Hemsby’s biggest
The Edgar Tennant Recreation Ground
Playing field · 180 m outside town
3.6 ha (9 acres)
5 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
1.8 mi southfrom the centre
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Photo: Eirian Evans · CC BY-SA 2.0BOutdoors Grade
Outdoors in Hemsby · parks, paths & countryside
Hemsby is on the coast, on the Norfolk Coast Path
The sea makes up 45% of the area within 5 km. The Norfolk Coast National Landscape and the Broads National Park both begin about a mile from the town’s edge. 51% of residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park or playing field. Hemsby grades B for the outdoors: #19 of 51 in Norfolk. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Green space
2.5 ha
per 1,000 residents
Typical UK town 2.1
Near a park
51%
of residents within 400 m
Typical UK town 83%
Footpaths
34 km
1.4 km per km², town + 1 km
Typical UK town 3.0 per km²
Protected landscape
22%
of the land within 5 km
Nearest: Norfolk Coast National Landscape
The sea
45%
of the area within 5 km
A coastal town
Character
What kind of outdoors town is Hemsby?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
On the coast45% of the area within 5 km is sea; 4 beaches mapped.Countryside both waysNorfolk Coast starts 0.0 mi north, the Broads 0.0 mi west.On a National TrailThe Norfolk Coast Path passes through.Few mapped footpaths1.4 km of path per km²; the typical UK town has 3.0.
Hemsby’s strongest suit is the sea, followed by two protected landscapes close by. Where it falls short is footpaths.
Outdoors grade
Hemsby grades B for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Hemsby, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
B
Better than 56% of UK towns#19 of 51 in Norfolk · 29th of 60 UK towns its size
Public green space2.5 haper 1,000 residents: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces
58out of
100
100
A park within a walk51%of residents within 400 m (a 5-minute walk)
14out of
100
100
National Park or National Landscape22%of the land within 5 km
79out of
100
100
Footpaths1.4 kmper km², the town and 1 km around it
15out of
100
100
The sea45%of the area within 5 km
98out 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
Hemsby is 29th of 60 UK towns its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 5,500 to 6,000 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
Hemsby1.4
Towns its size2.6
Norfolk towns1.6
All UK towns3.0
Green space, ha per 1,000 residents
Hemsby2.5
Towns its size2.0
Norfolk towns1.8
All UK towns2.1
Residents within 400 m of a park
Hemsby51%
Towns its size82%
Norfolk towns73%
All UK towns83%
Against towns its size, Hemsby stands out most for park space per resident: only 20 of the other 59 have more. It falls furthest behind on path per km², where 52 of the others do better.
Show as a table
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Blackfield and Langley Hampshire | A+ | 28.1 | 95% | 4.2 | 48% |
| 2 | Ventnor Isle of Wight | A+ | 4.5 | 61% | 3.7 | 25% |
| 3 | Saltburn-by-the-Sea North Yorkshire | A | 4.7 | 92% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 4 | Deepcar South Yorkshire | A | 1.8 | 100% | 6.4 | 21% |
| 5 | Barrowford Lancashire | A | 4.2 | 82% | 5 | 22% |
| 6 | Wareham Dorset | A | 1.9 | 83% | 3.4 | 56% |
| 7 | Amble Northumberland | A | 2 | 100% | 2.2 | 5% |
| 8 | West Hallam Derbyshire | A | 4.8 | 100% | 4.3 | 0% |
| 9 | Haworth West Yorkshire | A | 4.1 | 100% | 4.3 | 0% |
| 10 | Millom Cumbria | A | 2 | 82% | 3.2 | 13% |
| 11 | Menston West Yorkshire | A | 2.4 | 90% | 4.1 | 18% |
| 12 | Carnforth Lancashire | A− | 1.2 | 89% | 3 | 39% |
| 13 | Barnard Castle County Durham | A− | 2.2 | 100% | 3.4 | 1% |
| 14 | Nailsworth Gloucestershire | A− | 1.3 | 86% | 5.9 | 88% |
| 15 | Botley Hampshire | A− | 14.6 | 70% | 3.6 | 2% |
| 16 | East Horsley Surrey | A− | 3.5 | 55% | 4.5 | 33% |
| 17 | Blaenavon Gwent | A− | 1.8 | 100% | 2.3 | 39% |
| 18 | Henfield West Sussex | A− | 3.8 | 51% | 4.4 | 17% |
| 19 | Kingsbridge Devon | B+ | 1.5 | 91% | 1.6 | 67% |
| 20 | Marchwood Hampshire | B+ | 2 | 87% | 1.3 | 38% |
| 21 | Creswell Derbyshire | B+ | 2.7 | 100% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 22 | Moor Park Hertfordshire | B+ | 4.5 | 46% | 4.5 | 1% |
| 23 | Thrybergh and Dalton South Yorkshire | B+ | 2.6 | 95% | 4 | 0% |
| 24 | Willington County Durham | B+ | 4.7 | 95% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 25 | Garstang Lancashire | B | 2.4 | 89% | 2.3 | 15% |
| 26 | East Tilbury Essex | B | 2.3 | 92% | 2 | 0% |
| 27 | Shipston-on-Stour Warwickshire | B | 2.3 | 94% | 1.6 | 20% |
| 28 | Brixworth Northamptonshire | B | 3.8 | 94% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 29 | Hemsby Norfolk | B | 2.5 | 51% | 1.4 | 22% |
| 30 | Bidford-on-Avon Warwickshire | B | 3.4 | 100% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 31 | Cheddar Somerset | B− | 2.3 | 41% | 3 | 56% |
| 32 | Thirsk North Yorkshire | B− | 1.8 | 100% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 33 | Haddenham Buckinghamshire | B− | 3.1 | 86% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 34 | Hullbridge Essex | C+ | 5.7 | 59% | 3 | 0% |
| 35 | Aylesham Kent | C+ | 0.3 | 76% | 3.4 | 33% |
| 36 | Broseley Shropshire | C+ | 1.2 | 74% | 3.4 | 8% |
| 37 | Quorndon Leicestershire | C+ | 2.7 | 81% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 38 | Rainford Merseyside | C+ | 2.3 | 100% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 39 | Crawley Down West Sussex | C+ | 1.2 | 80% | 2.2 | 40% |
| 40 | Pontyclun Mid Glamorgan | C | 2.4 | 79% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 41 | Ruthin Clwyd | C | 2.7 | 51% | 1.5 | 31% |
| 42 | Egremont Cumbria | C | 1.1 | 63% | 1.8 | 11% |
| 43 | Wadebridge Cornwall | C | 1.8 | 74% | 1.8 | 17% |
| 44 | Bracebridge Heath Lincolnshire | C | 1.1 | 81% | 3.7 | 0% |
| 45 | Four Marks Hampshire | C | 0.9 | 46% | 3 | 31% |
| 46 | Durrington Wiltshire | C | 1.1 | 90% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 47 | Undy and Magor Gwent | C | 0.9 | 86% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 48 | Red Lodge Suffolk | C | 1.5 | 100% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 49 | Ramsey Cambridgeshire | C | 2.5 | 72% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 50 | Pembury Kent | C− | 1.1 | 45% | 2 | 58% |
| 51 | Abertridwr and Senghenydd Gwent | C− | 1.8 | 87% | 1 | 0% |
| 52 | Purfleet-on-Thames Essex | C− | 0.9 | 64% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 53 | Cuddington Cheshire | C− | 1.5 | 66% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 54 | Takeley and Little Canfield Essex | D | 1 | 45% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 55 | Withernsea East Riding of Yorkshire | D | 0.9 | 60% | 1.1 | 0% |
| 56 | Brigg Lincolnshire | D | 1.7 | 65% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 57 | Ruskington Lincolnshire | D | 1.3 | 70% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 58 | Bulkington Warwickshire | D | 0.9 | 76% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 59 | Sawtry Cambridgeshire | D | 1.3 | 40% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 60 | Kirton Lincolnshire | D− | 0.6 | 58% | 0.5 | 0% |
The map
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Hemsby’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 Hemsby
The biggest is The Edgar Tennant Recreation Ground, 3.6 ha (9 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
Close to home
5 in 10 Hemsby 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 (51%)Further (49%)
Hemsby51%
Towns its size82%
Norfolk towns73%
All UK towns83%
About 2,800 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 17 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 337 residents.
National Parks & National Landscapes
Norfolk Coast and the Broads both start about a mile from Hemsby
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
Norfolk Coast
At the edge north446 km²since 19687% of the land within 5 km
Official site22% of the land within 5 km of Hemsby is National Park or National Landscape, more than 79% of UK towns. The Broads National Park covers 302 km² and has been a National Park since 1989.
Footpaths & waymarked walks
Hemsby is on the Norfolk Coast Path
34 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Hemsby and the kilometre around it, 1.4 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the town.
NationalLocal
Norfolk Coast Path11.7 km
King Charles III England Coast Path: Lowestoft to Sea Palling10.2 km
Winterton on Sea Circular6.1 km
Winterton Dunes Circular1.5 km
The Norfolk Coast Path, a national route, passes Hemsby. Close to home, the Winterton on Sea Circular has 6 km of local walk within 2 km of the town.
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 Hemsby: May to September
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) | 8.1 | 9.8 | 11.7 | 13.9 | 15.8 | 16.8 | 16.4 | 14.7 | 12.6 | 10.5 | 8.6 | 7.6 |
| High (°C) | 8 | 8 | 10 | 13 | 16 | 19 | 21 | 22 | 19 | 15 | 11 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 50 | 43 | 43 | 35 | 43 | 54 | 56 | 60 | 54 | 65 | 68 | 61 |
April is the driest month (35 mm) and August the warmest (highs of 22 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 68 mm of rain falls in November, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 23 nights a year. The climate in Hemsby →
The coast
The coast and beaches near Hemsby
45% of the area within 5 km of Hemsby is sea. 4 beaches are mapped within 5 km, 0 with a name.
The Norfolk 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
17 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.
4Nature reserves4.1× towns its size1Picnic sites17Playgrounds1.7× towns its size8Campsites8.2× towns its size
Every named place, with directions
Nature reserves 4
Winterton-Horsey Dunes181 ha · 0.0 mi from town
DirectionsWinterton - Horsey Dunes0.0 mi from town
DirectionsWinterton Dunes0.2 mi from town
DirectionsPlus 1 nature reserve more.
Picnic sites 1
Plus 1 picnic site without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 17
Califonia Cliffs Adventure Playgroundin town
DirectionsWinterton Parkin town
DirectionsHaven Playground1.0 mi from town
DirectionsPlus 14 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Campsites 8
Belle Aire Chalet Parkin town
DirectionsLong Beachin town
DirectionsNewport Caravan Parkin town
DirectionsSeadell Chalet Parkin town
DirectionsLawn and Paddock View0.0 mi from town
DirectionsScratby Hall Caravan Park0.0 mi from town
DirectionsCaister-on-Sea Haven Holiday Park0.9 mi from town
DirectionsPlus 1 campsite 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.
Ormesby St MargaretMarthamCaister-on-SeaGreat YarmouthAcleSuttonHemsby
ABCDOutdoors Grade
| Town | Outdoors | Green space, ha per 1,000 | Near a park | Protected within 5 km |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hemsby | B | 2.5 | 51% | 22% |
| Ormesby St Margaret 1.7 mi | B | 2.1 | 79% | 21% |
| Martham 2.6 mi | B | 1.7 | 74% | 45% |
| Caister-on-Sea 3.5 mi | C+ | 1.1 | 58% | 21% |
| Great Yarmouth 6.4 mi | A− | 1.7 | 73% | 18% |
| Acle 7.1 mi | B+ | 1.6 | 89% | 43% |
| Sutton 8.0 mi | D− | 0.0 | 0% | 29% |
Great Yarmouth, 6.4 miles away, grades A−, the best next door: 73% of its residents live within 400 m of a park.
Questions about the outdoors in Hemsby
What is the biggest park in Hemsby?
The Edgar Tennant Recreation Ground, 3.6 ha (9 acres), just outside the built-up area. 1 named park, garden or playing field is in the town or within 400 m of it.
Is Hemsby near a National Park?
Yes. the Broads National Park begins 0.0 mi west of the town’s edge. It covers 302 km² and has been a National Park since 1989. The nearest protected landscape of any kind is the Norfolk Coast National Landscape, at the edge of the town.
What are the best walks near Hemsby?
4 waymarked walking routes pass within 2 km of the town, including the Norfolk Coast Path, King Charles III England Coast Path: Lowestoft to Sea Palling and Winterton on Sea Circular.
How many people in Hemsby live near a park?
51% 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 Hemsby?
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Hemsby good for walking?
Paths are thinner than most towns: 1.4 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 15% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 58% (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 Hemsby’s overall grade.
Sources
Where Hemsby’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.