Photo: Ian Robertson · CC BY-SA 2.0Parks and walks in Blofield Heath
The Broads National Park begins 1.2 mi from the village’s edge. 9 km of footpaths run through the village and the kilometre around it, 0.9 for every square kilometre. A park or playing field is within a 5-minute walk for 43% of residents. Blofield Heath grades C− for the outdoors. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
What kind of outdoors village is Blofield Heath?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Blofield Heath’s strongest suit is the Broads National Park close by. Where it falls short is footpaths.
Blofield Heath grades C− for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Blofield Heath, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
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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.
Blofield Heath is 45th of 60 UK villages its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 1,400 to 1,500 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Against villages its size, Blofield Heath stands out most for park space per resident: only 23 of the other 59 have more. It falls furthest behind on path per km², where 55 of the others do better.
Show as a table
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Trull Somerset | A+ | 5.9 | 100% | 3.9 | 20% |
| 2 | Kingswood Gloucestershire | A | 2.1 | 100% | 3.7 | 45% |
| 3 | Tir-y-berth and Glan-y-nant Gwent | A | 22.1 | 100% | 4.3 | 0% |
| 4 | Whiteshill and Randwick Gloucestershire | A | 4.5 | 60% | 7 | 64% |
| 5 | New Houghton Derbyshire | A | 33.8 | 100% | 3.9 | 0% |
| 6 | Balcombe West Sussex | A | 2.9 | 100% | 2.2 | 90% |
| 7 | Jump South Yorkshire | A | 5.1 | 100% | 4.2 | 0% |
| 8 | Sedbergh Cumbria | A | 1.9 | 83% | 5 | 92% |
| 9 | St Day Cornwall | A | 3.2 | 100% | 4.7 | 0% |
| 10 | Chaldon Surrey | A− | 7.4 | 50% | 4.9 | 24% |
| 11 | Heath and Reach Bedfordshire | A− | 3.3 | 100% | 4.1 | 0% |
| 12 | Five Oak Green Kent | A− | 3 | 100% | 2 | 30% |
| 13 | Hallow Worcestershire | A− | 3.7 | 100% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 14 | Wigginton North Yorkshire | A− | 4.1 | 100% | 2.9 | 0% |
| 15 | Shotley Gate Suffolk | A− | 1 | 100% | 1.5 | 34% |
| 16 | Grundisburgh Suffolk | B+ | 2.2 | 100% | 2.6 | 3% |
| 17 | Princetown Devon | B+ | 1.4 | 100% | 2.3 | 100% |
| 18 | Stanwell Moor Surrey | B+ | 2.4 | 100% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 19 | Brookwood Surrey | B+ | 8.5 | 59% | 6.2 | 0% |
| 20 | Emley West Yorkshire | B+ | 2.6 | 100% | 3 | 0% |
| 21 | Cowling North Yorkshire | B | 1.3 | 100% | 6 | 0% |
| 22 | Wedmore Somerset | B | 4.7 | 60% | 3.1 | 1% |
| 23 | Kelloe County Durham | B | 5.6 | 42% | 6 | 0% |
| 24 | Woolmer Green Hertfordshire | B | 1.3 | 100% | 4.3 | 0% |
| 25 | Tye Green Essex | B | 2 | 100% | 3 | 0% |
| 26 | Calvert Buckinghamshire | B | 3.3 | 100% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 27 | Abertysswg Gwent | B | 2.5 | 85% | 3.6 | 0% |
| 28 | Little Hallingbury Essex | B− | 1 | 100% | 4.2 | 0% |
| 29 | Brigstock Northamptonshire | B− | 8.2 | 84% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 30 | Warkworth Northumberland | B− | 1.8 | 76% | 1.3 | 9% |
| 31 | Bishop Sutton Somerset | B− | 2.3 | 64% | 2.5 | 36% |
| 32 | Orsett Essex | B− | 4.4 | 100% | 0.9 | 0% |
| 33 | Ashton Keynes Wiltshire | C+ | 1.7 | 100% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 34 | Robertsbridge East Sussex | C+ | 2 | 38% | 2.7 | 100% |
| 35 | Pirton Hertfordshire | C+ | 2.4 | 57% | 2.3 | 24% |
| 36 | Gelligaer Gwent | C+ | 2.3 | 100% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 37 | Shortlanesend Cornwall | C+ | 1 | 100% | 1.7 | 2% |
| 38 | Benenden Kent | C | 2 | 57% | 1.7 | 83% |
| 39 | Barlaston Staffordshire | C | 2.7 | 80% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 40 | Ryhall Rutland | C | 1.9 | 100% | 1.2 | 0% |
| 41 | Slip End Bedfordshire | C | 1.9 | 22% | 2.3 | 28% |
| 42 | Stewkley Buckinghamshire | C | 4.2 | 74% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 43 | Hurley Warwickshire | C | 2.8 | 75% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 44 | Salhouse Norfolk | C− | 1.9 | 71% | 1 | 17% |
| 45 | Blofield Heath Norfolk | C− | 2.5 | 43% | 0.9 | 17% |
| 46 | Mid Lavant West Sussex | C− | 1.3 | 33% | 1.8 | 62% |
| 47 | Newton Flotman Norfolk | C− | 2.5 | 78% | 1.2 | 0% |
| 48 | Thorrington Essex | C− | 1.2 | 65% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 49 | Shipton Bellinger Hampshire | D | 1.5 | 79% | 1.8 | 0% |
| 50 | Ranskill Nottinghamshire | D | 0.4 | 100% | 0.5 | 0% |
| 51 | Keadby Lincolnshire | D | 1.7 | 84% | 0.6 | 0% |
| 52 | Flore Northamptonshire | D | 1.6 | 62% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 53 | Blakedown Worcestershire | D | 0.8 | 79% | 2 | 0% |
| 54 | Meon Vale Warwickshire | D | 0.4 | 50% | 1.4 | 19% |
| 55 | Byram North Yorkshire | D | 2.1 | 19% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 56 | Barford Warwickshire | D | 2.1 | 58% | 0.5 | 0% |
| 57 | Friday Bridge Cambridgeshire | D− | 1 | 79% | 0.3 | 0% |
| 58 | Markham Gwent | D− | 0.1 | 0% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 59 | Shadwell West Yorkshire | D− | 0.3 | 25% | 2 | 0% |
| 60 | Easton Norfolk | D− | 1 | 0% | 1.2 | 0% |
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Blofield Heath’s built-up area.
4 in 10 Blofield Heath 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).
About 800 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 11 playgrounds are mapped in and around the village, about one for every 130 residents.
The Broads National Park is 1.2 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.
17% of the land within 5 km of Blofield Heath is National Park or National Landscape, more than 75% of UK towns. The Broads National Park covers 302 km² and has been a National Park since 1989.
2 waymarked walks pass through or near Blofield Heath
9 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Blofield Heath and the kilometre around it, 0.9 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the village.
Waymarked walks are OpenStreetMap walking routes. Public rights of way are only as complete as the map in each area.
The best walking months in Blofield Heath: May to September
The village’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) | 8.1 | 9.8 | 11.7 | 13.9 | 15.7 | 16.8 | 16.4 | 14.7 | 12.6 | 10.5 | 8.6 | 7.7 |
| High (°C) | 7 | 8 | 10 | 14 | 17 | 20 | 22 | 22 | 19 | 15 | 11 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 51 | 45 | 42 | 36 | 42 | 55 | 51 | 58 | 54 | 67 | 65 | 59 |
April is the driest month (36 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 22 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 67 mm of rain falls in October, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 34 nights a year. The climate in Blofield Heath →
11 playgrounds and the nearest beaches
Mapped within 2 km of the village in OpenStreetMap, against the typical UK village its size per resident. Named places are listed with directions; unnamed ones are only counted.
The nearest beaches
Blofield Heath is inland. These are the nearest named beaches, measured from the edge of the village.
Check the water before you swim. The Environment Agency tests designated bathing waters from May to September and publishes a rating for each beach.
Every named place, with directions
Nature reserves 1
The outdoors in nearby towns
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 12 miles. Tap a town for its outdoors page.
Blofield, 1.1 miles away, grades B+, the best next door: every resident lives within 400 m of a park.
Questions about the outdoors in Blofield Heath
Is Blofield Heath near a National Park?
Yes. the Broads National Park begins 1.2 mi north-east of the village’s edge. It covers 302 km² and has been a National Park since 1989.
What are the best walks near Blofield Heath?
2 waymarked walking routes pass within 2 km of the village, including the Burlingham Wood Circular Walk and Blofield Heritage Walk.
What is the nearest beach to Blofield Heath?
Corton Sands, 16 mi from the edge of the village, then Corton Beach (16 mi). Blofield Heath itself is inland.
How many people in Blofield Heath live near a park?
43% 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 Blofield Heath?
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Blofield Heath good for walking?
Paths are thinner than most towns: 0.9 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 6% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 59% (2.5 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 Blofield Heath’s overall grade.
Where Blofield Heath’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.