Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Photo: Trevor Harris · CC BY-SA 2.0Parks and playing fields in Hullbridge add up to 5.7 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. A park or playing field is within a 5-minute walk for 59% of residents. Footpaths add up to 36 km in the town and the kilometre around it, 3.0 for every square kilometre. Hullbridge grades C+ for the outdoors: #49 of 81 in Essex. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Hullbridge’s strongest suit is plenty of park space. 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 Hullbridge, 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 5,500 to 6,000 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Against towns its size, Hullbridge stands out most for park space per resident: only 2 of the other 59 have more. It falls furthest behind on homes near a park, where 48 of the others do better.
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Blackfield and Langley Hampshire | A+ | 28.1 | 95% | 4.2 | 48% |
| 2 | Ventnor Isle of Wight | A+ | 4.5 | 61% | 3.7 | 25% |
| 3 | Saltburn-by-the-Sea North Yorkshire | A | 4.7 | 92% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 4 | Deepcar South Yorkshire | A | 1.8 | 100% | 6.4 | 21% |
| 5 | Barrowford Lancashire | A | 4.2 | 82% | 5 | 22% |
| 6 | Wareham Dorset | A | 1.9 | 83% | 3.4 | 56% |
| 7 | Amble Northumberland | A | 2 | 100% | 2.2 | 5% |
| 8 | Haworth West Yorkshire | A | 4.1 | 100% | 4.3 | 0% |
| 9 | Millom Cumbria | A | 2 | 82% | 3.2 | 13% |
| 10 | Menston West Yorkshire | A | 2.4 | 90% | 4.1 | 18% |
| 11 | Carnforth Lancashire | A− | 1.2 | 89% | 3 | 39% |
| 12 | Nailsworth Gloucestershire | A− | 1.3 | 86% | 5.9 | 88% |
| 13 | Barnard Castle County Durham | A− | 2.2 | 100% | 3.4 | 1% |
| 14 | Botley Hampshire | A− | 14.6 | 70% | 3.6 | 2% |
| 15 | East Horsley Surrey | A− | 3.5 | 55% | 4.5 | 33% |
| 16 | Blaenavon Gwent | A− | 1.8 | 100% | 2.3 | 39% |
| 17 | Henfield West Sussex | A− | 3.8 | 51% | 4.4 | 17% |
| 18 | Kingsbridge Devon | B+ | 1.5 | 91% | 1.6 | 67% |
| 19 | Marchwood Hampshire | B+ | 2 | 87% | 1.3 | 38% |
| 20 | Creswell Derbyshire | B+ | 2.7 | 100% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 21 | Moor Park Hertfordshire | B+ | 4.5 | 46% | 4.5 | 1% |
| 22 | Thrybergh and Dalton South Yorkshire | B+ | 2.6 | 95% | 4 | 0% |
| 23 | Willington County Durham | B+ | 4.7 | 95% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 24 | Garstang Lancashire | B | 2.4 | 89% | 2.3 | 15% |
| 25 | East Tilbury Essex | B | 2.3 | 92% | 2 | 0% |
| 26 | Shipston-on-Stour Warwickshire | B | 2.3 | 94% | 1.6 | 20% |
| 27 | Brixworth Northamptonshire | B | 3.8 | 94% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 28 | Hemsby Norfolk | B | 2.5 | 51% | 1.4 | 22% |
| 29 | Bidford-on-Avon Warwickshire | B | 3.4 | 100% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 30 | Cheddar Somerset | B− | 2.3 | 41% | 3 | 56% |
| 31 | Thirsk North Yorkshire | B− | 1.8 | 100% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 32 | Haddenham Buckinghamshire | B− | 3.1 | 86% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 33 | Hullbridge Essex | C+ | 5.7 | 59% | 3 | 0% |
| 34 | Aylesham Kent | C+ | 0.3 | 76% | 3.4 | 33% |
| 35 | Broseley Shropshire | C+ | 1.2 | 74% | 3.4 | 8% |
| 36 | Quorndon Leicestershire | C+ | 2.7 | 81% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 37 | Rainford Merseyside | C+ | 2.3 | 100% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 38 | Crawley Down West Sussex | C+ | 1.2 | 80% | 2.2 | 40% |
| 39 | Pontyclun Mid Glamorgan | C | 2.4 | 79% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 40 | Ruthin Clwyd | C | 2.7 | 51% | 1.5 | 31% |
| 41 | Egremont Cumbria | C | 1.1 | 63% | 1.8 | 11% |
| 42 | Wadebridge Cornwall | C | 1.8 | 74% | 1.8 | 17% |
| 43 | Bracebridge Heath Lincolnshire | C | 1.1 | 81% | 3.7 | 0% |
| 44 | Four Marks Hampshire | C | 0.9 | 46% | 3 | 31% |
| 45 | Durrington Wiltshire | C | 1.1 | 90% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 46 | Undy and Magor Gwent | C | 0.9 | 86% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 47 | Red Lodge Suffolk | C | 1.5 | 100% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 48 | Ramsey Cambridgeshire | C | 2.5 | 72% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 49 | Pembury Kent | C− | 1.1 | 45% | 2 | 58% |
| 50 | Abertridwr and Senghenydd Gwent | C− | 1.8 | 87% | 1 | 0% |
| 51 | Purfleet-on-Thames Essex | C− | 0.9 | 64% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 52 | Cuddington Cheshire | C− | 1.5 | 66% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 53 | Takeley and Little Canfield Essex | D | 1 | 45% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 54 | Withernsea East Riding of Yorkshire | D | 0.9 | 60% | 1.1 | 0% |
| 55 | Pontardawe West Glamorgan | D | 2.3 | 60% | 0.8 | 0% |
| 56 | Brigg Lincolnshire | D | 1.7 | 65% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 57 | Ruskington Lincolnshire | D | 1.3 | 70% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 58 | Bulkington Warwickshire | D | 0.9 | 76% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 59 | Sawtry Cambridgeshire | D | 1.3 | 40% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 60 | Kirton Lincolnshire | D− | 0.6 | 58% | 0.5 | 0% |
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Hullbridge’s built-up area.
The biggest is Marsh Farm Country Park, 176 ha (436 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; 13 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 439 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.
36 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Hullbridge and the kilometre around it, 3.0 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0).
No named walking route is mapped within 2 km of Hullbridge; its footpaths are on the map above.
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) | 8.3 | 9.9 | 11.7 | 13.8 | 15.6 | 16.6 | 16.2 | 14.6 | 12.6 | 10.5 | 8.7 | 7.8 |
| High (°C) | 8 | 8 | 11 | 14 | 17 | 20 | 23 | 23 | 20 | 15 | 11 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 51 | 41 | 35 | 40 | 44 | 47 | 48 | 49 | 43 | 65 | 60 | 57 |
March is the driest month (35 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 23 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 65 mm of rain falls in October, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 37 nights a year. The climate in Hullbridge →
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.
Hullbridge 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.
Plus 13 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Plus 2 slipways 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hullbridge | C+ | 5.7 | 59% | 0% |
| South Woodham Ferrers 1.5 mi | B+ | 7.8 | 93% | 0% |
| Rayleigh 2.3 mi | C | 2.0 | 71% | 0% |
| Hockley and Hawkwell 2.3 mi | C+ | 1.6 | 85% | 0% |
| Ashingdon 3.5 mi | C− | 1.3 | 61% | 0% |
| Wickford 3.9 mi | C | 2.4 | 59% | 0% |
| Runwell 4.0 mi | B+ | 5.1 | 92% | 0% |
South Woodham Ferrers, 1.5 miles away, grades B+, the best next door: 93% of its residents live within 400 m of a park. None of the neighbours has a protected landscape within 5 km either.
Marsh Farm Country Park, 176 ha (436 acres), with 19.3 km of path, just outside the built-up area. 1 named park, garden or playing field is in the town or within 400 m of it.
The nearest protected landscape is the Kent Downs National Landscape, 16 mi south-west of the town’s edge. It covers 879 km² and was designated in 1968.
Bell Wharf Beach, 5.0 mi from the edge of the town, then Three Shells Beach (6.5 mi). Hullbridge itself is inland.
59% 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.
About average for paths: 3.0 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 58% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 90% (5.7 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 Hullbridge’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.