Photo: Jo and Steve Turner · CC BY-SA 2.087% of Hadleigh’s residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park
The Dedham Vale National Landscape begins 1.5 mi from the town’s edge. Parks and playing fields in Hadleigh add up to 2.6 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. Footpaths add up to 38 km in the town and the kilometre around it, 2.7 for every square kilometre. Hadleigh grades B+ for the outdoors: #14 of 34 in Suffolk. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Hadleigh grades B+ for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Hadleigh, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
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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.
Hadleigh is 19th of 60 UK towns its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 8,300 to 9,000 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Against towns its size, Hadleigh stands out most for park space per resident: only 23 of the other 59 have more.
Show as a table
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Upton Dorset | A+ | 9.1 | 84% | 4.7 | 18% |
| 2 | Hawkinge Kent | A+ | 2.6 | 100% | 3.2 | 74% |
| 3 | Pool and Illogan Cornwall | A+ | 3.7 | 81% | 4 | 5% |
| 4 | Worsbrough South Yorkshire | A | 10.1 | 100% | 6 | 0% |
| 5 | Storrington West Sussex | A | 5.5 | 85% | 3.2 | 54% |
| 6 | Wallingford Oxfordshire | A | 3.1 | 85% | 3.7 | 61% |
| 7 | Warlingham Surrey | A | 4.2 | 81% | 4.3 | 13% |
| 8 | East Cowes Isle of Wight | A | 1.4 | 96% | 3 | 8% |
| 9 | Ledbury Herefordshire | A | 3.3 | 89% | 3.1 | 34% |
| 10 | Penistone South Yorkshire | A | 2.6 | 97% | 3.9 | 9% |
| 11 | Bearsted Kent | A | 5.5 | 76% | 3.5 | 39% |
| 12 | Maryport Cumbria | A− | 1.4 | 100% | 2.4 | 5% |
| 13 | Hetton-le-Hole Tyne and Wear | A− | 7.8 | 95% | 3.7 | 0% |
| 14 | Brightlingsea Essex | A− | 3 | 97% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 15 | Ryton Tyne and Wear | A− | 5.5 | 85% | 5.1 | 0% |
| 16 | Alfreton Derbyshire | B+ | 4.3 | 100% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 17 | Longridge Lancashire | B+ | 1.9 | 89% | 3 | 32% |
| 18 | Winnersh Berkshire | B+ | 9.6 | 80% | 3.9 | 0% |
| 19 | Hadleigh Suffolk | B+ | 2.6 | 87% | 2.7 | 10% |
| 20 | Higham Ferrers Northamptonshire | B+ | 3.5 | 93% | 3.3 | 0% |
| 21 | Banstead Surrey | B+ | 2.4 | 66% | 5.2 | 3% |
| 22 | Cinderford Gloucestershire | B+ | 1.7 | 80% | 4.7 | 4% |
| 23 | Ashbourne Derbyshire | B | 1.9 | 92% | 2.7 | 14% |
| 24 | Cockermouth Cumbria | B | 2.6 | 81% | 2.2 | 42% |
| 25 | Ampthill Bedfordshire | B | 6.8 | 71% | 3.9 | 0% |
| 26 | Clay Cross Derbyshire | B | 2.6 | 88% | 3.7 | 0% |
| 27 | South Kirkby West Yorkshire | B | 3 | 97% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 28 | Marlborough Wiltshire | B | 1.2 | 72% | 3.8 | 100% |
| 29 | Abergele Clwyd | B | 2.9 | 78% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 30 | Wendover Buckinghamshire | B | 1 | 58% | 5.6 | 60% |
| 31 | Hornsea East Riding of Yorkshire | B− | 2.7 | 90% | 0.6 | 0% |
| 32 | Alnwick Northumberland | B− | 2.2 | 67% | 3.4 | 7% |
| 33 | Whitnash Warwickshire | B− | 2 | 95% | 3.3 | 0% |
| 34 | Cullompton Devon | B− | 3.2 | 100% | 1.8 | 0% |
| 35 | Meltham West Yorkshire | B− | 1 | 63% | 5.3 | 27% |
| 36 | Stansted Mountfitchet Essex | B− | 0.8 | 96% | 4.7 | 0% |
| 37 | West End and Chobham Surrey | B− | 3.3 | 65% | 3.6 | 0% |
| 38 | Hoo St Werburgh Kent | C+ | 1.4 | 92% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 39 | Fakenham Norfolk | C+ | 5.2 | 81% | 2 | 0% |
| 40 | Atherstone Warwickshire | C+ | 2.7 | 88% | 2 | 0% |
| 41 | Brinsworth South Yorkshire | C | 1.3 | 76% | 4.5 | 0% |
| 42 | Faringdon Oxfordshire | C | 1.3 | 94% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 43 | Silsden West Yorkshire | C | 0.8 | 67% | 3.5 | 1% |
| 44 | Rothwell Northamptonshire | C | 2.2 | 91% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 45 | Burscough Lancashire | C | 2.6 | 76% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 46 | Sherburn in Elmet North Yorkshire | C− | 1.8 | 93% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 47 | Ferryhill County Durham | C− | 1.5 | 94% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 48 | East Leake Nottinghamshire | C− | 2.4 | 68% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 49 | Launceston Cornwall | C− | 2.1 | 66% | 0.9 | 1% |
| 50 | Penkridge Staffordshire | C− | 0.8 | 70% | 2.1 | 7% |
| 51 | Sileby Leicestershire | C− | 1 | 80% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 52 | Adlington Lancashire | C− | 1.3 | 64% | 3.1 | 0% |
| 53 | Swaffham Norfolk | D | 1 | 68% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 54 | Harworth and Bircotes Nottinghamshire | D | 1.9 | 64% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 55 | Holbeach Lincolnshire | D | 1 | 91% | 0.5 | 0% |
| 56 | Ashford Common Surrey | D | 0.8 | 62% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 57 | Tarleton and Hesketh Bank Lancashire | D | 1.5 | 63% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 58 | Coxheath Kent | D | 1.2 | 48% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 59 | Clydach West Glamorgan | D | 1.7 | 68% | 0.8 | 0% |
| 60 | Kirkham Lancashire | D− | 1.3 | 66% | 1.3 | 0% |
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Hadleigh’s built-up area.
How close Hadleigh’s homes are to 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).
About 1,100 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 10 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 864 residents.
Dedham Vale and Suffolk Coast & Heaths both start about 4 miles from Hadleigh
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.
10% of the land within 5 km of Hadleigh is National Park or National Landscape, more than 70% of UK towns.
Footpaths in and around Hadleigh
38 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Hadleigh and the kilometre around it, 2.7 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0).
No named walking route is mapped within 2 km of Hadleigh; its footpaths are on the map above.
Waymarked walks are OpenStreetMap walking routes. Public rights of way are only as complete as the map in each area.
The best walking months in Hadleigh: 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 | 16.7 | 16.3 | 14.6 | 12.6 | 10.5 | 8.7 | 7.8 |
| High (°C) | 7 | 8 | 11 | 14 | 17 | 20 | 23 | 23 | 19 | 15 | 11 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 51 | 43 | 40 | 36 | 48 | 47 | 49 | 59 | 44 | 61 | 59 | 55 |
April is the driest month (36 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 23 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 61 mm of rain falls in October, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 45 nights a year. The climate in Hadleigh →
10 playgrounds and the nearest beaches
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.
The nearest beaches
Hadleigh is inland. These are the nearest named beaches, measured from the edge of the town.
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
Nature reserves 1
Playgrounds 10
Plus 10 playgrounds without a name on the map.
The outdoors in nearby towns
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 12 miles. Tap a town for its outdoors page.
| Town | Outdoors | Green space, ha per 1,000 | Near a park | Protected within 5 km |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hadleigh | B+ | 2.6 | 87% | 10% |
| Elmsett 2.7 mi | C | 3.4 | 82% | 0% |
| Bildeston 4.7 mi | C− | 0.5 | 100% | 0% |
| Capel St Mary 4.9 mi | C+ | 1.5 | 59% | 24% |
| Great Bricett 5.2 mi | D− | 1.2 | 0% | 0% |
| East Bergholt 5.5 mi | C | 1.9 | 26% | 46% |
| Bramford 6.2 mi | C+ | 3.2 | 76% | 0% |
Hadleigh grades higher for the outdoors than every neighbour in the table.
Questions about the outdoors in Hadleigh
Is Hadleigh near a National Park?
The nearest protected landscape is the Dedham Vale National Landscape, 1.5 mi south of the town’s edge. It covers 91 km² and was designated in 1970.
What is the nearest beach to Hadleigh?
Trimley Shores, 14 mi from the edge of the town, then Honolulu Beach (16 mi). Hadleigh itself is inland.
How many people in Hadleigh live near a park?
87% 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 Hadleigh?
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Hadleigh good for walking?
About average for paths: 2.7 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 50% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 63% (2.6 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 Hadleigh’s overall grade.
Where Hadleigh’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.