Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
This town in Oxfordshire, South East has a population of 3,434.
Health is where it shines (A+): life expectancy 82.5 for men, 86.3 for women. At A+ overall, Goring ranks #1 of 38 in Oxfordshire. That leaves it better than almost every UK town. It is strong on schools as well — primary results beat 95% of towns in England. The drawback is cost of living (C): the median home sold for £665,000, 9.5 years of area income. Natural hazards weigh more here: 4.1% of homes at high or medium risk of flooding from rivers or the sea.
Figures: life expectancy, ONS · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · flood risk, Environment Agency.
The 3 things Goring 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 Goring is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 25 buildings inside Goring’s built-up area, 1 of them Grade I.
26% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
The archive holds 3 old photos and postcards going back to 1890.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Goring.
At the census, 3.3% of people here described their health as bad or very bad. The nearest A&E to Goring is Royal Berkshire Hospital, 9 miles away. One GP practice serves the town; just over two thirds of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey.
| Census 2021 | Goring | Oxfordshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 86% | 86% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 3.3% | 3.5% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 15% | 15% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Young towns look healthier on these answers, which aren’t adjusted for age; the Health Grade uses measures that are, such as life expectancy and early deaths.
The one school in town appears below. Goring Church of England Aided Primary School’s results beat 92% of schools in England like it. At the 3 primary schools within 3 km, nearly three quarters of pupils reach the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Goring Church of England Aided Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 170 | A |
The 12 months to August 2026 brought 70 recorded crimes inside Goring’s built-up area, and 10 reports of anti-social behaviour. The violent crime rate is 8.6 per 1,000 residents a year. Burglary and damage came to 6.4 per 1,000 residents a year, below Oxfordshire’s towns (6.8) and England’s towns (9.4) alike. For its size, Goring records less crime per resident than 97% of the 1,308 UK towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
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 61% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
23% of commuters walked, cycled or took the bus or train at the census, lower than both Oxfordshire’s towns (29%) and England’s towns (27%). Home was the main workplace for 61% of workers at the census. About 15% of its commuters stay in Goring for work. Also worth knowing: the car carried three quarters of commuters at the census.
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.
The top grade, Grade I, goes to 1 of them. Goring’s listed buildings include the Church of St Thomas of Canterbury, Grade I. Conservation areas cover 18% of the town’s land, above both Oxfordshire’s towns (11%) and England’s towns (7%). It counts 25 listed buildings on the national list (Historic England): 1 Grade I.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
7% live in social housing, lower than both Oxfordshire’s towns (15%) and England’s towns (18%). No town in Oxfordshire costs more to buy into than Goring, at £665,000, the highest of 40. The £665,000 median rests on 129 standard sales inside the built-up area (September 2023 to August 2026).
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £805,000 | 61 |
| Semi-detached | £670,000 | 29 |
| Terraced | £474,194 | 21 |
| Flat or maisonette | £305,000 | 18 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Among adults, 56% have a degree. Children under 15 make up 15%, lower than both Oxfordshire’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (18%). People aged 15 to 24 make up nearly a tenth of the town. Half the people of Goring are older than 52.2.
52% women, 48% men
About 93 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.
| Goring | Oxfordshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 15% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 8.1% | 13% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 16% | 27% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 29% | 25% | 25% |
| 65+ | 33% | 18% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 9.4% | 14% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 3.5% | 4.7% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 12% | 17% | 17% |
| Degree level | 56% | 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 Goring. Best known first.
Historic house · National TrustBasildon Park2 km outside town, to the south
Historic houseBraziers Park3.2 km outside town, to the northeast
ZooBeale Park2.8 km outside town, to the southeastPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
25 listed buildings in Goring, 1 of them Grade I.
Church of St Thomas of Canterbury: Photo: Murgatroyd49 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · The John Barley Corn Public House Wey Cottage: Photo: Philip Jeffrey · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Saunders' Boathouse: Photo: Simon Burchell · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Glebe Cottage: Photo: Jo and Steve Turner · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geograph
3 notable people were born in Goring.
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goring | 3,434 | — | A+ | C | A | A+ |
| Woodcote | 2,198 | 2.5 | — | C+ | B+ | A+ |
| Upper Basildon | 1,074 | 2.7 | — | C | A | A+ |
| Cholsey | 3,776 | 3.4 | A | B− | B | A |
| Pangbourne | 3,279 | 3.5 | A− | C | B− | A+ |
| Crowmarsh Gifford | 1,329 | 5.1 | — | C+ | B− | A |
| Compton | 1,789 | 5.2 | — | C+ | B+ | A+ |
| Blewbury | 1,708 | 5.2 | — | C+ | A | A− |
Woodcote, Upper Basildon, Crowmarsh Gifford, Compton and Blewbury have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £665,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £305,000, terraced houses £474,194, semi-detached houses £670,000 and detached houses £805,000.
Police recorded 70 crimes inside Goring’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, 30% of them violence and sexual offences, a police category that includes harassment and stalking.
Primary results beat 95% of towns in England (Department for Education, Key Stage 2). One state school is inside the town; places are handled by Oxfordshire council.
That is 3 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I building is Church of St Thomas of Canterbury.
Town in Oxfordshire, England
Goring is a built-up area of 3,434 people, in the South Oxfordshire 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.