Safety lags (C−): police record 36.3 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, and 17.1 home and vehicle crimes. Set beside UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more, its crime per resident is higher than in 31%. With a C− overall, Hemel Hempstead is better than a quarter of UK towns. Its best grade is for walkability: 18% of commuters get to work on foot, by bike or by public transport. The median home sold for £400,000, 6.1 times what households in the Dacorum council area earn in a year. Its remaining grades are unremarkable: B− for jobs & income and B for hazard risk.
Figures: commuting, Census 2021 · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · incomes, ONS · claimants, DWP · flood risk, Environment Agency.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Hemel Hempstead is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Hemel Hempstead.
Safety
Per resident, Hemel Hempstead sees more crime than 82% of UK towns
36.3violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a yearC−Safety Grade
Town centres with shops, stations and nightlife record more crime per resident: police.uk counts crimes where they happen, not where victims live.
There were 26.4 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), above both Hertfordshire’s towns (14.2) and England’s towns (7.8). Police recorded 7,732 crimes inside Hemel Hempstead’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 2,434 reports of anti-social behaviour. Violence and sexual offences made up 44% of the total.
Compared with UK towns its sizeLess crime per resident than 69% of the 207 UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more: less crime than most for its size. Context only, not part of the grade.
More crimeLess crime
Reports by type · Sep 2025 to Aug 2026
Violence & sexual3,433
Shoplifting822
Other theft805
Damage & arson631
Vehicle crime528
Public order450
Drugs332
Burglary264
Anti-social2,434
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.
36.3
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
17.1
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
26.4
anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 (not graded)
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.
SchoolsC
On exam results, Hemel Hempstead’s schools trail 71% of towns in England
CSchool Grade
58% of pupils at the town’s 28 primary schools met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). Brockswood Primary School’s results beat 96% of schools in England like it. Of its 43 schools, three are shown below, each with the reason. Between them, 31 primaries and six secondaries teach 14,823 pupils in Hemel Hempstead.
Department for Education · GIAS, Key Stage 2 and GCSE resultsSee all 43 schools →
Work & commuteJobs & income grade B−
4.1% of 16 to 64s in Hemel Hempstead claim unemployment benefits, more than in both Hertfordshire’s towns and England’s towns
18%walk, cycle or ride
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 34% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Household income came to £61K a year before tax, below Hertfordshire’s towns (£70K) but above England’s towns (£55K). About 43% of its commuters stay in Hemel Hempstead for work. This Hertfordshire town counts 2.3 jobs per working resident.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
HousingCost of living grade C
More households in Hemel Hempstead live in social housing than in Hertfordshire’s towns or England’s towns: 26%
£400Kmedian sale
Owners make up 58% of households, lower than both Hertfordshire’s towns (64%) and England’s towns (61%). The private rented sector houses 15% of households. Private rents average £1,595 a month across the Dacorum council area.
Median sale price · Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
Hemel Hempstead£400K
Typical UK town£277K
By type
Median
Sales
Detached
£650,000
457
Semi-detached
£485,000
625
Terraced
£392,000
1,210
Flat or maisonette
£240,000
779
58%
of households own their home · England 61%
15%
rent privately · England 21%
£1,595
average private rent a month, Dacorum council area
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Health
Most people in Hemel Hempstead (84%) report good or very good health
84%good or very good healthCHealth Grade
The nearest A&E to Hemel Hempstead is Watford General Hospital, 7.7 miles away. 7 GP practices serve the town; 69% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey. Disability touches 16% of the town’s population.
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.
History
2 Grade I buildings among Hemel Hempstead’s 170 listed
170listed buildingsC+History Grade
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Conservation areas cover 1% of Hemel Hempstead’s land, below Hertfordshire’s towns (11%) and England’s towns (7%) alike. Its listed buildings include the Church of St Mary, Grade I. Also worth knowing: 5% of homes date from before 1919. At the top of the list, 2 are Grade I and 14 Grade II*.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Who lives here
Children make up 20% of Hemel Hempstead, above Hertfordshire’s towns and England’s towns
38.5median age
15% of residents have reached 65. The middle age in Hemel Hempstead is 38.5. Aged 15 to 24: one in ten residents. Degrees are held by a third of adults, lower than Hertfordshire’s towns (39%) and near England’s towns (34%).
Hemel HempsteadHertfordshireEngland
Ages · share of residents
15%
Under 1515–2425–4445–6465+
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications16%
Apprenticeship5%
A levels or similar17%
Degree level33%
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
WomenEnglandMen
About 96 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
Anthony Davidson: Jen_ross83, CC BY 2.0 · Harry Winks: Steffen Prößdorf, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Chris Eagles: Jon Candy from Cardiff, Wales, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Max Whitlock: los_bandito_anthony from UK, CC BY 2.0 · Lee Grant: en:user:TuborgLight, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Anna Henderson: Cs-wolves, CC BY-SA 4.0
About Hemel Hempstead
Large town in Hertfordshire, England
Hemel Hempstead is a built-up area of 95,995 people, in the Dacorum 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.
Potten End, Chipperfield and Flamstead have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Hemel Hempstead
Is Hemel Hempstead safe?
It has less crime than most places its size: less crime per resident than 69% of the 207 UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more. Against all UK towns, most of them far smaller, it grades C−.
Is Hemel Hempstead expensive to live in?
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £400,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £240,000, terraced houses £392,000, semi-detached houses £485,000 and detached houses £650,000.
Are schools in Hemel Hempstead good?
GCSE results trail 65% of towns in England, and primary results trail 69% (Department for Education, Attainment 8 and Key Stage 2).
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.
