Preston’s story
27 listed buildings, 1 of them Grade II*
Historic England lists them inside Preston’s built-up area.
45% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →
PrestonHertfordshire
Population 425: a village in Hertfordshire, East of England.
7 places within 12 milesMap →
Photo: Ian S · CC BY-SA 2.0
Population
425
Census 2021 · North Hertfordshire council
Median home
£885K
35 sales in 3 years
Median age
46.7
24% are 65+ · Hertfordshire 17%
Degree level
52%
of residents 16+ · England 34%
Walk, cycle, bus
17%
of commuters · England 27%
Is Preston a good place to live?
Grades need 1,000 residents, so Preston has none; the figures on this page are still real. Homes change hands at a median £885,000. 45% of homes were built before 1919. 52% of adults have a degree-level qualification.
What makes Preston stand out
The 3 things Preston does most differently from other towns.
Median sale, £ thousands
Housing
3.2 times the typical UK town’s £277K
Standard sales, September 2023 to August 2026.
Homes built before 1919
History
Against 15% in the typical UK town
Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period.
Degree level, 16+
Education
Degree-level qualifications, residents 16+ (England’s towns 34%)
Hertfordshire 39%.
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Preston.
Who lives here
Preston skews older, with 24% of residents 65 or over, more than Hertfordshire’s towns or England’s towns
46.7median age
The median resident of Preston is 46.7 years old. 10% of residents are aged 15 to 24. The under-15s are 18% of the population here.
PrestonHertfordshireEngland
Ages · share of residents
24%
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications11%
Apprenticeship2%
A levels or similar15%
Degree level52%
Women and men · all residents
55% women, 45% men
About 82 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.
| Preston | Hertfordshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 18% | 19% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 10% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 20% | 27% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 28% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 24% | 17% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 11% | 15% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 1.8% | 4.5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 15% | 16% | 17% |
| Degree level | 52% | 39% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Hertfordshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Schools
The schools around Preston
The one school in town appears below. Two thirds of pupils at the 3 primary schools within 3 km met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). 60 pupils attend Preston’s one primary school.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Preston Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 60 | C− |
Department for Education · GIAS, Key Stage 2 and GCSE resultsThe Schools page →
Work & commute
Commuters in Preston travel far: only 24% go under 5 km, fewer than in Hertfordshire’s towns or England’s towns
17%walk, cycle or ride
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 59% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
At the census, nearly three in five workers worked mainly from home. Unemployment benefit claims came to 1.4% of 16 to 64s in 2026, below both Hertfordshire’s towns (2.1%) and England’s towns (2.3%). Households take home £66K a year before tax, on average. Also worth knowing: of the commuters living in Preston, 6% work in the town itself.
How commuters got to work · March 2021
Driving83%
On foot9%
Train4%
Bus3%
Underground, tram1%
24%
of commuters travel under 5 km · England 45%
59%
worked mainly from home in March 2021
£66K
mean household income, before tax
1.4%
of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits (2026)
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Housing
More households own their home in Preston than in Hertfordshire’s towns or across England’s towns: 68%
£885Kmedian sale
Social housing holds just over one in ten households, below both Hertfordshire’s towns (18%) and England’s towns (18%). Private rents average £1,434 a month across the North Hertfordshire council area. 17% of households rent privately.
Median sale price · Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
Preston£885K
Typical UK town£277K
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £1,170,000 | 27 |
| Semi-detached | £492,500 | 6 |
68%
of households own their home · England 61%
17%
rent privately · England 21%
£1,434
average private rent a month, North Hertfordshire council area
£2,483
council tax, Band D, 2026–27
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Safety
Burglary and damage are rarer in Preston than in Hertfordshire’s towns or across England’s towns: 3.9 per 1,000 residents a year
17.3violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a year
Police figures for Preston’s built-up area: 9 crimes and 1 anti-social behaviour reports in the 12 months to August 2026. Violent crime ran at 17.3 per 1,000 residents a year, lower than both Hertfordshire’s towns (21.2) and England’s towns (22). Violence and sexual offences were 56% of the crimes.
Reports by type · Sep 2025 to Aug 2026
Violence & sexual5
Public order1
Burglary1
Vehicle crime1
Other crime1
Shoplifting0
Damage & arson0
Other theft0
Anti-social1
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.
17.3
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
3.9
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
3.1
anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 (not graded)
9
crimes recorded in the 12 months to August 2026
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.
Health
Is Preston a healthy place? 91% of its people say their health is good, above Hertfordshire’s towns and England’s towns
91%good or very good health
There is no GP practice in Preston: the nearest is 2.4 miles off. At the census, 3.1% of people here described their health as bad or very bad. The nearest A&E to Preston is Lister Hospital, 3.4 miles away.
General health, self-reported
Good or very good 91%Fair 6%Bad or very bad 3%
| Census 2021 | Preston | Hertfordshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 91% | 85% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 3.1% | 3.8% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 10% | 14% | 17% |
81.4
life expectancy at birth, men (2019–23)
84.4
life expectancy at birth, women
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Census health answers are raw, so younger towns score better on them; for the Health Grade we use age-adjusted figures like life expectancy and early deaths.
History
More buildings in Preston are listed than in Hertfordshire’s towns or England’s towns: 635 per 10,000 residents
27listed buildings
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Preston has 27 listed buildings on Historic England’s list: 1 Grade II*. The register of parks and gardens lists one here.
Listed buildings by grade · Historic England
Grade I0
Grade II*1
Grade II26
Among them · Grade II*
0
scheduled monuments
1
registered park and garden
45%
of homes built before 1919 · typical UK town 15%
635
listed buildings per 10,000 residents · typical UK town 24
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Preston
14pages on Preston
The big questions
Safety17.3 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026Cost of livingMedian home £885K · rent £1,434 a monthHousing5 sold in 12 months · busiest street CastlefieldSchools1 state schoolHealthLife expectancy 81.4 (men), 84.4 (women)Work & commute75% of working residents work in the townFlood & hazards0% of homes at high or medium flood risk
Nearby attractions
All attractions →British schools museum and 2 more in and around Preston
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Preston. Best known first.
MuseumBritish schools museum3.6 km outside town, to the north
MuseumNorth Hertfordshire Museum3.9 km outside town, to the northWater parkWater parkBancroft Splash Park4.3 km outside town, to the northPlaces: © OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata
Photos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (2)
- British schools museum: Jack1956, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- North Hertfordshire Museum: Geni, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
About Preston
Village in Hertfordshire, England
Preston is a built-up area of 425 people, in the North Hertfordshire 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
- Population
- 425 (Census 2021)
- Council
- North Hertfordshire
- County
- Hertfordshire
- Region
- East of England
- Area
- 0.3 sq mi (0.7 km²)
- ONS code
- E63004116
Preston’s neighbours
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
WhitwellLittle WymondleyHitchinKimptonIcklefordStevenageCodicotePreston
How the neighbours grade
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Preston | 425 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Whitwell | 1,020 | 2.3 | — | C− | B | B+ |
| Little Wymondley | 1,003 | 2.7 | — | B− | C | C+ |
| Hitchin | 35,220 | 3 | A− | C+ | B− | B |
| Kimpton | 1,546 | 4.1 | — | C− | A | B+ |
| Ickleford | 1,936 | 4.3 | — | C− | B | B+ |
| Stevenage | 94,462 | 4.4 | C | C | C− | C |
| Codicote | 2,677 | 4.8 | A− | C | B+ | B+ |
Whitwell, Little Wymondley, Kimpton and Ickleford have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Preston
Is Preston expensive to live in?
By type: semi-detached houses £492,500 and detached houses £1,170,000.
How many listed buildings are there in Preston?
That is 26.1 times the typical UK town for its size.
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.