Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
It is a village of 1,075 residents in North Yorkshire, Yorkshire and The Humber. Over-65s are 33% of the population.
Where it does best is walkability: 37% of commuters get to work on foot, by bike or by public transport. Its lowest grade is for schools (D) — primary results beat 16% of towns in England; secondary results beat 2% of towns in England. Cost of living is weaker too (D): homes sell for a median £365,999, about 7.3 times local household income. It also trails on hazard risk (D−): 14% of homes face a high or medium risk of river or sea flooding.
Figures: commuting, Census 2021 · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · flood risk, Environment Agency. Below 2,500 residents there is no overall grade, so Giggleswick has its subject grades alone.
ONS publishes one rent for all of North Yorkshire, so this town's Cost Grade uses house prices and council tax only.
The 3 things Giggleswick 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 Giggleswick is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists them inside Giggleswick’s built-up area, along with 1 scheduled monument.
37% 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 Giggleswick.
Degrees are held by 44% of adults. 13% are under 15, below North Yorkshire’s towns (16%) and England’s towns (18%) alike. The share aged 15 to 24 is 13%. Residents of Giggleswick have a median age of 54.2.
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.
| Giggleswick | North Yorkshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 13% | 16% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 13% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 12% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 28% | 27% | 25% |
| 65+ | 33% | 22% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 12% | 18% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 5.5% | 6.4% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 15% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 44% | 32% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · North Yorkshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Both of the town’s schools appear below. Key Stage 2 results at the 2 primary schools within 3 km: 53% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). Attainment 8 at the one secondary school within 3 km averages 38.7, and nearly a fifth of pupils get grade 5 or above in English and maths.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Giggleswick Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 75 | C+ |
| Settle CollegeLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 561 | D |
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 30% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
55% of commuters travelled under 5 km to work. The car took 62% of commuters, lower than both North Yorkshire’s towns (74%) and England’s towns (70%). Unemployment benefit claims reached 1.3% of 16 to 64s in 2026. About a fifth of its commuters stay in Giggleswick for work.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Renting privately is how 15% of households live. Social housing holds 5% of households, below both North Yorkshire’s towns (16%) and England’s towns (18%). The £365,999 median rests on 57 standard sales inside the built-up area (September 2023 to August 2026).
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £485,000 | 21 |
| Semi-detached | £367,999 | 18 |
| Terraced | £275,000 | 15 |
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.
Giggleswick’s listed buildings include the Church of St Alkelda, Grade I. It has 288 listed buildings for every 10,000 residents. Conservation areas cover 86% of the town’s land, above both North Yorkshire’s towns (13%) and England’s towns (7%). The top grade, Grade I, goes to 1 of them.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Violent crime ran at 14.9 per 1,000 residents a year, below both North Yorkshire’s towns (20.2) and England’s towns (22). Homes see 4 burglaries and acts of damage per 1,000 residents a year. A year of reports to August 2026 adds up to 21 offences in Giggleswick and 4 cases of nuisance behaviour. Also worth knowing: for its size, Giggleswick records less crime per resident than 72% of the 1,541 UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people.
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 nearest A&E to Giggleswick is Airedale General Hospital, 17.9 miles away. At the census, 85% of people in Giggleswick called their health good or very good, above both North Yorkshire’s towns (81%) and England’s towns (82%). Disability touches 16% of the town’s population. Seeing a GP means leaving Giggleswick: the nearest practice is 0.6 miles away.
| Census 2021 | Giggleswick | North Yorkshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 85% | 81% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 3.5% | 5.5% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 16% | 19% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · A young population flatters these answers, which are not age-adjusted; the Health Grade instead uses measures that allow for age, such as life expectancy and early deaths.
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Giggleswick. Best known first.
MuseumMuseum of North Craven Life700 m outside town, to the eastAttractionAttractionJubilee Cave2.3 km outside town, to the northeastAttractionAttractionScaleber Force2.8 km outside town, to the southeastAttractionAttractionVictoria Cave2.2 km outside town, to the northeastPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Giggleswick | 1,075 | — | — | D | A | A− |
| Settle | 2,710 | 0.5 | B− | C | B+ | B+ |
| Hellifield | 1,478 | 5.2 | — | B | A | A− |
| Ingleton | 1,751 | 9 | — | B− | A− | B+ |
| High Bentham | 1,701 | 9.5 | — | B | A | B+ |
| Gargrave | 1,502 | 9.7 | — | C+ | A | A− |
| Barnoldswick | 10,915 | 11 | C+ | B | B− | C |
| Grassington | 1,107 | 12 | — | D− | A+ | A+ |
Hellifield, Ingleton, High Bentham, Gargrave and Grassington have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
That is 11.8 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I building is Church of St Alkelda. It also has 1 scheduled monument.
GCSE results trail 98% of towns in England, and primary results trail 84% (Department for Education, Attainment 8 and Key Stage 2). Giggleswick has 2 state schools; places are handled by North Yorkshire council.
Village in North Yorkshire, England
Giggleswick is a built-up area of 1,075 people, in the Craven 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.