Formby’s biggest
Holm Wood
Park or garden
0.8 ha (2 acres)
Centralin the middle of Formby
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Photo: Rept0n1x · CC BY-SA 3.0C+Outdoors Grade
Outdoors in Formby · parks, paths & countryside
Formby is on the coast, on the King Charles III England Coast Path
The sea makes up 38% of the area within 5 km. 63% of residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park or playing field. Parks and playing fields in Formby add up to 1.4 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. Formby grades C+ for the outdoors: #18 of 25 in Merseyside. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Green space
1.4 ha
per 1,000 residents
Typical UK town 2.1
Near a park
63%
of residents within 400 m
Typical UK town 83%
Footpaths
70 km
2.8 km per km², town + 1 km
Typical UK town 3.0 per km²
Protected landscape
0%
of the land within 5 km
Nearest: Bryniau Clwyd A Dyffryn Dyfrdwy/clwydian Range and Dee Valley National Landscape
The sea
38%
of the area within 5 km
A coastal town
Character
What kind of outdoors town is Formby?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
On the coast38% of the area within 5 km is sea; 11 beaches mapped.On a National TrailThe King Charles III England Coast Path passes through.Less park per person1.4 ha of parks and playing fields per 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1.
Formby’s strongest suit is the sea, followed by the King Charles III England Coast Path. Where it falls short is park space per person.
Outdoors grade
Formby grades C+ for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Formby, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
C+
Better than 36% of UK towns#18 of 25 in Merseyside · 52nd of 60 UK towns its size
Public green space1.4 haper 1,000 residents: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces
26out of
100
100
A park within a walk63%of residents within 400 m (a 5-minute walk)
23out of
100
100
National Park or National Landscape0%of the land within 5 km · None within 5 km
31out of
100
100
Footpaths2.8 kmper km², the town and 1 km around it
53out of
100
100
The sea38%of the area within 5 km
95out 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
Formby is 52nd of 60 UK towns its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 21,300 to 24,600 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
Formby2.8
Towns its size3.5
Merseyside towns2.6
All UK towns3.0
Green space, ha per 1,000 residents
Formby1.4
Towns its size2.3
Merseyside towns3.0
All UK towns2.1
Residents within 400 m of a park
Formby63%
Towns its size82%
Merseyside towns87%
All UK towns83%
Formby falls furthest behind on park space per resident, where 50 of the 59 others do better.
Show as a table
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lee-on-the-Solent Hampshire | A+ | 5.7 | 96% | 3.7 | 1% |
| 2 | Chapeltown and High Green South Yorkshire | A+ | 4.9 | 94% | 5.8 | 0% |
| 3 | Falmouth Cornwall | A | 1.3 | 96% | 3.5 | 41% |
| 4 | Reddish Greater Manchester | A | 6.7 | 100% | 5 | 0% |
| 5 | Caterham Surrey | A | 4.3 | 84% | 4.3 | 17% |
| 6 | Ash and Ash Vale Surrey | A | 4.3 | 72% | 5.4 | 20% |
| 7 | Seaham County Durham | A | 2.9 | 90% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 8 | Thornaby-on-Tees North Yorkshire | A | 5.4 | 92% | 5.2 | 0% |
| 9 | South Ockendon Essex | A− | 2.6 | 88% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 10 | Droylsden Greater Manchester | A− | 5.2 | 95% | 4.1 | 0% |
| 11 | Reigate Surrey | A− | 5.5 | 58% | 4.7 | 20% |
| 12 | Felixstowe Suffolk | A− | 2 | 88% | 1.9 | 28% |
| 13 | Heanor Derbyshire | A− | 4.2 | 92% | 4.4 | 0% |
| 14 | Gorleston-on-Sea Norfolk | A− | 1.4 | 81% | 3.2 | 17% |
| 15 | Hedge End Hampshire | A− | 5.5 | 87% | 4.4 | 0% |
| 16 | Coalville Leicestershire | A− | 3.7 | 94% | 4 | 0% |
| 17 | Kempston Bedfordshire | A− | 4.9 | 88% | 4 | 0% |
| 18 | Ryde Isle of Wight | A− | 1.7 | 76% | 2.6 | 19% |
| 19 | Shoreham-by-Sea West Sussex | A− | 1.6 | 74% | 2.7 | 35% |
| 20 | Whitefield Greater Manchester | A− | 4.7 | 87% | 4 | 0% |
| 21 | Ingleby Barwick North Yorkshire | B+ | 2.9 | 87% | 6.1 | 0% |
| 22 | Maldon Essex | B+ | 2.8 | 82% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 23 | Whitehaven Cumbria | B+ | 1.8 | 91% | 2 | 1% |
| 24 | Chesham Buckinghamshire | B+ | 1.9 | 73% | 4 | 64% |
| 25 | Crowborough East Sussex | B+ | 3.2 | 68% | 2.6 | 91% |
| 26 | Chafford Hundred and West Thurrock Essex | B+ | 2.2 | 97% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 27 | Oadby Leicestershire | B+ | 3.7 | 92% | 3.1 | 0% |
| 28 | Seaford East Sussex | B+ | 0.8 | 73% | 2.8 | 52% |
| 29 | Ossett West Yorkshire | B+ | 2.8 | 91% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 30 | Orrell Greater Manchester | B+ | 4.1 | 77% | 4.3 | 0% |
| 31 | Swinton Greater Manchester | B | 3.9 | 81% | 3.7 | 0% |
| 32 | Great Bookham and Fetcham Surrey | B | 1.7 | 68% | 4.4 | 33% |
| 33 | Biggleswade Bedfordshire | B | 1.6 | 95% | 5.2 | 0% |
| 34 | Westhoughton Greater Manchester | B | 1.9 | 100% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 35 | Old Trafford Greater Manchester | B | 2.5 | 79% | 4.5 | 0% |
| 36 | Sudbury Suffolk | B | 3.8 | 77% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 37 | Truro Cornwall | B | 1.6 | 84% | 2.9 | 21% |
| 38 | Hailsham East Sussex | B | 1.4 | 87% | 3.2 | 12% |
| 39 | Dorchester Dorset | B | 1.6 | 78% | 2.9 | 53% |
| 40 | Rawtenstall Lancashire | B | 1.9 | 83% | 6.4 | 0% |
| 41 | Royton Greater Manchester | B− | 2.8 | 71% | 4.9 | 0% |
| 42 | St Austell Cornwall | B− | 1.2 | 71% | 2.5 | 7% |
| 43 | Bishop Auckland County Durham | B− | 2.7 | 85% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 44 | Chester-le-Street County Durham | C+ | 1.7 | 75% | 6.2 | 0% |
| 45 | Hindley Greater Manchester | C+ | 2.5 | 77% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 46 | Newquay Cornwall | C+ | 1.6 | 75% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 47 | Ashford Surrey | C+ | 3.4 | 73% | 2.9 | 0% |
| 48 | Clifton Nottinghamshire | C+ | 1.5 | 76% | 6.2 | 0% |
| 49 | Sunbury-on-Thames Surrey | C+ | 2 | 79% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 50 | Kenilworth Warwickshire | C+ | 2.7 | 75% | 3 | 0% |
| 51 | Market Harborough Leicestershire | C+ | 1.9 | 94% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 52 | Formby Merseyside | C+ | 1.4 | 63% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 53 | Ascot Berkshire | C+ | 3.6 | 56% | 3 | 0% |
| 54 | Potters Bar Hertfordshire | C | 1.6 | 71% | 4.3 | 0% |
| 55 | Normanton West Yorkshire | C | 1.2 | 88% | 3.1 | 0% |
| 56 | Stowmarket Suffolk | C− | 0.8 | 50% | 5.5 | 0% |
| 57 | Retford Nottinghamshire | C− | 1.7 | 76% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 58 | Gainsborough Lincolnshire | C− | 1 | 96% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 59 | March Cambridgeshire | C− | 1.7 | 87% | 1.1 | 0% |
| 60 | Darlaston West Midlands | D | 1.3 | 78% | 1.9 | 0% |
The map
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Formby’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 Formby
The biggest is Holm Wood, 0.8 ha (2 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
King George V Playing Field
Playing field
1.1 ha (3 acres)
2 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
0.6 mi eastfrom the centre
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Close to home
6 in 10 Formby residents live within a 5-minute walk of 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 (63%)Further (37%)
Formby63%
Towns its size82%
Merseyside towns87%
All UK towns83%
About 9,000 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 10 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 2,289 residents.
National Parks & National Landscapes
The Bryniau Clwyd A Dyffryn Dyfrdwy/clwydian Range and Dee Valley National Landscape is 18 mi away
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
Bryniau Clwyd A Dyffryn Dyfrdwy/clwydian Range and Dee Valley
18 mi south-west389 km²since 2011
Footpaths & waymarked walks
Formby is on the King Charles III England Coast Path
70 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Formby and the kilometre around it, 2.8 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the town.
NationalRegionalLocal
King Charles III England Coast Path: Cleveleys to Liverpool12.0 km
Sefton Coastal Path7.3 km
Trans-Pennine Trail (Southport to Liverpool)5.7 km
Asparagus Trail, Formby3.0 km
Lost Resort Trail, Formby2.7 km
Devil's Hole Trail, Formby2.3 km
Kirklake Trail, Formby1.1 km
Wicks Lake Trail, Formby0.7 km
Boardwalk Trail, Formby0.5 km
Squirrel Walk, Formby0.5 km
The King Charles III England Coast Path, a national route, passes Formby. 2 regional routes pass through, including the Sefton Coastal Path and Trans-Pennine Trail (Southport to Liverpool).
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 Formby: May to August
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) | 8.0 | 9.7 | 11.7 | 13.9 | 15.9 | 17.0 | 16.5 | 14.8 | 12.6 | 10.4 | 8.5 | 7.5 |
| High (°C) | 8 | 8 | 10 | 13 | 16 | 18 | 20 | 20 | 18 | 14 | 11 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 71 | 59 | 54 | 49 | 53 | 59 | 63 | 75 | 81 | 93 | 85 | 95 |
April is the driest month (49 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 20 °C). Winter days are short, about 7 hours of daylight in December, and 95 mm of rain falls in December, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 23 nights a year. The climate in Formby →
The coast
The coast and beaches near Formby
38% of the area within 5 km of Formby is sea. 11 beaches are mapped within 5 km, 1 with a name.
Taylor's Bank1.5 mi from town
DirectionsThe King Charles III England Coast Path passes the town.
Sea: the area outside the ONS coastline (mean high water). Bathing water quality is published by the Environment Agency (England) and Natural Resources Wales; check it before swimming.
Things to do
10 playgrounds
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.
1Viewpoints2Hills and peaks3Nature reserves2.9× towns its size3Picnic sites3.1× towns its size10Playgrounds0.3× towns its size
Every named place, with directions
Viewpoints 1
Plus 1 viewpoint without a name on the map.
Hills and peaks 2
Raven Meols Hill0.1 mi from town
DirectionsLark Hill0.2 mi from town
DirectionsNature reserves 3
Freshfield Dune Heath Nature Reserve0.1 mi from town
DirectionsAinsdale Sands National Nature Reserve471 ha · 0.7 mi from town
DirectionsPlus 1 nature reserve without a name on the map.
Picnic sites 3
Plus 3 picnic sites without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 10
Plus 10 playgrounds 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.
HightownCrosbyLydiateMaghullSouthportLitherlandFormby
ABCDOutdoors Grade
Litherland, 6.5 miles away, grades A, the best next door: 94% of its residents live within 400 m of a park. Crosby and Litherland have at least twice Formby’s green space per resident. None of the neighbours has a protected landscape within 5 km either.
Questions about the outdoors in Formby
What is the biggest park in Formby?
Holm Wood, 0.8 ha (2 acres). King George V Playing Field (1.1 ha) is second. 2 named parks, gardens and playing fields are in the town or within 400 m of it.
Is Formby near a National Park?
The nearest protected landscape is the Bryniau Clwyd A Dyffryn Dyfrdwy/clwydian Range and Dee Valley National Landscape, 18 mi south-west of the town’s edge. It covers 389 km² and was designated in 2011.
What are the best walks near Formby?
10 waymarked walking routes pass within 2 km of the town, including the King Charles III England Coast Path: Cleveleys to Liverpool, Sefton Coastal Path and Trans-Pennine Trail (Southport to Liverpool).
How many people in Formby live near a park?
63% 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 Formby?
May to August: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Formby good for walking?
About average for paths: 2.8 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 53% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 26% (1.4 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 Formby’s overall grade.
Sources
Where Formby’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.