Photo: David Smith · CC BY-SA 2.0The Forest Of Bowland National Landscape begins 1.0 mi from Bailrigg
34 km of footpaths run through the town and the kilometre around it, 3.4 for every square kilometre. No park or playing field is mapped within a 5-minute walk of homes in Bailrigg. Bailrigg grades C− for the outdoors. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
What kind of outdoors town is Bailrigg?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Bailrigg’s strongest suit is the Forest Of Bowland National Landscape close by. Where it falls short is how far some homes are from a park.
Bailrigg grades C− for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Bailrigg, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
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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.
Bailrigg is 51st of 60 UK towns its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 4,600 to 5,000 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Against towns its size, Bailrigg stands out most for path per km²: only 18 of the other 59 have more. It falls furthest behind on homes near a park, where 59 of the others do better.
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 | Frinton-on-Sea Essex | A+ | 7.5 | 100% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 3 | Windermere Cumbria | A+ | 3 | 94% | 3.6 | 100% |
| 4 | Rownhams and Nursling Hampshire | A+ | 4.9 | 86% | 6.7 | 12% |
| 5 | Marple Bridge Greater Manchester | A | 9.9 | 80% | 4.4 | 13% |
| 6 | Wilford Nottinghamshire | A | 7.7 | 93% | 9.6 | 0% |
| 7 | Wirksworth Derbyshire | A | 2 | 100% | 4.6 | 8% |
| 8 | Huntington Staffordshire | A | 3.7 | 74% | 4.6 | 27% |
| 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 | Writtle Essex | A− | 5.8 | 100% | 3.3 | 0% |
| 13 | Cringleford Norfolk | A− | 1.7 | 94% | 7.4 | 0% |
| 14 | Dersingham Norfolk | A− | 3.1 | 76% | 1.9 | 39% |
| 15 | Elvetham Heath Hampshire | A− | 8.7 | 100% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 16 | Liss Hampshire | A− | 2.3 | 87% | 2.6 | 98% |
| 17 | Binfield Berkshire | A− | 8.5 | 100% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 18 | Saxmundham Suffolk | B+ | 3.3 | 100% | 1.9 | 3% |
| 19 | Borough Green Kent | B+ | 2.5 | 93% | 1.9 | 50% |
| 20 | Bodicote Oxfordshire | B+ | 10.2 | 86% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 21 | Sturry Kent | B+ | 2.7 | 80% | 3.4 | 1% |
| 22 | Callington Cornwall | B | 2.1 | 100% | 1.1 | 21% |
| 23 | Coedpoeth Clwyd | B | 1.4 | 100% | 1.9 | 24% |
| 24 | Lenham and Harrietsham Kent | B− | 1.4 | 88% | 2.4 | 47% |
| 25 | Chalfont St Giles Buckinghamshire | B− | 1.8 | 57% | 3.5 | 37% |
| 26 | Kelvedon and Feering Essex | B− | 3.5 | 94% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 27 | Astley Greater Manchester | B− | 3.5 | 78% | 3.1 | 0% |
| 28 | Handsacre and Armitage Staffordshire | B− | 1.8 | 89% | 2.1 | 12% |
| 29 | Llay Clwyd | B− | 10.6 | 85% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 30 | Dudley Tyne and Wear | C+ | 2.6 | 69% | 4 | 0% |
| 31 | Bramley Hampshire | C+ | 2.8 | 100% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 32 | Dickens Heath West Midlands | C+ | 3.2 | 82% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 33 | Stokesley North Yorkshire | C+ | 0.9 | 100% | 1.7 | 16% |
| 34 | Cross Hills North Yorkshire | C+ | 1.9 | 86% | 3 | 0% |
| 35 | Ripponden West Yorkshire | C+ | 2.1 | 75% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 36 | Edwalton Nottinghamshire | C+ | 2.1 | 58% | 4.5 | 0% |
| 37 | Shortstown Bedfordshire | C | 2.4 | 82% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 38 | Datchet Berkshire | C | 8.4 | 72% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 39 | Copthorne West Sussex | C | 1.2 | 62% | 2.9 | 13% |
| 40 | Bowburn County Durham | C | 1.5 | 71% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 41 | Minster (Thanet) Kent | C | 2.3 | 64% | 1.2 | 0% |
| 42 | Makeney Derbyshire | C | 2.1 | 56% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 43 | Mynydd Isa Clwyd | C | 0.9 | 87% | 2 | 3% |
| 44 | Northway Gloucestershire | C | 0.9 | 58% | 3.1 | 13% |
| 45 | Winterton Lincolnshire | C | 1.6 | 82% | 1.1 | 0% |
| 46 | Woodhall Spa Lincolnshire | C− | 1.9 | 61% | 3 | 0% |
| 47 | Barton-under-Needwood Staffordshire | C− | 2.3 | 70% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 48 | Preesall and Knott End-on-Sea Lancashire | C− | 0.7 | 69% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 49 | Middleton St George County Durham | C− | 1.8 | 94% | 1 | 0% |
| 50 | Sowerby North Yorkshire | C− | 1.5 | 77% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 51 | Bailrigg Lancashire | C− | 0 | 0% | 3.4 | 18% |
| 52 | Melbourne Derbyshire | C− | 1.5 | 67% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 53 | Halesworth Suffolk | C− | 1.4 | 55% | 1.9 | 5% |
| 54 | Tickhill South Yorkshire | D | 1.7 | 69% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 55 | South Cave East Riding of Yorkshire | D | 1.5 | 43% | 0.9 | 0% |
| 56 | Markfield Leicestershire | D | 0.8 | 63% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 57 | Melbourn Cambridgeshire | D | 1.2 | 45% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 58 | Fleckney Leicestershire | D | 0.8 | 63% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 59 | Chilton County Durham | D− | 1.1 | 68% | 1 | 0% |
| 60 | Bulford Wiltshire | D− | 0.9 | 51% | 1.6 | 0% |
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Bailrigg’s built-up area.
Few Bailrigg residents live within a 5-minute walk of 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).
About 4,800 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 23 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 208 residents.
National Parks and National Landscapes around Bailrigg
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.
Forest Of Bowland
18% of the land within 5 km of Bailrigg is National Park or National Landscape, more than 76% of UK towns. Lake District National Park covers 2,362 km² and has been a National Park since 1951.
Footpaths in and around Bailrigg
34 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Bailrigg and the kilometre around it, 3.4 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0).
No named walking route is mapped within 2 km of Bailrigg; its footpaths are on the map above.
Waymarked walks are OpenStreetMap walking routes. Public rights of way are only as complete as the map in each area.
The best walking months in Bailrigg: 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) | 7.9 | 9.7 | 11.7 | 14.0 | 16.0 | 17.1 | 16.6 | 14.8 | 12.6 | 10.4 | 8.4 | 7.4 |
| High (°C) | 7 | 7 | 9 | 12 | 15 | 17 | 19 | 19 | 17 | 13 | 10 | 7 |
| Rain (mm) | 101 | 87 | 74 | 61 | 66 | 79 | 93 | 109 | 108 | 120 | 124 | 123 |
April is the driest month (61 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 19 °C). Winter days are short, about 7 hours of daylight in December, and 124 mm of rain falls in November, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 30 nights a year. The climate in Bailrigg →
23 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
Bailrigg 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.
Every named place, with directions
Viewpoints 1
Plus 1 viewpoint without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 23
Plus 19 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Campsites 2
The outdoors in nearby towns
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 12 miles. Tap a town for its outdoors page.
Lancaster, 2.8 miles away, grades A+, the best next door: 96% of its residents live within 400 m of a park. Galgate, Lancaster and Halton have at least twice Bailrigg’s green space per resident.
Questions about the outdoors in Bailrigg
Is Bailrigg near a National Park?
Yes. Lake District National Park begins 12 mi north of the town’s edge. It covers 2,362 km² and has been a National Park since 1951. The nearest protected landscape of any kind is the Forest Of Bowland National Landscape, 1.0 mi away.
What is the nearest beach to Bailrigg?
Half Moon Bay, 4.8 mi from the edge of the town, then Mallows Bay (4.9 mi). Bailrigg itself is inland.
How many people in Bailrigg live near a park?
0% 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 Bailrigg?
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Bailrigg 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 0% (0.0 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 Bailrigg’s overall grade.
Where Bailrigg’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.