | £82,500 | 187 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 17% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Working mainly from home: 17% of workers, below County Durham’s towns (22%) and England’s towns (31%) alike. Jobs per working resident: 1.1. About 13% of its commuters stay in Annfield Plain for work. Household income averages £37K a year before tax.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Grade II covers all 9 listed buildings that Historic England records here. Of Annfield Plain’s land, 10% lies in conservation areas, above County Durham’s towns (0%) and England’s towns (7%) alike. The town has 12 listed buildings for every 10,000 residents.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Typical age in Annfield Plain: 42, the median. Children under 15 count for 18% of the people here.
50% women, 50% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Annfield Plain | County Durham | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 18% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 10% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 25% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 26% | 27% | 25% |
| 65+ | 20% | 21% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 25% | 21% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 6.6% | 6.5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 19% | 19% | 17% |
| Degree level | 20% | 27% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · County Durham and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Annfield Plain. Best known first.
MuseumBeamish Museum4.4 km outside town, to the northeast · 350K visitors a year
CastleHamsterley Hall2.5 km outside town, to the northwestHistoric siteHistoric site · English HeritageDerwentcote Steel Furnace4 km outside town, to the northwestTheme parkTheme parkHolmside Park4.8 km outside town, to the southeastZooZooPotter's Tropical Village4.8 km outside town, to the southArt galleryArt galleryThe Glass & Art Gallery4.9 km outside town, to the westPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
9 listed buildings in Annfield Plain.
Public Library: Photo: Alan Fearon · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Rosedale Manor: Photo: Robert Graham · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geograph
11 notable people were born in Annfield Plain.
Alun Armstrong: Garry Knight, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Thomas Elliott: Thebees1889, CC BY-SA 4.0
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annfield Plain | 7,786 | — | D | A− | D | D− |
| Dipton | 2,653 | 1.5 | B− | A− | C | D |
| Tanfield Lea | 2,399 | 1.7 | — | A− | B− | D |
| Stanley | 19,423 | 1.9 | C | A− | D− | D− |
| Leadgate | 3,339 | 2.6 | C− | A | D | D |
| Lanchester | 3,510 | 2.7 | B+ | B+ | B | B− |
| Burnhope | 1,465 | 2.7 | — | A− | C+ | C+ |
| Burnopfield | 2,998 | 3 | A− | A− | B+ | C− |
Tanfield Lea and Burnhope have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Homes cost less than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £110,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: terraced houses £82,500, semi-detached houses £133,997 and detached houses £190,000.
Police recorded 858 crimes inside Annfield Plain’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, 50% of them violence and sexual offences, a police category that includes harassment and stalking.
GCSE results trail 53% of towns in England, and primary results trail 85% (Department for Education, Attainment 8 and Key Stage 2).
Town in County Durham, England
Annfield Plain is a built-up area of 7,786 people, in the County Durham 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.
