Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 19,076 in Derbyshire, East Midlands.
Belper grades B+ overall against UK towns: better than 72% of UK towns, and #16 of 59 in Derbyshire. Its strongest subject is cost of living (B+): median sale £245,000, 5 years of area income; rent £799 a month.
The 3 things Belper 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 Belper is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 149 buildings inside Belper’s built-up area, 1 of them Grade I.
Part of the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site.
23% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Belper. Best known first.
MuseumStrutt's North Millin town
Castle · National TrustDuffield Castle2 km outside town, to the south
Heritage railwayMidland Railway – Butterley4.3 km outside town, to the northeast
MuseumThe Great British Car Journey3.3 km outside town, to the northArt galleryArt galleryDuffield Art Galleryin townAttractionAttraction · National TrustAlport Height4.3 km outside town, to the northwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Belper.
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
It is part of the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site. For its size, Belper has 78 listed buildings per 10,000 residents, above both Derbyshire’s towns (23) and England’s towns (39). Belper’s listed buildings include North Mill, Grade I.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Two of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| St John's CofE Primary School and NurseryLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 398 | B− |
| Belper School and Sixth Form CentreLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 1,212 | B− |
Belper sits above both Derbyshire’s towns (67%) and England’s towns (61%) on this measure. 9% of households live in social housing.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £322,000 | 339 |
| Semi-detached | £235,000 | 244 |
| Terraced | £190,000 | 231 |
| Flat or maisonette | £131,975 | 60 |
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 30% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
That puts Belper below both Derbyshire’s towns (42%) and England’s towns (45%). At the census, 16% 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
On this, Belper is below both Derbyshire’s towns (6%) and England’s towns (5.2%). The nearest A&E to Belper is Royal Derby Hospital, 8.3 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 | Belper | Derbyshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 82% | 80% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 4.5% | 6% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 18% | 20% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL
In the comparison, Belper comes below both Derbyshire’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (18%). Those 65 and older account for 22% of residents. Half the people of Belper are older than 47.1.
51% women, 49% men
About 96 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Belper | Derbyshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 15% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 9.7% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 22% | 25% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 31% | 27% | 25% |
| 65+ | 22% | 20% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 17% | 19% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 6.3% | 6.5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 18% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 34% | 29% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Derbyshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
For Belper, that is below both Derbyshire’s towns (9) and England’s towns (9.4). Police recorded 937 crimes inside Belper’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 132 reports of anti-social behaviour. Among the 645 UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people, Belper has less crime per resident than 80% of them.
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
149 listed buildings in Belper, 1 of them Grade I.
River Gardens: Photo: Alan Murray-Rust · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Unitarian Chapel and Chapel Cottage: Photo: Alan Murray-Rust · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Bridge over Railway: Photo: Alan Murray-Rust · CC BY-SA 2.0 · The George & Dragon: Photo: Alan Murray-Rust · CC BY-SA 2.0
28 notable people were born in Belper.
Suzy Kendall: Utente:Vabbè. Original uploader was Vabbè at Italian Wikipedia, Public domain · Hollie Webb: fourthandfifteen, CC BY 2.0 · Frank Swettenham: John Singer Sargent, Public domain · Ross Davenport: MIKISTUDIOS, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Alison Spedding: Galrebix, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Belper | 19,076 | — | B+ | B+ | B− | B− |
| Milford | 1,077 | 1.5 | — | B+ | A− | C+ |
| Holbrook | 1,802 | 1.6 | — | B− | A+ | B+ |
| Heage | 2,584 | 1.6 | B+ | A− | A− | B |
| Denby Bottles | 1,756 | 1.9 | — | A | B | B− |
| Ambergate | 1,566 | 2.2 | — | B+ | B | B |
| Kilburn and Horsley Woodhouse | 4,447 | 2.4 | B | A | B− | B− |
| Makeney | 4,691 | 3 | A+ | C | A− | A+ |
Milford, Holbrook, Denby Bottles and Ambergate have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 3.2 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I building is North Mill. Part of it is in the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site.
Police recorded 937 crimes inside Belper’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, 54% of them violence and sexual offences, a police category that includes harassment and stalking.
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
Town in Derbyshire, England
Belper is a built-up area of 19,076 people, in the Amber Valley 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.