Sturry’s biggest
Sturry Road Community Park
Park or garden · 10 m outside town
20 ha (50 acres)2.7 km of path
35 minto walk all 2.7 km of path
28 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
1 mi south-westfrom the centre
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Photo: Colin Smith · CC BY-SA 2.0B+Outdoors Grade
Outdoors in Sturry · parks, paths & countryside
80% of Sturry’s residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park
The Kent Downs National Landscape begins 2.4 mi from the town’s edge. 50 km of footpaths run through the town and the kilometre around it, 3.4 for every square kilometre. Parks and playing fields in Sturry add up to 2.7 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. Sturry grades B+ for the outdoors: #41 of 87 in Kent. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Green space
2.7 ha
per 1,000 residents
Typical UK town 2.1
Near a park
80%
of residents within 400 m
Typical UK town 83%
Footpaths
50 km
3.4 km per km², town + 1 km
Typical UK town 3.0 per km²
Protected landscape
1%
of the land within 5 km
Nearest: Kent Downs National Landscape
Outdoors grade
Sturry grades B+ for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Sturry, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
B+
Better than 67% of UK towns#41 of 87 in Kent · 21st of 60 UK towns its size
Public green space2.7 haper 1,000 residents: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces
63out of
100
100
A park within a walk80%of residents within 400 m (a 5-minute walk)
46out of
100
100
National Park or National Landscape1%of the land within 5 km
64out of
100
100
Footpaths3.4 kmper km², the town and 1 km around it
69out of
100
100
The sea0%of the area within 5 km · Inland
42out of
100
100
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.
Towns its size
Sturry is 21st of 60 UK towns its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 4,700 to 5,000 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Outdoors score: the share of UK towns each one beats
Footpath, km per km²
Sturry3.4
Towns its size2.6
Kent towns2.6
All UK towns3.0
Green space, ha per 1,000 residents
Sturry2.7
Towns its size2.1
Kent towns2.3
All UK towns2.1
Residents within 400 m of a park
Sturry80%
Towns its size82%
Kent towns78%
All UK towns83%
Against towns its size, Sturry stands out most for path per km²: only 14 of the other 59 have more.
Show as a table
| 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 | Rownhams and Nursling Hampshire | A+ | 4.9 | 86% | 6.7 | 12% |
| 6 | Burry Port Dyfed | A+ | 11.8 | 75% | 2.8 | 17% |
| 7 | Wilford Nottinghamshire | A | 7.7 | 93% | 9.6 | 0% |
| 8 | Wirksworth Derbyshire | A | 2 | 100% | 4.6 | 8% |
| 9 | Carleton Lancashire | A | 3 | 86% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 10 | Rudheath Cheshire | A | 5.5 | 100% | 3.7 | 0% |
| 11 | Joyden's Wood Kent | A− | 2.7 | 82% | 5.6 | 4% |
| 12 | Fordingbridge Hampshire | A− | 3.6 | 92% | 2 | 56% |
| 13 | Dersingham Norfolk | A− | 3.1 | 76% | 1.9 | 39% |
| 14 | Elvetham Heath Hampshire | A− | 8.7 | 100% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 15 | Liss Hampshire | A− | 2.3 | 87% | 2.6 | 98% |
| 16 | Binfield Berkshire | A− | 8.5 | 100% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 17 | Saxmundham Suffolk | B+ | 3.3 | 100% | 1.9 | 3% |
| 18 | Bodicote Oxfordshire | B+ | 10.2 | 86% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 19 | Cranbrook Devon | B+ | 6.4 | 87% | 1.9 | 1% |
| 20 | Hildenborough Kent | B+ | 6.5 | 40% | 2.8 | 46% |
| 21 | Sturry Kent | B+ | 2.7 | 80% | 3.4 | 1% |
| 22 | Aspull Greater Manchester | B | 7.6 | 92% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 23 | Market Rasen Lincolnshire | B | 2.6 | 94% | 1.6 | 16% |
| 24 | Headley Down and Headley Hampshire | B | 2.1 | 55% | 3.4 | 44% |
| 25 | Coedpoeth Clwyd | B | 1.4 | 100% | 1.9 | 24% |
| 26 | Lenham and Harrietsham Kent | B− | 1.4 | 88% | 2.4 | 47% |
| 27 | Kelvedon and Feering Essex | B− | 3.5 | 94% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 28 | Handsacre and Armitage Staffordshire | B− | 1.8 | 89% | 2.1 | 12% |
| 29 | Dudley Tyne and Wear | C+ | 2.6 | 69% | 4 | 0% |
| 30 | Dickens Heath West Midlands | C+ | 3.2 | 82% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 31 | Wotton-under-Edge Gloucestershire | C+ | 0.4 | 32% | 5.4 | 60% |
| 32 | Stokesley North Yorkshire | C+ | 0.9 | 100% | 1.7 | 16% |
| 33 | Cross Hills North Yorkshire | C+ | 1.9 | 86% | 3 | 0% |
| 34 | Ripponden West Yorkshire | C+ | 2.1 | 75% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 35 | Moulton Northamptonshire | C+ | 3.3 | 88% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 36 | Edwalton Nottinghamshire | C+ | 2.1 | 58% | 4.5 | 0% |
| 37 | Barton-le-Clay Bedfordshire | C+ | 1.3 | 43% | 3.2 | 38% |
| 38 | Shortstown Bedfordshire | C | 2.4 | 82% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 39 | Billinge Merseyside | C | 0.9 | 94% | 3 | 0% |
| 40 | Datchet Berkshire | C | 8.4 | 72% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 41 | Copthorne West Sussex | C | 1.2 | 62% | 2.9 | 13% |
| 42 | Bowburn County Durham | C | 1.5 | 71% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 43 | Minster (Thanet) Kent | C | 2.3 | 64% | 1.2 | 0% |
| 44 | Mynydd Isa Clwyd | C | 0.9 | 87% | 2 | 3% |
| 45 | Northway Gloucestershire | C | 0.9 | 58% | 3.1 | 13% |
| 46 | Winterton Lincolnshire | C | 1.6 | 82% | 1.1 | 0% |
| 47 | Middleton St George County Durham | C− | 1.8 | 94% | 1 | 0% |
| 48 | Bailrigg Lancashire | C− | 0 | 0% | 3.4 | 18% |
| 49 | Shavington Cheshire | C− | 1.1 | 87% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 50 | Melbourne Derbyshire | C− | 1.5 | 67% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 51 | Halesworth Suffolk | C− | 1.4 | 55% | 1.9 | 5% |
| 52 | Tickhill South Yorkshire | D | 1.7 | 69% | 2.2 | 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 | Markfield Leicestershire | D | 0.8 | 63% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 56 | Melbourn Cambridgeshire | D | 1.2 | 45% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 57 | Fleckney Leicestershire | D | 0.8 | 63% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 58 | Lepton West Yorkshire | D− | 0.9 | 36% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 59 | Bulford Wiltshire | D− | 0.9 | 51% | 1.6 | 0% |
| 60 | Shotton Colliery County Durham | D− | 0.9 | 40% | 1.5 | 0% |
The map
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Sturry’s built-up area.
Green space: parks, gardens, playing fields and play spaces, named or not.© OpenStreetMap contributors · Contains OS data © Crown copyright · Natural England / NRW
Places to walk
Parks to walk in, in and around Sturry
The biggest is Sturry Road Community Park, 20 ha (50 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
Close to home
How close Sturry’s homes are to a park
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).
Within 400 m (80%)Further (21%)
Sturry80%
Towns its size82%
Kent towns78%
All UK towns83%
About 1,000 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 19 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 256 residents.
National Parks & National Landscapes
The Kent Downs National Landscape is 2.4 mi away
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.
National ParkNational LandscapeThe 5 km the grade counts
1% of the land within 5 km of Sturry is National Park or National Landscape, more than 63% of UK towns.
Footpaths & waymarked walks
4 waymarked walks pass through or near Sturry
50 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Sturry and the kilometre around it, 3.4 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the town.
RegionalLocal
Stour Valley Walk6.9 km
Canterbury Outer Ring Walk6.8 km
Augustine Camino5.8 km
Canterbury Middle Ring Walk1.9 km
Close to home, the Canterbury Outer Ring Walk has 7 km of local walk within 2 km of the town. 2 regional routes pass through, including the Stour Valley Walk and Augustine Camino.
Waymarked walks are OpenStreetMap walking routes. Public rights of way are only as complete as the map in each area.
When to get out
The best walking months in Sturry: May to September
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 | 16.1 | 14.6 | 12.5 | 10.6 | 8.8 | 7.9 |
| High (°C) | 8 | 8 | 11 | 14 | 17 | 20 | 23 | 23 | 20 | 15 | 11 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 61 | 46 | 38 | 41 | 46 | 46 | 47 | 55 | 53 | 74 | 73 | 68 |
March is the driest month (38 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 23 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 74 mm of rain falls in October, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 33 nights a year. The climate in Sturry →
Things to do
19 playgrounds and the nearest beaches
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.
The nearest beaches
Sturry is inland. These are the nearest named beaches, measured from the edge of the town.
Herne Bay Beach4.1 mi from Sturry’s edge
DirectionsSouth Shellness Beach8.4 mi from Sturry’s edge
DirectionsShellness Beach8.8 mi from Sturry’s edge
DirectionsShellbeach9.0 mi from Sturry’s edge
DirectionsMargate Main Sands11 mi from Sturry’s edge
DirectionsGood to know
Check the water before you swim. The Environment Agency tests designated bathing waters from May to September and publishes a rating for each beach.
Every named place, with directions
Viewpoints 1
Legacy Park Viewpoint1.1 mi from town
DirectionsPicnic sites 1
Plus 1 picnic site without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 19
Hawe Close Play Area1.1 mi from town
DirectionsPlus 18 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Campsites 2
Canterbury Camping and Caravanning Club Site1.2 mi from town
DirectionsPlus 1 campsite without a name on the map.
Next door
The outdoors in nearby towns
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 12 miles. Tap a town for its outdoors page.
HersdenCanterburyLittlebourneRough CommonBleanHerneSturry
ABCDOutdoors Grade
| Town | Outdoors | Green space, ha per 1,000 | Near a park | Protected within 5 km |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sturry | B+ | 2.7 | 80% | 1% |
| Hersden 1.5 mi | D | 2.0 | 63% | 0% |
| Canterbury 2.4 mi | B+ | 1.6 | 77% | 19% |
| Littlebourne 2.6 mi | B+ | 1.6 | 100% | 9% |
| Rough Common 3.4 mi | A+ | 11.0 | 100% | 1% |
| Blean 3.6 mi | A− | 5.9 | 80% | 0% |
| Herne 3.8 mi | C+ | 1.2 | 54% | 0% |
Rough Common, 3.4 miles away, grades A+, the best next door: every resident lives within 400 m of a park. Rough Common and Blean have at least twice Sturry’s green space per resident.
Questions about the outdoors in Sturry
What is the biggest park in Sturry?
Sturry Road Community Park, 20 ha (50 acres), with 2.7 km of path, just outside the built-up area. 1 named park, garden or playing field is in the town or within 400 m of it.
Is Sturry near a National Park?
The nearest protected landscape is the Kent Downs National Landscape, 2.4 mi south of the town’s edge. It covers 879 km² and was designated in 1968.
What are the best walks near Sturry?
4 waymarked walking routes pass within 2 km of the town, including the Stour Valley Walk, Canterbury Outer Ring Walk and Augustine Camino. Sturry Road Community Park alone has 2.7 km of path.
What is the nearest beach to Sturry?
Herne Bay Beach, 4.1 mi from the edge of the town, then South Shellness Beach (8.4 mi). Sturry itself is inland.
How many people in Sturry live near a park?
80% 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%.
When is the best time of year for walking in Sturry?
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Sturry good for walking?
For paths, yes: 3.4 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 69% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 63% (2.7 ha per 1,000 residents).
How is the Outdoors Grade worked out?
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 Sturry’s overall grade.
Sources
Where Sturry’s outdoors figures come from
- Parks and green space: Ordnance Survey OS Open Greenspace (parks and gardens, playing fields, play spaces, and their access points). Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- National Parks and National Landscapes: Natural England and Natural Resources Wales boundaries, areas and designation dates, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Footpaths, walking routes, beaches and things to do: © OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database License (ODbL), via Geofabrik, 16 October 2026.
- Historic parks, listed buildings and monuments: Historic England, National Heritage List for England, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Rain and temperature: Met Office HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages for the town; daylight calculated from its latitude.
- The sea: ONS Countries (December 2024) boundaries clipped to mean high water. Residents near a park: ONS Census 2021 output areas.
- Grade: TownRatings’ Outdoors Grade, ranked against UK towns only.
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.