Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A large town of 81,115 in Greater Manchester, North West.
Bury’s strongest is walkability — 20% of commuters get to work on foot, by bike or by public transport. Buying the median home, at £222,500, takes 4.6 years of household income in the Bury council area. Residents’ health trails most towns: life expectancy 76.8 for men, 80.9 for women. Incomes are on the low side: households earn a mean £45,767 a year, and 5.2% of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits.
Figures: commuting, Census 2021 · life expectancy and incomes, ONS · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · claimants, DWP. Greater Manchester Police doesn’t publish street-level crime to police.uk, so Bury has no Safety Grade and, without it, no overall grade. Every other subject still has a grade below.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Bury is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
Greater Manchester Police doesn’t publish street-level crime to police.uk, so Bury has no Safety Grade and, without it, no overall grade. Every other subject still has a grade below.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The 3 things Bury does most differently from other towns.
Historic England lists 85 buildings inside Bury’s built-up area, 1 of them Grade I, and 1 scheduled monument.
26% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →85 listed buildings in Bury, 1 of them Grade I.
Bury War Memorial: Photo: Peter Broster · CC BY 4.0 · Christ Church: Photo: Alexander P Kapp · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Clock Tower, Whitehead or Tower Gardens: Photo: Peter Broster · CC BY 4.0 · Athenaeum Club: Photo: Peter Broster · CC BY 4.0
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Bury.
12 GP practices serve the town; 70% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey. 81% of Bury’s residents described their health as good or very good at the census, close to Greater Manchester’s towns (81%) and below England’s towns (82%). The nearest A&E to Bury is Fairfield General Hospital, 2.1 miles away.
| Census 2021 | Bury | Greater Manchester | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 81% | 81% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 5.7% | 5.9% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 18% | 18% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Self-reported health favours young towns, since these answers ignore age; the Health Grade leans on age-adjusted measures such as life expectancy and early deaths.
GCSE results at the town’s 7 secondary schools: 36% of pupils get a strong pass (grade 5+) in English and maths, and the Attainment 8 average is 43. Chantlers Primary School’s results beat nearly every one of schools in England like it. Key Stage 2 results at the town’s 26 primary schools: 63% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| East Ward Community Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 474 | B− |
| St Gabriel's RC High School, a Voluntary AcademyLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 1,027 | D |
| Chantlers Primary SchoolTop results in townPrimary | Primary | 305 | A+ |
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 27% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Of the commuters living in Bury, 37% work in the town itself. There are 1.2 jobs in Bury for each resident in work. Short trips to work, under 5 km: 49%, close to Greater Manchester’s towns (47%) and above England’s towns (45%).
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
15% of households live in social housing. Private renters make up 18% of households, lower than both Greater Manchester’s towns (21%) and England’s towns (21%). 2,818 standard sales inside Bury’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 put the median at £222,500.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £360,000 | 568 |
| Semi-detached | £247,000 | 1,044 |
| Terraced | £172,500 | 989 |
| Flat or maisonette | £125,000 | 217 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Homes from before 1919 make up just over a quarter of the total, above both Greater Manchester’s towns (20%) and England’s towns (16%). Bury’s listed buildings include the Parish Church of Saint Mary, Grade I. The national list protects one ancient monument locally.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Just over one in ten residents are aged 15 to 24. The middle age in Bury is 40.5. One measure of family life: 19% of residents are under 15.
51% women, 49% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Bury | Greater Manchester | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 19% | 19% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 11% | 13% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 26% | 28% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 26% | 24% | 25% |
| 65+ | 18% | 16% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 20% | 20% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 5.8% | 5.6% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 17% | 17% | 17% |
| Degree level | 29% | 32% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Greater Manchester and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Bury. Best known first.
Art galleryBury Art Museum & Sculpture Centrein town
MuseumBury Transport Museumin town
MuseumThe Fusilier Museumin town
Historic houseHeaton Park2.5 km outside town, to the southeast
MuseumTurton Tower3.4 km outside town, to the northwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
195 notable people were born in Bury.
Gary Neville: University of Salford Press Office, CC BY 2.0 · Kieran Trippier: Кирилл Венедиктов, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Phil Neville: The Bohs, CC BY 2.0 · Rico Lewis: Hameltion, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Simon Yates: Connor Mah, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Cherie Blair: Allan warren, CC BY-SA 3.0
Large town in Greater Manchester, England
Bury is a built-up area of 81,115 people, in the Bury 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bury | 81,115 | — | — | C | — | C− |
| Ainsworth | 1,595 | 2.1 | — | C+ | — | C+ |
| Radcliffe | 31,114 | 2.3 | — | C+ | — | D |
| Ramsbottom | 17,074 | 3.1 | — | D | — | B |
| Whitefield | 22,193 | 3.2 | — | C− | — | C− |
| Heywood | 29,724 | 3.3 | — | C− | — | D |
| Little Lever | 12,524 | 3.3 | — | D | — | C− |
| Simister | 1,054 | 3.7 | — | D | — | C |
Ainsworth and Simister have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Ainsworth, Radcliffe, Ramsbottom, Whitefield, Heywood, Little Lever and Simister have no Safety Grade: Greater Manchester Police doesn’t publish to police.uk. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Its Grade I building is Parish Church of Saint Mary. It also has 1 scheduled monument.
We can’t say from police.uk: Greater Manchester Police doesn’t publish street-level crime data there, so Bury has no Safety Grade. Greater Manchester Police’s own figures cover whole boroughs, not towns.
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.