Little Melton’s story
3 listed buildings
Historic England lists them inside Little Melton’s built-up area.
8% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →
Little MeltonNorfolk
Secondary school results beat 96% of towns in England. In Norfolk, East of England, this village has 1,049 residents.
7 places within 12 milesMap →
Photo: Katy Walters · CC BY-SA 2.0
Population
1,049
Census 2021 · South Norfolk council
Median home
£476K
42 sales in 3 years
Median age
48.9
25% are 65+ · Norfolk 24%
Degree level
36%
of residents 16+ · England 34%
Walk, cycle, bus
13%
of commuters · England 27%
Is Little Melton a good place to live?
Health outcomes beat most towns (A): life expectancy 81.5 for men, 84.1 for women. Police record less crime here than in most towns (A−): 14 violent and sexual offences and 8.3 home and vehicle crimes per 1,000 residents a year. A median £476,400 buys a home here, 8.4 times what households in the South Norfolk council area earn in a year. The rest of its grades are middling: B for jobs & income and C+ for walkability.
Figures: life expectancy and incomes, ONS · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · claimants, DWP · commuting, Census 2021. Little Melton is graded on each subject, but towns under 2,500 get no overall grade.
How Little Melton grades
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Little Melton is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
Little Melton is graded on each subject, but towns under 2,500 get no overall grade.
Hazard risk0% of homes at high or medium risk of flooding from rivers or the seaAOpen →HealthAmong the healthiest places comparedAOpen →SafetyBetter than most of the towns comparedA−Open →SchoolsPrimary results beat 41% of towns in England; secondary results beat 96% of towns in EnglandB+Open →Jobs & income3.4% of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefitsBOpen →WalkabilityAbout average among the towns comparedC+Open →Cost of livingGraded on home prices against local incomesC+Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
History3 listed buildingsDOpen →Outdoors72% live within 400 m of a park; 4.2 ha of public green space per 1,000 residentsCOpen →Civic life7.6 local charities per 1,000 residents; 0% live within 1 km of a libraryA−Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
What makes Little Melton stand out
The 3 things Little Melton does most differently from other towns.
Walk, cycle or public transport
Getting around
13% leave the car
of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport (England’s towns 27%)
36% of commuters travel under 5 km.
Secondary results, towns in England
Schools
Secondary results beat 96%
of towns in England, on GCSE results (Attainment 8, English and maths)
Primary results beat 41%. Department for Education.
Median sale, £ thousands
Housing
1.7 times the typical UK town’s £277K
Standard sales, September 2023 to August 2026.
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Little Melton.
History
Little Melton’s listed buildings: 3, all Grade II
3listed buildingsDHistory Grade
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Homes from before 1919 make up 8% of the total, lower than both Norfolk’s towns (14%) and England’s towns (16%). Little Melton has 29 listed buildings for every 10,000 residents.
Listed buildings by grade · Historic England
Grade I0
Grade II*0
Grade II3
0
scheduled monuments
0
registered parks and gardens
8%
of homes built before 1919 · typical UK town 15%
29
listed buildings per 10,000 residents · typical UK town 24
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
SchoolsB+
On exam results, Little Melton’s schools beat 73% of towns in England
B+School Grade
There is one school here; it is shown below. Attainment 8 at the one secondary school within 3 km averages 55.5, and 71% of pupils get grade 5 or above in English and maths. At the 7 primary schools within 3 km, 60% of pupils reach the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Little Melton Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 119 | B+ |
Department for Education · GIAS, Key Stage 2 and GCSE resultsThe Schools page →
Health
Bad health is less common in Little Melton than in Norfolk’s towns or across England’s towns: 3.3% of residents
85%good or very good healthAHealth Grade
16% of residents have a disability, below both Norfolk’s towns (20%) and England’s towns (17%). Self-reported good health: 85% of Little Melton’s residents. Also worth knowing: this Norfolk town has no GP practice of its own; the nearest is 1.9 miles away.
General health, self-reported
Good or very good 85%Fair 12%Bad or very bad 3%
| Census 2021 | Little Melton | Norfolk | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 85% | 79% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 3.3% | 5.6% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 16% | 20% | 17% |
81.5
life expectancy at birth, men (2019–23)
84.1
life expectancy at birth, women
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · 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.
Safety
Per resident, Little Melton sees less crime than 77% of UK towns
14violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a yearA−Safety Grade
Police recorded 25 crimes inside Little Melton’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 5 reports of anti-social behaviour. Violence and sexual offences were two fifths of the crimes. There were 3.5 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), lower than both Norfolk’s towns (5) and England’s towns (7.8).
Compared with UK towns its sizeLess crime per resident than 61% of the 1,541 UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people: about the middle for its size. Context only, not part of the grade.
Reports by type · Sep 2025 to Aug 2026
Violence & sexual10
Burglary5
Damage & arson3
Other theft3
Public order2
Vehicle crime2
Shoplifting0
Drugs0
Anti-social5
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.
14
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
8.3
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
3.5
anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 (not graded)
25
crimes recorded in the 12 months to August 2026
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.
Work & commuteJobs & income grade B
Households in Little Melton earn more than in both Norfolk’s towns and England’s towns: £71K a year
13%walk, cycle or ride
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 33% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
For every resident in work, Little Melton has 0.7 jobs. At the census, 13% went to work on foot, by bike or by public transport, below Norfolk’s towns (20%) and England’s towns (27%) alike. The car carried 86% of commuters at the census. Work in town: 3% of resident commuters.
How commuters got to work · March 2021
Driving86%
Bicycle6%
On foot5%
Bus2%
36%
of commuters travel under 5 km · England 45%
33%
worked mainly from home in March 2021
£71K
mean household income, before tax
3.4%
of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits (2026)
C+
Walkability: more walkable than 44% of UK towns
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
HousingCost of living grade C+
More households own their home in Little Melton than in Norfolk’s towns or across England’s towns: 81%
£476Kmedian sale
Social renters account for one in ten households. Half of the 42 standard sales inside Little Melton’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 went for more than £476,400. Private rents average £981 a month across the South Norfolk council area.
Median sale price · Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
Little Melton£476K
Typical UK town£277K
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £490,000 | 34 |
| Semi-detached | £345,000 | 7 |
81%
of households own their home · England 61%
8%
rent privately · England 21%
£981
average private rent a month, South Norfolk council area
£2,428
council tax, Band D, 2026–27
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Who lives here
Little Melton has fewer young adults than Norfolk’s towns or England’s towns: 8.2% are 15 to 24
48.9median age
People 65 and over make up a quarter of the town. Half the people of Little Melton are older than 48.9. 17% are under 15, above Norfolk’s towns (16%) but below England’s towns (18%). Degrees are held by 36% of adults.
Little MeltonNorfolkEngland
Ages · share of residents
25%
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications16%
Apprenticeship4%
A levels or similar19%
Degree level36%
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
About 92 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.
| Little Melton | Norfolk | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 17% | 16% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 8.2% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 21% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 29% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 25% | 24% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 16% | 21% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 3.9% | 6.4% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 19% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 36% | 26% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Norfolk and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Little Melton
14pages on Little Melton
The big questions
SafetyA−14 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026Cost of livingC+Median home £476K · rent £981 a monthHousing6 sold in 12 months · busiest street Sinclair CloseSchoolsB+1 state schoolHealthALife expectancy 81.5 (men), 84.1 (women)Work & commuteB47% of working residents work in the townFlood & hazardsA0% of homes at high or medium flood risk
Out and about
About Little Melton
Village in Norfolk, England
Little Melton is a built-up area of 1,049 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
- Population
- 1,049 (Census 2021)
- Council
- South Norfolk
- County
- Norfolk
- Region
- East of England
- Area
- 0.2 sq mi (0.5 km²)
- ONS code
- E63002570
Little Melton’s neighbours
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
HethersettCringlefordEastonCostesseyQueen's HillsWymondhamNorwichLittle Melton
How the neighbours grade
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Little Melton | 1,049 | — | — | C+ | A− | A |
| Hethersett | 7,018 | 1 | A | B+ | B | B+ |
| Cringleford | 4,686 | 2.1 | A− | B− | C+ | A |
| Easton | 1,436 | 2.8 | — | A− | C− | A− |
| Costessey | 2,608 | 3.2 | B+ | B+ | B+ | B− |
| Queen's Hills | 4,465 | 3.4 | A | A | A− | B− |
| Wymondham | 16,334 | 3.8 | A | A− | C | B+ |
| Norwich | 200,744 | 4.5 | D | C− | D | C |
Easton has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Little Melton
Is Little Melton expensive to live in?
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £476,400, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: semi-detached houses £345,000 and detached houses £490,000.
Is Little Melton safe?
About the middle for its size: 39% of the 1,541 UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people report less crime per resident. Against all UK towns, it grades A−.
Does Little Melton flood?
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
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.