Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Population 6,957: a town in Hampshire, South East.
Bishop's Waltham’s overall A− puts it #33 of 76 in Hampshire. Nationally, it does better than 83% of UK towns. Health is a strength: men here can expect to live to 82.4, women to 87. Buying a home costs less than in most towns (B+): homes sell for a median £362,500, about 5.1 times local household income. The rest of its grades are middling: B− for safety, B for jobs & income, C+ for walkability and B− for hazard risk.
Figures: life expectancy and income, ONS · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · claimants, DWP · commuting, Census 2021 · flood risk, Environment Agency.
The 3 things Bishop's Waltham does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Bishop's Waltham is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 110 buildings inside Bishop's Waltham’s built-up area, 3 of them Grade II*, and 1 scheduled monument.
15% 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 Bishop's Waltham.
Young adults of 15 to 24 are nearly one in ten residents, lower than both Hampshire’s towns (12%) and England’s towns (12%). The middle age in Bishop's Waltham is 48.7. Among adults, 40% have a degree.
53% women, 47% men
About 90 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
| Bishop's Waltham | Hampshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 15% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 8.6% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 22% | 26% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 27% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 28% | 20% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 14% | 16% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 5.1% | 5.7% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 16% | 19% | 17% |
| Degree level | 40% | 33% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Hampshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Bishop's Waltham’s two primaries have 486 pupils between them. One of its 2 schools is below, with the reason it’s listed. Secondary results at the one secondary school within 3 km: an Attainment 8 score of 51.6, with 49% at grade 5 or above in English and maths.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bishop's Waltham Junior SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 287 | B |
One GP practice serves the town; 75% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey. The nearest A&E to Bishop's Waltham is Royal Hampshire County Hospital, 8.9 miles away. At the census, 4.1% of residents said their health was bad or very bad, lower than both Hampshire’s towns (4.3%) and England’s towns (5.2%).
| Census 2021 | Bishop's Waltham | Hampshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 84% | 83% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 4.1% | 4.3% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 17% | 17% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · These answers aren’t adjusted for age, so young towns look healthier; the Health Grade uses age-adjusted measures, including 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.
Grade II* covers 3 of them. Bishop's Waltham has 110 listed buildings on Historic England’s list: 3 Grade II*. Of the town’s land, 12% lies in conservation areas, above both Hampshire’s towns (4%) and England’s towns (7%).
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Private renters make up 14% of households, below both Hampshire’s towns (18%) and England’s towns (21%). Half of the 334 standard sales inside Bishop's Waltham’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 went for more than £362,500. It is the 52nd most expensive of 77 towns of 2,500+ in Hampshire.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £597,450 | 102 |
| Semi-detached | £365,000 | 85 |
| Terraced | £305,000 | 96 |
| Flat or maisonette | £185,000 | 51 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 38% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
12% of commuters went to work on foot, by bike or by public transport at the census. Households had £63K a year before tax, below Hampshire’s towns (£67K) but above England’s towns (£55K). Working from home was the norm for 38% of workers at the census. Work in town: 15% of resident commuters.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
The 12 months to August 2026 brought 349 recorded crimes inside Bishop's Waltham’s built-up area, and 63 reports of anti-social behaviour. Violence came to 25.2 per 1,000 residents a year, above both Hampshire’s towns (20.7) and England’s towns (22). Burglary and damage come to 8.3 per 1,000 residents a year.
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
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Bishop's Waltham. Best known first.
Historic house · English HeritageBishop's Waltham Palacein town
ZooMarwell Zoo4.7 km outside town, to the northwest
Historic houseNew Place, Shirrell Heath3.5 km outside town, to the southMuseumMuseumBishop's Waltham Museumin townHistoric houseHistoric houseHill Place1.9 km outside town, to the eastAttractionAttractionWickham Vineyard3.7 km outside town, to the southPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
110 listed buildings in Bishop's Waltham.
Bishop's Waltham Palace and associated fishponds: Photo: Michael Coppins · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Bank and Offices: Photo: Unknown photographer · CC BY 2.0 · The Crown Hotel: Photo: Peter Facey · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Vernon Hill House: Photo: Peter Facey · CC BY-SA 2.0
3 notable people were born in Bishop's Waltham.
Mary of Waltham: Thomas Hollis and George Hollis, Public domain
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bishop's Waltham | 6,957 | — | A− | B+ | B− | A |
| Waltham Chase | 2,830 | 1.5 | A | B | A− | A |
| Swanmore | 3,113 | 1.8 | A | C+ | B+ | A+ |
| Botley | 5,900 | 3.4 | B | B− | C− | B+ |
| Horton Heath | 3,047 | 3.7 | A+ | B | A | A |
| Wickham | 2,170 | 4 | — | A− | C− | B+ |
| Hedge End | 23,195 | 4.7 | A | B+ | B | B+ |
| Knowle | 1,487 | 5.1 | — | A | D | B+ |
Wickham and Knowle have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 6.5 times the typical UK town for its size. It also has 1 scheduled monument.
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £362,500, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £185,000, terraced houses £305,000, semi-detached houses £365,000 and detached houses £597,450. Household incomes are higher than in 76% of UK towns, so cost of living still grades B+.
Town in Hampshire, England
Bishop's Waltham is a built-up area of 6,957 people, in the Winchester 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.