Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Mortgage-free owners make up 58% of households. 5,804 people live in this town in Lancashire, North West.
A solid town with one catch. Its strongest subject is schools: primary results beat 98% of towns in England; secondary results beat 50% of towns in England. It is a safe place by the numbers: 17.9 violent and sexual offences and 6.1 home and vehicle crimes per 1,000 residents a year. The trade-off is cost of living — a typical home costs £260,000 and rent runs £743 a month. Put together, the subjects come to a B overall, better than three fifths of UK towns. In the ranking it comes #16 of 65 in Lancashire. Elsewhere it is close to typical: B− for health, B− for jobs & income and B for walkability.
Figures: crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · life expectancy and income, ONS · claimants, DWP · commuting, Census 2021.
The 3 things Garstang 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 Garstang is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 18 buildings inside Garstang’s built-up area, and 1 scheduled monument.
5% 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 Garstang.
Garstang has a median age of 58.2. 12% are under 15, below Lancashire’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (18%) alike. Those aged 15 to 24 account for 6.4% of residents.
52% women, 48% men
About 92 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
| Garstang | Lancashire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 12% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 6.4% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 16% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 26% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 39% | 20% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 21% | 20% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 7.8% | 6.3% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 15% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 31% | 29% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Lancashire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Between them, two primaries teach 459 pupils in Garstang. Of its 2 schools, one is shown below, with the reason. GCSE results at the one secondary school within 3 km: 47% of pupils get a strong pass (grade 5+) in English and maths, and the Attainment 8 average is 45.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Garstang St Thomas' Church of England Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 257 | A+ |
13% of households are private tenants. Social housing holds 7% of households, lower than both Lancashire’s towns (13%) and England’s towns (18%). Half of the 329 standard sales inside Garstang’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 went for more than £260,000.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £350,000 | 144 |
| Semi-detached | £236,250 | 100 |
| Terraced | £199,950 | 31 |
| Flat or maisonette | £162,500 | 54 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
The 12 months to August 2026 brought 224 recorded crimes inside Garstang’s built-up area, and 93 reports of anti-social behaviour. For its size, Garstang records less crime per resident than 79% of the 1,308 UK towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people. Anti-social behaviour, shown but not graded, came to 16.3 reports per 1,000, lower than Lancashire’s towns (17.3) yet higher than England’s towns (7.8). 48% of the crimes fell under violence and sexual offences.
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.
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
5% of homes date from before 1919. One scheduled monument lies in Garstang. Of the town’s land, 6% lies in conservation areas, above Lancashire’s towns (2%) but below England’s towns (7%).
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 24% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Jobs per working resident: 1.1. At the census, 16% went to work on foot, by bike or by public transport, below Lancashire’s towns (19%) and England’s towns (27%) alike. Add to that, 35% of commuters travelled under 5 km to work.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Disability touches nearly a quarter of Garstang’s population. The nearest A&E to Garstang is Royal Preston Hospital, 8.4 miles away. One GP practice serves the town; 90% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey.
| Census 2021 | Garstang | Lancashire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 77% | 80% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 6.4% | 6.3% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 23% | 20% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, 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 and early deaths.
18 listed buildings in Garstang.
Royal Oak Hotel: Photo: Dr Greg · CC BY-SA 3.0 · 2, Bridge Street: Photo: Peter James · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Arts Centre: Photo: Humphrey Bolton · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Market House: Photo: Philip Platt · CC BY-SA 2.0
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Garstang | 5,804 | — | B | D | B+ | B− |
| Bonds | 1,237 | 0.9 | — | D | A+ | B− |
| Catterall | 2,800 | 2.1 | B | C− | B− | B |
| Great Eccleston | 2,073 | 5.2 | — | D− | B+ | C+ |
| Pilling | 1,699 | 5.4 | — | D | A | C+ |
| Barton | 1,492 | 5.5 | — | D | B+ | B+ |
| Galgate | 2,085 | 6 | — | C | B+ | B |
| Elswick | 1,047 | 6.3 | — | D | A− | C+ |
Bonds, Great Eccleston, Pilling, Barton, Galgate and Elswick have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
Secondary results are closer to the middle, beating 50%. Garstang has 2 state schools; places are handled by Lancashire council.
Town in Lancashire, England
Garstang is a built-up area of 5,804 people, in the Wyre 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.