Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 8,390 in Norfolk, East of England.
Fakenham grades D overall against UK towns: better than 9% of UK towns, and #45 of 51 in Norfolk. Its strongest subject is walkability (A−): 22% of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport. Its weakest is schools (D−): primary results beat 1% of towns in England; secondary results beat 11% of towns in England. The median home sold for £253,750 in the last three years, 5.6 times what households in the North Norfolk council area earn in a year.
The 3 things Fakenham 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 Fakenham is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 94 buildings inside Fakenham’s built-up area, 1 of them Grade I, and 1 scheduled monument.
14% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
The archive holds 2 old photos and postcards going back to 1806 and a map from 1946.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Fakenham.
For Fakenham, that is above both Norfolk’s towns (24%) and England’s towns (18%). Young adults of 15 to 24 are 8.7% of the population. The median resident of Fakenham is 49.4 years old.
52% women, 48% men
About 93 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.
| Fakenham | Norfolk | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 15% | 16% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 8.7% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 22% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 25% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 29% | 24% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 24% | 21% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 7.3% | 6.4% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 18% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 21% | 26% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Norfolk and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Two of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fakenham Junior SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 257 | D |
| Fakenham AcademyLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 723 | C− |
Half the homes sold went for more than £254K, close to Norfolk’s towns (£280K) and below England’s towns (£308K).
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £330,000 | 146 |
| Semi-detached | £240,000 | 107 |
| Terraced | £195,000 | 80 |
| Flat or maisonette | £127,500 | 25 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 15% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Fakenham sits below both Norfolk’s towns (£50K) and England’s towns (£55K) on this measure. 3.4% of 16 to 64s claimed unemployment benefits in 2026.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Fakenham has 94 listed buildings inside its built-up area on Historic England’s list: 1 Grade I, 1 Grade II*. 14% of its homes were built before 1919.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
That puts Fakenham below both Norfolk’s towns (79%) and England’s towns (82%). The nearest A&E to Fakenham is The Queen Elizabeth Hospital, 17.9 miles away. These answers aren’t adjusted for age, so young towns look healthier; the Health Grade uses age-adjusted measures, including life expectancy and early deaths.
| Census 2021 | Fakenham | Norfolk | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 77% | 79% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 5.7% | 5.6% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 21% | 20% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL
On this, Fakenham is above both Norfolk’s towns (18.9) and England’s towns (22). Police recorded 589 crimes inside Fakenham’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 123 reports of anti-social behaviour. Violence and sexual offences were 49% of the crimes; the police category includes harassment and stalking.
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
94 listed buildings in Fakenham, 1 of them Grade I.
Church of St Peter and St Paul: Photo: John Salmon · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Red Lion Hotel: Photo: Philip Halling · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Corn Mill Offices and Store Building (Premises of Dewing and Kersley Limited: Photo: Jonathan Thacker · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Bridge over River Wensum: Photo: Lajmmoore · CC BY-SA 4.0
8 notable people were born in Fakenham.
Ryan Jarvis: https://www.flickr.com/photos/sophiethesax/, CC BY 2.0 · Rossi Jarvis: Skippo10, CC BY-SA 4.0
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fakenham | 8,390 | — | D | D | B− | C |
| North Elmham | 1,172 | 7.2 | — | C | A | B |
| Foulsham | 1,025 | 7.4 | — | A | B+ | B |
| Melton Constable | 1,176 | 7.8 | — | C+ | A− | B |
| Wells-next-the-Sea | 2,151 | 8.3 | — | D− | C+ | A− |
| Briston | 1,983 | 8.6 | — | D | A− | B |
| Swanton Morley | 2,175 | 9.9 | — | C+ | A− | B |
| Holt | 4,014 | 11 | D | D− | C | B |
North Elmham, Foulsham, Melton Constable, Wells-next-the-Sea, Briston and Swanton Morley have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 4.6 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I building is Church of St Peter and St Paul. It also has 1 scheduled monument.
Band D council tax in Fakenham is £2,674 for 2026–27, more than in 94% of UK towns (council, county, police and fire, plus the parish or town council). Your own bill depends on your home’s band; check it on GOV.UK.
Town in Norfolk, England
Fakenham is a built-up area of 8,390 people, in the North 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.