Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Some 2,969 people live in this town, in Hampshire, South East.
Rowlands Castle’s grades pull in different directions. Health is its strong suit: men here can expect to live to 83.1, women to 84.9. At B− overall, Rowlands Castle ranks #53 of 76 in Hampshire. It comes out better than 55% of UK towns. Add jobs & income to its strengths (A): mean household income £68,826; 1.8% of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits. School results trail most towns: primary results beat nearly a quarter of towns in England; secondary results beat 1% of towns in England. A median £545,000 buys a home here, 8.1 times what households in the East Hampshire council area earn in a year. Walkability is weaker too — 10% of commuters get to work on foot, by bike or by public transport.
Figures: life expectancy and income, ONS · claimants, DWP · commuting, Census 2021 · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years.
The 3 things Rowlands Castle 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 Rowlands Castle is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 9 buildings inside Rowlands Castle’s built-up area, and 1 scheduled monument.
17% 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 Rowlands Castle.
At the 12 primary schools within 3 km, 56% of pupils reach the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). Its only school is listed below. Secondary results at the 3 secondary schools within 3 km: an Attainment 8 score of 32.1, with 17% at grade 5 or above in English and maths.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rowlands Castle St John's Church of England Controlled Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 204 | B+ |
At the census, 15% of people here had a disability, below both Hampshire’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (17%). Self-reported good health: 85% of Rowlands Castle’s residents. Men in Rowlands Castle can expect to live to 83.1, women to 84.9 (2019–23). The nearest A&E to Rowlands Castle is Queen Alexandra Hospital, 5.4 miles away.
| Census 2021 | Rowlands Castle | Hampshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 85% | 83% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 3.4% | 4.3% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 15% | 17% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Read these answers with age in mind: they aren’t adjusted, so younger places do better. The Health Grade uses age-adjusted measures, life expectancy and early deaths among them.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 44% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
The census counted 44% of workers working mainly from home. The car took 87% of commuters, higher than both Hampshire’s towns (75%) and England’s towns (70%). There are 0.6 jobs in Rowlands Castle for each resident in work.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Violence and sexual offences accounted for 44% of recorded crime. Reported offences in Rowlands Castle came to 160 over twelve months to August 2026; nuisance and anti-social incidents added 14. Each year, 24.4 violent crimes are recorded per 1,000 residents.
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 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 17% of the total. The national list protects one ancient monument in Rowlands Castle. One registered park or garden lies in the town.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Private renters make up 10% of households, lower than both Hampshire’s towns (18%) and England’s towns (21%). The social rented sector houses 11% of households. 119 standard sales inside Rowlands Castle’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 put the median at £545,000.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £705,000 | 61 |
| Semi-detached | £449,000 | 27 |
| Terraced | £357,500 | 26 |
| Flat or maisonette | £150,000 | 5 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
28% of residents are 65 or over, above Hampshire’s towns (20%) and England’s towns (18%) alike. The under-15s are 13% of the population here. Ages in Rowlands Castle split evenly at 52.4: half are older, half younger. The 15-to-24 age group makes up 7.7% of residents.
52% women, 48% men
About 92 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.
| Rowlands Castle | Hampshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 13% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 7.7% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 19% | 26% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 31% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 28% | 20% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 12% | 16% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 4.1% | 5.7% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 15% | 19% | 17% |
| Degree level | 48% | 33% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Hampshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Rowlands Castle. Best known first.
CastleWarblingon Castle3.7 km outside town, to the south
MuseumButser Ancient Farm4.8 km outside town, to the north
MuseumSpring Arts and Heritage Centre3.1 km outside town, to the south
MuseumEmsworth Museum3.9 km outside town, to the southFortFortFarlington Redoubt4.8 km outside town, to the southwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
9 listed buildings in Rowlands Castle.
The Castle Inn: Photo: Simon Burchell · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Granary to East of Redhill House: Photo: Tim Sheerman-Chase · CC BY 2.0 · Station: Photo: Bashereyre at en · Public domain · Autumn House and Woodlands: Photo: Tim Sheerman-Chase · CC BY 2.0
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rowlands Castle | 2,969 | — | B− | B− | C+ | A |
| Havant | 46,964 | 2 | D− | C+ | D | C− |
| Westbourne | 1,938 | 2.3 | — | D | B | B+ |
| Emsworth | 11,512 | 2.6 | C+ | D | B− | A− |
| Horndean | 34,046 | 2.7 | B+ | A | B− | A− |
| Waterlooville | 34,766 | 3.2 | C− | C− | C | B− |
| Southbourne | 4,150 | 3.5 | C+ | D | B− | B+ |
| Hambrook and Nutbourne | 2,752 | 4.4 | C | D | B− | B+ |
Westbourne has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
One state school is inside the town; places are handled by Hampshire council.
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £545,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £150,000, terraced houses £357,500, semi-detached houses £449,000 and detached houses £705,000.
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
About the middle for its size: 56% of the 1,308 UK towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people report less crime per resident. Against all UK towns, it grades C+.
Town in Hampshire, England
Rowlands Castle is a built-up area of 2,969 people, in the East Hampshire 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.