Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Population 515: a village in Norfolk, East of England.
Barford is below the 1,000 residents fair grades need, but every figure on this page is real. Nearly one in ten commuters walk, cycle or take public transport. It has 6 listed buildings, 0 of them Grade I. People aged 65 and over make up 31% of residents.
The 3 things Barford does most differently from other towns.
Historic England lists 6 buildings inside Barford’s built-up area, 1 of them Grade II*.
33% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Barford.
Among adults, 34% have a degree. People 65 and over make up 31% of the town, higher than both Norfolk’s towns (24%) and England’s towns (18%). Young adults of 15 to 24 are 9.3% of the population. Residents of Barford have a median age of 52.2.
50% women, 50% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Barford | Norfolk | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 14% | 16% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 9.3% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 16% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 29% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 31% | 24% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 17% | 21% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 4.4% | 6.4% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 18% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 34% | 26% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Norfolk and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
The one school in town appears below. 46% of pupils at the 2 primary schools within 3 km met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). Its one primary school teaches 87 pupils.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Barford Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 87 | C− |
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 45% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Households had £71K a year before tax, above both Norfolk’s towns (£50K) and England’s towns (£55K). The car carried 88% of commuters at the census. Of the commuters living in Barford, 3% work in the town itself. At the census, 45% of workers worked mainly from home.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Households that own their home make up 84%. 8% live in social housing, below Norfolk’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (18%) alike. Private rents average £981 a month across the South Norfolk council area.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £388,500 | 12 |
| Semi-detached | £278,500 | 7 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Homes saw 4.5 burglaries and acts of damage per 1,000 residents a year, below both Norfolk’s towns (6.1) and England’s towns (9.4). Police recorded 6 crimes inside Barford’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 2 reports of anti-social behaviour. Violence and sexual offences accounted for two thirds of recorded crime.
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.
Barford has no GP practice of its own; the nearest is 3.7 miles away. A fifth of residents have a disability, about level with Norfolk’s towns (20%) and above England’s towns (17%). The nearest A&E to Barford is Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, 4.1 miles away.
| Census 2021 | Barford | Norfolk | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 83% | 79% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 5.4% | 5.6% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 20% | 20% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Self-reported health favours young towns, since these answers ignore age; the Health Grade leans on age-adjusted measures such as life expectancy and early deaths.
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
For its size, Barford has 117 listed buildings per 10,000 residents, above both Norfolk’s towns (44) and England’s towns (39).
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barford | 515 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Easton | 1,436 | 2.4 | — | A− | C− | A− |
| Hethersett | 7,018 | 2.7 | A | B+ | B | B+ |
| Little Melton | 1,049 | 2.8 | — | C+ | A− | A |
| Wymondham | 16,334 | 3.4 | A | A− | C | B+ |
| Queen's Hills | 4,465 | 3.6 | A | A | A− | B− |
| Costessey | 2,608 | 4.4 | B+ | B+ | B+ | B− |
| Mattishall | 2,203 | 4.7 | — | C | A− | B+ |
Easton, Little Melton and Mattishall have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 4.8 times the typical UK town for its size. 33% of Barford’s homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £360,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: semi-detached houses £278,500 and detached houses £388,500.
Village in Norfolk, England
Barford is a built-up area of 515 people, in the South Norfolk 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.