Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
This town in Lancashire, North West has a population of 5,030.
Church’s weakest subject is safety: 63 violent and sexual offences and 27.2 home and vehicle crimes per 1,000 residents a year. Only 2% of UK towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people have more crime per resident. It lags on health as well: nearly one in ten residents report bad or very bad health, and 21.4% are disabled. Housing is within reach: homes sell for a median £120,000, about 3.1 times local household income. The overall grade lands at D−, #63 of 65 in Lancashire. That leaves it better than 4% of UK towns. Schools lag (D): primary results beat just over one in ten towns in England; secondary results beat 21% of towns in England. Jobs and pay trail most towns: mean household income £38,745; 6.2% of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits.
Figures: prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · health, Census 2021 (the grade adjusts for age) · income, ONS · claimants, DWP.
The 3 things Church 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 Church is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 7 buildings inside Church’s built-up area, 1 of them Grade II*.
48% 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 Church.
Police recorded 646 crimes inside Church’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 114 reports of anti-social behaviour. Anti-social behaviour, shown but not graded, came to 37.6 reports per 1,000, above both Lancashire’s towns (17.2) and England’s towns (7.8). Violence and sexual offences were 52% of the crimes.
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 · The police category of violence and sexual offences includes harassment and stalking.
Some 1,467 pupils attend Church’s one primary and one secondary. Below are its two schools. Secondary results at the 6 secondary schools within 3 km: an Attainment 8 score of 41.9, with 37% at grade 5 or above in English and maths.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| St Nicholas Church of England Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 187 | B |
| Accrington St Christopher's Church of England High SchoolLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 1,280 | B+ |
At the census, 78% of people in Church called their health good or very good, lower than both Lancashire’s towns (80%) and England’s towns (82%). 8.1% of residents report bad or very bad health. One GP practice serves the town; 64% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey. A disability affects just over a fifth of people here.
| Census 2021 | Church | Lancashire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 78% | 80% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 8.1% | 6.3% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 21% | 20% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · ONS, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Self-reported health favours young towns, since these answers ignore age; the Health Grade leans on age-adjusted measures such as life expectancy.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 16% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Driving is how 77% of commuters got to work at the census. Working mainly from home: 16% of workers, below both Lancashire’s towns (23%) and England’s towns (31%). 3% of commuters who live in Church also work there. For every resident in work, Church has 0.7 jobs.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
55% of households own their home. Private renters make up 24% of households, above both Lancashire’s towns (21%) and England’s towns (21%). Half of the 192 standard sales inside Church’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 went for more than £120,000.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £235,000 | 25 |
| Semi-detached | £159,995 | 45 |
| Terraced | £105,000 | 119 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Historic England’s list names 7 listed buildings in Church: 1 Grade II*. Of the town’s land, 14% lies in conservation areas, higher than both Lancashire’s towns (2%) and England’s towns (7%).
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
The share of residents under 15 is 20%. 16% of residents are 65 or over, lower than both Lancashire’s towns (20%) and England’s towns (18%). Half of Church is older than 37.9, half younger.
51% women, 49% men
About 95 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Church | Lancashire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 20% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 13% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 26% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 26% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 16% | 20% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 24% | 20% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 6.9% | 6.3% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 18% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 22% | 29% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Lancashire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Church. Best known first.
MuseumHaworth Art Gallery2.3 km outside town, to the southeastHistoric houseHistoric houseMartholme3.5 km outside town, to the northMuseumMuseumAccrington Dome1.1 km outside town, to the southeastPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
7 listed buildings in Church.
Canal Warehouse: Photo: robert wade · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Railway Viaduct: Photo: Alexander P Kapp · CC BY-SA 2.0
6 notable people were born in Church.
Mina Anwar: Steve Bowbrick from Radlett, United Kingdom, CC BY 2.0 · Walter Marsden: Weglinde Gordon Lawson, Public domain
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Church | 5,030 | — | D− | B+ | D− | D |
| Accrington | 34,897 | 0.8 | D− | B+ | D− | D− |
| Clayton-le-Moors | 7,969 | 1.3 | D | B | D | D |
| Oswaldtwistle | 10,810 | 1.3 | D | B | D | D |
| Rishton | 6,653 | 1.5 | D | B | D | D |
| Huncoat | 1,258 | 1.8 | — | B− | C+ | C− |
| Great Harwood | 11,022 | 2.1 | D | B | D | C− |
| Hapton | 2,240 | 3.1 | — | B | B− | C+ |
Huncoat and Hapton have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Homes cost less than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £120,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: terraced houses £105,000, semi-detached houses £159,995 and detached houses £235,000.
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
Town in Lancashire, England
Church is a built-up area of 5,030 people, in the Hyndburn 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.
