Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
This town in Northamptonshire, East Midlands has a population of 9,308.
Irthlingborough grades low on several counts. Pupils here do less well than most: primary results beat 29% of towns in England; secondary results beat 10% of towns in England. Health lags: men here can expect to live to 78.9, women to 79.8. Hazard risk is its strong suit (B). Homes sell for a median £226,000, about 4.4 years of what households in the North Northamptonshire council area earn. The overall grade comes out at C−, better than 15% of UK towns.
Figures: flood risk, Environment Agency · life expectancy and incomes, ONS · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years.
The 3 things Irthlingborough 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 Irthlingborough is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 16 buildings inside Irthlingborough’s built-up area, 2 of them Grade I, and 1 scheduled monument.
16% 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 Irthlingborough.
Half of Irthlingborough is older than 40.3, half younger. Children under 15 make up 18%, close to Northamptonshire’s towns (18%) and above England’s towns (18%). Young adults of 15 to 24 are 11% of the population.
51% women, 49% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Irthlingborough | Northamptonshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 18% | 18% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 11% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 26% | 27% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 27% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 17% | 17% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 20% | 19% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 6.4% | 6% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 18% | 17% | 17% |
| Degree level | 23% | 29% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Northamptonshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
57% of pupils at the 10 primary schools within 3 km met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). Some 1,426 pupils attend Irthlingborough’s two primaries and one secondary.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Irthlingborough Junior SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 357 | C+ |
| Huxlow AcademyLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 783 | C− |
80% of people in Irthlingborough rate their own health good or very good. At the census, 19% of people here had a disability, above Northamptonshire’s towns (16%) and England’s towns (17%) alike. The nearest A&E to Irthlingborough is Kettering General Hospital, 7.5 miles away.
| Census 2021 | Irthlingborough | Northamptonshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 80% | 83% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 5.2% | 4.5% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 19% | 16% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · No age adjustment applies to these census answers, which flatter younger towns; the Health Grade’s measures, life expectancy and early deaths among them, do allow for age.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 23% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
For 31% of commuters, work was under 5 km away. 87% of commuters drove, above both Northamptonshire’s towns (81%) and England’s towns (70%). Unemployment benefit claims reached 3.3% of 16 to 64s in 2026.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Anti-social behaviour, shown but not graded, came to 19.7 reports per 1,000, higher than both Northamptonshire’s towns (9.5) and England’s towns (7.8). Police recorded 475 crimes inside Irthlingborough’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 177 reports of anti-social behaviour. Per 1,000 residents, 10.8 burglaries and acts of damage are recorded a year. Violence and sexual offences were 54% of the crimes.
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.
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Irthlingborough’s listed buildings include the Church of St Peter, Grade I. Scaled to its population, Irthlingborough has 17 listed buildings per 10,000 people, below both Northamptonshire’s towns (84) and England’s towns (39). The national list protects one ancient monument locally.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Only one of the 31 towns in Northamptonshire costs less to buy into than Irthlingborough, whose median sale is £226,000. Private rents average £992 a month across the North Northamptonshire council area. Also worth knowing: half of the 397 standard sales inside the town’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 went for more than £226,000.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £325,000 | 95 |
| Semi-detached | £230,000 | 148 |
| Terraced | £190,000 | 123 |
| Flat or maisonette | £100,000 | 31 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Irthlingborough. Best known first.
MuseumIrchester Railway Museum4.2 km outside town, to the southwestHeritage railwayHeritage railwayRushden, Higham and Wellingborough Railway2.1 km outside town, to the southMuseumMuseumRushden Historical Transport Society2.1 km outside town, to the southMuseumMuseumRushden Hall and Museum2.7 km outside town, to the southMuseumMuseumWellingborough Museum4.4 km outside town, to the southwestWater parkWater parkSplash Park4.1 km outside town, to the southwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
16 listed buildings in Irthlingborough, 2 of them Grade I.
Market Cross at Junction of Station and Finedon Roads: Photo: Andrew Roberts · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Irthlingborough Bridge: Photo: Michael Trolove · CC BY-SA 2.0
4 notable people were born in Irthlingborough.
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Irthlingborough | 9,308 | — | C− | B− | C+ | C− |
| Higham Ferrers | 8,825 | 1.4 | C+ | C+ | C+ | B− |
| Finedon | 4,554 | 1.7 | D | C+ | C | C+ |
| Stanwick | 1,891 | 2.3 | — | C− | B+ | C+ |
| Rushden | 31,689 | 2.8 | C− | B− | C− | C |
| Irchester | 4,543 | 3.4 | C+ | B− | B | C+ |
| Raunds | 10,231 | 3.4 | C− | C+ | C+ | C |
| Burton Latimer | 10,440 | 3.7 | C+ | B− | B− | C+ |
Stanwick has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Irthlingborough has 3 state schools; places are handled by North Northamptonshire council.
About the middle for its size: 66% of the 1,308 UK towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people report less crime per resident. Against all UK towns, it grades C+.
Town in Northamptonshire, England
Irthlingborough is a built-up area of 9,308 people, in the North Northamptonshire 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.