Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Photo: Des Blenkinsopp · CC BY-SA 2.0The Surrey Hills National Landscape reaches the edge of Farnham. Parks and playing fields in Farnham add up to 5.1 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. 125 km of footpaths run through the town and the kilometre around it, 4.3 for every square kilometre. Farnham grades A for the outdoors: #11 of 65 in Surrey. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Farnham’s strongest suit is protected countryside on the doorstep, followed by plenty of park space.
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Farnham, 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 19,200 to 21,700 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Against towns its size, Farnham stands out most for park space per resident: only 2 of the other 59 have more. It falls furthest behind on homes near a park, where 46 of the others do better.
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Camborne Cornwall | A+ | 2.2 | 93% | 4 | 8% |
| 2 | Dronfield Derbyshire | A+ | 3.2 | 97% | 5.3 | 9% |
| 3 | Buxton Derbyshire | A | 3.5 | 86% | 3.8 | 61% |
| 4 | Faversham Kent | A | 2 | 88% | 3.5 | 24% |
| 5 | Hebburn Tyne and Wear | A | 6.6 | 99% | 5.8 | 0% |
| 6 | Quedgeley and Hardwicke Gloucestershire | A | 2.1 | 99% | 4.7 | 21% |
| 7 | Farnham Surrey | A | 5.1 | 73% | 4.3 | 35% |
| 8 | Hazlemere Buckinghamshire | A | 2.5 | 81% | 4.7 | 68% |
| 9 | Leek Staffordshire | A | 4.2 | 83% | 3.6 | 19% |
| 10 | Stratton St Margaret Wiltshire | A | 3.3 | 82% | 5.1 | 5% |
| 11 | Seaham County Durham | A | 2.9 | 90% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 12 | Keynsham Somerset | A | 2.1 | 95% | 4.6 | 11% |
| 13 | Harwich Essex | A− | 1.7 | 95% | 2.1 | 20% |
| 14 | Peterlee County Durham | A− | 2.3 | 85% | 4.2 | 0% |
| 15 | Workington Cumbria | A− | 3 | 97% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 16 | Dukinfield Greater Manchester | A− | 4 | 95% | 3.9 | 0% |
| 17 | Ebbw Vale Gwent | A− | 2 | 92% | 3.3 | 29% |
| 18 | Rothwell West Yorkshire | A− | 3.4 | 91% | 4.7 | 0% |
| 19 | Mansfield Woodhouse Nottinghamshire | A− | 2.8 | 94% | 4.9 | 0% |
| 20 | Devizes Wiltshire | A− | 1.8 | 91% | 3.2 | 38% |
| 21 | Kirkby-in-Ashfield Nottinghamshire | B+ | 3 | 93% | 3.6 | 0% |
| 22 | Hythe and Dibden Purlieu Hampshire | B+ | 0.8 | 49% | 4.4 | 44% |
| 23 | Sandhurst Berkshire | B+ | 5.1 | 79% | 3.9 | 0% |
| 24 | Hazel Grove Greater Manchester | B+ | 2.9 | 62% | 4.2 | 3% |
| 25 | Brownhills West Midlands | B | 11 | 80% | 2 | 2% |
| 26 | Great Bookham and Fetcham Surrey | B | 1.7 | 68% | 4.4 | 33% |
| 27 | Mirfield West Yorkshire | B | 2.5 | 90% | 3.7 | 0% |
| 28 | Ripley Derbyshire | B | 2.4 | 91% | 3.7 | 0% |
| 29 | Irlam Greater Manchester | B | 3.1 | 95% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 30 | Penwortham Lancashire | B | 2.9 | 91% | 3.1 | 0% |
| 31 | Stanley County Durham | B | 1.7 | 88% | 5.2 | 0% |
| 32 | Old Trafford Greater Manchester | B | 2.5 | 79% | 4.5 | 0% |
| 33 | Dorchester Dorset | B | 1.6 | 78% | 2.9 | 53% |
| 34 | Stourport-on-Severn Worcestershire | B | 3.1 | 79% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 35 | Romsey Hampshire | B− | 1.2 | 82% | 4.5 | 2% |
| 36 | Ware Hertfordshire | B− | 2 | 81% | 4.9 | 0% |
| 37 | Bingley West Yorkshire | B− | 2.1 | 80% | 4.7 | 0% |
| 38 | Calne Wiltshire | B− | 1.3 | 88% | 2.4 | 33% |
| 39 | Berkhamsted Hertfordshire | B− | 1 | 69% | 3.6 | 56% |
| 40 | Staines-upon-Thames Surrey | B− | 3.4 | 67% | 3.6 | 0% |
| 41 | Wednesbury West Midlands | B− | 2.7 | 93% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 42 | Dereham Norfolk | B− | 1.8 | 90% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 43 | Failsworth Greater Manchester | C+ | 1.8 | 77% | 4.6 | 0% |
| 44 | Clevedon Somerset | C+ | 1.1 | 69% | 3.3 | 0% |
| 45 | Sunbury-on-Thames Surrey | C+ | 2 | 79% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 46 | Bideford Devon | C+ | 0.9 | 83% | 1 | 11% |
| 47 | Knowle and Dorridge West Midlands | C+ | 2.7 | 82% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 48 | Spennymoor County Durham | C+ | 2.1 | 84% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 49 | Thornton Lancashire | C | 2.1 | 71% | 1.6 | 0% |
| 50 | Horwich Greater Manchester | C | 1.8 | 67% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 51 | Maghull Merseyside | C− | 1.6 | 86% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 52 | Skegness Lincolnshire | C− | 0.9 | 58% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 53 | Stowmarket Suffolk | C− | 0.8 | 50% | 5.5 | 0% |
| 54 | Willerby and Anlaby East Riding of Yorkshire | C− | 1.6 | 46% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 55 | March Cambridgeshire | C− | 1.7 | 87% | 1.1 | 0% |
| 56 | Selby North Yorkshire | C− | 1.6 | 81% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 57 | Goole East Riding of Yorkshire | D | 1.7 | 81% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 58 | Stamford Lincolnshire | D | 1.3 | 64% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 59 | Tiverton Devon | D | 1.5 | 59% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 60 | Darlaston West Midlands | D | 1.3 | 78% | 1.9 | 0% |
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Farnham’s built-up area.
The biggest is Farnham Park, 131 ha (323 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
The two biggest, Farnham Park and Bishop's Meadow, are 92% of the named green space and carry 16 km of path between them.
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 6,000 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 54 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 380 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.
35% of the land within 5 km of Farnham is National Park or National Landscape, more than 86% of UK towns. South Downs National Park covers 1,653 km² and has been a National Park since 2010.
125 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Farnham and the kilometre around it, 4.3 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the town.
The North Downs Way, a national route, passes Farnham. 2 regional routes pass through, including the St Swithun's Way and Blackwater Valley Path.
Waymarked walks are OpenStreetMap walking routes. Public rights of way are only as complete as the map in each area.
Historic England’s register of parks and gardens, and the listed buildings and scheduled monuments that stand inside Farnham’s named parks.
131 ha. A registered historic park (Grade II). 1 listed structure stands inside it or at its edge, including Spigot Mortar Emplacement, Farnham Park (a scheduled monument).
A listed building or monument counts when it sits inside the park’s OS Open Greenspace outline (to about 15 m), so a few at the boundary are included. Historic England, National Heritage List for England.
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) | 8.4 | 9.9 | 11.7 | 13.8 | 15.5 | 16.6 | 16.1 | 14.6 | 12.5 | 10.6 | 8.8 | 7.9 |
| High (°C) | 8 | 8 | 11 | 14 | 18 | 20 | 23 | 22 | 19 | 15 | 11 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 87 | 62 | 52 | 55 | 48 | 50 | 51 | 58 | 57 | 89 | 94 | 86 |
May 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 94 mm of rain falls in November, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 51 nights a year. The climate in Farnham →
0% of the area within 5 km of Farnham is sea, so the Outdoors Grade counts it as inland. 3 beaches are mapped within 5 km, 1 with a name.
Sea: the area outside the ONS coastline (mean high water). Bathing water quality is published by the Environment Agency (England) and Natural Resources Wales; check it before swimming.
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.
Plus 4 viewpoints without a name on the map.
Plus 4 hills and peaks without a name on the map.
Plus 2 picnic sites without a name on the map.
Plus 46 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Plus 1 slipway without a name on the map.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Farnham | A | 5.1 | 73% | 35% |
| Wrecclesham 1.4 mi | C+ | 1.2 | 50% | 37% |
| Weybourne 1.8 mi | A+ | 7.1 | 86% | 14% |
| Badshot Lea 2.1 mi | A+ | 25.9 | 100% | 25% |
| Aldershot 3.1 mi | A | 3.4 | 77% | 17% |
| Crondall 3.5 mi | C+ | 3.6 | 73% | 1% |
| Bentley 3.8 mi | B | 1.3 | 100% | 22% |
Badshot Lea, 2.1 miles away, grades A+, the best next door: every resident lives within 400 m of a park. Badshot Lea has at least twice Farnham’s green space per resident.
Farnham Park, 131 ha (323 acres), with 13.3 km of path. Bishop's Meadow (14 ha) is second. 6 named parks, gardens and playing fields are in the town or within 400 m of it.
Yes. South Downs National Park begins 1.2 mi south-west of the town’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 town.
7 waymarked walking routes pass within 2 km of the town, including the St Swithun's Way, North Downs Way (Western) and Blackwater Valley Path. Farnham Park alone has 13.3 km of path.
73% 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.
Farnham Park (Grade II) is on Historic England’s register of parks and gardens.
For paths, yes: 4.3 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 85% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 87% (5.1 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 Farnham’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.