Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
In Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, this large town has 21,262 residents.
The data are hard on it. Its weakest subject is health (D): life expectancy 78.7 for men, 81.6 for women. A median £180,000 buys a home here, 4.1 times what households in the Ashfield council area earn in a year. Getting around on foot or by bus is easy (B): 16% of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport. Put together, the subjects come to a D overall, ranking #42 of 49 in Nottinghamshire. It comes out better than 14% of UK towns.
Figures: commuting, Census 2021 · life expectancy and incomes, ONS · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Kirkby-in-Ashfield is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The 3 things Kirkby-in-Ashfield does most differently from other towns.
Historic England lists 17 buildings inside Kirkby-in-Ashfield’s built-up area, and 1 scheduled monument.
21% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →17 listed buildings in Kirkby-in-Ashfield.
Church of St Wilfrid: Photo: Nikki Mahadevan · CC BY-SA 2.0 · The Old Rectory: Photo: Alan Murray-Rust · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geograph · 20, Chapel Street: Photo: Alan Murray-Rust · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geograph · The Croft: Photo: Alan Murray-Rust · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geograph
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Kirkby-in-Ashfield.
Those aged 15 to 24 account for 11% of residents. 19% are under 15, above both Nottinghamshire’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (18%). Ages in Kirkby-in-Ashfield split evenly at 40.5: half are older, half younger.
51% women, 49% men
About 96 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Kirkby-in-Ashfield | Nottinghamshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 19% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 11% | 14% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 26% | 26% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 27% | 25% | 25% |
| 65+ | 18% | 18% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 24% | 19% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 6.1% | 5.5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 18% | 20% | 17% |
| Degree level | 20% | 29% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Nottinghamshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Between them, five primaries and two secondaries teach 4,806 pupils in Kirkby-in-Ashfield. Below are two of its 8 schools, each with why it was picked. At the town’s 5 primary schools, 58% of pupils reach the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greenwood Primary and Nursery SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 445 | B− |
| Ashfield Comprehensive SchoolLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 2,601 | C+ |
Women here live to 81.6 on average and men to 78.7 (2019–23). 76% of Kirkby-in-Ashfield’s residents described their health as good or very good at the census, lower than both Nottinghamshire’s towns (80%) and England’s towns (82%). 5 GP practices serve the town; just over four in five patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey.
| Census 2021 | Kirkby-in-Ashfield | Nottinghamshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 76% | 80% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 7.5% | 5.9% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 23% | 19% | 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.
Town centres with shops, stations and nightlife record more crime per resident: police.uk counts crimes where they happen, not where victims live.
There were 21 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), above both Nottinghamshire’s towns (10.7) and England’s towns (7.8). Violence accounts for 35.7 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents a year. The 12 months to August 2026 brought 1,922 recorded crimes inside Kirkby-in-Ashfield’s built-up area, and 437 reports of anti-social behaviour.
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 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 from home was the norm for 18% of workers at the census. A fifth of commuters who live in Kirkby-in-Ashfield also work there. Each working resident is matched by 1 jobs locally. Also worth knowing: households had £46K a year before tax, below Nottinghamshire’s towns (£51K) and England’s towns (£55K) alike.
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.
Before 1919: that is when 21% of homes were built. The national list protects one ancient monument in Kirkby-in-Ashfield. Relative to its size, Kirkby-in-Ashfield keeps 8 listed buildings per 10,000 residents, below Nottinghamshire’s towns (17) and England’s towns (39) alike.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Private renters make up 17% of households, lower than both Nottinghamshire’s towns (20%) and England’s towns (21%). Half of the 739 standard sales inside Kirkby-in-Ashfield’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 went for more than £180,000. Owners make up 65% of households.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £260,000 | 234 |
| Semi-detached | £168,000 | 345 |
| Terraced | £138,000 | 148 |
| Flat or maisonette | £108,000 | 12 |
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 Kirkby-in-Ashfield. Best known first.
Abbey or prioryNewstead Abbey2.8 km outside town, to the southeast
MuseumMansfield Museum4.7 km outside town, to the northeastMuseumMuseumMaking It! Discovery Centre4.3 km outside town, to the northeastPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
21 notable people were born in Kirkby-in-Ashfield.
Dave Thomas: Timmy96, CC0
Large town in Nottinghamshire, England
Kirkby-in-Ashfield is a built-up area of 21,262 people, in the Ashfield 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
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kirkby-in-Ashfield | 21,262 | — | D | B− | C− | D |
| Annesley Woodhouse | 6,162 | 1.4 | C | B− | C | C− |
| Sutton in Ashfield | 36,435 | 1.9 | D | B− | D | D |
| Newstead | 2,204 | 2.2 | — | C+ | B− | C |
| Huthwaite | 5,069 | 2.6 | D | B− | D | D |
| Selston | 6,278 | 2.7 | C− | C+ | B− | D |
| Stanton Hill and Skegby | 4,568 | 3 | D− | C+ | D | D |
| South Normanton and Pinxton | 16,028 | 3.2 | C | B+ | C | D |
Newstead has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
About the middle for its size: 65% 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−. Police recorded 1,922 crimes inside Kirkby-in-Ashfield’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, 39% of them violence and sexual offences, a police category that includes harassment and stalking.
Homes cost less than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £180,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £108,000, terraced houses £138,000, semi-detached houses £168,000 and detached houses £260,000.
GCSE results trail 66% of towns in England, and primary results trail 70% (Department for Education, Attainment 8 and Key Stage 2).
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.