Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Population 442: a village in Gloucestershire, South West.
Horsley has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures on this page are still real. Pre-1919 homes make up 55% of the housing. Homes sell for a median £714,500. A degree-level qualification is held by 58% of adults.
The 3 things Horsley does most differently from other towns.
Historic England lists them inside Horsley’s built-up area.
55% 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 Horsley.
The 15-to-24 age group: 9.7%, lower than both Gloucestershire’s towns (11%) and England’s towns (12%). Half of Horsley is older than 47.4, half younger. Those 65 and older account for 18% of residents.
51% women, 49% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Horsley | Gloucestershire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 19% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 9.7% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 17% | 26% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 36% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 18% | 20% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 8.8% | 15% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 2.6% | 5.8% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 18% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 58% | 34% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Gloucestershire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
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.
The census counted 48% of workers working mainly from home; what’s more, the car took 81% of commuters, above both Gloucestershire’s towns (78%) and England’s towns (70%). 1.4% of people aged 16 to 64 were on unemployment benefits in 2026. Work in town: 3% of resident commuters.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
9% rent privately, below Gloucestershire’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (21%) alike. Social renters account for 2% of households. Also worth knowing: from September 2023 to August 2026, 10 homes sold inside Horsley’s built-up area at standard prices; the middle one went for £714,500.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £1,025,000 | 6 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Violence and sexual offences accounted for 67% of recorded crime. The violent crime rate is 12.2 per 1,000 residents a year. A year of reports to August 2026 adds up to 6 offences in Horsley and 2 cases of nuisance behaviour.
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.
There is no GP practice in Horsley: the nearest is 0.9 miles off. At the census, nearly a tenth of people here had a disability, lower than both Gloucestershire’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (17%). The nearest A&E to Horsley is Gloucestershire Royal Hospital, 12.8 miles away.
| Census 2021 | Horsley | Gloucestershire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 91% | 83% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 1.4% | 4.5% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 9.5% | 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.
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Horsley counts 27 listed buildings on the national list (Historic England): 3 Grade II*.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Horsley. Best known first.
Historic houseGatcombe Park3.8 km outside town, to the east
Historic houseOwlpen Manor3.1 km outside town, to the west
Historic houseChavenage House4 km outside town, to the southeast
Historic houseWoodchester Mansion3.8 km outside town, to the northwest
Museum · English HeritageDunkirk Mill Museum2 km outside town, to the northCastleCastleBeverston Castle4.4 km outside town, to the southeastPhotos: 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Horsley | 442 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Nailsworth | 5,657 | 1.1 | B+ | B− | C | B |
| Amberley | 1,300 | 2.3 | — | C | A+ | A |
| Minchinhampton | 3,412 | 2.5 | A− | C | B+ | A |
| Avening | 1,054 | 2.7 | — | C− | A | A |
| Brimscombe and Thrupp | 2,187 | 3.3 | — | B− | B− | A |
| Leonard Stanley and King's Stanley | 3,584 | 3.9 | A | B− | A | A− |
| Tetbury | 6,454 | 4.1 | B− | C− | B− | A− |
Amberley, Avening and Brimscombe and Thrupp have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Private rents in the Stroud council area averaged £1,041 a month in August 2026.
That is 25.1 times the typical UK town for its size.
Village in Gloucestershire, England
Horsley is a built-up area of 442 people, in the Stroud 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.