Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Mountains Lodge · Photo: Ian Capper · CC BY-SA 2.0The Kent Downs National Landscape and the High Weald National Landscape both begin about a mile from the town’s edge. Parks and playing fields in Hildenborough add up to 6.5 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. A park or playing field is within a 5-minute walk for 40% of residents. Hildenborough grades B+ for the outdoors: #40 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.
Hildenborough’s strongest suit is protected countryside on the doorstep, followed by plenty of park space. Where it falls short is how far some homes are from a park.
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Hildenborough, 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 4,800 to 5,100 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Against towns its size, Hildenborough stands out most for park space per resident: only 9 of the other 59 have more. It falls furthest behind on homes near a park, where 56 of the others do better.
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rye East Sussex | A+ | 3.5 | 89% | 3.5 | 46% |
| 2 | Pill Somerset | A+ | 5.2 | 100% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 3 | Frinton-on-Sea Essex | A+ | 7.5 | 100% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 4 | Windermere Cumbria | A+ | 3 | 94% | 3.6 | 100% |
| 5 | Burry Port Dyfed | A+ | 11.8 | 75% | 2.8 | 17% |
| 6 | Wilford Nottinghamshire | A | 7.7 | 93% | 9.6 | 0% |
| 7 | Moreton-in-Marsh Gloucestershire | A | 5 | 100% | 1.8 | 55% |
| 8 | Wirksworth Derbyshire | A | 2 | 100% | 4.6 | 8% |
| 9 | Rhymney Gwent | A | 2.9 | 97% | 3.8 | 6% |
| 10 | Meols Merseyside | A | 3.1 | 100% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 11 | Holmfirth West Yorkshire | A | 2.2 | 88% | 4.6 | 27% |
| 12 | Fitzwilliam and Kinsley West Yorkshire | A− | 11.5 | 100% | 3 | 0% |
| 13 | Joyden's Wood Kent | A− | 2.7 | 82% | 5.6 | 4% |
| 14 | Fordingbridge Hampshire | A− | 3.6 | 92% | 2 | 56% |
| 15 | Coleford Gloucestershire | A− | 2.8 | 66% | 4.3 | 48% |
| 16 | Elvetham Heath Hampshire | A− | 8.7 | 100% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 17 | Needham Market Suffolk | A− | 7.2 | 88% | 4 | 0% |
| 18 | Overseal and Castle Gresley Derbyshire | A− | 2.5 | 100% | 4.4 | 0% |
| 19 | Binfield Berkshire | A− | 8.5 | 100% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 20 | Huthwaite Nottinghamshire | B+ | 8.1 | 75% | 4.9 | 0% |
| 21 | Seaton Cumbria | B+ | 2.5 | 87% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 22 | Cranbrook Devon | B+ | 6.4 | 87% | 1.9 | 1% |
| 23 | Hildenborough Kent | B+ | 6.5 | 40% | 2.8 | 46% |
| 24 | Sturry Kent | B+ | 2.7 | 80% | 3.4 | 1% |
| 25 | Stone Cross East Sussex | B+ | 1.4 | 86% | 2.3 | 9% |
| 26 | Aspull Greater Manchester | B | 7.6 | 92% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 27 | Easingwold North Yorkshire | B | 4.3 | 86% | 1.5 | 14% |
| 28 | Grimethorpe South Yorkshire | B | 2.5 | 100% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 29 | Market Rasen Lincolnshire | B | 2.6 | 94% | 1.6 | 16% |
| 30 | Sedgefield County Durham | B | 6.2 | 81% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 31 | Headley Down and Headley Hampshire | B | 2.1 | 55% | 3.4 | 44% |
| 32 | Handsacre and Armitage Staffordshire | B− | 1.8 | 89% | 2.1 | 12% |
| 33 | Wotton-under-Edge Gloucestershire | C+ | 0.4 | 32% | 5.4 | 60% |
| 34 | Stokesley North Yorkshire | C+ | 0.9 | 100% | 1.7 | 16% |
| 35 | Wool Dorset | C+ | 2.3 | 51% | 2.5 | 33% |
| 36 | Steeton West Yorkshire | C+ | 1.3 | 100% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 37 | Moulton Northamptonshire | C+ | 3.3 | 88% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 38 | Barton-le-Clay Bedfordshire | C+ | 1.3 | 43% | 3.2 | 38% |
| 39 | Church Lancashire | C | 1.5 | 79% | 3.9 | 0% |
| 40 | Shortstown Bedfordshire | C | 2.4 | 82% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 41 | Billinge Merseyside | C | 0.9 | 94% | 3 | 0% |
| 42 | Treharris Mid Glamorgan | C | 2.6 | 72% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 43 | Copthorne West Sussex | C | 1.2 | 62% | 2.9 | 13% |
| 44 | Bowburn County Durham | C | 1.5 | 71% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 45 | Bungay Suffolk | C | 0.5 | 78% | 2.6 | 12% |
| 46 | Sutton on Sea and Trusthorpe Lincolnshire | C | 1.8 | 67% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 47 | Northway Gloucestershire | C | 0.9 | 58% | 3.1 | 13% |
| 48 | Shavington Cheshire | C− | 1.1 | 87% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 49 | Melbourne Derbyshire | C− | 1.5 | 67% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 50 | Halesworth Suffolk | C− | 1.4 | 55% | 1.9 | 5% |
| 51 | Tickhill South Yorkshire | D | 1.7 | 69% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 52 | Haslington Cheshire | D | 1.8 | 41% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 53 | Gresford Clwyd | D | 1.4 | 76% | 1.8 | 0% |
| 54 | South Cave East Riding of Yorkshire | D | 1.5 | 43% | 0.9 | 0% |
| 55 | Melbourn Cambridgeshire | D | 1.2 | 45% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 56 | Fleckney Leicestershire | D | 0.8 | 63% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 57 | Lepton West Yorkshire | D− | 0.9 | 36% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 58 | Wingate County Durham | D− | 1 | 64% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 59 | Bulford Wiltshire | D− | 0.9 | 51% | 1.6 | 0% |
| 60 | Shotton Colliery County Durham | D− | 0.9 | 40% | 1.5 | 0% |
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Hildenborough’s built-up area.
The biggest is Racecourse Spotsground, 20 ha (50 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
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 3,000 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 10 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 494 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.
46% of the land within 5 km of Hildenborough is National Park or National Landscape, more than 90% of UK towns.
52 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Hildenborough and the kilometre around it, 2.8 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the town.
2 regional routes pass through, including the Wealdway and Medway Valley Walk.
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) | 8.4 | 9.9 | 11.7 | 13.8 | 15.5 | 16.6 | 16.1 | 14.6 | 12.5 | 10.6 | 8.8 | 7.9 |
| High (°C) | 8 | 8 | 11 | 14 | 17 | 20 | 23 | 22 | 19 | 15 | 11 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 73 | 56 | 46 | 50 | 51 | 48 | 47 | 54 | 52 | 82 | 81 | 79 |
March is the driest month (46 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 23 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 82 mm of rain falls in October, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 49 nights a year. The climate in Hildenborough →
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.
Hildenborough is inland. These are the nearest named beaches, measured from the edge of the town.
Check the water before you swim. The Environment Agency tests designated bathing waters from May to September and publishes a rating for each beach.
Plus 3 hills and peaks without a name on the map.
Plus 8 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Plus 1 slipway 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hildenborough | B+ | 6.5 | 40% | 46% |
| Tonbridge 1.4 mi | B− | 2.1 | 65% | 38% |
| Leigh 1.8 mi | A | 3.0 | 100% | 49% |
| Southborough 3.8 mi | A− | 2.8 | 94% | 57% |
| Hadlow 3.9 mi | C− | 1.7 | 61% | 11% |
| Plaxtol 4.1 mi | B− | 2.6 | 57% | 40% |
| Five Oak Green 4.9 mi | A− | 3.0 | 100% | 30% |
Leigh, 1.8 miles away, grades A, the best next door: every resident lives within 400 m of a park.
Racecourse Spotsground, 20 ha (50 acres), with 3 km of path, just outside the built-up area. Tonbridge Cricket Club (2.8 ha) is second. 2 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, 0.4 mi north 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 Wealdway, Eden Valley Walk and Medway Valley Walk. Racecourse Spotsground alone has 3 km of path.
The Beach, 16 mi from the edge of the town, then Northfleet Beach (16 mi). Hildenborough itself is inland.
40% 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.
About average for paths: 2.8 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 53% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 91% (6.5 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 Hildenborough’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.