Higham’s story
8 listed buildings
Historic England lists them inside Higham’s built-up area.
51% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →
HighamLancashire
The village has 845 residents and lies in Lancashire, North West.
7 places within 12 milesMap →
Photo: Alexander P Kapp · CC BY-SA 2.0
Population
845
Census 2021 · Pendle council
Median home
£234K
38 sales in 3 years
Median age
51.8
28% are 65+ · Lancashire 20%
Degree level
44%
of residents 16+ · England 34%
Walk, cycle, bus
4%
of commuters · England 27%
Is Higham a good place to live?
With fewer than 1,000 residents, Higham is too small for fair grades, though the figures on this page are real. 4% of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport. 51% of its homes date from before 1919. 28% of residents are 65 or over.
What makes Higham stand out
The 3 things Higham does most differently from other towns.
Walk, cycle or public transport
Getting around
4% leave the car
of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport (England’s towns 27%)
Homes built before 1919
History
Against 15% in the typical UK town
Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period.
Residents 65 and over
Who lives here
28% are 65 or over
Against 18% across England’s towns
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Higham.
Who lives here
Children make up only 13% of Higham, fewer than in both Lancashire’s towns and England’s towns
Graduates make up 44% of adults. The 15-to-24 age group: 8.2%, below both Lancashire’s towns (12%) and England’s towns (12%). Line up the people of Higham by age and the one in the middle is 51.8.
51.8median age
HighamLancashireEngland
Ages · share of residents
28%
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications10%
Apprenticeship8%
A levels or similar16%
Degree level44%
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About 96 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Higham | Lancashire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 13% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 8.2% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 19% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 32% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 28% | 20% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 10% | 20% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 8.4% | 6.3% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 16% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 44% | 29% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Lancashire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Schools
The schools around Higham
55% of pupils at the 8 primary schools within 3 km met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). Below is its only school. Attainment 8 at the 2 secondary schools within 3 km averages 38.3, and just over a third of pupils get grade 5 or above in English and maths.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Higham St John's Church of England Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 120 | C |
Department for Education · GIAS, Key Stage 2 and GCSE resultsThe Schools page →
Work & commute
Commuters in Higham travel far: only 25% go under 5 km, fewer than in both Lancashire’s towns and England’s towns
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 30% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Household income came to £50K a year before tax, close to Lancashire’s towns (£48K) and below England’s towns (£55K). The car carried 93% of commuters at the census. 1.4% of 16 to 64s claimed unemployment benefits in 2026.
4%walk, cycle or ride
How commuters got to work · March 2021
Driving93%
Bus2%
On foot2%
Bicycle1%
25%
of commuters travel under 5 km · England 45%
30%
worked mainly from home in March 2021
£50K
mean household income, before tax
1.4%
of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits (2026)
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Housing
More households own their home in Higham than in Lancashire’s towns or across England’s towns: 80%
5% live in social housing, below both Lancashire’s towns (13%) and England’s towns (18%). The private rented sector houses 15% of households. Private rents average £670 a month across the Pendle council area.
£234Kmedian sale
Median sale price · Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
Higham£234K
Typical UK town£277K
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £425,000 | 15 |
| Terraced | £196,000 | 21 |
80%
of households own their home · England 61%
15%
rent privately · England 21%
£670
average private rent a month, Pendle council area
£2,573
council tax, Band D, 2026–27
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Safety
Violence is recorded less often in Higham than in Lancashire’s towns or across England’s towns: 9.1 per 1,000 residents a year
In the 12 months to August 2026, police logged 13 crimes and 3 reports of anti-social behaviour inside Higham’s built-up area. Burglary and damage add up to 5.1 per 1,000 residents each year. There were 6.7 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), below both Lancashire’s towns (17.3) and England’s towns (7.8). Violence and sexual offences accounted for 85% of recorded crime.
9.1violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a year
Reports by type · Sep 2025 to Aug 2026
Violence & sexual11
Public order1
Burglary1
Shoplifting0
Damage & arson0
Other theft0
Drugs0
Vehicle crime0
Anti-social3
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.
9.1
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
5.1
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
6.7
anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 (not graded)
13
crimes recorded in the 12 months to August 2026
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.
Health
85% of people in Higham say their health is good or very good, more than in both Lancashire’s towns and England’s towns
16% of residents have a disability, below both Lancashire’s towns (20%) and England’s towns (17%). There is no GP practice in Higham: the nearest is 1.9 miles off. The nearest A&E to Higham is Royal Blackburn Hospital, 9.3 miles away.
85%good or very good health
General health, self-reported
Good or very good 85%Fair 11%Bad or very bad 5%
| Census 2021 | Higham | Lancashire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 85% | 80% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 4.6% | 6.3% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 16% | 20% | 17% |
83
life expectancy at birth, men (2019–23)
85.2
life expectancy at birth, women
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Read these answers with age in mind: they aren’t adjusted, so younger places do better. The Health Grade uses age-adjusted measures, life expectancy and early deaths among them.
History
Higham’s listed buildings: 8, all Grade II
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Listed buildings per head: 95 for every 10,000 residents of Higham. Of the town’s land, 16% lies in conservation areas, above Lancashire’s towns (2%) and England’s towns (7%) alike.
8listed buildings
Listed buildings by grade · Historic England
Grade I0
Grade II*0
Grade II8
0
scheduled monuments
0
registered parks and gardens
51%
of homes built before 1919 · typical UK town 15%
95
listed buildings per 10,000 residents · typical UK town 24
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Higham
14pages on Higham
The big questions
Safety9.1 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026Cost of livingMedian home £234K · rent £670 a monthHousing14 sold in 12 months · busiest street Higham Hall RoadSchools1 state schoolHealthLife expectancy 83 (men), 85.2 (women)Work & commute43% of working residents work in the townFlood & hazards0% of homes at high or medium flood risk
Higham’s neighbours
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
FenceSabdenPadihamBrierfieldReadBurnleyHaptonHigham
How the neighbours grade
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Higham | 845 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Fence | 1,585 | 1.6 | — | C− | A | A− |
| Sabden | 1,582 | 1.9 | — | A | B− | A− |
| Padiham | 10,121 | 2 | D | A− | D− | D |
| Brierfield | 10,723 | 2.6 | D | B | D | C− |
| Read | 2,049 | 2.7 | — | A− | A | A |
| Burnley | 78,266 | 2.7 | D | B+ | D− | D |
| Hapton | 2,240 | 3.2 | — | B | B− | C+ |
Fence, Sabden, Read and Hapton have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Higham
How many listed buildings are there in Higham?
That is 3.9 times the typical UK town for its size.
How much is council tax in Higham?
Band D council tax in Higham is £2,573 for 2026–27, more than in 81% of UK towns (council, county, police and fire, plus the parish or town council). Your own bill depends on your home’s band; check it on GOV.UK.
About Higham
Village in Lancashire, England
Higham is a built-up area of 845 people, in the Pendle 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
- Population
- 845 (Census 2021)
- Council
- Pendle
- County
- Lancashire
- Region
- North West
- Area
- 0.1 sq mi (0.3 km²)
- ONS code
- E63000766
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.