Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Photo: Jonathan Hutchins · CC BY-SA 2.0Parks and playing fields in Box Hill add up to 35.9 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. 55 km of footpaths run through the village and the kilometre around it, 6.0 for every square kilometre. Box Hill grades A for the outdoors. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Box Hill’s strongest suit is a protected landscape all round, followed by plenty of park space. Where it falls short is how far some homes are from a park.
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Box Hill, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
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.
The 60 UK towns and cities of 1,200 to 1,300 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Against villages its size, Box Hill stands out most for park space per resident: none of the other 59 has more. It falls furthest behind on homes near a park, where 49 of the others do better.
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rough Common Kent | A+ | 11 | 100% | 9.2 | 1% |
| 2 | Box Wiltshire | A+ | 3.8 | 100% | 3.9 | 56% |
| 3 | Huncoat Lancashire | A+ | 10.1 | 100% | 4.9 | 1% |
| 4 | Clanfield Hampshire | A+ | 6.1 | 100% | 2.9 | 78% |
| 5 | Aldington Kent | A+ | 4.6 | 100% | 3.8 | 11% |
| 6 | Otterbourne Hampshire | A | 2.9 | 100% | 3.2 | 25% |
| 7 | Box Hill Surrey | A | 35.9 | 12% | 6 | 39% |
| 8 | Cliffs End Kent | A | 6.9 | 100% | 1.8 | 0% |
| 9 | Harlech Gwynedd | A− | 1.9 | 36% | 3.5 | 67% |
| 10 | Bradpole Dorset | A− | 0.9 | 100% | 3.3 | 95% |
| 11 | South Heath Buckinghamshire | A− | 20.4 | 0% | 3 | 85% |
| 12 | Exton Devon | A− | 2.2 | 100% | 0.6 | 7% |
| 13 | Westfield East Sussex | B+ | 1.9 | 100% | 1.9 | 83% |
| 14 | Tregarth Gwynedd | B+ | 1.5 | 100% | 2.9 | 23% |
| 15 | New Brancepeth County Durham | B+ | 2.6 | 100% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 16 | Baddesley Ensor Warwickshire | B+ | 18.3 | 100% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 17 | Bierton Buckinghamshire | B+ | 5.8 | 70% | 7.7 | 0% |
| 18 | Farningham Kent | B+ | 1.7 | 100% | 2 | 33% |
| 19 | Billy Row County Durham | B | 2.3 | 100% | 3.1 | 0% |
| 20 | Bunbury Cheshire | B | 2.6 | 100% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 21 | Talgarth Powys | B | 5.7 | 71% | 1.5 | 52% |
| 22 | Minster Lovell Oxfordshire | B | 3.6 | 79% | 1.5 | 37% |
| 23 | Sutton Benger Wiltshire | B | 2.7 | 100% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 24 | Beer Devon | B | 1.6 | 50% | 2.2 | 43% |
| 25 | Eckington Worcestershire | B | 4.1 | 72% | 1.9 | 23% |
| 26 | Weir Lancashire | B | 0.6 | 100% | 6 | 0% |
| 27 | Codmore Hill West Sussex | B− | 3.5 | 0% | 2.7 | 46% |
| 28 | Potten End Hertfordshire | B− | 2.4 | 73% | 2.2 | 44% |
| 29 | Blindley Heath Surrey | B− | 3.2 | 79% | 2.2 | 1% |
| 30 | Marlpit Hill Kent | B− | 2.5 | 0% | 2.9 | 35% |
| 31 | Sutton Common Suffolk | C+ | 0.8 | 51% | 3.9 | 85% |
| 32 | Gaerwen Gwynedd | C+ | 1.5 | 100% | 0.4 | 7% |
| 33 | Weobley Herefordshire | C+ | 1.6 | 100% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 34 | Ashill Norfolk | C+ | 3.7 | 82% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 35 | Bradfield Essex | C | 1.4 | 27% | 1.5 | 35% |
| 36 | Biddulph Moor Staffordshire | C | 8.4 | 43% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 37 | Stoke Hampshire | C | 0.3 | 0% | 2 | 32% |
| 38 | Silkstone Common South Yorkshire | C | 1.5 | 63% | 4.9 | 0% |
| 39 | Ponthir Gwent | C | 2.9 | 78% | 1.8 | 0% |
| 40 | Coedhirwaun West Glamorgan | C | 2 | 100% | 0.4 | 0% |
| 41 | Nefyn Gwynedd | C | 0 | 0% | 2 | 24% |
| 42 | Foxton Cambridgeshire | C | 2.3 | 84% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 43 | Hanwood Shropshire | C− | 1.9 | 19% | 2.6 | 3% |
| 44 | Atworth Wiltshire | C− | 1.5 | 62% | 2.2 | 13% |
| 45 | Spratton Northamptonshire | C− | 2.3 | 85% | 0.4 | 0% |
| 46 | Weeley Essex | C− | 7.5 | 0% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 47 | Aldbrough East Riding of Yorkshire | C− | 2.1 | 26% | 0.8 | 0% |
| 48 | Blyth Nottinghamshire | D | 2.5 | 76% | 0.3 | 0% |
| 49 | Burton on the Wolds Leicestershire | D | 2.5 | 31% | 2 | 0% |
| 50 | Yardley Gobion Northamptonshire | D | 1.2 | 47% | 3 | 0% |
| 51 | East Markham Nottinghamshire | D | 2.2 | 46% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 52 | Pagham West Sussex | D | 0.3 | 0% | 2 | 0% |
| 53 | Southery Norfolk | D | 2 | 61% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 54 | Dishforth North Yorkshire | D | 2.3 | 68% | 0.7 | 0% |
| 55 | Fleet Hargate Lincolnshire | D | 1.7 | 76% | 0.7 | 0% |
| 56 | Saham Toney Norfolk | D | 3 | 18% | 0.7 | 0% |
| 57 | Hadham Cross Hertfordshire | D | 0 | 0% | 3.3 | 0% |
| 58 | Elvington North Yorkshire | D | 2.1 | 0% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 59 | Felton Northumberland | D− | 1.7 | 50% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 60 | Walsham le Willows Suffolk | D− | 0.4 | 0% | 2 | 0% |
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Box Hill’s built-up area.
The biggest is Box Hill, 265 ha (655 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
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; 4 playgrounds are mapped in and around the village, about one for every 318 residents.
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.
39% of the land within 5 km of Box Hill is National Park or National Landscape, more than 88% of UK towns. South Downs National Park covers 1,653 km² and has been a National Park since 2010.
55 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Box Hill and the kilometre around it, 6.0 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the village.
Plus 6 more waymarked walks on the map.
The North Downs Way, a national route, passes Box Hill. Close to home, the The Box Hill Hike, Box Hill has 9 km of local walk within 2 km of the village. 2 regional routes pass through, including the Greensand Way and Thames Down Link.
Waymarked walks are OpenStreetMap walking routes. Public rights of way are only as complete as the map in each area.
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) | 8.3 | 9.9 | 11.7 | 13.8 | 15.6 | 16.6 | 16.1 | 14.6 | 12.5 | 10.6 | 8.8 | 7.9 |
| High (°C) | 7 | 8 | 11 | 14 | 17 | 20 | 23 | 22 | 19 | 15 | 11 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 97 | 65 | 51 | 52 | 53 | 48 | 53 | 62 | 64 | 88 | 94 | 90 |
June is the driest month (48 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 23 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 97 mm of rain falls in January, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 70 nights a year. The climate in Box Hill →
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.
Box Hill is inland. These are the nearest named beaches, measured from the edge of the village.
Check the water before you swim. The Environment Agency tests designated bathing waters from May to September and publishes a rating for each beach.
Up high. Flint Hill, at 190 m, is the highest named top within 2 km of Box Hill.
Plus 4 viewpoints without a name on the map.
Plus 1 picnic site without a name on the map.
Plus 1 playground more.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Box Hill | A | 35.9 | 12% | 39% |
| Brockham 1.7 mi | A+ | 7.4 | 94% | 38% |
| Dorking 2.7 mi | A | 4.4 | 75% | 57% |
| Lower Kingswood 3.3 mi | A | 4.7 | 75% | 22% |
| Leatherhead 3.7 mi | B− | 1.0 | 72% | 24% |
| Langley Vale 3.7 mi | C+ | 0.8 | 53% | 7% |
| Westcott 4.0 mi | A | 1.8 | 86% | 78% |
Brockham, 1.7 miles away, grades A+, the best next door: 94% of its residents live within 400 m of a park.
Box Hill, 265 ha (655 acres), with 35.9 km of path. 1 named park, garden or playing field is in the village or within 400 m of it.
Yes. South Downs National Park begins 18 mi south-west of the village’s edge. It covers 1,653 km² and has been a National Park since 2010. The nearest protected landscape of any kind is the Surrey Hills National Landscape, at the edge of the village.
22 waymarked walking routes pass within 2 km of the village, including the The Box Hill Hike, Box Hill, North Downs Way (Eastern) and Box Hill Juniper Top circular walk, Box Hill. Box Hill alone has 35.9 km of path.
Amity Beach, 14 mi from the edge of the village, then Hog Hole (16 mi). Box Hill itself is inland.
12% 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%.
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
For paths, yes: 6.0 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 97% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 100% (35.9 ha per 1,000 residents).
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 Box Hill’s overall grade.
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.