Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Home to 5,630 people, this town lies in West Sussex, South East. On the way to work, 14% walk, cycle or take a bus or train.
Pupils here do less well than most: primary results beat 2% of towns in England. A median £515,000 buys a home here, 7.7 times what households in the Horsham council area earn in a year. Health is where it shines (B+): life expectancy is 81 for men and 84.6 for women. Put together, the subjects come to a C+ overall, ranking #25 of 40 in West Sussex. That leaves it better than 39% of UK towns. Elsewhere it is close to typical: B for safety, B for jobs & income and B− for walkability.
Figures: life expectancy and incomes, ONS · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · claimants, DWP · commuting, Census 2021.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Henfield is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The 3 things Henfield does most differently from other towns.
Historic England lists 72 buildings inside Henfield’s built-up area, 4 of them Grade II*.
16% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →72 listed buildings in Henfield.
Rus House: Photo: Antiquary · CC BY 4.0 · Potwell: Photo: Ian Cunliffe · CC BY-SA 2.0 · The Plough Inn: Photo: Stacey Harris · CC BY-SA 2.0 · The George Hotel: Photo: Ian Cunliffe · CC BY-SA 2.0
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Henfield.
At the 2 primary schools within 3 km, 44% of pupils reach the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). Below is its only school. 354 pupils attend Henfield’s one primary school.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| St Peter's CofE Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 354 | D |
Owners make up 69% of households, about level with West Sussex’s towns (68%) and above England’s towns (61%). Half of the 235 standard sales inside Henfield’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 went for more than £515,000. Private rents average £1,474 a month across the Horsham council area.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £660,000 | 108 |
| Semi-detached | £460,000 | 71 |
| Terraced | £345,000 | 37 |
| Flat or maisonette | £210,000 | 19 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Of Henfield’s land, 17% lies in conservation areas, above both West Sussex’s towns (4%) and England’s towns (7%). This West Sussex town has 72 listed buildings on Historic England’s list: 4 Grade II*. Homes built before 1919 account for 16% of the housing.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
The nearest A&E to Henfield is Worthing Hospital, 9 miles away. One GP practice serves the town; 77% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey. At the census, 4.5% of residents said their health was bad or very bad, near West Sussex’s towns (4.5%) and lower than England’s towns (5.2%).
| Census 2021 | Henfield | West Sussex | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 82% | 83% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 4.5% | 4.5% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 18% | 17% | 17% |
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.
Over the year to August 2026, 230 offences were reported in Henfield, along with 52 incidents of anti-social behaviour. 47% of the crimes fell under violence and sexual offences. For its size, Henfield records less crime per resident than 68% of the 1,308 UK towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
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 police category of violence and sexual offences includes harassment and stalking.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 36% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
The car took 83% of commuters, above both West Sussex’s towns (75%) and England’s towns (70%). The average household earns £61K a year before tax. 18% of commuters who live in Henfield also work there. Jobs per working resident: 0.7.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
The share of residents under 15 is 16%. 8.5% of residents are 15 to 24, below West Sussex’s towns (9.8%) and England’s towns (12%) alike. Henfield has a median age of 50.
53% women, 47% men
About 90 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
| Henfield | West Sussex | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 16% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 8.5% | 9.8% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 20% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 27% | 27% | 25% |
| 65+ | 29% | 23% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 15% | 16% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 4.9% | 5.5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 18% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 35% | 32% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · West Sussex and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Henfield. Best known first.
Abbey or priorySt. Hugh's Charterhouse, Parkminster3.7 km outside town, to the north
CastleMotte and Bailey4.5 km outside town, to the southeastMuseumMuseumSteyning Museum5 km outside town, to the southwestRuinsRuinsFulking Isolation Hosptial (Fulking Grange) Ruins5 km outside town, to the southeastPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
5 notable people were born in Henfield.
Thomas Stapleton: Léonard Gaultier, Public domain
Town in West Sussex, England
Henfield is a built-up area of 5,630 people, in the Horsham 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
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Henfield | 5,630 | — | C+ | C− | B | B+ |
| Partridge Green | 1,911 | 2.3 | — | C+ | A | B+ |
| Upper Beeding | 3,100 | 3.6 | A− | B− | A | A |
| Cowfold | 1,377 | 3.8 | — | C+ | A− | B+ |
| Steyning | 5,513 | 3.8 | B+ | C− | A− | A |
| Ashington | 2,688 | 5.1 | B | C− | A | A+ |
| Hassocks and Hurstpierpoint | 14,216 | 5.4 | A+ | C+ | B+ | A |
| Burgess Hill | 33,352 | 6.5 | A | B | C+ | B+ |
Partridge Green and Cowfold have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Primary results trail 98% of towns in England (Department for Education, Key Stage 2). One state school is inside the town; places are handled by West Sussex council.
That is 5.2 times the typical UK town for its size.
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £515,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £210,000, terraced houses £345,000, semi-detached houses £460,000 and detached houses £660,000.
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.