Halton’s biggest
Lune Riverside Park
Park or garden · 240 m outside town
16 ha (39 acres)1.8 km of path
25 minto walk all 1.8 km of path
22 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
0.8 mi south-westfrom the centre
Directionsto the nearest entrance
The Boat House · Photo: BarriePrice100 · CC BY-SA 4.0B−Outdoors Grade
Outdoors in Halton · parks, paths & countryside
Almost everyone in Halton lives within a 5-minute walk of a park
The Forest Of Bowland National Landscape begins 0.1 mi from the town’s edge. Parks and playing fields in Halton add up to 0.9 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. Footpaths add up to 14 km in the town and the kilometre around it, 1.7 for every square kilometre. Halton grades B− for the outdoors: #43 of 65 in Lancashire. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Green space
0.9 ha
per 1,000 residents
Typical UK town 2.1
Near a park
100%
of residents within 400 m
Typical UK town 83%
Footpaths
14 km
1.7 km per km², town + 1 km
Typical UK town 3.0 per km²
Protected landscape
35%
of the land within 5 km
Nearest: Forest Of Bowland National Landscape
Character
What kind of outdoors town is Halton?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
A park on every doorstep100% of residents live within 400 m of a park or playing field.Protected countryside35% of the land within 5 km is Forest Of Bowland National Landscape.Less park per person0.9 ha of parks and playing fields per 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1.
Halton’s strongest suit is parks close to every home, followed by protected countryside on the doorstep. Where it falls short is park space per person.
Outdoors grade
Halton grades B− for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Halton, 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 48% of UK towns#43 of 65 in Lancashire · 24th of 60 UK towns its size
Public green space0.9 haper 1,000 residents: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces
11out of
100
100
A park within a walk100%of residents within 400 m (a 5-minute walk)
89out of
100
100
National Park or National Landscape35%of the land within 5 km
86out of
100
100
Footpaths1.7 kmper km², the town and 1 km around it
22out of
100
100
The sea0%of the area within 5 km · Inland: 4.6% sea, under the 5% that counts
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
Halton is 24th of 60 UK towns its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 2,500 to 2,800 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
Halton1.7
Towns its size2.3
Lancashire towns3.0
All UK towns3.0
Green space, ha per 1,000 residents
Halton0.9
Towns its size2.1
Lancashire towns2.0
All UK towns2.1
Residents within 400 m of a park
Halton100%
Towns its size83%
Lancashire towns85%
All UK towns83%
Against towns its size, Halton stands out most for homes near a park: none of the other 59 has more. It falls furthest behind on park space per resident, where 53 of the others do better.
Show as a table
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Petworth West Sussex | A+ | 29.6 | 100% | 4.1 | 93% |
| 2 | Ambleside Cumbria | A+ | 6.9 | 92% | 4.6 | 100% |
| 3 | Tywardreath Cornwall | A+ | 4.6 | 100% | 2.5 | 26% |
| 4 | Settle North Yorkshire | A+ | 6.4 | 100% | 3.6 | 73% |
| 5 | Downley Buckinghamshire | A+ | 9.5 | 76% | 7.6 | 71% |
| 6 | Hadston Northumberland | A+ | 5.8 | 100% | 2 | 1% |
| 7 | Yorkley and Whitecroft Gloucestershire | A | 3.3 | 74% | 6.4 | 1% |
| 8 | Hellingly East Sussex | A | 6.9 | 90% | 3.7 | 11% |
| 9 | Dolgellau Gwynedd | A | 3.6 | 100% | 1.9 | 100% |
| 10 | Darenth Kent | A− | 1.8 | 100% | 4.3 | 1% |
| 11 | Newington Kent | A− | 2.3 | 78% | 2.3 | 21% |
| 12 | Combe Martin Devon | A− | 1.8 | 88% | 1.5 | 37% |
| 13 | Newhey Greater Manchester | B+ | 2.4 | 100% | 3.9 | 0% |
| 14 | Avonmouth Bristol | B+ | 2.5 | 100% | 1.8 | 0% |
| 15 | Langold Nottinghamshire | B+ | 13 | 100% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 16 | Blofield Norfolk | B+ | 2.9 | 100% | 1.5 | 17% |
| 17 | Dipton County Durham | B | 3.2 | 87% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 18 | Farington Moss Lancashire | B | 5.9 | 93% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 19 | Prestbury Cheshire | B | 5.6 | 42% | 3.2 | 6% |
| 20 | Builth Wells Powys | B | 4.9 | 100% | 1.6 | 0% |
| 21 | Brynamman Dyfed | B | 1.7 | 100% | 1 | 51% |
| 22 | Mancetter and Witherley Warwickshire | B− | 3.1 | 88% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 23 | Cliffe Woods Kent | B− | 1.7 | 62% | 2.5 | 1% |
| 24 | Halton Lancashire | B− | 0.9 | 100% | 1.7 | 35% |
| 25 | Grimsargh Lancashire | B− | 2.6 | 67% | 2.8 | 2% |
| 26 | Pucklechurch Gloucestershire | C+ | 1.2 | 64% | 4.2 | 20% |
| 27 | Godstone Surrey | C+ | 1.7 | 52% | 3.7 | 18% |
| 28 | Shevington Moor Greater Manchester | C+ | 2.1 | 90% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 29 | Ashington West Sussex | C+ | 1.3 | 86% | 2.3 | 21% |
| 30 | Hurworth-on-Tees County Durham | C+ | 4.5 | 93% | 1.2 | 0% |
| 31 | Snettisham Norfolk | C+ | 1.1 | 73% | 1.3 | 32% |
| 32 | Endon Staffordshire | C+ | 3 | 89% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 33 | Little Dunmow Essex | C+ | 1.1 | 89% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 34 | Dunchurch Warwickshire | C+ | 7.8 | 68% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 35 | Bosham West Sussex | C+ | 1.2 | 48% | 1.4 | 58% |
| 36 | Catterick North Yorkshire | C | 3.6 | 89% | 0.7 | 0% |
| 37 | Watlington Norfolk | C | 2.3 | 100% | 0.6 | 0% |
| 38 | South Brent Devon | C | 1.5 | 79% | 0.8 | 64% |
| 39 | Smallfield Surrey | C | 1.6 | 70% | 2.4 | 1% |
| 40 | Marham Norfolk | C | 3.5 | 85% | 0.4 | 0% |
| 41 | Shelley West Yorkshire | C− | 1.2 | 81% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 42 | Wittering Cambridgeshire | C− | 3.1 | 83% | 0.6 | 0% |
| 43 | South Wonston Hampshire | C− | 1.6 | 42% | 2.6 | 7% |
| 44 | Wolston Warwickshire | C− | 1.6 | 89% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 45 | Higham Kent | C− | 0.5 | 0% | 1.8 | 18% |
| 46 | Codicote Hertfordshire | C− | 0.4 | 90% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 47 | Newick East Sussex | C− | 1.7 | 35% | 2.1 | 16% |
| 48 | Hardwick Cambridgeshire | C− | 1.5 | 82% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 49 | Costessey Norfolk | C− | 1.8 | 12% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 50 | West Clyst Devon | C− | 0.6 | 59% | 4.2 | 0% |
| 51 | Saughall Cheshire | D | 2.5 | 27% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 52 | Christleton and Waverton Cheshire | D | 2.4 | 55% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 53 | Tonna West Glamorgan | D | 2.1 | 36% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 54 | Willington Derbyshire | D | 1.8 | 67% | 2 | 0% |
| 55 | Brierley South Yorkshire | D | 0.7 | 82% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 56 | Keele Staffordshire | D | 1.1 | 0% | 3.6 | 0% |
| 57 | Watton at Stone Hertfordshire | D | 0.8 | 61% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 58 | St Martins Shropshire | D | 0.6 | 59% | 0.8 | 2% |
| 59 | Swineshead Lincolnshire | D− | 1.2 | 73% | 0.7 | 0% |
| 60 | Manea Cambridgeshire | D− | 1.3 | 63% | 1 | 0% |
The map
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Halton’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 Halton
The biggest is Lune Riverside Park, 16 ha (39 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
Close to home
How close Halton’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 (100%)Further (0%)
Halton100%
Towns its size83%
Lancashire towns85%
All UK towns83%
Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 8 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 332 residents.
National Parks & National Landscapes
Forest Of Bowland and Arnside & Silverdale both start about 3 miles from Halton
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
National Landscape
Forest Of Bowland
0.1 mi east806 km²since 196435% of the land within 5 km
Official site35% of the land within 5 km of Halton is National Park or National Landscape, more than 86% of UK towns. Lake District National Park covers 2,362 km² and has been a National Park since 1951.
Footpaths & waymarked walks
1 waymarked walk passes through or near Halton
14 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Halton and the kilometre around it, 1.7 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the town.
Regional
Lune Valley Ramble6.1 km
The regional route here is the Lune Valley Ramble.
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 Halton: 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 | 18 | 19 | 19 | 17 | 13 | 9 | 7 |
| Rain (mm) | 109 | 114 | 76 | 68 | 56 | 71 | 92 | 112 | 109 | 124 | 118 | 134 |
May is the driest month (56 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 19 °C). Winter days are short, about 7 hours of daylight in December, and 134 mm of rain falls in December, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 36 nights a year. The climate in Halton →
Things to do
2 viewpoints, 8 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.
2Viewpoints1Hills and peaks1Nature reserves8Playgroundsabout the same as towns its size1Campsites2Slipways
The nearest beaches
Halton is inland. These are the nearest named beaches, measured from the edge of the town.
Mallows Bay3.9 mi from Halton’s edge
DirectionsHalf Moon Bay5.9 mi from Halton’s edge
DirectionsTreasure Beach28 mi from Halton’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.
Up high. Halton Hill, at 107 m, is the highest named top within 2 km of Halton.
Every named place, with directions
Hills and peaks 1
Halton Hill107 m (351 ft) · 0.9 mi from town
DirectionsNature reserves 1
Off-River Spawning Unit0.1 ha · 0.8 mi from town
DirectionsCampsites 1
New Parkside Farm Camp Site0.2 mi from town
DirectionsSlipways 2
Plus 2 slipways 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.
CatonBolton-le-SandsLancasterCarnforthMorecambeWarton (Lancaster)Halton
ABCDOutdoors Grade
| Town | Outdoors | Green space, ha per 1,000 | Near a park | Protected within 5 km |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Halton | B− | 0.9 | 100% | 35% |
| Caton 1.8 mi | C+ | 1.2 | 72% | 67% |
| Bolton-le-Sands 2.0 mi | C+ | 1.1 | 58% | 23% |
| Lancaster 2.7 mi | A+ | 2.4 | 96% | 22% |
| Carnforth 3.3 mi | A− | 1.2 | 89% | 39% |
| Morecambe 4.0 mi | B− | 0.8 | 84% | 2% |
| Warton (Lancaster) 4.7 mi | B− | 0.3 | 32% | 43% |
Lancaster, 2.7 miles away, grades A+, the best next door: 96% of its residents live within 400 m of a park. Lancaster has at least twice Halton’s green space per resident.
Questions about the outdoors in Halton
What is the biggest park in Halton?
Lune Riverside Park, 16 ha (39 acres), with 1.8 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 Halton near a National Park?
Yes. Lake District National Park begins 8.7 mi north-west 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, 0.1 mi away.
What are the best walks near Halton?
1 waymarked walking route passes within 2 km of the town, including the Lune Valley Ramble.
What is the nearest beach to Halton?
Mallows Bay, 3.9 mi from the edge of the town, then Half Moon Bay (5.9 mi). Halton itself is inland.
How many people in Halton live near a park?
100% 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 Halton?
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Halton good for walking?
Paths are thinner than most towns: 1.7 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 22% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 11% (0.9 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 Halton’s overall grade.
Sources
Where Halton’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.