Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 3,489 in Kent, South East.
Marden grades B overall against UK towns: better than 61% of UK towns, and #20 of 87 in Kent. Its strongest subject is schools (A): primary results beat 90% of towns in England. Its weakest is cost of living (C−): median sale £410,000, 6.7 years of area income; rent £1,297 a month.
The 3 things Marden 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 Marden is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 45 buildings inside Marden’s built-up area, 1 of them Grade I.
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 Marden.
Leigh Academy Marden’s results beat 81% of schools in England like it. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Leigh Academy MardenLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 323 | A− |
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 45% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
On this, Marden is below both Kent’s towns (42%) and England’s towns (45%). 21% of commuters went to work on foot, by bike or by public transport at the census.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
In the comparison, Marden comes above both Kent’s towns (52) and England’s towns (39). Marden’s listed buildings include Church of St Michael and All Angels, Grade I. Marden has 45 listed buildings on Historic England’s list: 1 Grade I, 1 Grade II*.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
For Marden, that is below both Kent’s towns (19%) and England’s towns (21%).
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £582,500 | 52 |
| Semi-detached | £420,000 | 37 |
| Terraced | £295,000 | 35 |
| Flat or maisonette | £199,500 | 20 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Marden sits above both Kent’s towns (12.3) and England’s towns (9.4) on this measure. Police recorded 157 crimes inside Marden’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 71 reports of anti-social behaviour. Violence and sexual offences were 53% 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
That puts Marden above both Kent’s towns (82%) and England’s towns (82%). The nearest A&E to Marden is Maidstone Hospital, 7 miles away. 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 | Marden | Kent | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 85% | 82% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 4.3% | 5.1% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 15% | 18% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL
Children under 15 make up 21% of residents. 8.7% of residents are 15 to 24, below both Kent’s towns (11%) and England’s towns (12%). The median resident of Marden is 38.5 years old.
52% women, 48% men
About 94 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Marden | Kent | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 21% | 18% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 8.7% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 29% | 25% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 24% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 18% | 19% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 15% | 18% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 4.8% | 5.7% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 18% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 36% | 29% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Kent and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
45 listed buildings in Marden, 1 of them Grade I.
White Lyon House: Photo: N Chadwick · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geograph · Sutton Forge Oast: Photo: N Chadwick · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geograph · Pastures End and Poachers Keep: Photo: N Chadwick · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geograph · The Bridge House: Photo: N Chadwick · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geograph
3 notable people were born in Marden.
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marden | 3,489 | — | B | C− | C | B |
| Staplehurst | 6,181 | 2.6 | C | C | C+ | B− |
| Horsmonden | 1,580 | 3.5 | — | C | A− | A+ |
| Coxheath | 8,453 | 4.1 | C+ | C | B− | B |
| Yalding | 1,549 | 4.4 | — | C | C | B+ |
| Paddock Wood | 7,616 | 4.5 | C | C | C− | B |
| Goudhurst | 1,104 | 4.5 | — | B− | C+ | A |
| Sutton Valence | 1,457 | 5.2 | — | C− | C+ | B |
Horsmonden, Yalding, Goudhurst and Sutton Valence have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 5.3 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I building is Church of St Michael and All Angels.
Primary results beat 90% of towns in England (Department for Education, Key Stage 2). One state school is inside the town; places are handled by Kent council.
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £410,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £199,500, terraced houses £295,000, semi-detached houses £420,000 and detached houses £582,500.
It has more crime per resident than most places its size: 69% of the 1,308 UK towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people report less. Burglary was rare, with 5 reports in the year.
Town in Kent, England
Marden is a built-up area of 3,489 people, in the Maidstone 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.
