Newmarket’s biggest
George Lambton Playing Fields
Playing field
8.3 ha (21 acres)0.6 km of path
10 minto walk all 0.6 km of path
12 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
0.6 mi north-westfrom the centre
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Photo: Christopher Hilton · CC BY-SA 2.0C+Outdoors Grade
Outdoors in Newmarket · parks, paths & countryside
91% of Newmarket’s residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park
Parks and playing fields in Newmarket add up to 1.9 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. 65 km of footpaths run through the town and the kilometre around it, 2.6 for every square kilometre. Newmarket grades C+ for the outdoors: #22 of 34 in Suffolk. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Green space
1.9 ha
per 1,000 residents
Typical UK town 2.1
Near a park
91%
of residents within 400 m
Typical UK town 83%
Footpaths
65 km
2.6 km per km², town + 1 km
Typical UK town 3.0 per km²
Protected landscape
0%
of the land within 5 km
Outdoors grade
Newmarket grades C+ for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Newmarket, 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 38% of UK towns#22 of 34 in Suffolk · 50th of 60 UK towns its size
Public green space1.9 haper 1,000 residents: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces
42out of
100
100
A park within a walk91%of residents within 400 m (a 5-minute walk)
69out of
100
100
National Park or National Landscape0%of the land within 5 km · None within 5 km
31out of
100
100
Footpaths2.6 kmper km², the town and 1 km around it
47out 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.
Towns its size
Newmarket is 50th of 60 UK towns its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 17,500 to 20,400 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
Newmarket2.6
Towns its size3.6
Suffolk towns2.5
All UK towns3.0
Green space, ha per 1,000 residents
Newmarket1.9
Towns its size2.3
Suffolk towns2.1
All UK towns2.1
Residents within 400 m of a park
Newmarket91%
Towns its size87%
Suffolk towns80%
All UK towns83%
Newmarket falls furthest behind on path per km², where 43 of the 59 others do better.
Show as a table
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cirencester Gloucestershire | A+ | 4.3 | 95% | 4.1 | 48% |
| 2 | Littlehampton West Sussex | A+ | 2.1 | 99% | 3.1 | 18% |
| 3 | Litherland Merseyside | A | 7.3 | 94% | 3.3 | 0% |
| 4 | Buxton Derbyshire | A | 3.5 | 86% | 3.8 | 61% |
| 5 | Houghton Regis Bedfordshire | A | 3.5 | 81% | 8 | 20% |
| 6 | Brixham Devon | A | 3.1 | 76% | 2.5 | 30% |
| 7 | Colne Lancashire | A | 3.2 | 86% | 5.3 | 8% |
| 8 | Waltham Abbey Essex | A | 11.9 | 92% | 6.7 | 0% |
| 9 | Hazlemere Buckinghamshire | A | 2.5 | 81% | 4.7 | 68% |
| 10 | Forest Town Nottinghamshire | A | 6.4 | 94% | 5.7 | 0% |
| 11 | Northwich Cheshire | A | 8.8 | 92% | 4.8 | 0% |
| 12 | Leek Staffordshire | A | 4.2 | 83% | 3.6 | 19% |
| 13 | Keynsham Somerset | A | 2.1 | 95% | 4.6 | 11% |
| 14 | Clifton Greater Manchester | A | 10 | 92% | 4.4 | 0% |
| 15 | Abbots Langley and Kings Langley Hertfordshire | A | 3.8 | 88% | 3.6 | 3% |
| 16 | Harwich Essex | A− | 1.7 | 95% | 2.1 | 20% |
| 17 | Peterlee County Durham | A− | 2.3 | 85% | 4.2 | 0% |
| 18 | Ebbw Vale Gwent | A− | 2 | 92% | 3.3 | 29% |
| 19 | Mansfield Woodhouse Nottinghamshire | A− | 2.8 | 94% | 4.9 | 0% |
| 20 | Devizes Wiltshire | A− | 1.8 | 91% | 3.2 | 38% |
| 21 | Euxton Lancashire | A− | 3.7 | 98% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 22 | Alton Hampshire | B+ | 2.6 | 82% | 3 | 27% |
| 23 | Glossop Derbyshire | B+ | 1.5 | 78% | 4.2 | 60% |
| 24 | Walkden Greater Manchester | B+ | 3.4 | 92% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 25 | Belper Derbyshire | B+ | 2.4 | 94% | 4.1 | 0% |
| 26 | Eastwood Nottinghamshire | B+ | 2.6 | 93% | 3.9 | 0% |
| 27 | Hythe and Dibden Purlieu Hampshire | B+ | 0.8 | 49% | 4.4 | 44% |
| 28 | Sandhurst Berkshire | B+ | 5.1 | 79% | 3.9 | 0% |
| 29 | Warminster Wiltshire | B+ | 1.7 | 86% | 3 | 44% |
| 30 | Hazel Grove Greater Manchester | B+ | 2.9 | 62% | 4.2 | 3% |
| 31 | Liversedge West Yorkshire | B+ | 2 | 98% | 4.3 | 0% |
| 32 | Mirfield West Yorkshire | B | 2.5 | 90% | 3.7 | 0% |
| 33 | Ripley Derbyshire | B | 2.4 | 91% | 3.7 | 0% |
| 34 | Irlam Greater Manchester | B | 3.1 | 95% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 35 | Cradley Heath West Midlands | B | 3.3 | 76% | 4.3 | 0% |
| 36 | Ely Cambridgeshire | B | 2.7 | 88% | 3.3 | 0% |
| 37 | Stanley County Durham | B | 1.7 | 88% | 5.2 | 0% |
| 38 | Shaw Greater Manchester | B | 1.9 | 96% | 3.7 | 0% |
| 39 | Stourport-on-Severn Worcestershire | B | 3.1 | 79% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 40 | Romsey Hampshire | B− | 1.2 | 82% | 4.5 | 2% |
| 41 | Ware Hertfordshire | B− | 2 | 81% | 4.9 | 0% |
| 42 | Guisborough North Yorkshire | B− | 1.5 | 80% | 2.6 | 35% |
| 43 | Calne Wiltshire | B− | 1.3 | 88% | 2.4 | 33% |
| 44 | Carterton Oxfordshire | B− | 2.1 | 82% | 2 | 13% |
| 45 | Failsworth Greater Manchester | C+ | 1.8 | 77% | 4.6 | 0% |
| 46 | Rawmarsh South Yorkshire | C+ | 2 | 84% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 47 | Maesteg Mid Glamorgan | C+ | 2 | 94% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 48 | Melksham Wiltshire | C+ | 2.2 | 87% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 49 | Bideford Devon | C+ | 0.9 | 83% | 1 | 11% |
| 50 | Newmarket Suffolk | C+ | 1.9 | 91% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 51 | Knowle and Dorridge West Midlands | C+ | 2.7 | 82% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 52 | Adwick le Street South Yorkshire | C+ | 2.8 | 89% | 1.8 | 0% |
| 53 | Thornton Lancashire | C | 2.1 | 71% | 1.6 | 0% |
| 54 | Nantwich Cheshire | C | 2.2 | 86% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 55 | Sleaford Lincolnshire | C | 1.7 | 93% | 2 | 0% |
| 56 | Willerby and Anlaby East Riding of Yorkshire | C− | 1.6 | 46% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 57 | Selby North Yorkshire | C− | 1.6 | 81% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 58 | Great Wyrley and Cheslyn Hay Staffordshire | C− | 1.5 | 60% | 1.6 | 3% |
| 59 | Goole East Riding of Yorkshire | D | 1.7 | 81% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 60 | Tiverton Devon | D | 1.5 | 59% | 2.6 | 0% |
The map
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Newmarket’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 Newmarket
The biggest is George Lambton Playing Fields, 8.3 ha (21 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
King Edward VII Memorial Grounds
Park or garden
0.7 ha (2 acres)0.2 km of path
Centralin the middle of Newmarket
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Crockfords Park
Playing field
0.5 ha (1 acres)
0.8 mi southfrom the centre
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Close to home
How close Newmarket’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).
Within 400 m (91%)Further (9%)
Newmarket91%
Towns its size87%
Suffolk towns80%
All UK towns83%
About 1,700 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 27 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 698 residents.
Footpaths & waymarked walks
1 waymarked walk passes through or near Newmarket
65 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Newmarket and the kilometre around it, 2.6 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the town.
Regional
Stour Valley Path part 14.0 km
The regional route here is the Stour Valley Path part 1.
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 Newmarket: 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 | 14.7 | 12.6 | 10.5 | 8.7 | 7.7 |
| High (°C) | 7 | 8 | 11 | 14 | 18 | 20 | 23 | 23 | 19 | 15 | 11 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 50 | 40 | 33 | 34 | 45 | 49 | 54 | 55 | 44 | 61 | 58 | 49 |
March is the driest month (33 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 41 nights a year. The climate in Newmarket →
Things to do
27 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
Newmarket is inland. These are the nearest named beaches, measured from the edge of the town.
The Beach13 mi from Newmarket’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
Playgrounds 27
Plus 27 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Campsites 1
The Jarman Centre0.1 mi from town
DirectionsNext door
The outdoors in nearby towns
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 12 miles. Tap a town for its outdoors page.
ExningBurwellKentfordFordhamRed LodgeBottishamNewmarket
ABCDOutdoors Grade
Exning, 2 miles away, grades B−, the best next door: 82% of its residents live within 400 m of a park. None of the neighbours has a protected landscape within 5 km either.
Questions about the outdoors in Newmarket
What is the biggest park in Newmarket?
George Lambton Playing Fields, 8.3 ha (21 acres), with 0.6 km of path. King Edward VII Memorial Grounds (0.7 ha) is second. 3 named parks, gardens and playing fields are in the town or within 400 m of it.
Is Newmarket near a National Park?
No National Park or National Landscape is within 30 km (about 19 miles) of Newmarket.
What are the best walks near Newmarket?
1 waymarked walking route passes within 2 km of the town, including the Stour Valley Path part 1.
What is the nearest beach to Newmarket?
The Beach, 13 mi from the edge of the town. Newmarket itself is inland.
How many people in Newmarket live near a park?
91% 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 Newmarket?
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Newmarket good for walking?
About average for paths: 2.6 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 47% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 42% (1.9 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 Newmarket’s overall grade.
Sources
Where Newmarket’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.