Yarrow Cottage · Photo: Peter James · CC BY-SA 4.078% of Croston’s residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park
Parks and playing fields in Croston add up to 0.6 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. 23 km of footpaths run through the town and the kilometre around it, 2.3 for every square kilometre. Croston grades D for the outdoors: #62 of 65 in Lancashire. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Croston grades D for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Croston, 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.
Croston is 49th of 60 UK towns its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 2,700 to 2,900 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Croston falls furthest behind on park space per resident, where 53 of the 59 others do better.
Show as a table
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lindford Hampshire | A+ | 17.1 | 100% | 4.7 | 42% |
| 2 | Bruton Somerset | A | 9.3 | 100% | 2.5 | 1% |
| 3 | Penmaenmawr Clwyd | A | 1.7 | 78% | 3.4 | 39% |
| 4 | Hartshill Warwickshire | A | 19 | 100% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 5 | Stoke Mandeville Buckinghamshire | A− | 5.5 | 37% | 6.8 | 29% |
| 6 | Martlesham Heath Suffolk | A− | 3.5 | 68% | 4.6 | 25% |
| 7 | Threemilestone Cornwall | A− | 3.1 | 100% | 2.6 | 1% |
| 8 | Congresbury Somerset | A− | 8.5 | 67% | 3.5 | 10% |
| 9 | Jacksdale and Westwood Nottinghamshire | A− | 2.7 | 100% | 3.9 | 0% |
| 10 | Holywell Green and Stainland West Yorkshire | A− | 4 | 89% | 4.1 | 0% |
| 11 | Charfield Gloucestershire | B+ | 1.3 | 100% | 3 | 22% |
| 12 | Perranporth Cornwall | B+ | 1.3 | 75% | 3.4 | 4% |
| 13 | Hertford Heath Hertfordshire | B+ | 1.6 | 100% | 4.4 | 0% |
| 14 | Mundesley Norfolk | B | 1.8 | 79% | 1.5 | 24% |
| 15 | Charlbury Oxfordshire | B | 3.1 | 66% | 2.4 | 65% |
| 16 | Barlborough Derbyshire | B | 4.4 | 100% | 2 | 0% |
| 17 | Boverton South Glamorgan | B | 4.3 | 52% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 18 | Ormesby St Margaret Norfolk | B | 2.1 | 79% | 0.8 | 21% |
| 19 | Rockwell Green Somerset | B | 1 | 90% | 3.2 | 24% |
| 20 | Tollesbury Essex | B− | 2 | 85% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 21 | Chalgrove Oxfordshire | B− | 4.1 | 85% | 1.2 | 4% |
| 22 | Aston Clwyd | B− | 4.4 | 37% | 4.7 | 0% |
| 23 | Denby Dale West Yorkshire | B− | 0.7 | 100% | 4 | 0% |
| 24 | Waltham Chase Hampshire | B− | 2 | 75% | 2.2 | 39% |
| 25 | Pimperne Dorset | C+ | 1.9 | 72% | 1.9 | 89% |
| 26 | Great Totham Essex | C+ | 2.8 | 100% | 1.3 | 0% |
| 27 | Hambrook and Nutbourne West Sussex | C+ | 1.2 | 28% | 2 | 69% |
| 28 | Rhostyllen Clwyd | C+ | 1.1 | 68% | 3.7 | 10% |
| 29 | Bluntisham and Colne Cambridgeshire | C+ | 2.3 | 88% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 30 | Asfordby Leicestershire | C | 4 | 57% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 31 | Woolton Hill and Highclere Hampshire | C | 1.2 | 60% | 2.3 | 70% |
| 32 | Kidwelly Dyfed | C | 2.8 | 56% | 1 | 0% |
| 33 | Barrow upon Humber Lincolnshire | C | 1.5 | 88% | 0.3 | 0% |
| 34 | Trimdon County Durham | C | 1 | 100% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 35 | Buckden Cambridgeshire | C | 2.9 | 85% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 36 | Maerdy Mid Glamorgan | C− | 1.1 | 100% | 1.8 | 0% |
| 37 | Swavesey Cambridgeshire | C− | 1.8 | 80% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 38 | Alrewas Staffordshire | C− | 1.5 | 66% | 3.6 | 0% |
| 39 | Cheswick Green West Midlands | C− | 1 | 77% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 40 | Tuxford Nottinghamshire | C− | 1.4 | 100% | 1 | 0% |
| 41 | Mere Wiltshire | C− | 1.6 | 34% | 1.5 | 54% |
| 42 | Gwaun-Cae-Gurwen West Glamorgan | C− | 1.1 | 80% | 0.8 | 26% |
| 43 | Tarvin Cheshire | C− | 1.2 | 90% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 44 | Clifton Bedfordshire | C− | 1.7 | 64% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 45 | Weedon Bec Northamptonshire | C− | 1.1 | 87% | 2 | 0% |
| 46 | Kirkbymoorside North Yorkshire | C− | 0.4 | 55% | 1.9 | 37% |
| 47 | Thorngumbald East Riding of Yorkshire | D | 1.3 | 69% | 0.5 | 0% |
| 48 | Catterall Lancashire | D | 1 | 47% | 1.9 | 9% |
| 49 | Croston Lancashire | D | 0.6 | 78% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 50 | Harbury Warwickshire | D | 1.6 | 73% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 51 | Ambrosden Oxfordshire | D | 1 | 78% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 52 | Sherburn County Durham | D | 0.2 | 0% | 4.1 | 0% |
| 53 | Berinsfield Oxfordshire | D | 0.1 | 0% | 2.1 | 11% |
| 54 | Terrington St Clement Norfolk | D | 1.5 | 53% | 0.4 | 0% |
| 55 | Seghill Northumberland | D | 0.2 | 41% | 3.1 | 0% |
| 56 | Repton Derbyshire | D | 0.8 | 36% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 57 | East Ayton and West Ayton North Yorkshire | D | 0.1 | 0% | 1.2 | 33% |
| 58 | West Winch Norfolk | D | 1.5 | 73% | 0.7 | 0% |
| 59 | Pickmere Cheshire | D− | 0.4 | 71% | 1.6 | 0% |
| 60 | Greetham Rutland | D− | 0.9 | 30% | 0.8 | 0% |
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Croston’s built-up area.
How close Croston’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).
About 600 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 4 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 698 residents.
The Forest Of Bowland National Landscape is 14 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.
Footpaths in and around Croston
23 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Croston and the kilometre around it, 2.3 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0).
No named walking route is mapped within 2 km of Croston; 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 Croston: May to August
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) | 8.0 | 9.7 | 11.7 | 13.9 | 15.9 | 17.0 | 16.6 | 14.8 | 12.6 | 10.4 | 8.5 | 7.5 |
| High (°C) | 7 | 8 | 10 | 13 | 16 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 18 | 14 | 10 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 79 | 66 | 54 | 52 | 56 | 66 | 69 | 85 | 92 | 103 | 93 | 103 |
April is the driest month (52 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 20 °C). Winter days are short, about 7 hours of daylight in December, and 103 mm of rain falls in October, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 38 nights a year. The climate in Croston →
4 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
Croston 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
Playgrounds 4
Plus 4 playgrounds without a name on the map.
The outdoors in nearby towns
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 12 miles. Tap a town for its outdoors page.
Leyland, 3.7 miles away, grades B+, the best next door: 91% of its residents live within 400 m of a park. Eccleston, Rufford and Tarleton and Hesketh Bank have at least twice Croston’s green space per resident. None of the neighbours has a protected landscape within 5 km either.
Questions about the outdoors in Croston
Is Croston near a National Park?
The nearest protected landscape is the Forest Of Bowland National Landscape, 14 mi north of the town’s edge. It covers 806 km² and was designated in 1964.
What is the nearest beach to Croston?
Taylor's Bank, 16 mi from the edge of the town, then Crosby Beach (16 mi). Croston itself is inland.
How many people in Croston live near a park?
78% 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 Croston?
May to August: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Croston good for walking?
Paths are thinner than most towns: 2.3 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 39% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 6% (0.6 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 Croston’s overall grade.
Where Croston’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.