Pelsall’s biggest
Pelsall Common
Park or garden
18 ha (45 acres)1.4 km of path
20 minto walk all 1.4 km of path
26 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
Centralin the middle of Pelsall
1 listed
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Photo: Mike Faherty · CC BY-SA 2.0B+Outdoors Grade
Outdoors in Pelsall · parks, paths & countryside
Pelsall has more park space per resident than 9 in 10 UK towns
Parks and playing fields in Pelsall add up to 6.1 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. The Cannock Chase National Landscape begins 4.0 mi from the town’s edge. A park or playing field is within a 5-minute walk for 95% of residents. Pelsall grades B+ for the outdoors: #2 of 35 in West Midlands. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Green space
6.1 ha
per 1,000 residents
Typical UK town 2.1
Near a park
95%
of residents within 400 m
Typical UK town 83%
Footpaths
37 km
2.9 km per km², town + 1 km
Typical UK town 3.0 per km²
Protected landscape
0%
of the land within 5 km
Cannock Chase starts 4.0 mi out, past the 5 km
Character
What kind of outdoors town is Pelsall?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Room to roam6.1 ha of parks and playing fields per 1,000 residents, more than 90% of UK towns.Countryside close byThe Cannock Chase National Landscape starts 4.0 mi north.
Pelsall’s strongest suit is plenty of park space, followed by the Cannock Chase National Landscape close by.
Outdoors grade
Pelsall grades B+ for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Pelsall, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
B+
Better than 73% of UK towns#2 of 35 in West Midlands · 18th of 60 UK towns its size
Public green space6.1 haper 1,000 residents: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces
91out of
100
100
A park within a walk95%of residents within 400 m (a 5-minute walk)
75out of
100
100
National Park or National Landscape0%of the land within 5 km · Cannock Chase begins just past 5 km
31out of
100
100
Footpaths2.9 kmper km², the town and 1 km around it
57out 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
Pelsall is 18th of 60 UK towns its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 9,800 to 11,100 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
Pelsall2.9
Towns its size3.1
West Midlands towns3.0
All UK towns3.0
Green space, ha per 1,000 residents
Pelsall6.1
Towns its size1.9
West Midlands towns2.7
All UK towns2.1
Residents within 400 m of a park
Pelsall95%
Towns its size81%
West Midlands towns77%
All UK towns83%
Against towns its size, Pelsall stands out most for park space per resident: only 2 of the other 59 have more.
Show as a table
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West End Hampshire | A | 9.1 | 100% | 6.1 | 0% |
| 2 | Brierfield Lancashire | A | 2.1 | 92% | 5.6 | 18% |
| 3 | South Merstham Surrey | A | 3.7 | 84% | 3.7 | 20% |
| 4 | Great Harwood Lancashire | A | 2.2 | 97% | 4.3 | 4% |
| 5 | Godalming Surrey | A− | 4.6 | 73% | 3.1 | 66% |
| 6 | Soham Cambridgeshire | A− | 4.7 | 97% | 4.1 | 0% |
| 7 | Platt Bridge and Abram Greater Manchester | A− | 3.7 | 98% | 4.3 | 0% |
| 8 | Royston South Yorkshire | A− | 7.9 | 97% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 9 | Kings Hill Kent | A− | 2.4 | 100% | 2.8 | 7% |
| 10 | Romiley Greater Manchester | A− | 3.9 | 80% | 3.8 | 1% |
| 11 | Padiham Lancashire | A− | 1.5 | 95% | 4.5 | 18% |
| 12 | Bingham Nottinghamshire | A− | 3.4 | 100% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 13 | Sawbridgeworth Hertfordshire | A− | 4 | 85% | 5.4 | 0% |
| 14 | Whitwick Leicestershire | A− | 4.2 | 84% | 5.5 | 0% |
| 15 | Chadwell St Mary Essex | A− | 3.2 | 97% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 16 | Egglescliffe County Durham | A− | 4.9 | 94% | 3.6 | 0% |
| 17 | Tidworth Wiltshire | B+ | 3.7 | 90% | 2.3 | 8% |
| 18 | Pelsall West Midlands | B+ | 6.1 | 95% | 2.9 | 0% |
| 19 | Corfe Mullen Dorset | B+ | 3.1 | 72% | 3.5 | 13% |
| 20 | Ross-on-Wye Herefordshire | B+ | 1.9 | 76% | 3.4 | 56% |
| 21 | Woodbridge Suffolk | B+ | 1.7 | 80% | 3.9 | 30% |
| 22 | Barnoldswick Lancashire | B+ | 1.8 | 87% | 4 | 2% |
| 23 | Cranleigh Surrey | B | 2.5 | 20% | 4.3 | 38% |
| 24 | Corsham Wiltshire | B | 1.9 | 81% | 3 | 31% |
| 25 | Baldock Hertfordshire | B | 2.1 | 91% | 4.3 | 0% |
| 26 | Ludlow Shropshire | B | 2.3 | 92% | 2.1 | 16% |
| 27 | Great Dunmow Essex | B | 2 | 92% | 4 | 0% |
| 28 | Gillingham Dorset | B | 1.9 | 91% | 2.6 | 3% |
| 29 | Monmouth Gwent | B− | 1.5 | 69% | 3.1 | 45% |
| 30 | Oswaldtwistle Lancashire | B− | 1.1 | 94% | 4.6 | 0% |
| 31 | Radstock Somerset | B− | 1.1 | 93% | 2.9 | 1% |
| 32 | Filton Gloucestershire | B− | 3.3 | 40% | 4.8 | 0% |
| 33 | Cambourne Cambridgeshire | B− | 0.7 | 91% | 7.1 | 0% |
| 34 | Mold Clwyd | C+ | 1.9 | 86% | 1.6 | 17% |
| 35 | Baglan West Glamorgan | C+ | 2.5 | 69% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 36 | Liskeard Cornwall | C+ | 0.8 | 89% | 2.7 | 6% |
| 37 | Raunds Northamptonshire | C+ | 4.7 | 74% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 38 | Abertillery Gwent | C | 2.4 | 69% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 39 | Selsey West Sussex | C | 1.6 | 79% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 40 | Earl Shilton Leicestershire | C | 1.5 | 98% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 41 | Barnham West Sussex | C | 1.3 | 70% | 2.3 | 32% |
| 42 | Kippax West Yorkshire | C | 1.4 | 80% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 43 | Brimington Derbyshire | C | 1.2 | 72% | 4.5 | 0% |
| 44 | Catshill Worcestershire | C | 1.4 | 82% | 2.9 | 0% |
| 45 | Prudhoe Northumberland | C− | 1.7 | 37% | 4.1 | 0% |
| 46 | Epping Essex | C− | 1.2 | 70% | 3.7 | 0% |
| 47 | Hexham Northumberland | C− | 1.5 | 64% | 2 | 9% |
| 48 | Chatteris Cambridgeshire | C− | 1.4 | 94% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 49 | Polegate East Sussex | C− | 0.8 | 64% | 2.2 | 24% |
| 50 | Lutterworth Leicestershire | C− | 1.7 | 83% | 2 | 0% |
| 51 | West Moors Dorset | C− | 0.9 | 33% | 3.1 | 0% |
| 52 | New Ollerton and Ollerton Nottinghamshire | C− | 0.8 | 80% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 53 | Dinnington South Yorkshire | C− | 1.1 | 81% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 54 | Haxby North Yorkshire | D | 0.6 | 59% | 3.6 | 0% |
| 55 | Newtown Powys | D | 2.3 | 65% | 1.6 | 0% |
| 56 | Sherborne Dorset | D | 1.2 | 76% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 57 | Longton Lancashire | D | 1.7 | 60% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 58 | Burton Latimer Northamptonshire | D | 0.9 | 62% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 59 | Pocklington East Riding of Yorkshire | D | 1.6 | 65% | 1.3 | 0% |
| 60 | Ponteland Northumberland | D− | 1.1 | 36% | 1.4 | 0% |
The map
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Pelsall’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 Pelsall
The biggest is Pelsall Common, 18 ha (45 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
Pelsall Common
Park or garden
18 ha (45 acres)1.4 km of path
20 minto walk all 1.4 km of path
26 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
Centralin the middle of Pelsall
1 listed
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Close to home
9 in 10 Pelsall residents live within a 5-minute walk of 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 (95%)Further (6%)
Pelsall95%
Towns its size81%
West Midlands towns77%
All UK towns83%
About 600 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 387 residents.
National Parks & National Landscapes
The Cannock Chase National Landscape is 4.0 mi away
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.
National ParkNational LandscapeThe 5 km the grade counts
Protected landscape begins just outside the 5 km ring the Outdoors Grade measures, so Pelsall scores 0% on it even though the Cannock Chase National Landscape is 4.0 mi away.
Footpaths & waymarked walks
5 waymarked walks pass through or near Pelsall
37 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Pelsall and the kilometre around it, 2.9 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the town.
RegionalLocal
Forest of Mercia Timberland Trail (Long Route)13.2 km
Forest of Mercia Timberland Trail (Short Route)12.8 km
Four Commons Walk10.9 km
Beacon Way10.8 km
Clayhanger Common Walk5.7 km
Close to home, the Forest of Mercia Timberland Trail (Long Route) has 13 km of local walk within 2 km of the town. The regional route here is the Beacon Way.
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 Pelsall: May and July 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) | 8.1 | 9.8 | 11.7 | 13.9 | 15.7 | 16.8 | 16.4 | 14.7 | 12.6 | 10.5 | 8.6 | 7.7 |
| High (°C) | 7 | 8 | 10 | 14 | 17 | 20 | 22 | 21 | 19 | 14 | 10 | 7 |
| Rain (mm) | 62 | 49 | 50 | 56 | 56 | 77 | 62 | 64 | 61 | 79 | 70 | 72 |
February is the driest month (49 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 22 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 79 mm of rain falls in October, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 41 nights a year. The climate in Pelsall →
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
Pelsall is inland. These are the nearest named beaches, measured from the edge of the town.
library22 mi from Pelsall’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
Viewpoints 1
Pit Mound0.1 mi from town
DirectionsNature reserves 4
Brewer's Drive Nature Area1.2 ha · 0.0 mi from town
DirectionsGoscote Valley14 ha · 0.2 mi from town
DirectionsPelsall North Common Local Nature Reserve40 ha · 0.2 mi from town
DirectionsBrownhills Miner Black Country Geosite0.1 ha · 1.1 mi from town
DirectionsPicnic sites 1
Plus 1 picnic site without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 27
Ryders Hayes Play Areain town
DirectionsRazorbill Park0.6 mi from town
DirectionsKing Geore V Play Area and Water Play Feature1.0 mi from town
DirectionsCrash Bang Wallop1.1 mi from town
DirectionsPlus 23 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Next door
The outdoors in nearby towns
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 12 miles. Tap a town for its outdoors page.
Rushall and ShelfieldClayhangerBloxwichBrownhillsAldridgeNorton CanesPelsall
ABCDOutdoors Grade
| Town | Outdoors | Green space, ha per 1,000 | Near a park | Protected within 5 km |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pelsall | B+ | 6.1 | 95% | 0% |
| Rushall and Shelfield 1.2 mi | B | 4.3 | 88% | 0% |
| Clayhanger 1.3 mi | A− | 17.4 | 100% | 0% |
| Bloxwich 1.5 mi | B− | 3.6 | 74% | 0% |
| Brownhills 2.0 mi | B | 11.0 | 80% | 2% |
| Aldridge 2.5 mi | C+ | 3.0 | 83% | 0% |
| Norton Canes 3.0 mi | A− | 13.3 | 97% | 10% |
Norton Canes, 3 miles away, grades A−, the best next door: 97% of its residents live within 400 m of a park. Clayhanger and Norton Canes have at least twice Pelsall’s green space per resident.
Questions about the outdoors in Pelsall
What is the biggest park in Pelsall?
Pelsall Common, 18 ha (45 acres), with 1.4 km of path. Pelsall Common (18 ha) is second. 2 named parks, gardens and playing fields are in the town or within 400 m of it.
Is Pelsall near a National Park?
The nearest protected landscape is the Cannock Chase National Landscape, 4.0 mi north of the town’s edge. It covers 69 km² and was designated in 1958.
What are the best walks near Pelsall?
5 waymarked walking routes pass within 2 km of the town, including the Forest of Mercia Timberland Trail (Long Route), Forest of Mercia Timberland Trail (Short Route) and Four Commons Walk.
What is the nearest beach to Pelsall?
library, 22 mi from the edge of the town. Pelsall itself is inland.
How many people in Pelsall live near a park?
95% 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 Pelsall?
May and July to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Pelsall good for walking?
About average for paths: 2.9 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 57% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 91% (6.1 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 Pelsall’s overall grade.
Sources
Where Pelsall’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.