Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 2,653 in County Durham, North East.
Dipton grades B− overall against UK towns: better than 55% of UK towns, and #14 of 52 in County Durham. Its strongest subject is hazard risk (A): 0% of homes at high or medium risk of flooding from rivers or the sea. Its weakest is health (D): life expectancy 78.9 for men, 79.9 for women. The median home sold for £143,750 in the last three years, 3.4 times what households in the County Durham council area earn in a year.
The 3 things Dipton 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 Dipton is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 1 building inside Dipton’s built-up area.
26% 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 Dipton.
That puts Dipton above both County Durham’s towns (22%) and England’s towns (17%). Dipton has no GP practice of its own; the nearest is 1.8 miles away. These answers aren’t adjusted for age, so young towns look healthier; the Health Grade uses age-adjusted measures, including life expectancy and early deaths.
| Census 2021 | Dipton | County Durham | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 75% | 77% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 8.2% | 7.3% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 25% | 22% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL
Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collierley Nursery and Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 147 | C |
On this, Dipton is below both County Durham’s towns (18%) and England’s towns (21%). 22% of households live in social housing.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £249,997 | 18 |
| Semi-detached | £159,000 | 27 |
| Terraced | £122,000 | 57 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
In the comparison, Dipton comes above both County Durham’s towns (20%) and England’s towns (16%). Dipton has 1 listed building on Historic England’s list: 0 Grade I, 0 Grade II*.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Homes saw 17.5 burglaries and acts of damage per 1,000 residents a year, close to County Durham’s towns (18.3) and above England’s towns (9.4). Police recorded 148 crimes inside Dipton’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 48 reports of anti-social behaviour. For its size, Dipton records more crime per resident than 74% of the 1,308 UK towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
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 Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 21% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
For Dipton, that is below both County Durham’s towns (41%) and England’s towns (45%). At the census, 11% of commuters walked, cycled or took the bus or train.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Dipton sits below both County Durham’s towns (12%) and England’s towns (12%) on this measure. People 65 and over make up 23% of the town. Dipton has a median age of 45.2.
53% women, 47% men
About 89 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.
| Dipton | County Durham | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 16% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 9.1% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 24% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 28% | 27% | 25% |
| 65+ | 23% | 21% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 20% | 21% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 6.7% | 6.5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 19% | 19% | 17% |
| Degree level | 27% | 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 Dipton. Best known first.
Heritage railwayTanfield Railway4.9 km outside town, to the northeast
Historic house · National TrustGibside3.9 km outside town, to the north
CastleHamsterley Hall1.9 km outside town, to the northwestHistoric siteHistoric site · English HeritageDerwentcote Steel Furnace3.4 km outside town, to the northwestArt galleryArt galleryThe Glass & Art Gallery4.1 km outside town, to the southwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
5 notable people were born in Dipton.
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dipton | 2,653 | — | B− | A− | C | D |
| Annfield Plain | 7,786 | 1.5 | D | A− | D | D− |
| Tanfield Lea | 2,399 | 1.8 | — | A− | B− | D |
| Burnopfield | 2,998 | 1.8 | A− | A− | B+ | C− |
| Medomsley | 1,216 | 2.4 | — | A− | C | C+ |
| Leadgate | 3,339 | 2.5 | C− | A | D | D |
| Stanley | 19,423 | 2.7 | C | A− | D− | D− |
| Rowlands Gill | 5,254 | 2.8 | C | C+ | B− | C+ |
Tanfield Lea and Medomsley have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
1 on Historic England’s list.
Homes cost less than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £143,750, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: terraced houses £122,000, semi-detached houses £159,000 and detached houses £249,997.
Secondary schools stand out: GCSE results beat 92% of towns in England. Primary results are closer to the middle, beating 60%. One state school is inside the town; places are handled by County Durham council.
Police recorded 148 crimes inside Dipton’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, 47% of them violence and sexual offences, a police category that includes harassment and stalking.
Town in County Durham, England
Dipton is a built-up area of 2,653 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.