Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A large town of 82,143 in Kent, South East.
Ashford grades C+ overall against UK towns: better than 43% of UK towns, and #37 of 87 in Kent. Its strongest subject is walkability (A−): 23% of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport. Its weakest is safety (C−): 40.4 violent and sexual offences and 14.6 home and vehicle crimes per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026. Among UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more, it has less crime per resident than 66%. The median home sold for £300,000 in the last three years, 5.1 times what households in the Ashford council area earn in a year.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Ashford is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 226 buildings inside Ashford’s built-up area, 2 of them Grade I, and 2 scheduled monuments.
11% 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 Ashford.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 25% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
For Ashford, that is above both Kent’s towns (42%) and England’s towns (45%). 3.5% of 16 to 64s claimed unemployment benefits in 2026.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Three of its 25 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Furley Park Primary AcademyLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 504 | C+ |
| The John Wallis Church of England AcademyLargest secondary schoolAll-through | All-through | 1,650 | D |
| Highworth Grammar SchoolTop results in townSecondary | Secondary | 1,553 | A+ |
Town centres with shops, stations and nightlife record more crime per resident: police.uk counts crimes where they happen, not where victims live.
Violence came to 40.4 per 1,000 residents a year, above both Kent’s towns (23.9) and England’s towns (22). Police recorded 6,425 crimes inside Ashford’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 1,586 reports of anti-social behaviour. Violence and sexual offences were 46% of the crimes; the police category includes harassment and stalking.
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
Women here live to 82.1 on average and men to 78.7 (2019–23). 3 GP practices serve the town; 71% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey. 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.
| Census 2021 | Ashford | Kent | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 83% | 82% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 4.6% | 5.1% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 17% | 18% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL
Ashford sits above both Kent’s towns (18%) and England’s towns (18%) on this measure. People 65 and over make up 15% of the town. Half the people of Ashford are older than 37.2.
51% women, 49% men
About 95 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Ashford | Kent | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 20% | 18% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 11% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 29% | 25% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 25% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 15% | 19% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 18% | 18% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 5.5% | 5.7% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 17% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 28% | 29% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Kent and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £450,000 | 744 |
| Semi-detached | £315,000 | 903 |
| Terraced | £270,000 | 979 |
| Flat or maisonette | £175,000 | 449 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Conservation areas cover 100% of Ashford’s land, above both Kent’s towns (14%) and England’s towns (7%). Homes from before 1919 make up 11% of the total. Ashford’s listed buildings include Church of St Mary, Grade I.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Ashford. Best known first.
MuseumAshford Borough Museumin town
Historic houseGodinton House600 m outside town, to the northwest
Abbey or prioryBilsington Priory3.3 km outside town, to the southeastHistoric siteHistoric site · English HeritageThe Wye Undercroft2.8 km outside town, to the northeastMuseumMuseumThe Agricultural Museum3.1 km outside town, to the eastPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
226 listed buildings in Ashford, 2 of them Grade I.
Willesborough Windmill: Photo: Sue Wallace · Public domain · Godinton Park: Photo: Michael Dibb · CC BY-SA 2.0 · The Star Inn: Photo: Chris Whippet · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Lodge House, 5 Yards North East of Tower Lodge: Photo: David Long · CC BY-SA 2.0
80 notable people were born in Ashford.
Frederick Forsyth: Hannu Lindroos / Helsingin Sanomat, Public domain · John Wallis: After Godfrey Kneller, Public domain · Mark Rylance: Georges Biard, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Oliver Sykes: Sven Mandel, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Malcolm Sargent: Bristow Marley Photo Studio, Wellington, New Zealand, Public domain · Roger Dean: Jason Azze, CC BY-SA 2.0
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ashford | 82,143 | — | C+ | B | C− | C− |
| Finberry | 1,571 | 2 | — | C | C+ | B+ |
| Shadoxhurst | 1,009 | 3.2 | — | C− | A | B− |
| Wye | 2,064 | 4 | — | C− | B− | B |
| Brabourne Lees | 1,479 | 4.8 | — | C− | A− | B+ |
| Aldington | 1,280 | 4.8 | — | C− | A− | B+ |
| Bethersden | 1,008 | 5.1 | — | C− | B+ | B− |
| Challock | 1,089 | 5.4 | — | C− | A+ | B |
Finberry, Shadoxhurst, Wye, Brabourne Lees, Aldington, Bethersden and Challock have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
About the middle for its size: 34% of the 207 UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more report less crime per resident. Against all UK towns, most of them far smaller, it grades C−.
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
Band D council tax in Ashford is £2,374 for 2026–27, less than in 63% of UK towns (council, county, police and fire, plus the parish or town council). Your own bill depends on your home’s band; check it on GOV.UK.
Large town in Kent, England
Ashford is a built-up area of 82,143 people, in the Ashford 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.