Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A large town of 24,039 in Leicestershire, East Midlands.
Oadby grades A− overall against UK towns: better than 83% of UK towns, and #13 of 50 in Leicestershire. Its strongest subject is schools (A+): primary results beat 99% of towns in England; secondary results beat 96% of towns in England. Its weakest is cost of living (C): median sale £340,000, 6.4 years of area income; rent £1,024 a month.
The 3 things Oadby 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 Oadby is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 19 buildings inside Oadby’s built-up area, 2 of them Grade II*.
5% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Oadby. Best known first.
GardenUniversity of Leicester Botanic Gardenin town
CathedralLeicester Cathedral3.4 km outside town, to the northwest
MuseumLeicester Museum and Art Gallery2.6 km outside town, to the northwest
CastleLeicester Castle3.5 km outside town, to the northwest
MuseumNational Space Centre4.8 km outside town, to the northwest
Abbey or prioryLeicester Abbey4.5 km outside town, to the northwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Oadby.
Oadby’s five primaries and three secondaries have 6,312 pupils between them. Brocks Hill Primary School’s results beat nearly every one of schools in England like it. Three of its 8 schools are below, each with the reason it’s listed. Key Stage 2 results at the town’s 5 primary schools: 83% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Launde Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 600 | A+ |
| Beauchamp CollegeLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 2,309 | A |
| Brocks Hill Primary SchoolTop results in townPrimary | Primary | 420 | A+ |
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Grade II* covers 2 of them. Before 1919: that is when 5% of homes were built. Conservation areas cover 12% of Oadby’s land, higher than both Leicestershire’s towns (6%) and England’s towns (7%).
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
At the census, 15% of people here had a disability, below Leicestershire’s towns (16%) and England’s towns (17%) alike. Poor health, by residents’ own account, affects 4% of the town. 4 GP practices serve the town; 67% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey.
| Census 2021 | Oadby | Leicestershire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 84% | 83% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 4% | 4.7% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 15% | 16% | 17% |
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.
17% rent privately, lower than both Leicestershire’s towns (19%) and England’s towns (21%). The £340,000 median rests on 808 standard sales inside the built-up area (September 2023 to August 2026). It is the 3rd most expensive of 50 towns of 2,500+ in Leicestershire.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £429,975 | 400 |
| Semi-detached | £299,975 | 304 |
| Terraced | £224,250 | 68 |
| Flat or maisonette | £122,750 | 36 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 34% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
The 2026 claimant rate among 16 to 64s was 2.6%. The car took 84% of commuters, higher than both Leicestershire’s towns (77%) and England’s towns (70%). Two in five 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
People aged 15 to 24 are 16% of the population. Typical age in Oadby: 40.9, the median. A fifth of residents are 65 or over, above Leicestershire’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (18%) alike.
51% women, 49% men
About 95 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Oadby | Leicestershire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 17% | 18% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 16% | 14% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 23% | 26% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 25% | 25% | 25% |
| 65+ | 20% | 17% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 15% | 20% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 3.7% | 5.5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 20% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 40% | 30% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Leicestershire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Town centres with shops, stations and nightlife record more crime per resident: police.uk counts crimes where they happen, not where victims live.
Police recorded 1,087 crimes inside Oadby’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 187 reports of anti-social behaviour. 46% of the crimes fell under violence and sexual offences. Burglary and damage came to 10.5 per 1,000 residents a year, lower than Leicestershire’s towns (11.9) yet higher than England’s towns (9.4).
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.
19 listed buildings in Oadby.
The Knoll with attached Stables: Photo: Tim Glover · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geograph · War Memorial: Photo: Peter Broster · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Hastings House: Photo: Roger Templeman · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geograph · The Nook: Photo: Jonathan Thacker · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geograph
4 notable people were born in Oadby.
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oadby | 24,039 | — | A− | C | B− | A− |
| Wigston | 34,728 | 2 | C | B | C | C |
| Great Glen | 4,062 | 2.3 | A+ | A | B+ | A |
| Leicester | 406,612 | 3.4 | D | D− | D | C− |
| Houghton on the Hill | 1,738 | 3.7 | — | A− | B | A |
| Countesthorpe | 7,674 | 4.2 | B+ | B | B | A |
| Fleckney | 4,926 | 4.5 | A | A+ | B− | A− |
| Blaby and Whetstone | 14,072 | 4.5 | B− | B+ | C+ | B |
Houghton on the Hill has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Among the strongest in England: GCSE results beat 96% of towns in England, and primary results beat 99% (Department for Education, Attainment 8 and Key Stage 2).
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £340,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £122,750, terraced houses £224,250, semi-detached houses £299,975 and detached houses £429,975.
Large town in Leicestershire, England
Oadby is a built-up area of 24,039 people, in the Oadby and Wigston 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.