Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
1,367 people live in this village in Hertfordshire, East of England.
Health is a strength (A): life expectancy is 82.1 for men and 87 for women. Its weakest subject is cost of living (C+): the median home sold for £489,000, 7 years of area income. The rest of its grades are middling: B for safety, B− for schools, B for jobs & income and B− for hazard risk. Walkability is weaker too: on the way to work, 12% walk, cycle or take a bus or train.
Figures: life expectancy and income, ONS · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · claimants, DWP · flood risk, Environment Agency · commuting, Census 2021. Walkern has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
The 3 things Walkern 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 Walkern is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
Walkern has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists them inside Walkern’s built-up area.
19% 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 Walkern.
At the census, 12% of people here had a disability, below Hertfordshire’s towns (14%) and England’s towns (17%) alike. Seeing a GP means leaving Walkern: the nearest practice is 2.5 miles away. 3.4% of residents report bad or very bad health.
| Census 2021 | Walkern | Hertfordshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 87% | 85% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 3.4% | 3.8% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 12% | 14% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Self-reported health favours young towns, since these answers ignore age; the Health Grade leans on age-adjusted measures such as life expectancy and early deaths.
Key Stage 2 results at the 8 primary schools within 3 km: nearly three in five pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). The one school in town appears below. GCSE results at the one secondary school within 3 km: 51% of pupils get a strong pass (grade 5+) in English and maths, and the Attainment 8 average is 49.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Walkern Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 154 | B |
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Of Walkern’s 37 listed buildings on Historic England’s list, Grade I counts 1 and Grade II* 6. Its listed buildings include the Parish Church of St Mary the Virgin (Church of England), Grade I. Relative to its size, Walkern keeps 271 listed buildings per 10,000 residents. Homes from before 1919 make up nearly a fifth of the total, higher than both Hertfordshire’s towns (12%) and England’s towns (16%).
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
70% of households are owner-occupiers. Private renters make up just over one in ten households, below both Hertfordshire’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (21%). That is the middle of 42 standard sales inside Walkern’s built-up area over three years, against £277,000 in the typical UK town.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £692,500 | 12 |
| Semi-detached | £480,000 | 17 |
| Terraced | £427,550 | 8 |
| Flat or maisonette | £168,000 | 5 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 42% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Income per household averages £71K a year, before tax. The car took 86% of commuters, higher than both Hertfordshire’s towns (73%) and England’s towns (70%). Home was the main workplace for 42% of workers at the census.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Of all the crimes, 60% were violence and sexual offences. The 12 months to August 2026 brought 53 recorded crimes inside Walkern’s built-up area, and 9 reports of anti-social behaviour. Anti-social behaviour, shown but not graded, came to 8.1 reports per 1,000, lower than Hertfordshire’s towns (14.4) and near England’s towns (7.8).
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.
36% of adults hold a degree, between Hertfordshire’s towns (39%) and England’s towns (34%). Half of Walkern is older than 43.8, half younger. Young adults of 15 to 24 are 10% of the population.
50% women, 50% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Walkern | Hertfordshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 18% | 19% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 10% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 23% | 27% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 31% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 17% | 17% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 12% | 15% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 6.3% | 4.5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 17% | 16% | 17% |
| Degree level | 36% | 39% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Hertfordshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Walkern. Best known first.
MuseumStevenage Museum4.6 km outside town, to the westWater parkWater parkAqua Park3.3 km outside town, to the southwestCastleCastleWalkern Hall1.3 km outside town, to the southeastPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Walkern | 1,367 | — | — | C+ | B | A |
| Stevenage | 94,462 | 2.4 | C | C | C− | C |
| Watton at Stone | 2,614 | 4.2 | A+ | C+ | A | A+ |
| Knebworth | 4,191 | 4.4 | B+ | C | B | B+ |
| Little Wymondley | 1,003 | 4.6 | — | B− | C | C+ |
| Datchworth | 1,179 | 4.7 | — | C− | A+ | A |
| Woolmer Green | 1,409 | 5 | — | C | B | A |
| Buntingford | 7,877 | 5.1 | B | C+ | C+ | A |
Little Wymondley, Datchworth and Woolmer Green have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 11.1 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I building is Parish Church of St Mary the Virgin (Church of England).
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £489,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £168,000, terraced houses £427,550, semi-detached houses £480,000 and detached houses £692,500.
Against all UK towns, it grades B. Burglary was rare, with 1 report in the year.
Village in Hertfordshire, England
Walkern is a built-up area of 1,367 people, in the East 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
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.