Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Home to 1,682 people, this village lies in South Yorkshire, Yorkshire and The Humber.
Where it does best is schools (A+): primary results beat 93% of towns in England. Housing is expensive: homes sell for a median £327,500, about 7.7 times local household income. It also trails on walkability: on the way to work, 8% walk, cycle or take a bus or train. Hazard risk is higher than most: 4% of homes at high or medium risk of flooding from rivers or the sea.
Figures: prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · commuting, Census 2021 · flood risk, Environment Agency. Silkstone has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
The 3 things Silkstone 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 Silkstone is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
Silkstone has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists them inside Silkstone’s built-up area, along with 1 scheduled monument.
8% 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 Silkstone.
Degrees are held by 40% of adults. 12% are under 15, lower than both South Yorkshire’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (18%). Add to that, the 15-to-24 age group makes up 7.5% of residents. Line up the people of Silkstone by age and the one in the middle is 55.
50% women, 50% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Silkstone | South Yorkshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 12% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 7.5% | 13% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 17% | 26% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 33% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 31% | 18% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 17% | 22% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 5.2% | 6.2% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 17% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 40% | 27% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · South Yorkshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
The town has one school, shown below. At the 7 primary schools within 3 km, 73% of pupils reach the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Silkstone Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 200 | A+ |
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 35% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Home was the main workplace for 35% of workers at the census. 26% of commuters travelled under 5 km, below both South Yorkshire’s towns (43%) and England’s towns (45%). In 2026, 1.2% of 16 to 64s were claiming unemployment benefits. Of the commuters living in Silkstone, 4% work in the town itself.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Silkstone has no GP practice of its own; the nearest is 2.5 miles away. The nearest A&E to Silkstone is Barnsley Hospital, 2.9 miles away. 5.5% of residents described their health as bad or very bad, below South Yorkshire’s towns (6.7%) but above England’s towns (5.2%).
| Census 2021 | Silkstone | South Yorkshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 80% | 79% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 5.5% | 6.7% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 21% | 21% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · These shares come straight from the census, without allowing for age, and young towns benefit; the Health Grade instead weighs age-adjusted measures, including life expectancy and early deaths.
Social renters account for 12% of households. Owners make up 78% of households, above South Yorkshire’s towns (61%) and England’s towns (61%) alike. Private rents average £696 a month across the Barnsley council area.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £424,000 | 40 |
| Semi-detached | £245,000 | 9 |
| Terraced | £205,000 | 11 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Burglary and damage came to 9.7 per 1,000 residents a year, lower than South Yorkshire’s towns (18.1) and near England’s towns (9.4). A year of reports to August 2026 adds up to 62 offences in Silkstone and 17 cases of nuisance behaviour. Violence and sexual offences made up 35% of the total.
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 police category of violence and sexual offences includes harassment and stalking.
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Per 10,000 residents, Silkstone counts 83 listed buildings, higher than both South Yorkshire’s towns (10) and England’s towns (39). The town’s listed buildings include the Church of All Saints, Grade I. Before 1919: that is when 8% of homes were built.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Silkstone. Best known first.
CastleWentworth Castle3.4 km outside town, to the southeast
MuseumCannon Hall2.7 km outside town, to the northwest
MuseumCawthorne Victoria Jubilee Museum1.8 km outside town, to the northMuseumMuseumDe Morgan Museum2.7 km outside town, to the northwestAttractionAttractionThe Corinthian Temple3.5 km outside town, to the southeastPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Silkstone | 1,682 | — | — | C− | A− | A− |
| Silkstone Common | 1,278 | 0.9 | — | C | A+ | A |
| Hoylandswaine | 1,038 | 1.8 | — | D | A | A |
| Dodworth | 5,981 | 2 | B− | B+ | C | C− |
| Barugh Green and Redbrook | 7,545 | 2.4 | B+ | B− | B | C+ |
| Oxspring | 1,196 | 2.4 | — | C− | A+ | B− |
| Thurgoland | 1,239 | 2.8 | — | C | B+ | B− |
| Penistone | 8,541 | 3 | B+ | C+ | B− | C+ |
Silkstone Common, Hoylandswaine, Oxspring and Thurgoland have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Primary results beat 93% of towns in England (Department for Education, Key Stage 2). One state school is inside the town; places are handled by Barnsley council.
That is 3.4 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I building is Church of All Saints. It also has 1 scheduled monument.
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
Village in South Yorkshire, England
Silkstone is a built-up area of 1,682 people, in the Barnsley 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.