Compton’s biggest
Shawford Down
Park or garden
19 ha (48 acres)7.0 km of path
1 h 35 minto walk all 7 km of path
27 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
Centralin the middle of Compton
Nature reserve
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Photo: Jim Champion · CC BY-SA 2.0A−Outdoors Grade
Outdoors in Compton · parks, paths & countryside
Compton has more park space per resident than 9 in 10 UK towns
Parks and playing fields in Compton add up to 18.8 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. The South Downs National Park reaches the edge of Compton. Footpaths add up to 37 km in the village and the kilometre around it, 3.6 for every square kilometre. Compton grades A− for the outdoors. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Green space
18.8 ha
per 1,000 residents
Typical UK town 2.1
Near a park
61%
of residents within 400 m
Typical UK town 83%
Footpaths
37 km
3.6 km per km², town + 1 km
Typical UK town 3.0 per km²
Protected landscape
28%
of the land within 5 km
Nearest: South Downs National Park
Character
What kind of outdoors village is Compton?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Room to roam18.8 ha of parks and playing fields per 1,000 residents, more than 98% of UK towns.Protected countryside28% of the land within 5 km is South Downs National Park.Parks can be a walk away39% of residents live more than 400 m from a park or playing field.
Compton’s strongest suit is plenty of park space, followed by protected countryside on the doorstep. Where it falls short is how far some homes are from a park.
Outdoors grade
Compton grades A− for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Compton, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
A−
Better than 83% of UK towns13th of 60 UK villages its size
Public green space18.8 haper 1,000 residents: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces
99out of
100
100
A park within a walk61%of residents within 400 m (a 5-minute walk)
21out of
100
100
National Park or National Landscape28%of the land within 5 km
82out of
100
100
Footpaths3.6 kmper km², the town and 1 km around it
73out of
100
100
The sea0%of the area within 5 km · Inland
42out of
100
100
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.
Villages its size
Compton is 13th of 60 UK villages its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 1,200 to 1,400 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Outdoors score: the share of UK towns each one beats
Footpath, km per km²
Compton3.6
Villages its size2.2
Hampshire towns3.3
All UK towns3.0
Green space, ha per 1,000 residents
Compton18.8
Villages its size2.4
Hampshire towns2.8
All UK towns2.1
Residents within 400 m of a park
Compton61%
Villages its size75%
Hampshire towns80%
All UK towns83%
Against villages its size, Compton stands out most for park space per resident: only 4 of the other 59 have more. It falls furthest behind on homes near a park, where 39 of the others do better.
Show as a table
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hightown Hampshire | A+ | 15.7 | 100% | 3.5 | 58% |
| 2 | Rough Common Kent | A+ | 11 | 100% | 9.2 | 1% |
| 3 | Worrall South Yorkshire | A+ | 3.7 | 100% | 5.4 | 21% |
| 4 | Box Wiltshire | A+ | 3.8 | 100% | 3.9 | 56% |
| 5 | Holybourne Hampshire | A+ | 12.2 | 100% | 2.7 | 23% |
| 6 | Wolvercote Oxfordshire | A | 32 | 100% | 5.5 | 0% |
| 7 | Crowmarsh Gifford Oxfordshire | A | 8 | 77% | 3.6 | 60% |
| 8 | Pwll Dyfed | A | 21.6 | 64% | 2.6 | 19% |
| 9 | Hurley Berkshire | A | 3.1 | 100% | 2.6 | 36% |
| 10 | Amberley Gloucestershire | A | 13.7 | 0% | 6.3 | 87% |
| 11 | Bere Regis Dorset | A | 39.2 | 100% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 12 | Burbage Wiltshire | A | 2.7 | 100% | 1.9 | 100% |
| 13 | Compton Hampshire | A− | 18.8 | 61% | 3.6 | 28% |
| 14 | Bradley Clwyd | A− | 29.9 | 100% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 15 | Blean Kent | A− | 5.9 | 80% | 6.5 | 0% |
| 16 | Sherford Devon | A− | 3.2 | 100% | 1.5 | 28% |
| 17 | Exton Devon | A− | 2.2 | 100% | 0.6 | 7% |
| 18 | Riseley Bedfordshire | B+ | 2.4 | 100% | 3.9 | 0% |
| 19 | Baddesley Ensor Warwickshire | B+ | 18.3 | 100% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 20 | Marshfield Gloucestershire | B+ | 4.9 | 42% | 2.7 | 99% |
| 21 | Welland Worcestershire | B+ | 1.7 | 100% | 1.9 | 38% |
| 22 | Lidlington Bedfordshire | B | 1.9 | 100% | 3.3 | 0% |
| 23 | Weir Lancashire | B | 0.6 | 100% | 6 | 0% |
| 24 | Codmore Hill West Sussex | B− | 3.5 | 0% | 2.7 | 46% |
| 25 | Lingdale North Yorkshire | B− | 1.4 | 100% | 1.7 | 31% |
| 26 | Blindley Heath Surrey | B− | 3.2 | 79% | 2.2 | 1% |
| 27 | Blakeney Gloucestershire | B− | 2.1 | 68% | 3.1 | 0% |
| 28 | Fowlmere Cambridgeshire | B− | 4.5 | 100% | 1.1 | 0% |
| 29 | Burham Kent | C+ | 1.4 | 77% | 2.8 | 35% |
| 30 | Pensarn Clwyd | C+ | 13.1 | 45% | 1.1 | 0% |
| 31 | Belford Northumberland | C+ | 1.2 | 83% | 0.9 | 21% |
| 32 | Perranarworthal Cornwall | C+ | 2.5 | 76% | 1.6 | 19% |
| 33 | Claverdon Warwickshire | C+ | 1.2 | 100% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 34 | North Duffield North Yorkshire | C | 2.6 | 100% | 0.4 | 0% |
| 35 | Biddulph Moor Staffordshire | C | 8.4 | 43% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 36 | Quainton Buckinghamshire | C | 3.8 | 69% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 37 | Haughley Suffolk | C | 3 | 71% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 38 | Kislingbury Northamptonshire | C | 8.4 | 26% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 39 | Nefyn Gwynedd | C | 0 | 0% | 2 | 24% |
| 40 | Ninfield East Sussex | C− | 1.8 | 50% | 1.4 | 50% |
| 41 | Atworth Wiltshire | C− | 1.5 | 62% | 2.2 | 13% |
| 42 | Spratton Northamptonshire | C− | 2.3 | 85% | 0.4 | 0% |
| 43 | Langthorpe North Yorkshire | C− | 0.3 | 100% | 1.6 | 0% |
| 44 | Wingham Kent | C− | 2.2 | 53% | 1.3 | 0% |
| 45 | Llandysul Dyfed | C− | 5.2 | 47% | 1 | 0% |
| 46 | Wooden Dyfed | D | 0.1 | 0% | 0.4 | 18% |
| 47 | Bampton Devon | D | 1.5 | 22% | 1.6 | 5% |
| 48 | Pagham West Sussex | D | 0.3 | 0% | 2 | 0% |
| 49 | Heddon-on-the-Wall Northumberland | D | 0.6 | 70% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 50 | Colsterworth Lincolnshire | D | 1.3 | 67% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 51 | Hockwold cum Wilton Norfolk | D | 1.6 | 75% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 52 | Garsington Oxfordshire | D | 0.4 | 65% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 53 | Appleby Magna Leicestershire | D | 1.7 | 46% | 2 | 0% |
| 54 | Saham Toney Norfolk | D | 3 | 18% | 0.7 | 0% |
| 55 | Byfield Northamptonshire | D | 1.9 | 48% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 56 | Croeserw West Glamorgan | D | 1.3 | 33% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 57 | Hauxton Cambridgeshire | D− | 1.3 | 55% | 1.8 | 0% |
| 58 | Deeping St Nicholas Lincolnshire | D− | 0.7 | 80% | 0 | 0% |
| 59 | Hunger Hill Greater Manchester | D− | 0 | 0% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 60 | Witheridge Devon | D− | 0.5 | 36% | 1 | 0% |
The map
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Compton’s built-up area.
Green space: parks, gardens, playing fields and play spaces, named or not.© OpenStreetMap contributors · Contains OS data © Crown copyright · Natural England / NRW
Places to walk
Parks to walk in, in and around Compton
The biggest is Shawford Down, 19 ha (48 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
Close to home
6 in 10 Compton 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).
Within 400 m (61%)Further (39%)
Compton61%
Villages its size75%
Hampshire towns80%
All UK towns83%
About 500 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 14 playgrounds are mapped in and around the village, about one for every 93 residents.
National Parks & National Landscapes
National Parks and National Landscapes around Compton
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.
National ParkNational LandscapeThe 5 km the grade counts
28% of the land within 5 km of Compton is National Park or National Landscape, more than 82% of UK towns. South Downs National Park covers 1,653 km² and has been a National Park since 2010.
Footpaths & waymarked walks
7 waymarked walks pass through or near Compton
37 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Compton and the kilometre around it, 3.6 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the village.
RegionalLocalOther waymarked
Keble Way9.0 km
Monarch's Way6.5 km
St James' Way6.0 km
Itchen Way5.8 km
Otter Trail4.0 km
Kingfisher Trail3.2 km
Clarendon Way1.2 km
4 regional routes pass through, including the Monarch's Way, St James' Way, Itchen Way and Clarendon Way.
Waymarked walks are OpenStreetMap walking routes. Public rights of way are only as complete as the map in each area.
When to get out
The best walking months in Compton: 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) | 8.4 | 9.9 | 11.7 | 13.8 | 15.5 | 16.5 | 16.1 | 14.5 | 12.5 | 10.6 | 8.8 | 7.9 |
| High (°C) | 9 | 9 | 11 | 15 | 18 | 20 | 22 | 22 | 19 | 15 | 11 | 9 |
| Rain (mm) | 96 | 68 | 60 | 59 | 52 | 57 | 56 | 65 | 64 | 99 | 107 | 97 |
May is the driest month (52 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 22 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 107 mm of rain falls in November, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 49 nights a year. The climate in Compton →
Things to do
3 viewpoints, 14 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.
3Viewpoints4Hills and peaks4Nature reserves1Picnic sites14Playgrounds2.5× villages its size1Campsites
The nearest beaches
Compton is inland. These are the nearest named beaches, measured from the edge of the village.
Calshot Beach14 mi from Compton’s edge
DirectionsHill Head Beach14 mi from Compton’s edge
DirectionsThe Spit16 mi from Compton’s edge
DirectionsFamily Beach16 mi from Compton’s edge
DirectionsBrockenhurst Beach16 mi from Compton’s edge
DirectionsGood to know
Check the water before you swim. The Environment Agency tests designated bathing waters from May to September and publishes a rating for each beach.
Up high. Yew Hill, at 134 m, is the highest named top within 2 km of Compton.
Every named place, with directions
Viewpoints 3
Plus 3 viewpoints without a name on the map.
Hills and peaks 4
Yew Hill134 m (440 ft) · 0.6 mi from town
DirectionsOtterbourne Hill91 m (299 ft) · 1.0 mi from town
DirectionsPlus 2 hills and peaks without a name on the map.
Nature reserves 4
Shawford Down20 ha · 0.1 mi from town
DirectionsShawford Knoll1.8 ha · 0.3 mi from town
DirectionsYew Hill Nature Reserve5.7 ha · 0.7 mi from town
DirectionsHockley Meadows Nature Reserve8.6 ha · 0.8 mi from town
DirectionsPicnic sites 1
Plus 1 picnic site without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 14
Ballard Close Playground0.5 mi from town
DirectionsCentral Park Play Area1.1 mi from town
DirectionsTriangle Play Area1.2 mi from town
DirectionsPlus 11 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Campsites 1
Plus 1 campsite without a name on the map.
Next door
The outdoors in nearby towns
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 12 miles. Tap a town for its outdoors page.
OtterbourneTwyfordColden CommonChandler's FordEastleighWinchesterCompton
ABCDOutdoors Grade
| Town | Outdoors | Green space, ha per 1,000 | Near a park | Protected within 5 km |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Compton | A− | 18.8 | 61% | 28% |
| Otterbourne 0.5 mi | A | 2.9 | 100% | 25% |
| Twyford 1.2 mi | A− | 6.8 | 49% | 44% |
| Colden Common 1.7 mi | B+ | 2.7 | 82% | 35% |
| Chandler's Ford 2.9 mi | A− | 2.7 | 80% | 6% |
| Eastleigh 3.1 mi | A− | 3.0 | 76% | 17% |
| Winchester 3.4 mi | B | 1.2 | 79% | 35% |
Otterbourne, 0.5 miles away, grades A, the best next door: every resident lives within 400 m of a park.
Questions about the outdoors in Compton
What is the biggest park in Compton?
Shawford Down, 19 ha (48 acres), with 7 km of path. 1 named park, garden or playing field is in the village or within 400 m of it.
Is Compton near a National Park?
South Downs National Park reaches the edge of Compton. It covers 1,653 km² and has been a National Park since 2010.
What are the best walks near Compton?
7 waymarked walking routes pass within 2 km of the village, including the Keble Way, Monarch's Way and St James' Way. Shawford Down alone has 7 km of path.
What is the nearest beach to Compton?
Calshot Beach, 14 mi from the edge of the village, then Hill Head Beach (14 mi). Compton itself is inland.
How many people in Compton live near a park?
61% 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 Compton?
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Compton good for walking?
For paths, yes: 3.6 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 73% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 99% (18.8 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 Compton’s overall grade.
Sources
Where Compton’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.