Highley’s biggest
Highley Mine
Park or garden · 140 m outside town
59 ha (146 acres)8.6 km of path
1 h 55 minto walk all 8.6 km of path
83 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
0.5 mi north-eastfrom the centre
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Photo: Richard Webb · CC BY-SA 2.0C+Outdoors Grade
Outdoors in Highley · parks, paths & countryside
Parks and walks in Highley
The Shropshire Hills National Landscape begins 5.8 mi from the town’s edge. Parks and playing fields in Highley add up to 3.4 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. 73% of residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park or playing field. Highley grades C+ for the outdoors: #7 of 19 in Shropshire. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Green space
3.4 ha
per 1,000 residents
Typical UK town 2.1
Near a park
73%
of residents within 400 m
Typical UK town 83%
Footpaths
32 km
2.8 km per km², town + 1 km
Typical UK town 3.0 per km²
Protected landscape
0%
of the land within 5 km
Shropshire Hills starts 5.8 mi out, past the 5 km
Outdoors grade
Highley grades C+ for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Highley, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
C+
Better than 41% of UK towns#7 of 19 in Shropshire · 29th of 60 UK towns its size
Public green space3.4 haper 1,000 residents: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces
75out of
100
100
A park within a walk73%of residents within 400 m (a 5-minute walk)
35out of
100
100
National Park or National Landscape0%of the land within 5 km · Shropshire Hills begins just past 5 km
31out of
100
100
Footpaths2.8 kmper km², the town and 1 km around it
55out of
100
100
The sea0%of the area within 5 km · Inland
42out of
100
100
Graded, never part of the overall grade (like History and Civic life). It measures what is mapped: OS Open Greenspace leaves out woodland and open-access land that isn’t a park, and OpenStreetMap’s rural paths are more complete in some places than others.
Towns its size
Highley is 29th of 60 UK towns its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 3,100 to 3,500 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Outdoors score: the share of UK towns each one beats
Footpath, km per km²
Highley2.8
Towns its size2.4
Shropshire towns2.0
All UK towns3.0
Green space, ha per 1,000 residents
Highley3.4
Towns its size1.9
Shropshire towns1.8
All UK towns2.1
Residents within 400 m of a park
Highley73%
Towns its size76%
Shropshire towns72%
All UK towns83%
Against towns its size, Highley stands out most for park space per resident: only 10 of the other 59 have more.
Show as a table
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Minchinhampton Gloucestershire | A+ | 5.6 | 91% | 5.3 | 90% |
| 2 | Bakewell Derbyshire | A | 5.5 | 91% | 2.7 | 98% |
| 3 | Broadwell and Coalway Gloucestershire | A | 2.8 | 72% | 5.5 | 38% |
| 4 | Moira Leicestershire | A | 15.5 | 86% | 5.1 | 0% |
| 5 | Elsenham Essex | A− | 3 | 100% | 4.3 | 0% |
| 6 | Neyland Dyfed | A− | 3 | 93% | 1.2 | 13% |
| 7 | Birdwell South Yorkshire | A− | 3.6 | 90% | 4.6 | 0% |
| 8 | Addingham West Yorkshire | B+ | 1.8 | 93% | 3 | 32% |
| 9 | Newlyn Cornwall | B+ | 1.5 | 67% | 3.2 | 24% |
| 10 | St Agnes Cornwall | B+ | 1 | 81% | 3 | 5% |
| 11 | Mickletown West Yorkshire | B+ | 3.3 | 93% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 12 | Elton Cheshire | B | 1.9 | 100% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 13 | Madeley Staffordshire | B | 3.8 | 100% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 14 | Whalley Lancashire | B | 1.2 | 88% | 3.5 | 23% |
| 15 | Walton West Yorkshire | B | 12.3 | 78% | 3 | 0% |
| 16 | Treeton South Yorkshire | B | 4.4 | 63% | 5.3 | 0% |
| 17 | Fishbourne West Sussex | B | 1.9 | 38% | 2.5 | 47% |
| 18 | Westerham Kent | B | 1.9 | 61% | 3.5 | 66% |
| 19 | Fernhill Heath Worcestershire | B | 3.2 | 88% | 3.1 | 0% |
| 20 | Caddington Bedfordshire | B | 1.3 | 81% | 3.6 | 33% |
| 21 | Hemingford Grey Cambridgeshire | B | 1.9 | 100% | 3.1 | 0% |
| 22 | Ringmer East Sussex | B− | 1.9 | 91% | 1.8 | 37% |
| 23 | Istead Rise Kent | B− | 1.9 | 82% | 2.7 | 15% |
| 24 | Pangbourne Berkshire | B− | 2.9 | 61% | 2 | 85% |
| 25 | Ruabon Clwyd | B− | 3.8 | 69% | 1.9 | 20% |
| 26 | Dunton Green Kent | B− | 1 | 82% | 2.7 | 69% |
| 27 | Stalham Norfolk | B− | 1.9 | 85% | 2 | 23% |
| 28 | Healing Lincolnshire | B− | 2 | 78% | 1.3 | 1% |
| 29 | Highley Shropshire | C+ | 3.4 | 73% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 30 | Pegswood Northumberland | C+ | 1.3 | 100% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 31 | Milborne Port Somerset | C+ | 1.6 | 100% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 32 | Leadgate County Durham | C+ | 1.5 | 91% | 1.9 | 1% |
| 33 | Marlow Bottom Buckinghamshire | C | 0.5 | 40% | 3.4 | 50% |
| 34 | Ashburton Devon | C | 1.7 | 74% | 1 | 60% |
| 35 | Somersham Cambridgeshire | C | 2.7 | 81% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 36 | Earls Colne Essex | C | 1.4 | 91% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 37 | Bedale North Yorkshire | C | 3.6 | 78% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 38 | Alvechurch Worcestershire | C | 2.2 | 84% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 39 | Adderbury and Twyford Oxfordshire | C | 1.7 | 89% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 40 | Laceby Lincolnshire | C | 1.6 | 64% | 2.1 | 18% |
| 41 | Eastchurch Kent | C | 1.9 | 72% | 0.6 | 0% |
| 42 | Sapcote Leicestershire | C− | 2.4 | 67% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 43 | Appleby-in-Westmorland Cumbria | C− | 1.2 | 63% | 2.1 | 24% |
| 44 | Bishopthorpe North Yorkshire | C− | 3.2 | 51% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 45 | Yarnton Oxfordshire | C− | 0.4 | 69% | 3 | 0% |
| 46 | Farnsfield Nottinghamshire | C− | 2 | 63% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 47 | Astwood Bank Worcestershire | C− | 0.9 | 79% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 48 | Talbot Green Mid Glamorgan | D | 0.7 | 66% | 3.3 | 0% |
| 49 | Wadhurst East Sussex | D | 0.9 | 19% | 1.2 | 100% |
| 50 | Messingham Lincolnshire | D | 3.4 | 46% | 0.6 | 0% |
| 51 | Eglwys-Brewis South Glamorgan | D | 0.3 | 0% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 52 | Iver Buckinghamshire | D | 1.3 | 60% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 53 | Tarporley Cheshire | D | 1 | 69% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 54 | Eccleshall Staffordshire | D | 1.1 | 74% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 55 | Heckington Lincolnshire | D | 1.4 | 68% | 1.2 | 0% |
| 56 | New Tredegar Gwent | D− | 1.4 | 68% | 1.2 | 0% |
| 57 | Headcorn Kent | D− | 1.6 | 48% | 1 | 0% |
| 58 | Dunnington North Yorkshire | D− | 0.8 | 44% | 1.6 | 0% |
| 59 | Upper Tean Staffordshire | D− | 0.6 | 60% | 0.8 | 0% |
| 60 | Bawtry South Yorkshire | D− | 0.5 | 49% | 1 | 0% |
The map
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Highley’s built-up area.
Green space: parks, gardens, playing fields and play spaces, named or not.© OpenStreetMap contributors · Contains OS data © Crown copyright · Natural England / NRW
Places to walk
Parks to walk in, in and around Highley
The biggest is Highley Mine, 59 ha (146 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
Highley Mine
Park or garden · 140 m outside town
59 ha (146 acres)8.6 km of path
1 h 55 minto walk all 8.6 km of path
83 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
0.5 mi north-eastfrom the centre
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Close to home
7 in 10 Highley residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park
Each square is 1 in 100 residents: green lives within 400 m of a public park, garden or playing field (Census 2021 output areas against OS Open Greenspace).
Within 400 m (73%)Further (27%)
Highley73%
Towns its size76%
Shropshire towns72%
All UK towns83%
About 900 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 4 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 826 residents.
National Parks & National Landscapes
The Shropshire Hills National Landscape is 5.8 mi away
Protected landscapes within 30 km, by direction and distance from the edge of the built-up area; circle size shows each one’s area. National Landscapes were called Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty until 2023.
National ParkNational LandscapeThe 5 km the grade counts
Protected landscape begins just outside the 5 km ring the Outdoors Grade measures, so Highley scores 0% on it even though the Shropshire Hills National Landscape is 5.8 mi away.
Footpaths & waymarked walks
4 waymarked walks pass through or near Highley
32 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Highley and the kilometre around it, 2.8 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the town.
RegionalLocal
Geopark Way11.4 km
Severn Way (2) Shrewsbury to Worcester6.4 km
The Highley Trail5.2 km
Shropshire Way (Route 11, Link to Severn Way)2.1 km
Close to home, the The Highley Trail has 5 km of local walk within 2 km of the town. 3 regional routes pass through, including the Geopark Way, Severn Way (2) Shrewsbury to Worcester and Shropshire Way (Route 11, Link to Severn Way).
Waymarked walks are OpenStreetMap walking routes. Public rights of way are only as complete as the map in each area.
When to get out
The best walking months in Highley: May to September
The town’s 1991–2020 averages (Met Office HadUK-Grid) and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have 12½+ hours of daylight, highs of 15 °C or more and little rain for the town.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 8.2 | 9.8 | 11.7 | 13.8 | 15.7 | 16.8 | 16.3 | 14.7 | 12.6 | 10.5 | 8.6 | 7.7 |
| High (°C) | 7 | 8 | 11 | 14 | 17 | 20 | 22 | 21 | 18 | 14 | 10 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 66 | 53 | 51 | 50 | 53 | 53 | 56 | 64 | 52 | 75 | 69 | 75 |
April is the driest month (50 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 22 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 75 mm of rain falls in December, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 49 nights a year. The climate in Highley →
Things to do
4 playgrounds
Mapped within 2 km of the town in OpenStreetMap, against the typical UK town its size per resident. Named places are listed with directions; unnamed ones are only counted.
Every named place, with directions
Viewpoints 1
Plus 1 viewpoint without a name on the map.
Picnic sites 3
Plus 3 picnic sites without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 4
Plus 4 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Next door
The outdoors in nearby towns
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 12 miles. Tap a town for its outdoors page.
AlveleyWolverleyBridgnorthBewdleyCleobury MortimerKinverHighley
ABCDOutdoors Grade
| Town | Outdoors | Green space, ha per 1,000 | Near a park | Protected within 5 km |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Highley | C+ | 3.4 | 73% | 0% |
| Alveley 1.8 mi | C− | 5.4 | 51% | 0% |
| Wolverley 6.0 mi | C− | 7.2 | 23% | 0% |
| Bridgnorth 6.0 mi | C− | 2.4 | 66% | 0% |
| Bewdley 6.1 mi | C+ | 1.7 | 88% | 0% |
| Cleobury Mortimer 6.3 mi | D | 0.8 | 64% | 2% |
| Kinver 6.6 mi | C | 3.1 | 60% | 0% |
Highley grades higher for the outdoors than every neighbour in the table. Wolverley has at least twice Highley’s green space per resident.
Questions about the outdoors in Highley
What is the biggest park in Highley?
Highley Mine, 59 ha (146 acres), with 8.6 km of path, just outside the built-up area. Highley Mine (59 ha) is second. 2 named parks, gardens and playing fields are in the town or within 400 m of it.
Is Highley near a National Park?
The nearest protected landscape is the Shropshire Hills National Landscape, 5.8 mi west of the town’s edge. It covers 808 km² and was designated in 1959.
What are the best walks near Highley?
4 waymarked walking routes pass within 2 km of the town, including the Geopark Way, Severn Way (2) Shrewsbury to Worcester and The Highley Trail. Highley Mine alone has 8.6 km of path.
How many people in Highley live near a park?
73% of residents live within 400 m, about a 5-minute walk, of a public park, garden or playing field (Census 2021 output areas against OS Open Greenspace). The typical UK town is 83%.
When is the best time of year for walking in Highley?
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Highley good for walking?
About average for paths: 2.8 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 55% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 75% (3.4 ha per 1,000 residents).
How is the Outdoors Grade worked out?
From five measures, each placed among UK towns of 1,000 or more: public green space per resident, the share living near a park, National Park or National Landscape within 5 km, footpaths per square kilometre, and the sea within 5 km. It is a character grade and isn’t part of Highley’s overall grade.
Sources
Where Highley’s outdoors figures come from
- Parks and green space: Ordnance Survey OS Open Greenspace (parks and gardens, playing fields, play spaces, and their access points). Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- National Parks and National Landscapes: Natural England and Natural Resources Wales boundaries, areas and designation dates, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Footpaths, walking routes, beaches and things to do: © OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database License (ODbL), via Geofabrik, 16 October 2026.
- Historic parks, listed buildings and monuments: Historic England, National Heritage List for England, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Rain and temperature: Met Office HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages for the town; daylight calculated from its latitude.
- The sea: ONS Countries (December 2024) boundaries clipped to mean high water. Residents near a park: ONS Census 2021 output areas.
- Grade: TownRatings’ Outdoors Grade, ranked against UK towns only.
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.