Great Bowden’s story
54 listed buildings, 1 of them Grade I
Historic England lists them inside Great Bowden’s built-up area.
19% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →
Great BowdenLeicestershire
Some 1,510 people live in this village, in Leicestershire, East Midlands.
7 places within 12 milesMap →
The Old Rectory · Photo: Simon Burchell · CC BY-SA 4.0
Population
1,510
Census 2021 · Harborough council
Median home
£485K
71 sales in 3 years
Median age
43.9
22% are 65+ · Leicestershire 17%
Degree level
49%
of residents 16+ · England 34%
Walk, cycle, bus
17%
of commuters · England 27%
Is Great Bowden a good place to live?
Great Bowden’s strongest subject is jobs & income (A+): mean household income £64,121; 1% of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits. Buying the median home, at £485,000, takes 7.8 years of household income in the Harborough council area. Add schools to its strengths — primary results beat 74% of towns in England; secondary results beat 92% of towns in England. Hazard risk is lower than in most UK towns (A).
Figures: income, ONS · claimants, DWP · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · flood risk, Environment Agency. Great Bowden has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
What makes Great Bowden stand out
The 3 things Great Bowden does most differently from other towns.
Listed buildings per 10,000 residents
History
1 Grade I, including Church of St Peter and St Paul; 14.7 times the typical UK town for its size
Historic England’s list, October 2026.
Median sale, £ thousands
Housing
1.8 times the typical UK town’s £277K
Standard sales, September 2023 to August 2026.
Claimant rate, against UK towns
Work
of 16 to 64s in 2026: fewer than in 97% of UK towns
DWP claimant count, January to August 2026.
How Great Bowden grades
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Great Bowden is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
Great Bowden has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Jobs & incomeIncomes and work are among the strongest comparedA+Open →SchoolsPrimary results beat 74% of towns in England; secondary results beat 92% of towns in EnglandAOpen →Hazard risk0% of homes at high or medium risk of flooding from rivers or the seaAOpen →HealthNear the top of the towns comparedA−Open →SafetyBased on crimes reported per residentB+Open →Cost of livingRent £973 a monthB+Open →Walkability17% of commuters walk, cycle or take public transportB+Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
HistoryUnusually rich in historyAOpen →Outdoors100% live within 400 m of a park; 6.1 ha of public green space per 1,000 residentsB+Open →Civic life4.6 local charities per 1,000 residents; 0% live within 1 km of a libraryB+Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Great Bowden.
SchoolsA
Great Bowden’s schools outperform 88% of towns in England on results
Key Stage 2 results at the 7 primary schools within 3 km: 66% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). The town has one school, shown below. Attainment 8 at the 2 secondary schools within 3 km averages 53.7, and nearly two thirds of pupils get grade 5 or above in English and maths.
ASchool Grade
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Great Bowden Academy, A Church of England Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 137 | B+ |
Department for Education · GIAS, Key Stage 2 and GCSE resultsThe Schools page →
History
Great Bowden is rich in listed buildings: 358 per 10,000 residents, more than Leicestershire’s towns or England’s towns
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Homes from before 1919 make up nearly a fifth of the total, above both Leicestershire’s towns (13%) and England’s towns (16%). Great Bowden’s listed buildings include the Church of St Peter and St Paul, Grade I. Historic England’s list names 54 listed buildings locally: 1 Grade I, 1 Grade II*.
54listed buildingsAHistory Grade
Listed buildings by grade · Historic England
Grade I1
Grade II*1
Grade II52
Among them · Grade I
- Church of St Peter and St Paul Grade I
0
scheduled monuments
0
registered parks and gardens
19%
of homes built before 1919 · typical UK town 15%
358
listed buildings per 10,000 residents · typical UK town 24
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Health
89% of people in Great Bowden say their health is good or very good, more than in Leicestershire’s towns or across England’s towns
Life expectancy here is 86.1 for women and 80.5 for men (2019–23). Of the 77 towns in Leicestershire, Great Bowden has the smallest share in bad or very bad health: 2.1%; what’s more, just over one in ten residents have a disability, lower than both Leicestershire’s towns (16%) and England’s towns (17%). There is no GP practice locally: the nearest is 1.3 miles off.
89%good or very good healthA−Health Grade
General health, self-reported
Good or very good 89%Fair 9%Bad or very bad 2%
| Census 2021 | Great Bowden | Leicestershire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 89% | 83% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 2.1% | 4.7% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 11% | 16% | 17% |
80.5
life expectancy at birth, men (2019–23)
86.1
life expectancy at birth, women
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · No age adjustment applies to these census answers, which flatter younger towns; the Health Grade’s measures, life expectancy and early deaths among them, do allow for age.
Safety
Violence is recorded less often in Great Bowden than in Leicestershire’s towns or across England’s towns: 13.9 per 1,000 residents a year
Violence and sexual offences made up just over two fifths of the total. Police figures for Great Bowden’s built-up area: 45 crimes and 8 anti-social behaviour reports in the 12 months to August 2026. There were 4.4 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), lower than both Leicestershire’s towns (6.9) and England’s towns (7.8).
13.9violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a yearB+Safety Grade
Compared with UK towns its sizeLess crime per resident than 56% of the 1,541 UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people: about the middle for its size. Context only, not part of the grade.
Reports by type · Sep 2025 to Aug 2026
Violence & sexual19
Damage & arson8
Public order5
Other theft4
Drugs3
Vehicle crime3
Burglary2
Weapons1
Anti-social8
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.
13.9
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
9.5
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
4.4
anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 (not graded)
45
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.
HousingCost of living grade B+
Most households in Great Bowden own their home: 77%, more than in Leicestershire’s towns or across England’s towns
11% rent privately, lower than both Leicestershire’s towns (19%) and England’s towns (21%). Social renters account for 10% of households. Behind the median of £485,000: 71 standard sales inside Great Bowden’s built-up area, September 2023 to August 2026.
£485Kmedian sale
Median sale price · Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
Great Bowden£485K
Typical UK town£277K
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £599,995 | 39 |
| Semi-detached | £341,000 | 23 |
| Terraced | £325,000 | 9 |
77%
of households own their home · England 61%
11%
rent privately · England 21%
£973
average private rent a month, Harborough council area
£2,396
council tax, Band D, 2026–27
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Work & commuteJobs & income grade A+
Under 5 km to work: 32% in Great Bowden, fewer than in Leicestershire’s towns or England’s towns
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 46% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Working from home was the norm for 46% of workers at the census. 82% of commuters drove, higher than both Leicestershire’s towns (77%) and England’s towns (70%). The 2026 claimant rate among 16 to 64s was 1%.
17%walk, cycle or ride
How commuters got to work · March 2021
Driving82%
On foot14%
Train2%
Bicycle1%
32%
of commuters travel under 5 km · England 45%
46%
worked mainly from home in March 2021
£64K
mean household income, before tax
1%
of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits (2026)
B+
Walkability: more walkable than 68% of UK towns
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Who lives here
Degrees are more common in Great Bowden than in Leicestershire’s towns or across England’s towns: 49% of adults
The 15-to-24 age group: 7.2%, lower than both Leicestershire’s towns (14%) and England’s towns (12%). Under-15s account for 19% of the population. Line up the people of Great Bowden by age and the one in the middle is 43.9. Just over a fifth of residents are 65 or over.
43.9median age
Great BowdenLeicestershireEngland
Ages · share of residents
22%
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications11%
Apprenticeship5%
A levels or similar15%
Degree level49%
Women and men · all residents
53% women, 47% men
About 89 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Great Bowden | Leicestershire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 19% | 18% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 7.2% | 14% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 25% | 26% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 27% | 25% | 25% |
| 65+ | 22% | 17% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 11% | 20% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 5% | 5.5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 15% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 49% | 30% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Leicestershire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Nearby attractions
All attractions →Harborough Museum and 3 more in and around Great Bowden
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Great Bowden. Best known first.
MuseumHarborough Museum1.3 km outside town, to the southwestAttractionAttractionFoxton Locks4.4 km outside town, to the westMuseumMuseumFoxton Inclined Plane Trust Museum4.4 km outside town, to the westTheme parkTheme parkMini Mischiefs800 m outside town, to the southPlaces: © OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata
Photos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (1)
- Harborough Museum: Alan Murray-Rust, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Great Bowden
14pages on Great Bowden
The big questions
SafetyB+13.9 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026Cost of livingB+Median home £485K · rent £973 a monthHousing15 sold in 12 months · busiest street Berry CloseSchoolsA1 state schoolHealthA−Life expectancy 80.5 (men), 86.1 (women)Work & commuteA+55% of working residents work in the townFlood & hazardsA0% of homes at high or medium flood risk
Out and about
Great Bowden’s neighbours
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
Market HarboroughDesboroughKibworth Beauchamp and Kibworth HarcourtCottingham and MiddletonRothwellFleckneyHusbands BosworthGreat Bowden
How the neighbours grade
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Great Bowden | 1,510 | — | — | B+ | B+ | A− |
| Market Harborough | 24,162 | 1.2 | A | A | C+ | B− |
| Desborough | 11,899 | 4.9 | C+ | B− | C+ | C+ |
| Kibworth Beauchamp and Kibworth Harcourt | 7,329 | 5.2 | A+ | A | A− | A− |
| Cottingham and Middleton | 1,365 | 6.2 | — | C− | A− | C+ |
| Rothwell | 8,623 | 6.5 | C− | B− | C− | C+ |
| Fleckney | 4,926 | 6.7 | A | A+ | B− | A− |
| Husbands Bosworth | 1,218 | 6.8 | — | A | A− | A− |
Cottingham and Middleton and Husbands Bosworth have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Great Bowden
How many listed buildings are there in Great Bowden?
That is 14.7 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I building is Church of St Peter and St Paul.
Are schools in Great Bowden good?
Secondary schools stand out: GCSE results beat 92% of towns in England. Primary results beat 74%. One state school is inside the town; places are handled by Leicestershire council.
Is Great Bowden expensive to live in?
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £485,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: terraced houses £325,000, semi-detached houses £341,000 and detached houses £599,995. Household incomes are higher than in 78% of UK towns, so cost of living still grades B+.
About Great Bowden
Village in Leicestershire, England
Great Bowden is a built-up area of 1,510 people, in the Harborough 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
- 1,510 (Census 2021)
- Council
- Harborough
- County
- Leicestershire
- Region
- East Midlands
- Area
- 0.2 sq mi (0.6 km²)
- ONS code
- E63002877
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.