Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Population 4,555: a town in Norfolk, East of England.
More weak spots than strong ones. The weak point is jobs & income (D): the mean household earns £44,879 a year. Elm and Emneth grades D overall, better than a tenth of UK towns, and ranks #42 of 51 in Norfolk. Few people walk, cycle or take the bus to work: on the way to work, 9% walk, cycle or take a bus or train. Homes sell for a median £265,000, about 5.6 years of what households in the King's Lynn and West Norfolk council area earn. Hazard risk is weaker too — 3.7% of homes at high or medium risk of flooding from rivers or the sea.
Figures: income, ONS · claimants, DWP · commuting, Census 2021 · flood risk, Environment Agency · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years.
The 3 things Elm and Emneth 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 Elm and Emneth is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 37 buildings inside Elm and Emneth’s built-up area, 2 of them Grade I.
17% 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 Elm and Emneth.
Young adults of 15 to 24 are 8.7% of residents, lower than both Norfolk’s towns (11%) and England’s towns (12%). The 65-and-over age group makes up 25% of residents. Typical age in Elm and Emneth: 47.8, the median. Children under 15 make up 17% of residents.
51% women, 49% men
About 96 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Elm and Emneth | Norfolk | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 17% | 16% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 8.7% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 21% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 28% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 25% | 24% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 27% | 21% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 6.4% | 6.4% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 16% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 19% | 26% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Norfolk and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Elm and Emneth’s two primaries have 452 pupils between them. Of its 3 schools, one is shown below, with the reason. At the town’s 2 primary schools, 63% of pupils reach the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elm CofE Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 243 | B |
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 18% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Jobs per working resident: 0.5. Working mainly from home: 18% of workers, below Norfolk’s towns (25%) and England’s towns (31%) alike. Among 16 to 64s, 3.2% claimed unemployment benefits in 2026. 6% of commuters who live in Elm and Emneth also work there.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
21% of residents in Elm and Emneth live with a disability. At the census, 78% of people in Elm and Emneth called their health good or very good, below both Norfolk’s towns (79%) and England’s towns (82%). The town has no GP practice of its own; the nearest is 1.9 miles away.
| Census 2021 | Elm and Emneth | Norfolk | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 78% | 79% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 7% | 5.6% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 21% | 20% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · The census answers take no account of age, so a young town looks healthier; the Health Grade relies on age-adjusted measures, life expectancy and early deaths among them.
Private renters make up 13% of households, below both Norfolk’s towns (19%) and England’s towns (21%). The social rented sector houses 12% of households. From September 2023 to August 2026, 175 homes sold inside Elm and Emneth’s built-up area at standard prices; the middle one went for £265,000.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £300,000 | 111 |
| Semi-detached | £198,500 | 52 |
| Terraced | £152,500 | 12 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Per 10,000 residents, Elm and Emneth counts 81 listed buildings. The town’s listed buildings include the Church of All Saints, Grade I. At the top of the list, 2 are Grade I and 1 Grade II*.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Reported offences in Elm and Emneth came to 178 over twelve months to August 2026; nuisance and anti-social incidents added 31. Violence and sexual offences accounted for 53% of recorded crime. Anti-social behaviour, shown but not graded, came to 6.7 reports per 1,000, between Norfolk’s towns (5) and England’s towns (7.8).
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.
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Elm and Emneth. Best known first.
Museum · National TrustPeckover House & Gardens2.2 km outside town, to the northwest
CastleThe Castle1.9 km outside town, to the northwest
MuseumWisbech & Fenland Museum1.9 km outside town, to the northwestMuseumMuseumOctavia Hill Birthplace Museum2.1 km outside town, to the northwestMuseumMuseumFenland And West Norfolk Aviation Museum4 km outside town, to the northPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
37 listed buildings in Elm and Emneth, 2 of them Grade I.
Church of All Saints: Photo: mym · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Emneth War Memorial: Photo: Adrian S Pye · CC BY-SA 2.0 · White House: Photo: Evelyn Simak · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Sportsman Public House: Photo: Evelyn Simak · CC BY-SA 2.0
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elm and Emneth | 4,555 | — | D | C | B− | C− |
| Friday Bridge | 1,411 | 1.7 | — | C+ | C+ | C− |
| Wisbech | 26,800 | 2 | D− | B− | D | D |
| Marshland St James | 1,025 | 2.9 | — | D | B+ | C− |
| Upwell and Outwell | 3,664 | 3 | D− | C | C | C |
| Leverington | 1,694 | 3.7 | — | C+ | C | C |
| Wisbech St Mary | 1,069 | 3.9 | — | C+ | C+ | C− |
| Gorefield | 1,070 | 5 | — | C+ | C+ | C |
Friday Bridge, Marshland St James, Leverington, Wisbech St Mary and Gorefield have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 3.3 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I buildings include Church of All Saints.
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
GCSE results trail 91% of towns in England, and primary results beat 60% (Department for Education, Attainment 8 and Key Stage 2). Elm and Emneth has 3 state schools; places are handled by Norfolk council.
Town in Norfolk, England
Elm and Emneth is a built-up area of 4,555 people, in the King's Lynn and West 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.