Makeney’s biggest
Allestree Park
Park or garden · 390 m outside town
129 ha (320 acres)15.6 km of path
3 h 30 minto walk all 15.6 km of path
181 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
1.4 mi southfrom the centre
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Photo: Graham Robson · CC BY-SA 2.0COutdoors Grade
Outdoors in Makeney · parks, paths & countryside
Parks and walks in Makeney
47 km of footpaths run through the town and the kilometre around it, 3.4 for every square kilometre. A park or playing field is within a 5-minute walk for 56% of residents. Parks and playing fields in Makeney add up to 2.1 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. Makeney grades C for the outdoors: #52 of 59 in Derbyshire. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Green space
2.1 ha
per 1,000 residents
Typical UK town 2.1
Near a park
56%
of residents within 400 m
Typical UK town 83%
Footpaths
47 km
3.4 km per km², town + 1 km
Typical UK town 3.0 per km²
Protected landscape
0%
of the land within 5 km
Nearest: Peak District National Park
Outdoors grade
Makeney grades C for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Makeney, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
C
Better than 28% of UK towns#52 of 59 in Derbyshire · 44th of 60 UK towns its size
Public green space2.1 haper 1,000 residents: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces
48out of
100
100
A park within a walk56%of residents within 400 m (a 5-minute walk)
17out of
100
100
National Park or National Landscape0%of the land within 5 km · None within 5 km
31out of
100
100
Footpaths3.4 kmper km², the town and 1 km around it
70out of
100
100
The sea0%of the area within 5 km · Inland
42out of
100
100
Graded, never part of the overall grade (like History and Civic life). It measures what is mapped: OS Open Greenspace leaves out woodland and open-access land that isn’t a park, and OpenStreetMap’s rural paths are more complete in some places than others.
Towns its size
Makeney is 44th of 60 UK towns its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 4,500 to 4,900 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Outdoors score: the share of UK towns each one beats
Footpath, km per km²
Makeney3.4
Towns its size2.7
Derbyshire towns3.6
All UK towns3.0
Green space, ha per 1,000 residents
Makeney2.1
Towns its size2.3
Derbyshire towns2.2
All UK towns2.1
Residents within 400 m of a park
Makeney56%
Towns its size77%
Derbyshire towns86%
All UK towns83%
Against towns its size, Makeney stands out most for path per km²: only 19 of the other 59 have more. It falls furthest behind on homes near a park, where 54 of the others do better.
Show as a table
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hamble-le-Rice Hampshire | A+ | 12.7 | 67% | 3.6 | 7% |
| 2 | Rownhams and Nursling Hampshire | A+ | 4.9 | 86% | 6.7 | 12% |
| 3 | Marple Bridge Greater Manchester | A | 9.9 | 80% | 4.4 | 13% |
| 4 | Monkton Heathfield Somerset | A | 2.4 | 100% | 4.4 | 8% |
| 5 | Huntington Staffordshire | A | 3.7 | 74% | 4.6 | 27% |
| 6 | Carleton Lancashire | A | 3 | 86% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 7 | Rudheath Cheshire | A | 5.5 | 100% | 3.7 | 0% |
| 8 | Writtle Essex | A− | 5.8 | 100% | 3.3 | 0% |
| 9 | Stanton Hill and Skegby Nottinghamshire | A− | 16.1 | 83% | 5.3 | 0% |
| 10 | Cringleford Norfolk | A− | 1.7 | 94% | 7.4 | 0% |
| 11 | Dersingham Norfolk | A− | 3.1 | 76% | 1.9 | 39% |
| 12 | Brampton South Yorkshire | A− | 4.4 | 100% | 3.1 | 0% |
| 13 | Liss Hampshire | A− | 2.3 | 87% | 2.6 | 98% |
| 14 | Saxmundham Suffolk | B+ | 3.3 | 100% | 1.9 | 3% |
| 15 | Hugglescote Leicestershire | B+ | 4.2 | 91% | 3.6 | 0% |
| 16 | Borough Green Kent | B+ | 2.5 | 93% | 1.9 | 50% |
| 17 | Winscombe and Sandford Somerset | B+ | 3.5 | 52% | 3.6 | 38% |
| 18 | Bodicote Oxfordshire | B+ | 10.2 | 86% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 19 | Kings Worthy Hampshire | B+ | 3.9 | 66% | 3 | 23% |
| 20 | Blackhall Colliery County Durham | B | 1.1 | 95% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 21 | Callington Cornwall | B | 2.1 | 100% | 1.1 | 21% |
| 22 | Whaley Bridge Derbyshire | B | 1.6 | 44% | 4.3 | 53% |
| 23 | Coedpoeth Clwyd | B | 1.4 | 100% | 1.9 | 24% |
| 24 | Lyneham Wiltshire | B− | 1.5 | 94% | 2.7 | 6% |
| 25 | Lenham and Harrietsham Kent | B− | 1.4 | 88% | 2.4 | 47% |
| 26 | High Lane Greater Manchester | B− | 1.5 | 67% | 4.6 | 12% |
| 27 | Chalfont St Giles Buckinghamshire | B− | 1.8 | 57% | 3.5 | 37% |
| 28 | Kelvedon and Feering Essex | B− | 3.5 | 94% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 29 | Astley Greater Manchester | B− | 3.5 | 78% | 3.1 | 0% |
| 30 | Bromham Bedfordshire | B− | 3.8 | 87% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 31 | Llay Clwyd | B− | 10.6 | 85% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 32 | Cleadon Tyne and Wear | B− | 2.1 | 63% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 33 | Dudley Tyne and Wear | C+ | 2.6 | 69% | 4 | 0% |
| 34 | Bramley Hampshire | C+ | 2.8 | 100% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 35 | Dickens Heath West Midlands | C+ | 3.2 | 82% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 36 | Loughor West Glamorgan | C+ | 2.1 | 70% | 1.2 | 6% |
| 37 | Cross Hills North Yorkshire | C+ | 1.9 | 86% | 3 | 0% |
| 38 | Kennington Oxfordshire | C+ | 2.1 | 58% | 5.5 | 0% |
| 39 | Howden East Riding of Yorkshire | C+ | 3.6 | 94% | 1.2 | 0% |
| 40 | Ripponden West Yorkshire | C+ | 2.1 | 75% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 41 | Edwalton Nottinghamshire | C+ | 2.1 | 58% | 4.5 | 0% |
| 42 | Datchet Berkshire | C | 8.4 | 72% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 43 | Minster (Thanet) Kent | C | 2.3 | 64% | 1.2 | 0% |
| 44 | Makeney Derbyshire | C | 2.1 | 56% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 45 | Mynydd Isa Clwyd | C | 0.9 | 87% | 2 | 3% |
| 46 | Winterton Lincolnshire | C | 1.6 | 82% | 1.1 | 0% |
| 47 | Kinver Staffordshire | C | 3.1 | 60% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 48 | Woodhall Spa Lincolnshire | C− | 1.9 | 61% | 3 | 0% |
| 49 | Barton-under-Needwood Staffordshire | C− | 2.3 | 70% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 50 | Preesall and Knott End-on-Sea Lancashire | C− | 0.7 | 69% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 51 | Bricket Wood Hertfordshire | C− | 1.7 | 43% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 52 | Middleton St George County Durham | C− | 1.8 | 94% | 1 | 0% |
| 53 | Sowerby North Yorkshire | C− | 1.5 | 77% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 54 | Bailrigg Lancashire | C− | 0 | 0% | 3.4 | 18% |
| 55 | Stretton Staffordshire | C− | 3.7 | 49% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 56 | Crowland Lincolnshire | C− | 2.8 | 70% | 1.2 | 0% |
| 57 | Markfield Leicestershire | D | 0.8 | 63% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 58 | Welton Lincolnshire | D | 2 | 57% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 59 | Ynysybwl Mid Glamorgan | D | 2.3 | 60% | 0.7 | 0% |
| 60 | Chilton County Durham | D− | 1.1 | 68% | 1 | 0% |
The map
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Makeney’s built-up area.
Green space: parks, gardens, playing fields and play spaces, named or not.© OpenStreetMap contributors · Contains OS data © Crown copyright · Natural England / NRW
Places to walk
Parks to walk in, in and around Makeney
The biggest is Allestree Park, 129 ha (320 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
All 5 named parks by size: 148 ha (366 acres) and 21 km of path
Parks & gardens 146 haPlaying fields 1.7 ha
The two biggest, Allestree Park and Duffield Millennium Meadow, are 91% of the named green space and carry 17 km of path between them.
Duffield Millennium Meadow
Park or garden
5.7 ha (14 acres)1.6 km of path
20 minto walk all 1.6 km of path
8 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
0.5 mi eastfrom the centre
Nature reserve
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Duffield Millennium Meadow
Park or garden
5.7 ha (14 acres)1.6 km of path
20 minto walk all 1.6 km of path
8 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
0.5 mi eastfrom the centre
Nature reserve
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Duffield Millennium Meadow
Park or garden
5.7 ha (14 acres)1.6 km of path
20 minto walk all 1.6 km of path
8 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
0.5 mi eastfrom the centre
Nature reserve
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Mill Green
Playing field
1.7 ha (4 acres)0.2 km of path
2 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
Centralin the middle of Makeney
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Close to home
6 in 10 Makeney residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park
Each square is 1 in 100 residents: green lives within 400 m of a public park, garden or playing field (Census 2021 output areas against OS Open Greenspace).
Within 400 m (56%)Further (44%)
Makeney56%
Towns its size77%
Derbyshire towns86%
All UK towns83%
About 2,100 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 6 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 782 residents.
National Parks & National Landscapes
The Peak District National Park is 8.5 mi away
Protected landscapes within 30 km, by direction and distance from the edge of the built-up area; circle size shows each one’s area. National Landscapes were called Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty until 2023.
National ParkNational LandscapeThe 5 km the grade counts
Peak District National Park covers 1,438 km² and has been a National Park since 1951.
Footpaths & waymarked walks
7 waymarked walks pass through or near Makeney
47 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Makeney and the kilometre around it, 3.4 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the town.
RegionalLocalOther waymarked
Midshires Way7.3 km
Derwent Valley Heritage Way7.2 km
Derby Nomad Way6.2 km
Amber Valley Routeway Walk 103.5 km
Centenary Way (Derbyshire)3.5 km
Amber Valley Routeways Walk 201.4 km
Little Eaton Circular Walk 91.1 km
3 regional routes pass through, including the Midshires Way, Derwent Valley Heritage Way and Derby Nomad Way.
Waymarked walks are OpenStreetMap walking routes. Public rights of way are only as complete as the map in each area.
When to get out
The best walking months in Makeney: May to September
The town’s 1991–2020 averages (Met Office HadUK-Grid) and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have 12½+ hours of daylight, highs of 15 °C or more and little rain for the town.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 8.1 | 9.8 | 11.7 | 13.9 | 15.8 | 16.9 | 16.4 | 14.7 | 12.6 | 10.5 | 8.6 | 7.6 |
| High (°C) | 7 | 8 | 10 | 13 | 16 | 19 | 21 | 21 | 18 | 14 | 10 | 7 |
| Rain (mm) | 62 | 54 | 53 | 50 | 55 | 70 | 70 | 68 | 64 | 79 | 74 | 78 |
April is the driest month (50 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 21 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 79 mm of rain falls in October, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 45 nights a year. The climate in Makeney →
Things to do
6 playgrounds and the nearest beaches
Mapped within 2 km of the town in OpenStreetMap, against the typical UK town its size per resident. Named places are listed with directions; unnamed ones are only counted.
The nearest beaches
Makeney is inland. These are the nearest named beaches, measured from the edge of the town.
The Beach21 mi from Makeney’s edge
DirectionsGood to know
Check the water before you swim. The Environment Agency tests designated bathing waters from May to September and publishes a rating for each beach.
Up high. Firestone Hill, at 191 m, is the highest named top within 2 km of Makeney.
Every named place, with directions
Viewpoints 1
Quarndon Topograph0.6 mi from town
DirectionsHills and peaks 1
Firestone Hill191 m (627 ft) · 1.0 mi from town
DirectionsNature reserves 2
Duffield Castle1.0 ha · in town
DirectionsDuffield Millennium Meadow5.7 ha · 0.1 mi from town
DirectionsPicnic sites 1
Plus 1 picnic site without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 6
Milford Play Area0.7 mi from town
DirectionsBarn Close Play Area1.1 mi from town
DirectionsPlus 4 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Campsites 3
Training 41.2 mi from town
DirectionsTraining 51.2 mi from town
DirectionsPlus 1 campsite without a name on the map.
Next door
The outdoors in nearby towns
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 12 miles. Tap a town for its outdoors page.
MilfordLittle EatonHolbrookBelperKilburn and Horsley WoodhouseDenby BottlesMakeney
ABCDOutdoors Grade
| Town | Outdoors | Green space, ha per 1,000 | Near a park | Protected within 5 km |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Makeney | C | 2.1 | 56% | 0% |
| Milford 1.5 mi | C+ | 1.4 | 100% | 0% |
| Little Eaton 1.7 mi | B | 4.6 | 85% | 0% |
| Holbrook 2.0 mi | B− | 4.2 | 55% | 0% |
| Belper 3.0 mi | B+ | 2.4 | 94% | 0% |
| Kilburn and Horsley Woodhouse 3.1 mi | C | 1.6 | 75% | 0% |
| Denby Bottles 3.3 mi | B | 1.4 | 100% | 0% |
Belper, 3 miles away, grades B+, the best next door: 94% of its residents live within 400 m of a park. Little Eaton and Holbrook have at least twice Makeney’s green space per resident. None of the neighbours has a protected landscape within 5 km either.
Questions about the outdoors in Makeney
What is the biggest park in Makeney?
Allestree Park, 129 ha (320 acres), with 15.6 km of path, just outside the built-up area. Duffield Millennium Meadow (5.7 ha) is second. 5 named parks, gardens and playing fields are in the town or within 400 m of it.
Is Makeney near a National Park?
Yes. Peak District National Park begins 8.5 mi north-west of the town’s edge. It covers 1,438 km² and has been a National Park since 1951.
What are the best walks near Makeney?
7 waymarked walking routes pass within 2 km of the town, including the Midshires Way, Derwent Valley Heritage Way and Derby Nomad Way. Allestree Park alone has 15.6 km of path.
What is the nearest beach to Makeney?
The Beach, 21 mi from the edge of the town. Makeney itself is inland.
How many people in Makeney live near a park?
56% of residents live within 400 m, about a 5-minute walk, of a public park, garden or playing field (Census 2021 output areas against OS Open Greenspace). The typical UK town is 83%.
When is the best time of year for walking in Makeney?
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Makeney good for walking?
For paths, yes: 3.4 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 70% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 48% (2.1 ha per 1,000 residents).
How is the Outdoors Grade worked out?
From five measures, each placed among UK towns of 1,000 or more: public green space per resident, the share living near a park, National Park or National Landscape within 5 km, footpaths per square kilometre, and the sea within 5 km. It is a character grade and isn’t part of Makeney’s overall grade.
Sources
Where Makeney’s outdoors figures come from
- Parks and green space: Ordnance Survey OS Open Greenspace (parks and gardens, playing fields, play spaces, and their access points). Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- National Parks and National Landscapes: Natural England and Natural Resources Wales boundaries, areas and designation dates, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Footpaths, walking routes, beaches and things to do: © OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database License (ODbL), via Geofabrik, 16 October 2026.
- Historic parks, listed buildings and monuments: Historic England, National Heritage List for England, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Rain and temperature: Met Office HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages for the town; daylight calculated from its latitude.
- The sea: ONS Countries (December 2024) boundaries clipped to mean high water. Residents near a park: ONS Census 2021 output areas.
- Grade: TownRatings’ Outdoors Grade, ranked against UK towns only.
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.