Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
1-4, The High Street · Photo: Pugsarethebest1234 · CC BY-SA 4.0Parks and playing fields in Ashley Heath add up to 24.2 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. The New Forest National Park begins 0.5 mi from the town’s edge. 108 km of footpaths run through the town and the kilometre around it, 4.0 for every square kilometre. Ashley Heath grades A for the outdoors: #9 of 30 in Dorset. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Ashley Heath’s strongest suit is plenty of park space, followed by dense footpaths. Where it falls short is how far some homes are from a park.
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Ashley Heath, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
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.
The 60 UK towns and cities of 6,900 to 7,400 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Against towns its size, Ashley Heath stands out most for park space per resident: none of the other 59 has more. It falls furthest behind on homes near a park, where 39 of the others do better.
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Holbury Hampshire | A+ | 5.5 | 89% | 3.1 | 42% |
| 2 | Sheringham Norfolk | A+ | 11.6 | 74% | 3.4 | 32% |
| 3 | Stocksbridge South Yorkshire | A | 2.2 | 100% | 4.4 | 30% |
| 4 | Bude Cornwall | A | 3.1 | 78% | 3.3 | 9% |
| 5 | Anstey Leicestershire | A | 12.9 | 100% | 4.3 | 0% |
| 6 | Liphook Hampshire | A | 3.1 | 86% | 3.8 | 64% |
| 7 | Bishop's Waltham Hampshire | A | 2.6 | 93% | 3.4 | 55% |
| 8 | Bourne End Buckinghamshire | A | 2.9 | 87% | 4 | 19% |
| 9 | Gwersyllt Clwyd | A | 14.6 | 96% | 2.5 | 2% |
| 10 | Ashley Heath Dorset | A | 24.2 | 68% | 4 | 15% |
| 11 | Darfield South Yorkshire | A | 4 | 100% | 3.9 | 0% |
| 12 | Easington County Durham | A− | 5 | 94% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 13 | Walton-on-the-Naze Essex | A− | 3.2 | 96% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 14 | Shiremoor Tyne and Wear | A− | 2.5 | 76% | 5.3 | 0% |
| 15 | Otford and Kemsing Kent | A− | 3.3 | 53% | 3.6 | 73% |
| 16 | Torpoint Cornwall | A− | 2.2 | 84% | 1.6 | 26% |
| 17 | Blackwater Hampshire | B+ | 10.6 | 74% | 4.7 | 0% |
| 18 | Chinnor Oxfordshire | B+ | 1.5 | 88% | 3.7 | 37% |
| 19 | Kiveton Park South Yorkshire | B+ | 2.8 | 100% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 20 | Fence Houses Tyne and Wear | B+ | 3.8 | 81% | 4.7 | 0% |
| 21 | Malmesbury Wiltshire | B | 2 | 86% | 2.5 | 26% |
| 22 | Wroughton Wiltshire | B | 1.1 | 78% | 3.9 | 52% |
| 23 | Chapel-en-le-Frith Derbyshire | B− | 1 | 75% | 3.8 | 58% |
| 24 | Woodville Derbyshire | B− | 3.7 | 78% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 25 | Balsall Common West Midlands | B− | 3.7 | 81% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 26 | Cranfield Bedfordshire | B− | 2.3 | 72% | 4.4 | 0% |
| 27 | Borrowash Derbyshire | B− | 2.8 | 85% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 28 | Bollington Cheshire | B− | 1.3 | 56% | 4.1 | 31% |
| 29 | Blackheath West Midlands | C+ | 2.5 | 57% | 4.9 | 0% |
| 30 | Allerton Bywater West Yorkshire | C+ | 2.1 | 78% | 3.9 | 0% |
| 31 | North Baddesley Hampshire | C+ | 1.7 | 91% | 3.3 | 0% |
| 32 | Chipping Norton Oxfordshire | C+ | 1.5 | 67% | 2.4 | 73% |
| 33 | Wrecclesham Surrey | C+ | 1.2 | 50% | 3.8 | 37% |
| 34 | Poringland Norfolk | C+ | 1.3 | 91% | 2.1 | 5% |
| 35 | Pelton and Ouston County Durham | C+ | 2 | 64% | 4.7 | 0% |
| 36 | Murton County Durham | C+ | 2.1 | 54% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 37 | West Mersea Essex | C+ | 1.9 | 69% | 2 | 0% |
| 38 | Thrapston Northamptonshire | C | 1.2 | 100% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 39 | Caerleon Gwent | C | 1.9 | 64% | 4.2 | 0% |
| 40 | Horncastle Lincolnshire | C | 0.6 | 60% | 3.9 | 10% |
| 41 | Radcliffe on Trent Nottinghamshire | C | 2.5 | 76% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 42 | Hattersley Greater Manchester | C | 0.9 | 52% | 3.9 | 7% |
| 43 | Sawston Cambridgeshire | C | 1.4 | 97% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 44 | Hagley Worcestershire | C | 1.7 | 90% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 45 | Castle Donington Leicestershire | C | 1.8 | 85% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 46 | Crewkerne Somerset | C | 0.5 | 66% | 2.8 | 21% |
| 47 | Aylsham Norfolk | C | 2.6 | 74% | 2 | 0% |
| 48 | Hethersett Norfolk | C | 2.1 | 65% | 2.9 | 0% |
| 49 | Market Warsop Nottinghamshire | C | 2.1 | 67% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 50 | Wivenhoe Essex | C− | 0.9 | 65% | 5.1 | 0% |
| 51 | Kibworth Beauchamp and Kibworth Harcourt Leicestershire | C− | 2.1 | 82% | 2 | 0% |
| 52 | Calverton Nottinghamshire | C− | 1.7 | 62% | 3 | 0% |
| 53 | Hollywood Worcestershire | C− | 2.4 | 54% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 54 | Pickering North Yorkshire | C− | 1.7 | 39% | 1.7 | 19% |
| 55 | Shefford Bedfordshire | D | 1.1 | 67% | 3 | 0% |
| 56 | Wellesbourne Warwickshire | D | 1.1 | 88% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 57 | Deeping St James Lincolnshire | D | 0.5 | 73% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 58 | Beddau Mid Glamorgan | D | 1 | 77% | 1.2 | 0% |
| 59 | Featherstone Staffordshire | D− | 1.2 | 52% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 60 | Albrighton Shropshire | D− | 0.8 | 32% | 1 | 0% |
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Ashley Heath’s built-up area.
The biggest is Moors Valley Country Park, 585 ha (1,444 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
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).
About 2,300 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 20 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 358 residents.
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.
15% of the land within 5 km of Ashley Heath is National Park or National Landscape, more than 74% of UK towns. New Forest National Park covers 567 km² and has been a National Park since 2006.
108 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Ashley Heath and the kilometre around it, 4.0 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the town.
Close to home, the Castleman Trailway has 9 km of local walk within 2 km of the town. The regional route here is the Avon Valley Path.
Waymarked walks are OpenStreetMap walking routes. Public rights of way are only as complete as the map in each area.
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) | 8.4 | 9.9 | 11.7 | 13.7 | 15.5 | 16.5 | 16.1 | 14.5 | 12.5 | 10.6 | 8.8 | 8.0 |
| High (°C) | 9 | 9 | 11 | 14 | 18 | 20 | 22 | 22 | 20 | 16 | 12 | 9 |
| Rain (mm) | 104 | 71 | 65 | 61 | 51 | 56 | 52 | 63 | 70 | 104 | 112 | 109 |
May is the driest month (51 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 22 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 112 mm of rain falls in November, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 53 nights a year. The climate in Ashley Heath →
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.
Ashley Heath is inland. These are the nearest named beaches, measured from the edge of the town.
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. Lions Hill, at 30 m, is the highest named top within 2 km of Ashley Heath.
Plus 2 picnic sites without a name on the map.
Plus 12 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Plus 1 dog park without a name on the map.
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 12 miles. Tap a town for its outdoors page.
| Town | Outdoors | Green space, ha per 1,000 | Near a park | Protected within 5 km |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ashley Heath | A | 24.2 | 68% | 15% |
| West Moors 2.3 mi | C− | 0.9 | 33% | 0% |
| Three Legged Cross 2.5 mi | C | 1.5 | 77% | 1% |
| Ringwood 2.7 mi | B+ | 2.3 | 78% | 43% |
| Hightown 3.1 mi | A+ | 15.7 | 100% | 58% |
| Verwood 3.3 mi | B+ | 5.7 | 41% | 13% |
| Ferndown 3.4 mi | C | 0.7 | 13% | 0% |
Hightown, 3.1 miles away, grades A+, the best next door: every resident lives within 400 m of a park.
Moors Valley Country Park, 585 ha (1,444 acres), with 38.4 km of path. Avon Heath Country Park (207 ha) is second. 3 named parks, gardens and playing fields are in the town or within 400 m of it.
Yes. New Forest National Park begins 0.5 mi south-east of the town’s edge. It covers 567 km² and has been a National Park since 2006.
3 waymarked walking routes pass within 2 km of the town, including the Castleman Trailway, Avon Valley Path and Play Trail. Moors Valley Country Park alone has 38.4 km of path.
Fisherman's Walk Beach, 6.3 mi from the edge of the town, then Bournemouth East Beach (6.3 mi). Ashley Heath itself is inland.
68% 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%.
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
For paths, yes: 4.0 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 81% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 99% (24.2 ha per 1,000 residents).
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 Ashley Heath’s overall grade.
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.