Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
46% of households own their home with no mortgage. Population 1,345: a village in North Yorkshire, Yorkshire and The Humber.
Walking, cycling and public transport work well here (A+): 31% of commuters get to work on foot, by bike or by public transport. Its weakest is cost of living: homes sell for a median £300,000, about 6.5 times local household income. Jobs & income is weaker too (D): households earn a mean £46,491 a year, and 3% of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits. The rest of its grades are middling: B− for safety and C+ for hazard risk.
Figures: commuting, Census 2021 · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · income, ONS · claimants, DWP · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · flood risk, Environment Agency. Helmsley is graded on each subject, but towns under 2,500 get no overall grade.
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 Helmsley 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 Helmsley is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
Helmsley is graded on each subject, but towns under 2,500 get no overall grade.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 56 buildings inside Helmsley’s built-up area, 3 of them Grade II*, and 1 scheduled monument.
18% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
The archive holds 1 old photo or postcard going back to 1892.
Explore the history →Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Helmsley.
5.1% of the population is aged 15 to 24, lower than both North Yorkshire’s towns (12%) and England’s towns (12%). Under 15: 10% of residents. The median resident of Helmsley is 60.2 years old.
53% women, 47% men
About 89 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.
| Helmsley | North Yorkshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 10% | 16% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 5.1% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 15% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 27% | 27% | 25% |
| 65+ | 42% | 22% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 24% | 18% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 6.1% | 6.4% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 12% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 31% | 32% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · North Yorkshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Below is its only school. At the one primary school within 3 km, nearly two thirds of pupils reach the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). 177 pupils attend Helmsley’s one primary school.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Helmsley Community Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 177 | B |
Social housing holds a fifth of households, higher than both North Yorkshire’s towns (16%) and England’s towns (18%). From September 2023 to August 2026, 78 homes sold inside Helmsley’s built-up area at standard prices; the middle one went for £300,000. Private tenants account for 17% of households.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £455,000 | 30 |
| Semi-detached | £281,000 | 20 |
| Terraced | £300,000 | 11 |
| Flat or maisonette | £138,000 | 17 |
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 26% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Two in five commuters travelled under 5 km, below both North Yorkshire’s towns (48%) and England’s towns (45%). By car: that was how two thirds of commuters travelled at the census. For every resident in work, Helmsley has 1 jobs.
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.
Helmsley counts 56 listed buildings on the national list (Historic England): 3 Grade II*. Conservation areas cover 38% of the town’s land, above both North Yorkshire’s towns (13%) and England’s towns (7%). The national list protects one ancient monument here.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
The nearest A&E to Helmsley is The York Hospital, 19.2 miles away. At the census, nearly a quarter of people here had a disability, higher than both North Yorkshire’s towns (19%) and England’s towns (17%). 7.4% of residents report bad or very bad health. Men in Helmsley can expect to live to 81.8, women to 84.9 (2019–23).
| Census 2021 | Helmsley | North Yorkshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 74% | 81% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 7.4% | 5.5% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 23% | 19% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Self-reported health favours young towns, since these answers ignore age; the Health Grade leans on age-adjusted measures such as life expectancy and early deaths.
Among the 1,541 UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people, Helmsley has more crime per resident than 75% of them. Reported offences in the town came to 75 over twelve months to August 2026; nuisance and anti-social incidents added 35. Anti-social behaviour, shown but not graded, came to 20.3 reports per 1,000, above both North Yorkshire’s towns (10.3) and England’s towns (7.8). Violence and sexual offences accounted for 47% of recorded crime.
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.
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Helmsley. Best known first.
Abbey or priory · English HeritageRievaulx Abbey Museum3.3 km outside town, to the west
Castle · English HeritageHelmsley Castle100 m outside town, to the west
Abbey or prioryAmpleforth Abbey4.8 km outside town, to the south
Historic houseDuncombe Park800 m outside town, to the southwestAttractionAttraction · National TrustRievaulx Terrace3.1 km outside town, to the westGardenGardenHelmsley Walled Garden100 m outside town, to the westPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
3 notable people were born in Helmsley.
Jane Glover: File:Music of the Baroque Orchestra and Chorus with Jane Glover.jpg, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Helmsley | 1,345 | — | — | D− | B− | B+ |
| Ampleforth | 1,239 | 3.7 | — | D− | A | A− |
| Kirkbymoorside | 2,763 | 5.2 | C | C | C+ | A− |
| Easingwold | 5,036 | 10 | B | C | C+ | B+ |
| Pickering | 7,260 | 11 | C | D | C+ | B− |
| Thirsk | 5,891 | 12 | C+ | B | C | B |
| Huby (Hambleton) | 1,056 | 12 | — | D | A+ | A− |
| Sowerby | 4,727 | 12 | B− | B+ | C+ | B |
Ampleforth and Huby (Hambleton) have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 17.1 times the typical UK town for its size. It also has 1 scheduled monument.
Band D council tax in Helmsley is £2,682 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.
Village in North Yorkshire, England
Helmsley is a built-up area of 1,345 people, in the Ryedale 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.