Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Some 7,663 people live in this town, in East Sussex, South East.
A well-rated place to live, with prices to match. It also does well on health — life expectancy 82 for men, 84.9 for women. Housing is expensive (C): a typical home costs £330,000 and rent runs £1,262 a month. The overall grade comes out at A−, better than 81% of UK towns. That places it #1 of 26 in East Sussex. The rest of its grades are middling: B for jobs & income and C+ for walkability.
Figures: life expectancy and income, ONS · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · claimants, DWP · commuting, Census 2021.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Heathfield is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The 3 things Heathfield does most differently from other towns.
Historic England lists 10 buildings inside Heathfield’s built-up area.
12% 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 Heathfield.
Nearly one in ten residents are 15 to 24, below both East Sussex’s towns (12%) and England’s towns (12%). The under-15s are 16% of the population here. Half the people of Heathfield are older than 47.5. Graduates make up 29% of adults.
52% women, 48% men
About 93 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.
| Heathfield | East Sussex | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 16% | 15% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 9.3% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 22% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 28% | 27% | 25% |
| 65+ | 25% | 22% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 15% | 16% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 6.1% | 4.9% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 19% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 29% | 36% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · East Sussex and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Both of its schools are shown below. Some 604 pupils attend Heathfield’s two primaries. At the town’s 2 primary schools, 69% of pupils reach the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cross-in-Hand Church of England Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 379 | B |
| Parkside Community Primary SchoolTop results in townPrimary | Primary | 225 | A− |
At the census, 4.3% of residents said their health was bad or very bad, below East Sussex’s towns (5.6%) and England’s towns (5.2%) alike. The nearest A&E to Heathfield is Eastbourne District General Hospital, 12.4 miles away. One GP practice serves the town; 77% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey.
| Census 2021 | Heathfield | East Sussex | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 83% | 81% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 4.3% | 5.6% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 16% | 20% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · 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.
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Before 1919: that is when 12% of homes were built. Scaled to its population, Heathfield has 13 listed buildings per 10,000 people, below East Sussex’s towns (70) and England’s towns (39) alike. One registered park or garden lies here.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
7% of households live in social housing. Private renters make up 17% of households, below both East Sussex’s towns (24%) and England’s towns (21%). 373 standard sales inside Heathfield’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 put the median at £330,000.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £465,000 | 137 |
| Semi-detached | £328,250 | 102 |
| Terraced | £292,500 | 54 |
| Flat or maisonette | £167,500 | 80 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Violence and sexual offences made up 46% of the total. A year of reports to August 2026 adds up to 271 offences in Heathfield and 92 cases of nuisance behaviour. Violent crime ran at 16.2 per 1,000 residents a year, below East Sussex’s towns (18.1) and England’s towns (22) alike.
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 police category of violence and sexual offences includes harassment and stalking.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 31% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
86% of commuters drove, above East Sussex’s towns (66%) and England’s towns (70%) alike. For just over a quarter of commuters, work was under 5 km away. Of the commuters living in Heathfield, 16% work in the town itself. The 2026 claimant rate among 16 to 64s was 2%.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Town in East Sussex, England
Heathfield is a built-up area of 7,663 people, in the Wealden 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
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heathfield | 7,663 | — | A− | C | B+ | A− |
| Broad Oak (Wealden) | 1,097 | 1.6 | — | C− | A | A− |
| Horam | 1,797 | 2.3 | — | C− | C+ | B+ |
| Mayfield | 2,253 | 3.8 | — | D | A | A+ |
| Buxted | 1,616 | 5.3 | — | D | A− | A+ |
| Rotherfield | 1,219 | 5.6 | — | D | A | A+ |
| Hellingly | 2,616 | 5.8 | D− | C− | D | B+ |
| Herstmonceux | 1,221 | 6.1 | — | C+ | A− | A− |
Broad Oak (Wealden), Horam, Mayfield, Buxted, Rotherfield and Herstmonceux have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Band D council tax in Heathfield is £2,682 for 2026–27, more than in 94% 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.
Secondary results beat 69%. Heathfield has 2 state schools; places are handled by East Sussex council.
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.