Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
57% of households own their home with no mortgage. 4,685 residents make their home in this town in Lincolnshire, East Midlands.
Where it does best is schools — primary results beat nine in ten towns in England. Crime is low: police record 12.8 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, and 5.9 home and vehicle crimes. What holds it back is cost of living (D) — the median home sold for £319,975, 7.9 years of area income. Hazard risk is higher than most (D): 7% of homes face a high or medium risk of river or sea flooding. The overall grade comes out at B, #24 of 61 in Lincolnshire. Nationally, it does better than 64% of UK towns.
Figures: crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · flood risk, Environment Agency.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Woodhall Spa is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The 3 things Woodhall Spa does most differently from other towns.
Historic England lists 5 buildings inside Woodhall Spa’s built-up area.
19% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
The archive holds 1 old photo or postcard going back to 1944.
Explore the history →5 listed buildings in Woodhall Spa.
Old Station: Photo: Jonathan Thacker · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Petwood Hotel: Photo: Alex McGregor · CC BY-SA 2.0
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Woodhall Spa.
Degrees are held by 29% of adults, higher than Lincolnshire’s towns (25%) yet lower than England’s towns (34%). Under-15s account for just over a tenth of the population. Half of Woodhall Spa is older than 59.8, half younger. People aged 15 to 24 are 6.4% of the population.
53% women, 47% men
About 89 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.
| Woodhall Spa | Lincolnshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 11% | 16% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 6.4% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 14% | 23% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 27% | 27% | 25% |
| 65+ | 42% | 22% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 20% | 21% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 7.3% | 6.7% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 16% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 29% | 25% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Lincolnshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
St Andrew's CofE Primary School’s results beat nearly four in five schools in England like it. Its one school is below. At the 2 primary schools within 3 km, 71% of pupils reach the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| St Andrew's CofE Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 292 | A− |
13% rent privately, below Lincolnshire’s towns (20%) and England’s towns (21%) alike. Only one of the 64 towns in Lincolnshire costs more to buy into than Woodhall Spa, whose median sale is £319,975. Private rents average £709 a month across the East Lindsey council area.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £379,950 | 232 |
| Semi-detached | £209,950 | 73 |
| Terraced | £190,000 | 13 |
| Flat or maisonette | £205,625 | 30 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Violence and sexual offences were 65% of the crimes. A year of reports to August 2026 adds up to 137 offences in Woodhall Spa and 53 cases of nuisance behaviour. Among the 1,308 UK towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people, Woodhall Spa has less crime per resident than 91% of them.
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.
Homes from before 1919 make up 19% of the total. Conservation areas cover 16% of Woodhall Spa’s land, higher than both Lincolnshire’s towns (2%) and England’s towns (7%). The town has one registered historic park or garden.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 26% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
At the census, just over four in five commuters went by car. Work in town: nearly a fifth of resident commuters. There are 1 jobs in Woodhall Spa for each resident in work. Also worth knowing: households had £49K a year before tax, near Lincolnshire’s towns (£48K) and lower than England’s towns (£55K).
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
77% of Woodhall Spa’s residents described their health as good or very good at the census, below both Lincolnshire’s towns (79%) and England’s towns (82%). At the census, 6.7% of people here described their health as bad or very bad. 2 GP practices serve the town; 72% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey. The nearest A&E to Woodhall Spa is Pilgrim Hospital, 13.9 miles away.
| Census 2021 | Woodhall Spa | Lincolnshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 77% | 79% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 6.7% | 5.9% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 23% | 20% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · These shares come straight from the census, without allowing for age, and young towns benefit; the Health Grade instead weighs age-adjusted measures, including life expectancy and early deaths.
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Woodhall Spa. Best known first.
Historic house · National TrustTattershall Castle4.9 km outside town, to the south
Abbey or prioryKirkstead Abbey800 m outside town, to the southwestAbbey or prioryAbbey or prioryStixwould Priory2.7 km outside town, to the northwestRuinsRuins · National TrustStable ruins4.9 km outside town, to the southMuseumMuseumThorpe Camp3.3 km outside town, to the southeastPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Town in Lincolnshire, England
Woodhall Spa is a built-up area of 4,685 people, in the East Lindsey 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
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Woodhall Spa | 4,685 | — | B | D | A | C+ |
| Coningsby and Tattershall | 5,511 | 3.5 | C | B− | B− | C+ |
| Billinghay | 2,198 | 5.5 | — | A+ | A− | C− |
| Horncastle | 7,293 | 5.8 | C | C+ | C | C |
| Bardney | 2,069 | 6.1 | — | A | C+ | C+ |
| Metheringham | 3,524 | 7.8 | B | A | A− | C+ |
| Stickney | 1,108 | 10 | — | C− | C+ | C+ |
| Ruskington | 5,650 | 10 | B+ | A | B+ | B− |
Billinghay, Bardney and Stickney have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Primary results beat 90% of towns in England (Department for Education, Key Stage 2). One state school is inside the town; places are handled by Lincolnshire council.
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
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.
