Hartlepool grades C− overall against UK towns: better than 25% of UK towns, and #35 of 52 in County Durham. Its strongest subject is cost of living (A−): median sale £144,000, 3.4 years of area income; rent £558 a month. Its weakest is safety (D−): 63.1 violent and sexual offences and 28.5 home and vehicle crimes per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026. Among UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more, it has less crime per resident than 5%.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Hartlepool is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Hartlepool.
Safety
Hartlepool has more crime per resident than 98% of UK towns
Town centres with shops, stations and nightlife record more crime per resident: police.uk counts crimes where they happen, not where victims live.
Violence came to 63.1 per 1,000 residents a year, above both County Durham’s towns (35.8) and England’s towns (22). Police recorded 13,514 crimes inside Hartlepool’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 2,190 reports of anti-social behaviour. For its size, Hartlepool records more crime per resident than 95% of the 207 UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more.
63.1violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a yearD−Safety Grade
Compared with UK towns its sizeLess crime per resident than 5% of the 207 UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more: more crime than most for its size. Context only, not part of the grade.
More crimeLess crime
Reports by type · Sep 2025 to Aug 2026
Violence & sexual5,275
Shoplifting2,367
Damage & arson1,510
Public order1,046
Other theft638
Burglary606
Drugs520
Vehicle crime512
Anti-social2,190
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.
63.1
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
28.5
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
28.2
anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 (not graded)
Department for Education · GIAS, Key Stage 2 and GCSE resultsSee all 36 schools →
Health
Life expectancy in Hartlepool is shorter than in 92% of UK towns
Women here live to 80.3 on average and men to 76.1 (2019–23). At the census, 8.1% of residents said their health was bad or very bad, above both County Durham’s towns (7.3%) and England’s towns (5.2%). The nearest A&E to Hartlepool is University Hospital of North Tees, 8.4 miles away.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
History
117 listed buildings, 1 of them Grade I
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Hartlepool has 117 listed buildings inside its built-up area on Historic England’s list: 1 Grade I, 3 Grade II*. 15% of its homes were built before 1919.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Who lives here
Fewer people in Hartlepool hold a degree than in County Durham’s towns or England’s towns: 24%
Hartlepool sits below both County Durham’s towns (27%) and England’s towns (34%) on this measure. Hartlepool has a median age of 42.3. Under-15s account for 18% of the population.
42.3median age
HartlepoolCounty DurhamEngland
Ages · share of residents
20%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications24%
Apprenticeship7%
A levels or similar19%
Degree level24%
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
WomenEnglandMen
About 94 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
Janick Gers: Scott Penner, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Michael Rice: Martin Fjellanger, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Compton Mackenzie: Alvin Langdon Coburn, Public domain · David Murphy: Will Viles / Will bcfc at en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Lionel Tertis: Bain News Service, restored by Adam Cuerden, Public domain · Michael Brown: Timmy96, CC0
Trimdon Colliery has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Hartlepool
Is Hartlepool safe?
Police recorded 13,514 crimes inside Hartlepool’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, 39% of them violence and sexual offences, a police category that includes harassment and stalking.
Is Hartlepool expensive to live in?
Homes cost less than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £144,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £84,529, terraced houses £90,000, semi-detached houses £155,000 and detached houses £252,000.
How much is council tax in Hartlepool?
Band D council tax in Hartlepool is £2,558 for 2026–27, more than in 78% of UK towns (council, county, police and fire, plus the parish or town council). Your own bill depends on your home’s band; check it on GOV.UK.
About Hartlepool
Large town in County Durham, England
Hartlepool is a built-up area of 88,001 people, in the Hartlepool 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
Population
88,001 (Census 2021)
Council
Hartlepool
County
County Durham
Region
North East
Area
10.3 sq mi (26.7 km²)
ONS code
E63000242
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.
