Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
This town in Essex, East of England has a population of 11,749.
Jobs and pay hold up well: mean household income £70,493; 2.5% of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits. With a B+ overall, Buckhurst Hill is better than 72% of UK towns. Its place in the ranking is #31 of 81 in Essex. It is easy to get around without a car: 37% of commuters get to work on foot, by bike or by public transport. Prices are high against local incomes: homes sell for a median £625,000, about 9.7 times local household income.
Figures: income, ONS · claimants, DWP · commuting, Census 2021 · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Buckhurst Hill is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The 3 things Buckhurst Hill does most differently from other towns.
Historic England lists 3 buildings inside Buckhurst Hill’s built-up area.
13% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
The archive holds 2 old photos and postcards going back to 1906.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Buckhurst Hill.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 48% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Work in town: 8% of resident commuters. 48% of workers worked mainly from home, higher than both Essex’s towns (31%) and England’s towns (31%). For 31% of commuters, work was under 5 km away.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Attainment 8 at the 9 secondary schools within 3 km averages 52, and 57% of pupils get grade 5 or above in English and maths. One of its 2 schools is below, with the reason it’s listed. Key Stage 2 results at the town’s 2 primary schools: 62% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst HillLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 412 | B |
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
13% of Buckhurst Hill’s homes date from before 1919, and Historic England’s list holds 3 listed buildings inside its built-up area.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Social housing holds 8% of households, below both Essex’s towns (15%) and England’s towns (18%). Private rents average £1,844 a month across the Epping Forest council area. From September 2023 to August 2026, 467 homes sold inside Buckhurst Hill’s built-up area at standard prices; the middle one went for £625,000.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £992,500 | 70 |
| Semi-detached | £760,000 | 119 |
| Terraced | £626,000 | 128 |
| Flat or maisonette | £376,250 | 150 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
At the census, 87% of people in Buckhurst Hill called their health good or very good, above both Essex’s towns (83%) and England’s towns (82%). 3.2% of residents report bad or very bad health. 3 GP practices serve the town; 89% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey.
| Census 2021 | Buckhurst Hill | Essex | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 87% | 83% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 3.2% | 4.8% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 12% | 17% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Census health answers are raw, so younger towns score better on them; for the Health Grade we use age-adjusted figures like life expectancy and early deaths.
In the 12 months to August 2026, police logged 662 crimes and 35 reports of anti-social behaviour inside Buckhurst Hill’s built-up area. Of all the crimes, 42% were violence and sexual offences. There were 3.8 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), lower than both Essex’s towns (4.6) and England’s towns (7.8).
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.
A tenth of the population is aged 15 to 24, below Essex’s towns (11%) and England’s towns (12%) alike. The middle age in Buckhurst Hill is 41.8. Those 65 and older account for 18% of residents.
52% women, 48% men
About 93 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Buckhurst Hill | Essex | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 18% | 18% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 9.6% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 27% | 26% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 27% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 18% | 20% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 14% | 19% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 3.8% | 5.5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 15% | 17% | 17% |
| Degree level | 43% | 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 Buckhurst Hill. Best known first.
MuseumWilliam Morris Gallery5 km outside town, to the southwest
Art galleryGod's Own Junkyard4.9 km outside town, to the southwestAttractionAttractionQueen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge600 m outside town, to the northwestMuseumMuseumThe Hirsch Family Adventure Gallery2.4 km outside town, to the northwestWater parkWater parkAqua Action4.3 km outside town, to the southeastMuseumMuseumRSA Interpretation Centre4.8 km outside town, to the northwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Town in Essex, England
Buckhurst Hill is a built-up area of 11,749 people, in the Epping Forest 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buckhurst Hill | 11,749 | — | B+ | D | C | A− |
| Loughton | 33,338 | 1.9 | B | C− | C | B |
| Chigwell | 12,251 | 2 | B | D | C | B+ |
| Chigwell Row | 2,115 | 3.3 | — | C− | C | B+ |
| Waltham Forest | 278,129 | 3.4 | B− | C− | C− | C |
| Redbridge | 309,509 | 3.6 | B | C+ | C− | C+ |
| Abridge | 1,651 | 3.8 | — | C− | B− | B+ |
| Theydon Bois | 3,540 | 4.1 | A− | D | B− | A− |
Chigwell Row and Abridge have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £625,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £376,250, terraced houses £626,000, semi-detached houses £760,000 and detached houses £992,500.
About the middle for its size: 50% of the 645 UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people report less crime per resident. Against all UK towns, most of them smaller, it grades C.
Band D council tax in Buckhurst Hill is £2,261 for 2026–27, less than in 79% 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.
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.