Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 12,829 in Norfolk, East of England.
A town with more to fix than most. North Walsham’s overall grade of D puts it better than 8% of UK towns, #46 of 51 in Norfolk. School results trail most towns (D): primary results beat 3% of towns in England; secondary results beat 27% of towns in England. It also trails on jobs & income — households earn a mean £43,739 a year, and 3.5% of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits. Homes sell for a median £254,000, about 5.6 years of what households in the North Norfolk council area earn. Walking, cycling and public transport work well here (A−): 20% of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport.
Figures: commuting, Census 2021 · income, ONS · claimants, DWP · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years.
The 3 things North Walsham 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 North Walsham is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 93 buildings inside North Walsham’s built-up area, 2 of them Grade I, and 2 scheduled monuments.
12% 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 North Walsham.
Half of North Walsham is older than 50.2, half younger. 14% are under 15, lower than both Norfolk’s towns (16%) and England’s towns (18%). Young adults of 15 to 24 account for 9.7% of the town.
52% women, 48% men
About 91 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.
| North Walsham | Norfolk | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 14% | 16% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 9.7% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 20% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 27% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 29% | 24% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 22% | 21% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 7.8% | 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 the reason it’s listed. Key Stage 2 results at the town’s 2 primary schools: 46% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). GCSE results at the one secondary school within 3 km: 36% of pupils get a strong pass (grade 5+) in English and maths, and the Attainment 8 average is 44.1.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Millfield Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 264 | C− |
| North Walsham High SchoolLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 641 | C |
Private renters make up 16% of households, below Norfolk’s towns (19%) and England’s towns (21%) alike. From September 2023 to August 2026, 583 homes sold inside North Walsham’s built-up area at standard prices; the middle one went for £254,000. The owner-occupied share of households is 66%.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £325,000 | 238 |
| Semi-detached | £242,500 | 151 |
| Terraced | £197,500 | 127 |
| Flat or maisonette | £145,000 | 67 |
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 18% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Working mainly from home: 18% of workers, below Norfolk’s towns (25%) and England’s towns (31%) alike. 78% of commuters took the car to work at the census. Work in town: 36% of resident commuters. There are 0.8 jobs in North Walsham for each resident in work.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Men in North Walsham can expect to live to 76.9, women to 83 (2019–23). At the census, just over three quarters of people in North Walsham called their health good or very good, lower than both Norfolk’s towns (79%) and England’s towns (82%). 6.3% of residents report bad or very bad health. 2 GP practices serve the town; 87% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey.
| Census 2021 | North Walsham | Norfolk | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 76% | 79% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 6.3% | 5.6% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 24% | 20% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Read these answers with age in mind: they aren’t adjusted, so younger places do better. The Health Grade uses age-adjusted measures, life expectancy and early deaths among them.
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Grade II* covers 4 of them, Grade I 2. North Walsham’s listed buildings include the Church of St Nicholas, Grade I. Per 10,000 residents, North Walsham counts 72 listed buildings, higher than both Norfolk’s towns (42) and England’s towns (39). Also worth knowing: just over one in ten homes date from before 1919.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
North Walsham logged 764 reported offences in a year (to August 2026), plus 124 complaints of anti-social conduct. Violence and sexual offences accounted for 54% of recorded crime. Burglary and damage came to 8 per 1,000 residents a year, between Norfolk’s towns (6) and England’s towns (9.4).
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.
93 listed buildings in North Walsham, 2 of them Grade I.
Bacton Wood Mill: Photo: Evelyn Simak · CC BY-SA 2.0 · The White Swan: Photo: Mark Hobbs · CC BY-SA 2.0 · 25 Market Place: Photo: Ian Capper · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Former Girls High School: Photo: David Pashley · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geograph
12 notable people were born in North Walsham.
Lauren Hemp: Katie Chan, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Edward Carey: Larry D. Moore, CC BY 4.0
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Walsham | 12,829 | — | D | C− | C+ | C |
| Mundesley | 2,777 | 4.4 | D | D | B | C+ |
| Badersfield | 1,490 | 4.6 | — | C+ | C− | B− |
| Aylsham | 7,183 | 6.1 | B+ | B | B | B+ |
| Coltishall and Horstead | 2,255 | 6.4 | — | B+ | A | A− |
| Stalham | 3,383 | 6.5 | C+ | C | C+ | C+ |
| Sutton | 1,026 | 7.3 | — | C+ | A | C+ |
| Hevingham | 1,039 | 7.6 | — | B+ | A | B− |
Badersfield, Coltishall and Horstead, Sutton and Hevingham 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 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I buildings include Church of St Nicholas. It also has 2 scheduled monuments.
GCSE results trail 73% of towns in England, and primary results trail 97% (Department for Education, Attainment 8 and Key Stage 2).
About the middle for its size: 37% of the 645 UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people report less crime per resident. Against all UK towns, most of them smaller, it grades C+.
Town in Norfolk, England
North Walsham is a built-up area of 12,829 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.