Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
It is a town of 8,623 residents in Northamptonshire, East Midlands.
Where it falls short is safety (C−) — police record 37 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, and 12.4 home and vehicle crimes. Set beside UK towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people, its crime per resident is higher than in 81%. Rothwell ranks #24 of 31 in Northamptonshire, with a C− overall. It comes out better than 24% of UK towns. Homes sell for a median £246,000, about 4.8 years of what households in the North Northamptonshire council area earn. Natural hazards are few (A).
Figures: flood risk, Environment Agency · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · incomes, ONS.
The thing Rothwell 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 Rothwell is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 31 buildings inside Rothwell’s built-up area, 2 of them Grade I.
19% 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 Rothwell.
Anti-social behaviour, shown but not graded, came to 16.4 reports per 1,000, above both Northamptonshire’s towns (9.5) and England’s towns (7.8). In the 12 months to August 2026, police logged 489 crimes and 164 reports of anti-social behaviour inside Rothwell’s built-up area. Violence and sexual offences were 57% 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.
Rothwell’s two primaries and one secondary have 1,595 pupils between them. Below are two of its 4 schools, each with why it was picked. Key Stage 2 results at the 5 primary schools within 3 km: 58% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rothwell Junior SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 315 | C− |
| Montsaye AcademyLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 1,017 | – |
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 24% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
A household here earns £52K a year before tax, on average. At the census, 10% went to work on foot, by bike or by public transport, below both Northamptonshire’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (27%). 30% of commuters travelled under 5 km to work.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
One GP practice serves the town; 77% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey. At the census, 18% of people here had a disability, above Northamptonshire’s towns (16%) and England’s towns (17%) alike. The nearest A&E to Rothwell is Kettering General Hospital, 2.8 miles away.
| Census 2021 | Rothwell | Northamptonshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 81% | 83% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 5.2% | 4.5% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 18% | 16% | 17% |
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.
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Rothwell’s listed buildings include the Church of Holy Trinity, Grade I. Homes from before 1919 make up nearly a fifth of the total, above both Northamptonshire’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (16%). Listed buildings per head: 36 for every 10,000 residents of the town.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Behind the median of £246,000: 456 standard sales inside Rothwell’s built-up area, September 2023 to August 2026. Private rents average £992 a month across the North Northamptonshire council area. Owners make up nearly two thirds of households, near Northamptonshire’s towns (64%) and higher than England’s towns (61%).
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £322,952 | 161 |
| Semi-detached | £237,500 | 144 |
| Terraced | £195,000 | 127 |
| Flat or maisonette | £133,000 | 24 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Just over a fifth of residents are 65 or over, higher than both Northamptonshire’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (18%). Young adults of 15 to 24 are a tenth of the population. Half of Rothwell is older than 41.7, half younger.
52% women, 48% men
About 94 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Rothwell | Northamptonshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 18% | 18% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 10% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 26% | 27% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 25% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 21% | 17% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 20% | 19% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 6.4% | 6% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 18% | 17% | 17% |
| Degree level | 26% | 29% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Northamptonshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Rothwell. Best known first.
31 listed buildings in Rothwell, 2 of them Grade I.
Church of Holy Trinity: Photo: Immanuel Giel · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Jesus Hospital: Photo: Bryan Pready · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Rothwell House Hotel: Photo: Jonathan Thacker · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Rothwell Manor House: Photo: Immanuel Giel · CC BY-SA 3.0
7 notable people were born in Rothwell.
Jim Dale: Associated Press, Public domain · Michael Jacobs: Æthelred, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Thomas Cogan: F. Gerard, Public domain
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rothwell | 8,623 | — | C− | B− | C− | C+ |
| Desborough | 11,899 | 1.7 | C+ | B− | C+ | C+ |
| Mawsley Village | 2,487 | 3.3 | — | C | A | B+ |
| Broughton | 1,982 | 3.6 | — | B− | B− | B |
| Kettering | 63,149 | 3.8 | C | B− | D | C− |
| Geddington | 1,525 | 4.8 | — | C− | A | A− |
| Corby | 68,164 | 5.9 | C− | B | C− | D |
| Cottingham and Middleton | 1,365 | 5.9 | — | C− | A− | C+ |
Mawsley Village, Broughton, Geddington and Cottingham and Middleton have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Primary results trail 69% of towns in England (Department for Education, Key Stage 2).
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
Town in Northamptonshire, England
Rothwell is a built-up area of 8,623 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.