Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Walking, cycling and public transport carry 16% of commuters. 7,702 people call this town in Essex, East of England home.
What it saves you on housing, it gives back elsewhere. Where it falls short is safety — 46.3 violent and sexual offences and 13.3 home and vehicle crimes per 1,000 residents a year. Against UK towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people, it has more crime per resident than 91%. Overall, Berechurch earns a C+, which places it #49 of 81 in Essex. On that grade it does better than 45% of UK towns. Buying a home costs less than in most towns (A): a typical home costs £280,000 and rent runs £1,197 a month. It lags on health as well (D) — life expectancy 77.3 for men, 81.1 for women. Elsewhere it is close to typical: B− for schools and B for walkability.
Figures: prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · life expectancy, ONS · commuting, Census 2021.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Berechurch is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The 3 things Berechurch does most differently from other towns.
Historic England lists 3 buildings inside Berechurch’s built-up area, 1 of them Grade II*.
2% 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 Berechurch.
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
2% of homes were built before 1919. For its size, Berechurch has 4 listed buildings per 10,000 residents, below Essex’s towns (52) and England’s towns (39) alike.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Secondary results at the 7 secondary schools within 3 km: an Attainment 8 score of 54, with 59% at grade 5 or above in English and maths. Berechurch’s three primaries and one secondary have 1,503 pupils between them. Key Stage 2 results at the town’s 2 primary schools: 53% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monkwick Junior SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 234 | D |
| The Thomas Lord Audley SchoolLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 940 | C− |
Police recorded 593 crimes inside Berechurch’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 91 reports of anti-social behaviour. Violence and sexual offences were 57% of the crimes. There were 9.4 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), above Essex’s towns (4.6) and England’s towns (7.8) 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.
Owners make up 61% of households, about level with England’s towns (61%) and below Essex’s towns (67%). Behind the median of £280,000: 279 standard sales inside Berechurch’s built-up area, September 2023 to August 2026. 17% of households are private tenants.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £360,000 | 51 |
| Semi-detached | £290,000 | 94 |
| Terraced | £275,000 | 90 |
| Flat or maisonette | £163,500 | 44 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
A disability affects 19% of people in Berechurch. There is no GP practice in the town: the nearest is 1.2 miles off. The nearest A&E to Berechurch is Colchester General Hospital, 3.4 miles away.
| Census 2021 | Berechurch | Essex | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 82% | 83% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 4.8% | 4.8% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 19% | 17% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Young towns look healthier on these answers, which aren’t adjusted for age; the Health Grade uses measures that are, such as life expectancy and early deaths.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 20% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Driving is how 81% of commuters got to work at the census. Work in town: 3% of resident commuters. There are 0.2 jobs in Berechurch for each resident in work. Working mainly from home: a fifth of workers, lower than both Essex’s towns (31%) and England’s towns (31%).
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
13% of residents are 65 or over, below both Essex’s towns (20%) and England’s towns (18%). Residents of Berechurch have a median age of 35.7. Graduates make up 24% of adults.
51% women, 49% men
About 94 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Berechurch | Essex | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 23% | 18% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 11% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 31% | 26% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 24% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 13% | 20% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 19% | 19% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 6.2% | 5.5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 18% | 17% | 17% |
| Degree level | 24% | 27% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Essex and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Berechurch. Best known first.
CastleColchester Castle2.3 km outside town, to the north
ZooColchester Zoo4 km outside town, to the west
Abbey or priory · English HeritageSt. Botolph's Priory2 km outside town, to the north
FortBalkerne Gate2.2 km outside town, to the north
Abbey or priory · English HeritageSt. John's Abbey Gatehouse1.8 km outside town, to the north
Art galleryFirstsite2.2 km outside town, to the northPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Town in Essex, England
Berechurch is a built-up area of 7,702 people, in the Colchester 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Berechurch | 7,702 | — | C+ | A | D | D |
| Rowhedge | 2,492 | 1.8 | — | B+ | A− | C− |
| Langenhoe and Abberton | 1,010 | 1.9 | — | B− | A | A− |
| Colchester | 130,259 | 2 | B | A− | D | C |
| Layer-de-la-Haye | 1,338 | 2.3 | — | C+ | A− | A |
| Wivenhoe | 7,354 | 2.4 | A | B+ | B+ | A |
| Elmstead Market | 1,767 | 4 | — | D− | C | B |
| Alresford | 2,462 | 4 | — | D− | B+ | B− |
Rowhedge, Langenhoe and Abberton, Layer-de-la-Haye, Elmstead Market and Alresford have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
A young town. At the 2021 Census, 23% of residents were under 15 and 31% were 25 to 44, against 18% and 27% across England’s towns; only 13% were 65 or over.
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
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.