Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 8,666 in Warwickshire, West Midlands.
Atherstone grades C overall against UK towns: better than 27% of UK towns, and #28 of 34 in Warwickshire. Its strongest subject is walkability (A−): 20% of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport. Its weakest is health (D): life expectancy 76.4 for men, 79.7 for women. The median home sold for £195,000 in the last three years, 3.9 times what households in the North Warwickshire council area earn in a year.
The 3 things Atherstone does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Atherstone is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 64 buildings inside Atherstone’s built-up area, 2 of them Grade II*.
19% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
The archive holds 1 old photo or postcard going back to 1908.
Explore the history →Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Atherstone.
On this, Atherstone is below both Warwickshire’s towns (35%) and England’s towns (34%). Under-15s account for 16% of the population. Half the people of Atherstone are older than 44.
50% women, 50% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Atherstone | Warwickshire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 16% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 10% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 25% | 26% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 28% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 21% | 20% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 26% | 17% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 5.3% | 5.5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 17% | 17% | 17% |
| Degree level | 21% | 35% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Warwickshire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Three of its 5 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Outwoods Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 394 | C |
| The Queen Elizabeth AcademyLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 746 | B− |
| St Benedict's Catholic Primary AcademyTop results in townPrimary | Primary | 187 | A− |
In the comparison, Atherstone comes below both Warwickshire’s towns (83%) and England’s towns (82%). Women here live to 79.7 on average and men to 76.4 (2019–23). Atherstone’s share in bad or very bad health, 7%, is the second highest of the 68 towns in Warwickshire.
| Census 2021 | Atherstone | Warwickshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 77% | 83% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 7% | 4.7% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 21% | 17% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL
For Atherstone, that is above both Warwickshire’s towns (20.9) and England’s towns (22). Burglary and damage come to 17.9 per 1,000 residents a year. Police recorded 767 crimes inside Atherstone’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 173 reports of anti-social behaviour.
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.
data.police.uk street-level crime · points inside the ONS built-up-area boundary · OGL
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 20% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Atherstone sits below both Warwickshire’s towns (£59K) and England’s towns (£55K) on this measure. 3.5% of 16 to 64s claimed unemployment benefits in 2026.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Atherstone has 64 listed buildings inside its built-up area on Historic England’s list: 0 Grade I, 2 Grade II*. 19% of its homes were built before 1919.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
That puts Atherstone above both Warwickshire’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (21%). Owners make up 58% of households. Atherstone is the cheapest of the 34 towns in Warwickshire: its median sale is £195,000.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £335,000 | 77 |
| Semi-detached | £215,000 | 81 |
| Terraced | £179,500 | 128 |
| Flat or maisonette | £119,000 | 43 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Atherstone. Best known first.
CastleHartshill Castle2.7 km outside town, to the southeast
Abbey or prioryPolesworth Abbey5 km outside town, to the northwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
64 listed buildings in Atherstone.
Church of St Mary: Photo: Oosoom · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Former Railway Station Building at Atherstone Station: Photo: David Stowell · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Merevale Hall: Photo: Anthony Parkes · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geograph · Dee Boutique the Three Tuns Public House: Photo: Brianboru100 · CC BY-SA 4.0
18 notable people were born in Atherstone.
Les Green: Jonesy702, CC BY-SA 4.0
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atherstone | 8,666 | — | C | B | D | D |
| Mancetter and Witherley | 2,689 | 0.8 | D− | D | C | C− |
| Grendon | 2,427 | 2.4 | — | C | B− | C |
| Baddesley Ensor | 1,285 | 2.4 | — | B− | B+ | C− |
| Hartshill | 2,826 | 2.4 | D | C+ | C− | C− |
| Ansley | 1,046 | 3.8 | — | C+ | D | C |
| Polesworth and Dordon | 7,552 | 3.8 | C− | C+ | C+ | C |
| Warton | 1,472 | 4 | — | C− | B− | C+ |
Grendon, Baddesley Ensor, Ansley and Warton have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 3 times the typical UK town for its size.
It has more crime per resident than most places its size: 90% of the 1,308 UK towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people report less. Police recorded 767 crimes inside Atherstone’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, 49% of them violence and sexual offences, a police category that includes harassment and stalking.
Homes cost less than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £195,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £119,000, terraced houses £179,500, semi-detached houses £215,000 and detached houses £335,000.
Town in Warwickshire, England
Atherstone is a built-up area of 8,666 people, in the North Warwickshire 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
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.