Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 2,816 in Somerset, South West.
Bruton grades B overall against UK towns: better than 58% of UK towns, and #12 of 49 in Somerset. Its strongest subject is walkability (A): 24% of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport. Its weakest is hazard risk (C−): 1.9% of homes at high or medium risk of flooding from rivers or the sea. The median home sold for £295,000 in the last three years, 5.7 times what households in the South Somerset 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 Bruton 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 Bruton is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 132 buildings inside Bruton’s built-up area, 3 of them Grade I, and 2 scheduled monuments.
28% 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 Bruton.
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
For Bruton, that is above both Somerset’s towns (90) and England’s towns (39). Bruton’s listed buildings include Bow Bridge, Grade I. Bruton has 132 listed buildings on Historic England’s list: 3 Grade I, 2 Grade II*.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Its two schools are below.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bruton Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 262 | B− |
| Sexey's SchoolLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 633 | B− |
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 31% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
37% of commuters travelled under 5 km, below both Somerset’s towns (46%) and England’s towns (45%). Household income averages £58K a year before tax.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Bruton sits below both Somerset’s towns (5.1%) and England’s towns (5.2%) on this measure. The nearest A&E to Bruton is Yeovil District Hospital, 13.8 miles away. 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.
| Census 2021 | Bruton | Somerset | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 85% | 82% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 3.6% | 5.1% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 15% | 18% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £470,000 | 31 |
| Semi-detached | £295,000 | 23 |
| Terraced | £260,000 | 41 |
| Flat or maisonette | £127,000 | 14 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
That puts Bruton above both Somerset’s towns (8.5) and England’s towns (9.4). Police recorded 197 crimes inside Bruton’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 30 reports of anti-social behaviour. Violence and sexual offences were 46% of the crimes; the police category includes harassment and stalking.
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
On this, Bruton is above both Somerset’s towns (16%) and England’s towns (18%). People aged 15 to 24 make up 15% of the town. The median resident of Bruton is 42.3 years old.
53% women, 47% men
About 87 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Bruton | Somerset | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 20% | 16% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 15% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 18% | 23% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 27% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 20% | 23% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 15% | 16% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 4.2% | 6.1% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 17% | 19% | 17% |
| Degree level | 38% | 32% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Somerset and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Bruton. Best known first.
MuseumBruton Museumin town
MuseumMarket house2.9 km outside town, to the southwestMuseumMuseumRoman Villa Museum3.1 km outside town, to the southHistoric siteHistoric siteThe Roundhouse2.9 km outside town, to the southwestMuseumMuseumVilla Ventorum3 km outside town, to the southPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
132 listed buildings in Bruton, 3 of them Grade I.
Sexey's Hospital West Wing, With Chapel: Photo: Trish Steel · CC BY-SA 2.0 · The Priory: Photo: Trish Steel · CC BY-SA 2.0 · The Castle Inn: Photo: Jaggery · CC BY-SA 2.0 · The Old Toll House: Photo: Alan Rosevear · CC BY-SA 2.0
5 notable people were born in Bruton.
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bruton | 2,816 | — | B | C | C+ | A− |
| Castle Cary | 3,451 | 3 | B− | C+ | C− | B+ |
| Evercreech | 2,165 | 3.5 | — | B | B− | B− |
| Wincanton | 6,744 | 4.2 | C− | C+ | C− | B− |
| Shepton Mallet | 9,645 | 6.9 | C− | B | C− | C+ |
| Pilton | 1,104 | 6.9 | — | D | C+ | A+ |
| Templecombe | 1,657 | 7.9 | — | C+ | C+ | B+ |
| Mere | 2,808 | 8.3 | A− | B | B | A− |
Evercreech, Pilton and Templecombe have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 19.2 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I buildings include Bow Bridge. It also has 2 scheduled monuments.
Band D council tax in Bruton is £2,628 for 2026–27, more than in 90% 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.
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
About the middle for its size: 63% of the 1,308 UK towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people report less crime per resident. Against all UK towns, it grades C+.
Town in Somerset, England
Bruton is a built-up area of 2,816 people, in the South Somerset 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.
