Holmbury St Mary’s story
15 listed buildings, 2 of them Grade I
Historic England lists them inside Holmbury St Mary’s built-up area.
27% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →
Holmbury St MarySurrey
The village, home to 802 people, lies in Surrey, South East.
7 places within 12 milesMap →
Photo: Photograph by Mike Peel ( www.mikepeel.net ). · CC BY-SA 4.0
Population
802
Census 2021 · Waverley council
Median home
£858K
16 sales in 3 years
Median age
20.6
14% are 65+ · Surrey 19%
Degree level
32%
of residents 16+ · England 34%
Walk, cycle, bus
26%
of commuters · England 27%
Is Holmbury St Mary a good place to live?
Grades need 1,000 residents, so Holmbury St Mary has none; the figures on this page are still real. Roughly one resident in 2 is aged 15 to 24. Homes sell for a median £857,500.
What makes Holmbury St Mary stand out
The 3 things Holmbury St Mary does most differently from other towns.
Residents aged 15 to 24
Who lives here
1 in 2 is 15 to 24
41% of residents, against 12% across England’s towns
Median sale, £ thousands
Housing
3.1 times the typical UK town’s £277K
Standard sales, September 2023 to August 2026.
Listed buildings per 10,000 residents
History
15 listed buildings
2 Grade I, including Church of St Mary; 7.7 times the typical UK town for its size
Historic England’s list, October 2026.
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Holmbury St Mary.
Who lives here
A young town: 41% of people in Holmbury St Mary are 15 to 24, more than in both Surrey’s towns and England’s towns
20.6median age
Degrees are held by 32% of adults. Children under 15 make up 11%, below Surrey’s towns (18%) and England’s towns (18%) alike. Retirement age and beyond: 14% of residents are 65 or older. Typical age in Holmbury St Mary: 20.6, the median.
Holmbury St MarySurreyEngland
Ages · share of residents
41%
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications5%
Apprenticeship2%
A levels or similar14%
Degree level32%
Women and men · all residents
57% women, 43% men
About 75 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women. A large institution, such as a prison, barracks, boarding school, university or care home, can tilt a town’s split: the census counts the people living there as residents.
| Holmbury St Mary | Surrey | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 11% | 18% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 41% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 13% | 25% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 21% | 27% | 25% |
| 65+ | 14% | 19% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 4.7% | 13% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 2.4% | 4.2% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 14% | 17% | 17% |
| Degree level | 32% | 42% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Surrey and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Work & commute
Fewer people aged 16 to 64 in Holmbury St Mary claim unemployment benefits than in Surrey’s towns or England’s towns: 0.9%
26%walk, cycle or ride
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 47% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
There are 1.4 jobs in Holmbury St Mary for each resident in work. Work in town: 18% of resident commuters. Working mainly from home: 47% of workers, above both Surrey’s towns (44%) and England’s towns (31%). Just over a third of commuters travelled under 5 km to work.
How commuters got to work · March 2021
Driving71%
On foot24%
Bicycle1%
Bus1%
Underground, tram1%
34%
of commuters travel under 5 km · England 45%
47%
worked mainly from home in March 2021
£68K
mean household income, before tax
0.9%
of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits (2026)
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Housing
Most households in Holmbury St Mary own their home: 76%, more than in both Surrey’s towns and England’s towns
£858Kmedian sale
8% of households live in social housing. Private renters make up 15% of households, below Surrey’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (21%) alike. That is the middle of 16 standard sales inside Holmbury St Mary’s built-up area over three years, against £277,000 in the typical UK town.
Median sale price · Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
Holmbury St Mary£858K
Typical UK town£277K
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £1,112,500 | 8 |
| Semi-detached | £537,500 | 6 |
76%
of households own their home · England 61%
15%
rent privately · England 21%
£1,540
average private rent a month, Waverley council area
£2,609
council tax, Band D, 2026–27
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Safety
Homes in Holmbury St Mary see more burglary and damage than in Surrey’s towns or England’s towns: 15 per 1,000 a year
9.6violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a year
Violence and sexual offences were 9% of the crimes. Violent crime ran at 9.6 per 1,000 residents a year, below Surrey’s towns (19.4) and England’s towns (22) alike. Police recorded 11 crimes inside Holmbury St Mary’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026.
Reports by type · Sep 2025 to Aug 2026
Burglary5
Public order2
Violence & sexual1
Damage & arson1
Other theft1
Vehicle crime1
Shoplifting0
Drugs0
Anti-social0
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.
9.6
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
15
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
0.8
anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 (not graded)
11
crimes recorded in the 12 months to August 2026
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.
Health
Is Holmbury St Mary a healthy place? 92% of its people say their health is good, above Surrey’s towns and England’s towns
92%good or very good health
The nearest A&E to Holmbury St Mary is Royal Surrey County Hospital, 9.1 miles away. At the census, 1.8% of residents said their health was bad or very bad, lower than both Surrey’s towns (3.3%) and England’s towns (5.2%), and 13% of residents in Holmbury St Mary live with a disability. There is no GP practice locally: the nearest is 3.4 miles off.
General health, self-reported
Good or very good 92%Fair 7%Bad or very bad 2%
| Census 2021 | Holmbury St Mary | Surrey | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 92% | 87% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 1.8% | 3.3% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 13% | 14% | 17% |
84
life expectancy at birth, men (2019–23)
87
life expectancy at birth, women
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Census health answers are raw, so younger towns score better on them; for the Health Grade we use age-adjusted figures like life expectancy and early deaths.
History
More of the land in Holmbury St Mary is conservation area than in Surrey’s towns or England’s towns: 49%
15listed buildings
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
The top grade, Grade I, goes to 2 of them. Holmbury St Mary’s listed buildings include the Church of St Mary, Grade I. For its size, Holmbury St Mary has 187 listed buildings per 10,000 residents. Homes from before 1919 make up 27% of the total, higher than both Surrey’s towns (13%) and England’s towns (16%).
Listed buildings by grade · Historic England
Grade I2
Grade II*0
Grade II13
Among them · Grade I
- Church of St Mary Grade I
- Holmdale Grade I
0
scheduled monuments
0
registered parks and gardens
27%
of homes built before 1919 · typical UK town 15%
187
listed buildings per 10,000 residents · typical UK town 24
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Holmbury St Mary
14pages on Holmbury St Mary
The big questions
Safety9.6 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026Cost of livingMedian home £858K · rent £1,540 a monthHousing1 sold in 12 monthsSchoolsHealthLife expectancy 84 (men), 87 (women)Work & commute66% of working residents work in the townFlood & hazards0% of homes at high or medium flood risk
Nearby attractions
All attractions →Wotton House and 7 more in and around Holmbury St Mary
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Holmbury St Mary. Best known first.
Historic houseWotton House2.1 km outside town, to the northeast
Historic houseGoddards700 m outside town, to the northeast
Historic houseLeith Hill Place (National Trust)2.2 km outside town, to the eastHistoric siteHistoric site · National TrustLeith Hill Tower2 km outside town, to the eastPark or estatePark or estate · National TrustThe Severells Estate [Leith Hill]1.4 km outside town, to the northeastPark or estatePark or estate · National TrustDuke's Warren [Leith Hill]2.1 km outside town, to the eastPlaces: © OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata
Photos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (3)
- Wotton House: Barry Pearce, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Goddards: Steve Cadman, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Leith Hill Place (National Trust): Rob enwiki, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
About Holmbury St Mary
Village in Surrey, England
Holmbury St Mary is a built-up area of 802 people, in the Waverley 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
- Population
- 802 (Census 2021)
- Council
- Waverley (mostly)
- County
- Surrey
- Region
- South East
- Area
- 0.3 sq mi (0.7 km²)
- ONS code
- E63005723
Holmbury St Mary’s neighbours
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
EwhurstGomshallCranleighShamley GreenWestcottBeare GreenDorkingHolmbury St Mary
How the neighbours grade
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Holmbury St Mary | 802 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Ewhurst | 1,517 | 1.6 | — | C | A | A |
| Gomshall | 1,378 | 3.2 | — | D | B | A |
| Cranleigh | 10,430 | 3.3 | A− | C+ | B | A |
| Shamley Green | 1,200 | 4.4 | — | C | B+ | A |
| Westcott | 2,275 | 4.5 | — | C+ | C+ | A− |
| Beare Green | 1,940 | 4.7 | — | C+ | B+ | A− |
| Dorking | 17,463 | 5.6 | A− | C+ | C | B+ |
Ewhurst, Gomshall, Shamley Green, Westcott and Beare Green have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Holmbury St Mary
Is Holmbury St Mary expensive to live in?
By type: semi-detached houses £537,500 and detached houses £1,112,500. Private rents in the Waverley council area averaged £1,540 a month in August 2026.
How many listed buildings are there in Holmbury St Mary?
That is 7.7 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I buildings include Church of St Mary.
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.