Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A village in East Sussex, South East, home to 599 people.
With fewer than 1,000 residents, Upper Dicker is too small for fair grades, though the figures on this page are real. It skews young: one resident in 3 is 15 to 24. Pre-1919 homes make up 47% of the housing. Homes sell for a median £568,250.
The 3 things Upper Dicker does most differently from other towns.
Historic England lists them inside Upper Dicker’s built-up area, along with 1 scheduled monument.
47% 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 Upper Dicker.
People 65 and over make up just over a tenth of the town, below both East Sussex’s towns (22%) and England’s towns (18%). Typical age in Upper Dicker: 19.5, the median. 34% of adults hold a degree.
48% women, 52% men
About 108 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women. Upper Dicker is a campus town: students living in halls or boarding houses count as residents.
| Upper Dicker | East Sussex | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 22% | 15% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 33% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 14% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 20% | 27% | 25% |
| 65+ | 12% | 22% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 11% | 16% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 2.4% | 4.9% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 15% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 34% | 36% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · East Sussex and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Attainment 8 at the one secondary school within 3 km averages 35.4, and 29% of pupils get grade 5 or above in English and maths. Park Mead Primary School’s results beat 79% of schools in England like it. Its one school is below. 55% of pupils at the 3 primary schools within 3 km met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Park Mead Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 90 | A− |
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 44% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
44% of workers did their job mainly from home at the census, and the car took 72% of commuters, above both East Sussex’s towns (66%) and England’s towns (70%). Unemployment benefit claims reached 1.9% of 16 to 64s in 2026. Work in town: just over a tenth of resident commuters.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Social housing holds 3% of households, below East Sussex’s towns (13%) and England’s towns (18%) alike. 17% of households rent privately. Private rents average £1,262 a month across the Wealden council area.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £780,000 | 5 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
The 12 months to August 2026 brought 15 recorded crimes inside Upper Dicker’s built-up area, and 4 reports of anti-social behaviour. Violent crime ran at 13.4 per 1,000 residents a year, below both East Sussex’s towns (17.9) and England’s towns (22). Violence and sexual offences accounted for 40% of recorded crime.
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.
Poor health, by residents’ own account, affects 0.8% of the town. At the census, 92% of people in Upper Dicker called their health good or very good, above both East Sussex’s towns (81%) and England’s towns (82%). Also worth knowing: this East Sussex town has no GP practice of its own; the nearest is 2.4 miles away.
| Census 2021 | Upper Dicker | East Sussex | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 92% | 81% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 0.8% | 5.6% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 9.9% | 20% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Read these answers with age in mind: they aren’t adjusted, so younger places do better. The Health Grade uses age-adjusted measures, life expectancy and early deaths among them.
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Scaled to its population, that is 150 listed buildings for every 10,000 people in Upper Dicker. Its listed buildings include Barbican Tower and Bridge over the Moat at Michelham Priory, Grade I. It counts 9 listed buildings on the national list (Historic England): 2 Grade I.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Upper Dicker. Best known first.
Historic houseMichelham Prioryin town
MuseumFarleys Barn Gallery3.3 km outside town, to the northZooZooBede's Zooin townTheme parkTheme parkKnockhatch Adventure Park1.1 km outside town, to the eastChurchChurchSt Mary and St Peter's Church.5 km outside town, to the southPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Upper Dicker | 599 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Hailsham | 22,560 | 2.4 | D | C | C+ | C |
| Hellingly | 2,616 | 2.9 | D− | C− | D | B+ |
| Polegate | 10,067 | 3.7 | C | C | B | C |
| Lower Willingdon | 6,126 | 4.5 | B− | C− | A− | A− |
| Horam | 1,797 | 5 | — | C− | C+ | B+ |
| Stone Cross | 5,036 | 5.3 | C | C− | B− | B |
| Herstmonceux | 1,221 | 5.5 | — | C+ | A− | A− |
Horam and Herstmonceux have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 6.2 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I buildings include Barbican Tower and Bridge over the Moat at Michelham Priory. It also has 1 scheduled monument.
Band D council tax in Upper Dicker is £2,662 for 2026–27, more than in 93% 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.
Village in East Sussex, England
Upper Dicker is a built-up area of 599 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
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.