Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
In Oxfordshire, South East, this town has 3,110 residents.
Plenty in its favour, and one clear drawback. Jobs & income is its strong suit: the mean household earns £66,652 a year. Its schools fall short: primary results beat 22% of towns in England; secondary results beat 8% of towns in England. At a median £463,500, a home costs 6.7 times the yearly income of households in the Vale of White Horse council area. It lags on walkability as well (C+) — just over one in ten commuters walk, cycle or take public transport. The overall grade comes out at B, better than just over three fifths of UK towns. In the ranking it comes #30 of 38 in Oxfordshire.
Figures: income, ONS · claimants, DWP · commuting, Census 2021 · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years.
The 3 things Drayton 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 Drayton is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 28 buildings inside Drayton’s built-up area, 2 of them Grade II*.
9% 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 Drayton.
Key Stage 2 results at the 8 primary schools within 3 km: 55% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). The one school in town appears below. Secondary results at the one secondary school within 3 km: an Attainment 8 score of 39, with 30% at grade 5 or above in English and maths.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drayton Community Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 194 | C− |
Among the 1,308 UK towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people, Drayton has less crime per resident than 71% of them. Reported offences in the town came to 123 over twelve months to August 2026; nuisance and anti-social incidents added 18. Violence and sexual offences were three fifths 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 nearest A&E to Drayton is John Radcliffe Hospital, 9.1 miles away. At the census, 3.7% of residents said their health was bad or very bad, above Oxfordshire’s towns (3.5%) but below England’s towns (5.2%). There is no GP practice locally: the nearest is 1.7 miles off.
| Census 2021 | Drayton | Oxfordshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 85% | 86% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 3.7% | 3.5% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 15% | 15% | 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 Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 44% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
For 36% of commuters, work was under 5 km away. 85% of commuters drove, above both Oxfordshire’s towns (69%) and England’s towns (70%). Home was the main workplace for 44% of workers at the census. Of the commuters living in Drayton, 3% work in the town itself.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Owners make up 74% of households. The £463,500 median rests on 102 standard sales inside the built-up area (September 2023 to August 2026). Private rents average £1,352 a month across the Vale of White Horse council area.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £577,500 | 56 |
| Semi-detached | £390,000 | 28 |
| Terraced | £315,000 | 17 |
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.
Grade II* covers 2 of them. Per 10,000 residents, Drayton counts 90 listed buildings, below Oxfordshire’s towns (107) but above England’s towns (39).
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Under-15s account for 19% of the population. The median resident of Drayton is 40.8 years old. Also worth knowing: among adults, 40% have a degree.
50% women, 50% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Drayton | Oxfordshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 19% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 9.4% | 13% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 27% | 27% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 26% | 25% | 25% |
| 65+ | 19% | 18% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 14% | 14% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 5.7% | 4.7% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 16% | 17% | 17% |
| Degree level | 40% | 42% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Oxfordshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Drayton. Best known first.
Historic houseThe Abbey, Sutton Courtenay2 km outside town, to the east
Abbey or prioryAbingdon Abbey3 km outside town, to the northeast
Museum · English HeritageAbingdon County Hall Museum2.7 km outside town, to the northeast
Historic houseMilton Manor1.2 km outside town, to the southMuseumMuseumChamps Chapel Museum of East Hendred4.5 km outside town, to the southWildlife parkWildlife parkMillets Wildside Falconry and Wildlife Centre4.9 km outside town, to the northwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
28 listed buildings in Drayton.
The Manor House: Photo: Robin Drayton · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Barn approximately 55 metres north west of The Manor House: Photo: Sionk · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Pusey Cottage: Photo: Sionk · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Oldenholme: Photo: Sionk · 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drayton | 3,110 | — | B | C+ | B+ | B+ |
| Steventon | 2,211 | 1.6 | — | B− | A− | B+ |
| Sutton Courtenay | 3,055 | 1.6 | B+ | B− | B+ | B+ |
| Marcham | 2,030 | 2.1 | — | B− | A− | B+ |
| Abingdon-on-Thames | 33,179 | 2.5 | A− | B+ | C+ | B+ |
| Shippon | 1,894 | 2.7 | — | C+ | B+ | A− |
| Harwell | 3,067 | 3.4 | A | C+ | B− | A− |
| East Hendred | 1,367 | 3.6 | — | B− | A | A− |
Steventon, Marcham, Shippon and East Hendred have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 3.7 times the typical UK town for its size.
GCSE results trail 92% of towns in England, and primary results trail 78% (Department for Education, Attainment 8 and Key Stage 2). One state school is inside the town; places are handled by Oxfordshire council.
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £463,500, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: terraced houses £315,000, semi-detached houses £390,000 and detached houses £577,500.
Town in Oxfordshire, England
Drayton is a built-up area of 3,110 people, in the Vale of White Horse 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.