Photo: Sally Lloyd · CC BY-SA 2.0Parks and walks in Markham
Parks and playing fields in Markham add up to 0.1 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. No park or playing field is mapped within a 5-minute walk of homes in Markham. 17 km of footpaths run through the village and the kilometre around it, 2.6 for every square kilometre. Markham grades D− for the outdoors. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Markham grades D− for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Markham, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
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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.
How Markham compares with UK villages of 1,400 to 1,500
The 60 UK towns and cities of 1,400 to 1,500 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Against villages its size, Markham stands out most for path per km²: only 25 of the other 59 have more. It falls furthest behind on homes near a park, where 58 of the others do better.
Show as a table
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Runton and Beeston Regis Norfolk | A+ | 25 | 100% | 4.8 | 34% |
| 2 | Trull Somerset | A+ | 5.9 | 100% | 3.9 | 20% |
| 3 | Sandridge Hertfordshire | A+ | 18.8 | 100% | 6.4 | 0% |
| 4 | Whiteshill and Randwick Gloucestershire | A | 4.5 | 60% | 7 | 64% |
| 5 | New Houghton Derbyshire | A | 33.8 | 100% | 3.9 | 0% |
| 6 | Penrhyndeudraeth Gwynedd | A | 2.5 | 100% | 1 | 68% |
| 7 | Balcombe West Sussex | A | 2.9 | 100% | 2.2 | 90% |
| 8 | Jump South Yorkshire | A | 5.1 | 100% | 4.2 | 0% |
| 9 | Sedbergh Cumbria | A | 1.9 | 83% | 5 | 92% |
| 10 | St Day Cornwall | A | 3.2 | 100% | 4.7 | 0% |
| 11 | Chaldon Surrey | A− | 7.4 | 50% | 4.9 | 24% |
| 12 | Heath and Reach Bedfordshire | A− | 3.3 | 100% | 4.1 | 0% |
| 13 | Five Oak Green Kent | A− | 3 | 100% | 2 | 30% |
| 14 | Llandovery Dyfed | A− | 13.3 | 100% | 1 | 22% |
| 15 | Hallow Worcestershire | A− | 3.7 | 100% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 16 | Wigginton North Yorkshire | A− | 4.1 | 100% | 2.9 | 0% |
| 17 | Grundisburgh Suffolk | B+ | 2.2 | 100% | 2.6 | 3% |
| 18 | Princetown Devon | B+ | 1.4 | 100% | 2.3 | 100% |
| 19 | Burnhope County Durham | B+ | 3.1 | 100% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 20 | Stanwell Moor Surrey | B+ | 2.4 | 100% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 21 | Brookwood Surrey | B+ | 8.5 | 59% | 6.2 | 0% |
| 22 | Emley West Yorkshire | B+ | 2.6 | 100% | 3 | 0% |
| 23 | Cowling North Yorkshire | B | 1.3 | 100% | 6 | 0% |
| 24 | Alconbury Cambridgeshire | B | 5.1 | 100% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 25 | Wedmore Somerset | B | 4.7 | 60% | 3.1 | 1% |
| 26 | Kelloe County Durham | B | 5.6 | 42% | 6 | 0% |
| 27 | Calvert Buckinghamshire | B | 3.3 | 100% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 28 | Abertysswg Gwent | B | 2.5 | 85% | 3.6 | 0% |
| 29 | Little Hallingbury Essex | B− | 1 | 100% | 4.2 | 0% |
| 30 | Brigstock Northamptonshire | B− | 8.2 | 84% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 31 | Bishop Sutton Somerset | B− | 2.3 | 64% | 2.5 | 36% |
| 32 | Orsett Essex | B− | 4.4 | 100% | 0.9 | 0% |
| 33 | Robertsbridge East Sussex | C+ | 2 | 38% | 2.7 | 100% |
| 34 | Ashton Keynes Wiltshire | C+ | 1.7 | 100% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 35 | Gosfield Essex | C+ | 3.7 | 85% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 36 | Pirton Hertfordshire | C+ | 2.4 | 57% | 2.3 | 24% |
| 37 | Sutton Valence Kent | C+ | 5.6 | 71% | 1 | 1% |
| 38 | Gelligaer Gwent | C+ | 2.3 | 100% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 39 | Shortlanesend Cornwall | C+ | 1 | 100% | 1.7 | 2% |
| 40 | Castor and Ailsworth Cambridgeshire | C | 3.4 | 41% | 3 | 0% |
| 41 | Ryhall Rutland | C | 1.9 | 100% | 1.2 | 0% |
| 42 | Ticehurst East Sussex | C | 1.4 | 75% | 0.8 | 100% |
| 43 | Salhouse Norfolk | C− | 1.9 | 71% | 1 | 17% |
| 44 | Patrington East Riding of Yorkshire | C− | 3.6 | 79% | 0.4 | 0% |
| 45 | Blofield Heath Norfolk | C− | 2.5 | 43% | 0.9 | 17% |
| 46 | Mid Lavant West Sussex | C− | 1.3 | 33% | 1.8 | 62% |
| 47 | Thorrington Essex | C− | 1.2 | 65% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 48 | Shipton Bellinger Hampshire | D | 1.5 | 79% | 1.8 | 0% |
| 49 | Ranskill Nottinghamshire | D | 0.4 | 100% | 0.5 | 0% |
| 50 | Keadby Lincolnshire | D | 1.7 | 84% | 0.6 | 0% |
| 51 | Flore Northamptonshire | D | 1.6 | 62% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 52 | Westonzoyland Somerset | D | 3.1 | 30% | 1.2 | 0% |
| 53 | Blakedown Worcestershire | D | 0.8 | 79% | 2 | 0% |
| 54 | Gosberton Lincolnshire | D | 1.1 | 86% | 0.1 | 0% |
| 55 | Byram North Yorkshire | D | 2.1 | 19% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 56 | Barford Warwickshire | D | 2.1 | 58% | 0.5 | 0% |
| 57 | Markham Gwent | D− | 0.1 | 0% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 58 | Guilden Sutton Cheshire | D− | 0.3 | 56% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 59 | Shadwell West Yorkshire | D− | 0.3 | 25% | 2 | 0% |
| 60 | Easton Norfolk | D− | 1 | 0% | 1.2 | 0% |
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Markham’s built-up area.
Few Markham residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park
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 1,400 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 8 playgrounds are mapped in and around the village, about one for every 180 residents.
The Brecon Beacons National Park is 6.3 mi away
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.
Brecon Beacons
Brecon Beacons National Park covers 1,350 km² and has been a National Park since 1955.
Footpaths in and around Markham
17 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Markham and the kilometre around it, 2.6 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0).
No named walking route is mapped within 2 km of Markham; 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 best walking months in Markham: May to September
The village’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) | 7 | 7 | 9 | 12 | 15 | 18 | 20 | 19 | 17 | 13 | 9 | 7 |
| Rain (mm) | 185 | 131 | 110 | 96 | 102 | 93 | 102 | 117 | 119 | 183 | 169 | 192 |
June is the driest month (93 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 20 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 192 mm of rain falls in December, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 49 nights a year. The climate in Markham →
8 playgrounds and the nearest beaches
Mapped within 2 km of the village in OpenStreetMap, against the typical UK village its size per resident. Named places are listed with directions; unnamed ones are only counted.
The nearest beaches
Markham is inland. These are the nearest named beaches, measured from the edge of the village.
Check the water before you swim. Natural Resources Wales tests designated bathing waters from May to September and publishes a rating for each beach.
Every named place, with directions
Viewpoints 1
Plus 1 viewpoint without a name on the map.
Hills and peaks 1
Nature reserves 1
Playgrounds 8
Plus 8 playgrounds without a name on the map.
The outdoors in nearby towns
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Markham | D− | 0.1 | 0% | 0% |
| Aberbargoed 1.1 mi | A | 22.8 | 95% | 0% |
| Bargod 1.7 mi | A | 13.6 | 100% | 0% |
| New Tredegar 1.8 mi | D− | 1.4 | 68% | 0% |
| Oakdale 2.3 mi | C+ | 5.2 | 79% | 0% |
| Blackwood 2.5 mi | A− | 3.6 | 97% | 0% |
| Trinant 2.6 mi | C+ | 2.5 | 100% | 0% |
Bargod, 1.7 miles away, grades A, the best next door: every resident lives within 400 m of a park. Aberbargoed, Bargod and New Tredegar have at least twice Markham’s green space per resident. None of the neighbours has a protected landscape within 5 km either.
Questions about the outdoors in Markham
Is Markham near a National Park?
Yes. Brecon Beacons National Park begins 6.3 mi north of the village’s edge. It covers 1,350 km² and has been a National Park since 1955.
What is the nearest beach to Markham?
The Bendricks, 21 mi from the edge of the village, then Pebble Beach (22 mi). Markham itself is inland.
How many people in Markham live near a park?
0% 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%.
When is the best time of year for walking in Markham?
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Markham good for walking?
About average for paths: 2.6 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 47% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 1% (0.1 ha per 1,000 residents).
How is the Outdoors Grade worked out?
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 Markham’s overall grade.
Where Markham’s outdoors figures come from
- Parks and green space: Ordnance Survey OS Open Greenspace (parks and gardens, playing fields, play spaces, and their access points). Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- National Parks and National Landscapes: Natural England and Natural Resources Wales boundaries, areas and designation dates, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Footpaths, walking routes, beaches and things to do: © OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database License (ODbL), via Geofabrik, 16 October 2026.
- Historic parks, listed buildings and monuments: Historic England, National Heritage List for England, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Rain and temperature: Met Office HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages for the town; daylight calculated from its latitude.
- The sea: ONS Countries (December 2024) boundaries clipped to mean high water. Residents near a park: ONS Census 2021 output areas.
- Grade: TownRatings’ Outdoors Grade, ranked against UK towns only.
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.