Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
This town in Hampshire, South East has a population of 11,872. 45% of households own their home with no mortgage.
New Milton’s lowest grade is for safety — police record 37.9 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, and 15.6 home and vehicle crimes. Only 31% of UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people have more crime per resident. Its overall grade, C, puts it better than 31% of UK towns. The ranking puts it #68 of 76 in Hampshire. It lags on jobs & income as well (C) — the mean household earns £46,577 a year. Homes sell for a median £310,000, about 5.5 years of what households in the New Forest council area earn. Walking, cycling and public transport work well here: 21% of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport. Elsewhere it is close to typical: B− for schools, C+ for health and B− for hazard risk.
Figures: commuting, Census 2021 · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · income and life expectancy, ONS · claimants, DWP · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · flood risk, Environment Agency.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far New Milton is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The 2 things New Milton does most differently from other towns.
Historic England lists 9 buildings inside New Milton’s built-up area.
3% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →9 listed buildings in New Milton.
Ashley Arnewood: Photo: Singinglemon · CC0 · Water Tower: Photo: Chris Downer · CC BY-SA 2.0
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in New Milton.
Just over a quarter of adults hold a degree. Young adults of 15 to 24 are nearly one in ten residents, below both Hampshire’s towns (12%) and England’s towns (12%). Children are 13% of the town. New Milton has a median age of 52.1 years.
53% women, 47% men
About 89 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.
| New Milton | Hampshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 13% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 8.3% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 20% | 26% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 26% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 32% | 20% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 20% | 16% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 6.9% | 5.7% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 17% | 19% | 17% |
| Degree level | 26% | 33% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Hampshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Between them, two primaries and one secondary teach 1,326 pupils in New Milton. Two of its 4 schools are below, each with the reason it’s listed. At the 5 primary schools within 3 km, 64% of pupils reach the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Milton Junior SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 320 | B+ |
| The Arnewood SchoolLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 839 | C− |
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
3% of its homes were built before 1919, below Hampshire’s towns (11%) and England’s towns (16%) alike. New Milton has 8 listed buildings for every 10,000 residents.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
The 12 months to August 2026 brought 981 recorded crimes inside New Milton’s built-up area, and 96 reports of anti-social behaviour. Violence and sexual offences made up 43% of the total. Among the 645 UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people, New Milton has more crime per resident than 69% of them.
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.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 22% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
The car took just over three quarters of commuters, near Hampshire’s towns (75%) and higher than England’s towns (70%). Of the commuters living in New Milton, 29% work in the town itself. Jobs per working resident: 1.1.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Owners make up two thirds of households, higher than both Hampshire’s towns (64%) and England’s towns (61%). Social housing holds 14% of households. Private rents average £1,244 a month across the New Forest council area.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £492,500 | 193 |
| Semi-detached | £330,000 | 97 |
| Terraced | £290,000 | 131 |
| Flat or maisonette | £200,000 | 191 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
At the census, 6.3% of residents said their health was bad or very bad, higher than both Hampshire’s towns (4.3%) and England’s towns (5.2%). The nearest A&E to New Milton is The Royal Bournemouth Hospital, 7 miles away. One GP practice serves the town; 87% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey.
| Census 2021 | New Milton | Hampshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 77% | 83% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 6.3% | 4.3% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 23% | 17% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Because the census answers ignore age, a younger population lifts them; that is why the Health Grade is built on age-adjusted measures like life expectancy and early deaths.
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near New Milton. Best known first.
CastleHighcliffe Castle2.7 km outside town, to the southwest
Historic houseHinton Admiral2.3 km outside town, to the west
MuseumSammy Miller Museum400 m outside town, to the northwestAttractionAttractionThe Kingdom Of Waywood4.6 km outside town, to the northwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Town in Hampshire, England
New Milton is a built-up area of 11,872 people, in the New Forest 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Milton | 11,872 | — | C | C | C− | C+ |
| Barton on Sea | 6,763 | 0.9 | B+ | D | A | A− |
| Ashley | 7,730 | 1.1 | C+ | C− | B | B |
| Hordle | 1,158 | 2.1 | — | D | A | A |
| Everton | 1,615 | 3.2 | — | D | A+ | A+ |
| Sway | 2,437 | 3.3 | — | D | B | A |
| Milford on Sea | 4,364 | 3.4 | A | D | A− | A+ |
| Bransgore | 3,688 | 3.9 | B | D | A | A |
Hordle, Everton and Sway have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £310,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £200,000, terraced houses £290,000, semi-detached houses £330,000 and detached houses £492,500.
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.
