Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A large town of 47,846 in Somerset, South West.
Bridgwater grades D− overall against UK towns: better than 5% of UK towns, and #47 of 49 in Somerset. Its strongest subject is walkability (A): 25% of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport. Its weakest is safety (D−): 76.8 violent and sexual offences and 18.9 home and vehicle crimes per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026. Among UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people, it has less crime per resident than 2%. The median home sold for £224,500 in the last three years, 4.5 times what households in the Sedgemoor council area earn in a year.
ONS publishes one rent for all of Somerset, so this town's Cost Grade uses house prices and council tax only.
The 2 things Bridgwater 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 Bridgwater is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 206 buildings inside Bridgwater’s built-up area, 17 of them Grade I, and 3 scheduled monuments.
14% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
The archive holds 1 old photo or postcard going back to 1906.
Explore the history →Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Bridgwater.
Town centres with shops, stations and nightlife record more crime per resident: police.uk counts crimes where they happen, not where victims live.
Violent crime ran at 76.8 per 1,000 residents a year, above both Somerset’s towns (27) and England’s towns (22). Police recorded 7,561 crimes inside Bridgwater’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 1,321 reports of anti-social behaviour. For its size, Bridgwater records more crime per resident than 98% of the 645 UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 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
Northgate Primary School’s results beat 75% of schools in England like it. Three of its 14 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 490 | B− |
| Bridgwater College AcademyLargest secondary schoolAll-through | All-through | 1,561 | D− |
| Northgate Primary SchoolTop results in townPrimary | Primary | 258 | A− |
In the comparison, Bridgwater comes below both Somerset’s towns (32%) and England’s towns (34%). 19% of residents are children under 15. Bridgwater has a median age of 37.5.
50% women, 50% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Bridgwater | Somerset | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 19% | 16% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 11% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 29% | 23% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 25% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 15% | 23% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 22% | 16% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 6.9% | 6.1% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 18% | 19% | 17% |
| Degree level | 21% | 32% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Somerset and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 16% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
For Bridgwater, that is above both Somerset’s towns (46%) and England’s towns (45%). 16% of workers worked mainly from home at the census.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Women here live to 81.8 on average and men to 77.9 (2019–23). The nearest A&E to Bridgwater is Musgrove Park Hospital, 9.5 miles away. 5 GP practices serve the town; 73% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey.
| Census 2021 | Bridgwater | Somerset | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 81% | 82% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 5.6% | 5.1% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 18% | 18% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Bridgwater has 206 listed buildings on Historic England’s list: 17 Grade I, 24 Grade II*. Bridgwater’s listed buildings include Bridgwater Arts Centre, Grade I. 14% of homes were built before 1919.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Bridgwater sits above both Somerset’s towns (19%) and England’s towns (21%) on this measure. 56% of households own their home. No town in Somerset costs less to buy into than Bridgwater, at £224,500, the lowest of 49.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £321,250 | 310 |
| Semi-detached | £245,000 | 538 |
| Terraced | £200,000 | 743 |
| Flat or maisonette | £140,000 | 189 |
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 Bridgwater. Best known first.
MuseumSomerset Brick and Tile Museumin town
MuseumThe Admiral Blake Museumin town
MuseumWestonzoyland Pumping Station Museum3.5 km outside town, to the southeastMuseumMuseumBrick & Tile Museumin townGardenGardenThe Walled Gardens of Cannington3 km outside town, to the northwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
206 listed buildings in Bridgwater, 17 of them Grade I.
Parish Church of St Mary: Photo: Geof Sheppard · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Bridgwater Railway Station: Photo: Geof Sheppard · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Bridgwater Arts Centre: Photo: Rodw · Public domain · Old Mill: Photo: Unknown photographer · CC BY-SA 4.0
38 notable people were born in Bridgwater.
Robert Blake: Henry Perronet Briggs, Public domain · James Sully: Elliott & Fry, Public domain · Neil Parish: Chris McAndrew, CC BY 3.0 · Paul Dukes: George Grantham Bain Collection (Library of Congress), Public domain · Francis Joseph Grimshaw: RexGregorian, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bridgwater | 47,846 | — | D− | C+ | D− | C− |
| Wembdon | 1,772 | 1.2 | — | D | A | B+ |
| North Petherton | 3,180 | 2.4 | C− | C | C− | C+ |
| Puriton | 2,265 | 3.1 | — | C+ | B+ | B |
| Westonzoyland | 1,463 | 3.3 | — | B− | B+ | B |
| Cannington | 2,315 | 3.3 | — | C | B+ | B |
| Woolavington | 2,324 | 3.9 | — | C | C− | B− |
| Monkton Heathfield | 4,584 | 6.8 | C+ | B− | C− | B+ |
Wembdon, Puriton, Westonzoyland, Cannington and Woolavington have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Police recorded 7,561 crimes inside Bridgwater’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, 48% of them violence and sexual offences, a police category that includes harassment and stalking.
At the 2021 Census, 11% of Bridgwater’s 47,846 residents were 15 to 24 and 15% were 65 or over, against 12% and 18% across England’s towns.
That is 1.8 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I buildings include Bridgwater Arts Centre. It also has 3 scheduled monuments.
Band D council tax in Bridgwater is £2,733 for 2026–27, more than in 98% of UK towns (council, county, police and fire, plus the parish or town council). Your own bill depends on your home’s band; check it on GOV.UK.
Large town in Somerset, England
Bridgwater is a built-up area of 47,846 people, in the Sedgemoor 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.