Ilchester’s biggest
Ilchester Sports Field
Playing field
6.7 ha (17 acres)
9 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
0.7 mi south-westfrom the centre
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Photo: Roger Cornfoot · CC BY-SA 2.0C−Outdoors Grade
Outdoors in Ilchester · parks, paths & countryside
Parks and walks in Ilchester
Parks and playing fields in Ilchester add up to 3.5 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. A park or playing field is within a 5-minute walk for 40% of residents. Footpaths add up to 15 km in the village and the kilometre around it, 1.7 for every square kilometre. Ilchester grades C− for the outdoors. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Green space
3.5 ha
per 1,000 residents
Typical UK town 2.1
Near a park
40%
of residents within 400 m
Typical UK town 83%
Footpaths
15 km
1.7 km per km², town + 1 km
Typical UK town 3.0 per km²
Protected landscape
0%
of the land within 5 km
Nearest: Dorset National Landscape
Character
What kind of outdoors village is Ilchester?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Room to roam3.5 ha of parks and playing fields per 1,000 residents, more than 76% of UK towns.Parks can be a walk away60% of residents live more than 400 m from a park or playing field.
Ilchester’s strongest suit is plenty of park space. Where it falls short is how far some homes are from a park.
Outdoors grade
Ilchester grades C− for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Ilchester, 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 16% of UK towns47th of 60 UK villages its size
Public green space3.5 haper 1,000 residents: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces
77out of
100
100
A park within a walk40%of residents within 400 m (a 5-minute walk)
9out of
100
100
National Park or National Landscape0%of the land within 5 km · None within 5 km
31out of
100
100
Footpaths1.7 kmper km², the town and 1 km around it
21out 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.
Villages its size
Ilchester is 47th of 60 UK villages its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 2,000 to 2,100 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
Ilchester1.7
Villages its size2.5
Somerset towns3.0
All UK towns3.0
Green space, ha per 1,000 residents
Ilchester3.5
Villages its size1.9
Somerset towns2.0
All UK towns2.1
Residents within 400 m of a park
Ilchester40%
Villages its size70%
Somerset towns83%
All UK towns83%
Against villages its size, Ilchester stands out most for park space per resident: only 13 of the other 59 have more. It falls furthest behind on homes near a park, where 47 of the others do better.
Show as a table
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hay-on-Wye Powys | A+ | 9.3 | 100% | 3.8 | 21% |
| 2 | Wye Kent | A+ | 4.7 | 100% | 3.1 | 71% |
| 3 | Seaview and Nettlestone Isle of Wight | A+ | 3.6 | 89% | 2.8 | 8% |
| 4 | Fowey Cornwall | A | 3.2 | 91% | 2.1 | 32% |
| 5 | Lower Kingswood Surrey | A | 4.7 | 75% | 6.6 | 22% |
| 6 | Chiseldon Wiltshire | A | 1.8 | 100% | 3.4 | 69% |
| 7 | Highfields Caldecote Cambridgeshire | A− | 4.1 | 100% | 3.7 | 0% |
| 8 | Marldon Devon | A− | 4.1 | 70% | 2.7 | 3% |
| 9 | Bishops Lydeard Somerset | A− | 3.2 | 100% | 1.8 | 23% |
| 10 | Great Haywood Staffordshire | A− | 7.1 | 27% | 4.1 | 29% |
| 11 | Culverstone Green Kent | B+ | 5.3 | 61% | 2.7 | 42% |
| 12 | Brompton North Yorkshire | B+ | 4.7 | 100% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 13 | Bermuda Warwickshire | B | 4.7 | 100% | 2 | 0% |
| 14 | Alveston Gloucestershire | B | 2.5 | 100% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 15 | Meppershall Bedfordshire | B | 2.3 | 83% | 3 | 2% |
| 16 | Needingworth Cambridgeshire | B− | 4.6 | 85% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 17 | Dyserth Clwyd | B− | 0.5 | 54% | 3.6 | 22% |
| 18 | Bishop's Tachbrook Warwickshire | B− | 2.5 | 100% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 19 | Felbridge Surrey | B− | 2 | 80% | 2.4 | 25% |
| 20 | Uffculme Devon | B− | 2.8 | 86% | 1.3 | 14% |
| 21 | Edenfield Lancashire | B− | 2.7 | 69% | 4.4 | 0% |
| 22 | Rothbury Northumberland | B− | 1 | 76% | 3.8 | 21% |
| 23 | Exning Suffolk | B− | 3.6 | 82% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 24 | Westoning Bedfordshire | B− | 1.1 | 100% | 1.9 | 10% |
| 25 | Ightham Kent | C+ | 2 | 30% | 3 | 56% |
| 26 | Brantham Suffolk | C+ | 1 | 27% | 2.6 | 42% |
| 27 | Kintbury Berkshire | C+ | 1.9 | 71% | 1.8 | 92% |
| 28 | Gregson Lane Lancashire | C+ | 1.7 | 86% | 3.3 | 0% |
| 29 | Pembrey Dyfed | C+ | 0.3 | 48% | 2.6 | 11% |
| 30 | Read Lancashire | C+ | 1.6 | 71% | 2.5 | 21% |
| 31 | Hixon Staffordshire | C+ | 0.8 | 100% | 1.3 | 11% |
| 32 | Galgate Lancashire | C | 1.1 | 58% | 3.4 | 12% |
| 33 | Marcham Oxfordshire | C | 1.2 | 100% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 34 | Bredon Worcestershire | C | 2.1 | 66% | 1.6 | 25% |
| 35 | Benllech Gwynedd | C | 0.1 | 17% | 1.8 | 27% |
| 36 | Barrowby Lincolnshire | C− | 3.5 | 66% | 1.8 | 0% |
| 37 | Maesycwmmer Gwent | C− | 1.9 | 73% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 38 | Keyingham East Riding of Yorkshire | C− | 1.7 | 100% | 0.5 | 0% |
| 39 | Micklefield West Yorkshire | C− | 2.1 | 48% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 40 | Cadnam and Bartley Hampshire | C− | 0.9 | 30% | 2.4 | 79% |
| 41 | Carlton North Yorkshire | C− | 0.7 | 100% | 1.8 | 0% |
| 42 | Sutton Bonington Nottinghamshire | C− | 2.7 | 28% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 43 | Crich Derbyshire | C− | 0.6 | 69% | 4.1 | 0% |
| 44 | Urpeth County Durham | C− | 1.3 | 0% | 4.8 | 0% |
| 45 | Radley Oxfordshire | C− | 2.1 | 36% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 46 | Winwick Cheshire | C− | 3.2 | 48% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 47 | Ilchester Somerset | C− | 3.5 | 40% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 48 | Hibaldstow Lincolnshire | C− | 1.7 | 89% | 0.7 | 0% |
| 49 | Scholar Green Cheshire | C− | 0.7 | 65% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 50 | Bardney Lincolnshire | D | 4.1 | 49% | 1 | 0% |
| 51 | Stone Buckinghamshire | D | 2.2 | 57% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 52 | Stretham Cambridgeshire | D | 1.4 | 60% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 53 | Merriott Somerset | D | 1.1 | 39% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 54 | Meden Vale Nottinghamshire | D | 0.3 | 58% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 55 | Haxey Lincolnshire | D | 1.6 | 46% | 2 | 0% |
| 56 | Great Eccleston Lancashire | D | 1.2 | 72% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 57 | Wymott Lancashire | D− | 0.3 | 10% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 58 | Keelby Lincolnshire | D− | 1 | 71% | 1.1 | 0% |
| 59 | Westwoodside Lincolnshire | D− | 1.2 | 33% | 1.6 | 0% |
| 60 | Wythall Worcestershire | D− | 0.2 | 0% | 2 | 0% |
The map
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Ilchester’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 Ilchester
The biggest is Ilchester Sports Field, 6.7 ha (17 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
Close to home
4 in 10 Ilchester 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 (40%)Further (60%)
Ilchester40%
Villages its size70%
Somerset towns83%
All UK towns83%
About 1,200 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 5 playgrounds are mapped in and around the village, about one for every 412 residents.
National Parks & National Landscapes
The Dorset National Landscape is 7.8 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
Footpaths & waymarked walks
1 waymarked walk passes through or near Ilchester
15 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Ilchester and the kilometre around it, 1.7 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the village.
Regional
Monarch's Way5.4 km
The regional route here is the Monarch's 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 Ilchester: May to September
The village’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) | 8.4 | 9.9 | 11.7 | 13.8 | 15.5 | 16.5 | 16.1 | 14.5 | 12.5 | 10.6 | 8.8 | 7.9 |
| High (°C) | 9 | 9 | 11 | 14 | 18 | 20 | 22 | 22 | 19 | 16 | 12 | 9 |
| Rain (mm) | 74 | 55 | 53 | 54 | 51 | 60 | 54 | 65 | 59 | 89 | 88 | 84 |
May is the driest month (51 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 22 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 89 mm of rain falls in October, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 49 nights a year. The climate in Ilchester →
Things to do
5 playgrounds and the nearest beaches
Mapped within 2 km of the village in OpenStreetMap, against the typical UK village its size per resident. Named places are listed with directions; unnamed ones are only counted.
The nearest beaches
Ilchester is inland. These are the nearest named beaches, measured from the edge of the village.
Seatown Beach20 mi from Ilchester’s edge
DirectionsEast Beach20 mi from Ilchester’s edge
DirectionsBerrow Sands21 mi from Ilchester’s edge
DirectionsHive Beach21 mi from Ilchester’s edge
DirectionsChurch Cliff Beach22 mi from Ilchester’s edge
DirectionsGood to know
Check the water before you swim. The Environment Agency tests designated bathing waters from May to September and publishes a rating for each beach.
Every named place, with directions
Next door
The outdoors in nearby towns
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 12 miles. Tap a town for its outdoors page.
SomertonMartockYeovilKeinton MandevilleStoke sub HamdonLangportIlchester
ABCDOutdoors Grade
| Town | Outdoors | Green space, ha per 1,000 | Near a park | Protected within 5 km |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ilchester | C− | 3.5 | 40% | 0% |
| Somerton 4.1 mi | D− | 0.6 | 48% | 0% |
| Martock 4.5 mi | B− | 2.9 | 85% | 0% |
| Yeovil 4.7 mi | B+ | 2.0 | 90% | 2% |
| Keinton Mandeville 4.7 mi | B | 3.8 | 100% | 0% |
| Stoke sub Hamdon 4.8 mi | A− | 25.1 | 81% | 0% |
| Langport 6.6 mi | B− | 2.3 | 94% | 0% |
Stoke sub Hamdon, 4.8 miles away, grades A−, the best next door: 81% of its residents live within 400 m of a park. Stoke sub Hamdon has at least twice Ilchester’s green space per resident.
Questions about the outdoors in Ilchester
What is the biggest park in Ilchester?
Ilchester Sports Field, 6.7 ha (17 acres). 1 named park, garden or playing field is in the village or within 400 m of it.
Is Ilchester near a National Park?
The nearest protected landscape is the Dorset National Landscape, 7.8 mi south of the village’s edge. It covers 1,129 km² and was designated in 1959.
What are the best walks near Ilchester?
1 waymarked walking route passes within 2 km of the village, including the Monarch's Way.
What is the nearest beach to Ilchester?
Seatown Beach, 20 mi from the edge of the village, then East Beach (20 mi). Ilchester itself is inland.
How many people in Ilchester live near a park?
40% 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 Ilchester?
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Ilchester good for walking?
Paths are thinner than most towns: 1.7 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 21% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 77% (3.5 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 Ilchester’s overall grade.
Sources
Where Ilchester’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.