Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Photo: Colin Smith · CC BY-SA 2.0The sea makes up 31% of the area within 5 km. The Kent Downs National Landscape begins 5.7 mi from the town’s edge. 86 km of footpaths run through the town and the kilometre around it, 3.8 for every square kilometre. Herne grades C+ for the outdoors: #61 of 87 in Kent. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Herne’s strongest suit is the sea, followed by dense footpaths. Where it falls short is park space per person.
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Herne, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
Graded, never part of the overall grade (like History and Civic life). It measures what is mapped: OS Open Greenspace leaves out woodland and open-access land that isn’t a park, and OpenStreetMap’s rural paths are more complete in some places than others.
The 60 UK towns and cities of 14,200 to 15,600 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Herne falls furthest behind on park space per resident, where 50 of the 59 others do better.
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lymington Hampshire | A+ | 2.8 | 89% | 3.3 | 56% |
| 2 | Saltash Cornwall | A+ | 2.4 | 96% | 3.6 | 44% |
| 3 | Hythe Kent | A+ | 3.7 | 76% | 4 | 31% |
| 4 | Otley West Yorkshire | A+ | 5.8 | 93% | 4.4 | 26% |
| 5 | Tadley Hampshire | A+ | 11.4 | 96% | 4.2 | 9% |
| 6 | Llandudno Clwyd | A+ | 2.1 | 83% | 4.9 | 3% |
| 7 | Swanscombe Kent | A+ | 3.3 | 90% | 8.5 | 0% |
| 8 | Kesgrave Suffolk | A | 3.3 | 97% | 4.7 | 14% |
| 9 | Petersfield Hampshire | A | 3.2 | 93% | 3.2 | 100% |
| 10 | Yeadon West Yorkshire | A | 3.5 | 94% | 4.6 | 2% |
| 11 | Staveley Derbyshire | A | 6.6 | 100% | 3.7 | 0% |
| 12 | Penzance Cornwall | A | 1.6 | 96% | 2.3 | 34% |
| 13 | Cheadle Greater Manchester | A | 6.5 | 96% | 4.3 | 0% |
| 14 | Stapleford Nottinghamshire | A | 3.5 | 95% | 5.9 | 0% |
| 15 | Skipton North Yorkshire | A | 1.7 | 99% | 4.2 | 25% |
| 16 | Yateley Hampshire | A− | 14.9 | 85% | 4.5 | 0% |
| 17 | Honley West Yorkshire | A− | 2.1 | 87% | 5.1 | 8% |
| 18 | Blaydon Tyne and Wear | A− | 7.9 | 88% | 4.2 | 0% |
| 19 | Frimley Surrey | A− | 2.9 | 99% | 4.8 | 0% |
| 20 | Tredegar Gwent | A− | 6.9 | 78% | 2.8 | 20% |
| 21 | Hessle East Riding of Yorkshire | A− | 5.3 | 96% | 1.8 | 0% |
| 22 | Risca Gwent | A− | 6.9 | 94% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 23 | Thornbury Gloucestershire | A− | 2.5 | 97% | 5.3 | 0% |
| 24 | Chertsey Surrey | A− | 6.2 | 84% | 4.2 | 0% |
| 25 | Birstall Leicestershire | A− | 6 | 80% | 4.7 | 0% |
| 26 | Tewkesbury Gloucestershire | B+ | 2.2 | 84% | 4 | 6% |
| 27 | Ilkley West Yorkshire | B+ | 1.6 | 76% | 5.7 | 37% |
| 28 | Uckfield East Sussex | B+ | 2.9 | 47% | 4.9 | 22% |
| 29 | Neston Cheshire | B+ | 2.7 | 91% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 30 | Buckingham Buckinghamshire | B+ | 3.4 | 96% | 3.3 | 0% |
| 31 | Somercotes and Swanwick Derbyshire | B+ | 3.6 | 95% | 3.1 | 0% |
| 32 | Marlow Buckinghamshire | B+ | 1.9 | 73% | 4 | 39% |
| 33 | Ashtead Surrey | B+ | 2.7 | 62% | 4.3 | 13% |
| 34 | Newport Pagnell Buckinghamshire | B+ | 2.6 | 95% | 3.6 | 0% |
| 35 | Humberston and New Waltham Lincolnshire | B+ | 4.1 | 44% | 2.2 | 1% |
| 36 | Crowthorne Berkshire | B | 4.7 | 60% | 5.2 | 0% |
| 37 | Morpeth Northumberland | B | 3.7 | 80% | 3.6 | 0% |
| 38 | Chard Somerset | B− | 1.6 | 94% | 1.9 | 34% |
| 39 | Hawarden Clwyd | B− | 3.7 | 81% | 3 | 0% |
| 40 | Redruth Cornwall | B− | 1.5 | 78% | 3.7 | 3% |
| 41 | Hoyland South Yorkshire | B− | 2.7 | 67% | 4.4 | 0% |
| 42 | Aberystwyth Dyfed | B− | 1.8 | 51% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 43 | Teignmouth Devon | B− | 1.7 | 82% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 44 | East Ardsley West Yorkshire | C+ | 1.8 | 91% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 45 | Cowes Isle of Wight | C+ | 1.1 | 50% | 2.2 | 15% |
| 46 | Herne Kent | C+ | 1.2 | 54% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 47 | Frampton Cotterell and Winterbourne Gloucestershire | C+ | 2.2 | 78% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 48 | Darton South Yorkshire | C+ | 2.5 | 86% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 49 | South Hayling Hampshire | C+ | 1 | 65% | 1.4 | 26% |
| 50 | Hockley and Hawkwell Essex | C+ | 1.6 | 85% | 3.3 | 0% |
| 51 | Kidlington Oxfordshire | C+ | 0.9 | 81% | 3 | 2% |
| 52 | Garforth West Yorkshire | C | 1.2 | 88% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 53 | Milford Haven Dyfed | C | 0.8 | 70% | 0.9 | 30% |
| 54 | Ashby-de-la-Zouch Leicestershire | C | 1.1 | 90% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 55 | Alsager Cheshire | C | 1.2 | 82% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 56 | Swallownest and Aston South Yorkshire | C− | 1.2 | 73% | 3.6 | 0% |
| 57 | Taverham and Drayton Norfolk | C− | 1.9 | 67% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 58 | Cottingham East Riding of Yorkshire | C− | 2.1 | 73% | 1.8 | 0% |
| 59 | Middlewich Cheshire | D | 1.4 | 81% | 1.8 | 0% |
| 60 | Shepshed Leicestershire | D | 1.1 | 69% | 2.2 | 0% |
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Herne’s built-up area.
The biggest is Memorial Park, 7.3 ha (18 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
The two biggest, Memorial Park and Broomfield Community Park, are 77% of the named green space and carry 4 km of path between them.
Each square is 1 in 100 residents: green lives within 400 m of a public park, garden or playing field (Census 2021 output areas against OS Open Greenspace).
About 6,900 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 32 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 465 residents.
Protected landscapes within 30 km, by direction and distance from the edge of the built-up area; circle size shows each one’s area. National Landscapes were called Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty until 2023.
Protected landscape begins just outside the 5 km ring the Outdoors Grade measures, so Herne scores 0% on it even though the Kent Downs National Landscape is 5.7 mi away.
86 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Herne and the kilometre around it, 3.8 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the town.
The King Charles III England Coast Path, a national route, passes Herne. Close to home, the Wantsum Walk has 10 km of local walk within 2 km of the town. The regional route here is the Saxon Shore Way.
Waymarked walks are OpenStreetMap walking routes. Public rights of way are only as complete as the map in each area.
The town’s 1991–2020 averages (Met Office HadUK-Grid) and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have 12½+ hours of daylight, highs of 15 °C or more and little rain for the town.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 8.3 | 9.9 | 11.7 | 13.8 | 15.6 | 16.6 | 16.2 | 14.6 | 12.5 | 10.6 | 8.8 | 7.9 |
| High (°C) | 8 | 9 | 11 | 14 | 18 | 21 | 23 | 23 | 20 | 16 | 11 | 9 |
| Rain (mm) | 50 | 40 | 36 | 35 | 45 | 45 | 43 | 50 | 46 | 65 | 66 | 60 |
April is the driest month (35 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 23 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 66 mm of rain falls in November, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 18 nights a year. The climate in Herne →
31% of the area within 5 km of Herne is sea. 6 beaches are mapped within 5 km, 1 with a name.
The King Charles III England Coast Path passes the town.
Sea: the area outside the ONS coastline (mean high water). Bathing water quality is published by the Environment Agency (England) and Natural Resources Wales; check it before swimming.
Mapped within 2 km of the town in OpenStreetMap, against the typical UK town its size per resident. Named places are listed with directions; unnamed ones are only counted.
Plus 28 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Plus 1 campsite without a name on the map.
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 12 miles. Tap a town for its outdoors page.
| Town | Outdoors | Green space, ha per 1,000 | Near a park | Protected within 5 km |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Herne | C+ | 1.2 | 54% | 0% |
| Herne Bay 0.8 mi | B+ | 2.3 | 83% | 0% |
| Hersden 3.3 mi | D | 2.0 | 63% | 0% |
| Sturry 3.8 mi | B+ | 2.7 | 80% | 1% |
| Whitstable 3.9 mi | B− | 1.5 | 84% | 0% |
| Blean 5.0 mi | A− | 5.9 | 80% | 0% |
| Rough Common 5.6 mi | A+ | 11.0 | 100% | 1% |
Rough Common, 5.6 miles away, grades A+, the best next door: every resident lives within 400 m of a park. Sturry, Blean and Rough Common have at least twice Herne’s green space per resident.
Memorial Park, 7.3 ha (18 acres), with 2.7 km of path, just outside the built-up area. Broomfield Community Park (6.0 ha) is second. 4 named parks, gardens and playing fields are in the town or within 400 m of it.
The nearest protected landscape is the Kent Downs National Landscape, 5.7 mi south of the town’s edge. It covers 879 km² and was designated in 1968.
3 waymarked walking routes pass within 2 km of the town, including the Wantsum Walk, Saxon Shore Way and King Charles III England Coast Path: Ramsgate to Whitstable. Memorial Park alone has 2.7 km of path.
54% of residents live within 400 m, about a 5-minute walk, of a public park, garden or playing field (Census 2021 output areas against OS Open Greenspace). The typical UK town is 83%.
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
For paths, yes: 3.8 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 78% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 19% (1.2 ha per 1,000 residents).
From five measures, each placed among UK towns of 1,000 or more: public green space per resident, the share living near a park, National Park or National Landscape within 5 km, footpaths per square kilometre, and the sea within 5 km. It is a character grade and isn’t part of Herne’s overall grade.
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.