Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
The town, home to 2,592 people, lies in West Sussex, South East.
Housing is expensive: a typical home costs £392,500 and rent runs £1,333 a month. Petworth’s overall C+ puts it #23 of 40 in West Sussex. Set against the rest, it does better than 44% of UK towns. It also trails on jobs & income (C−) — households earn a mean £57,720 a year, and 4.3% of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits. Its standout strength is walkability (A−): just over a fifth of commuters get to work on foot, by bike or by public transport. Add health to its strengths (B+): men here can expect to live to 80.6, women to 84.2.
Figures: commuting, Census 2021 · life expectancy and income, ONS · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · claimants, DWP.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Petworth is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The 3 things Petworth does most differently from other towns.
Historic England lists 181 buildings inside Petworth’s built-up area, 2 of them Grade I.
33% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
The archive holds 2 old photos and postcards going back to 1903.
181 listed buildings in Petworth, 2 of them Grade I.
Petworth House: Photo: Tilman2007 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · The Parish Church of St Mary: Photo: Hassocks5489 · CC0 · The Town Hall: Photo: Charlesdrakew · Public domain · The Fire Engine House with the Garden Temple Adjoining: Photo: Tilman2007 · CC BY-SA 4.0
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Petworth.
Graduates make up 29% of adults. Young adults of 15 to 24 are 7.5% of residents, below West Sussex’s towns (9.8%) and England’s towns (12%) alike. Petworth has a median age of 49.2. Under-15s account for 16% of the population.
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.
| Petworth | West Sussex | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 16% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 7.5% | 9.8% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 21% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 25% | 27% | 25% |
| 65+ | 30% | 23% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 21% | 16% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 5.9% | 5.5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 17% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 29% | 32% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · West Sussex and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
58% of pupils at the one primary school within 3 km met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). The town has one school, shown below.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Petworth Cof E Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 164 | C+ |
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Before 1919: that is when a third of homes were built. Petworth’s listed buildings include Petworth House, Grade I. Historic England’s list names 181 listed buildings locally: 2 Grade I, 13 Grade II*. Conservation areas cover 29% of the town’s land, above both West Sussex’s towns (4%) and England’s towns (7%).
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Owners make up 52% of households, lower than both West Sussex’s towns (68%) and England’s towns (61%). From September 2023 to August 2026, 66 homes sold inside Petworth’s built-up area at standard prices; the middle one went for £392,500. Private renters make up a fifth of households.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £747,500 | 10 |
| Semi-detached | £390,000 | 16 |
| Terraced | £386,000 | 32 |
| Flat or maisonette | £215,000 | 8 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 25% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Working mainly from home: 25% of workers, below both West Sussex’s towns (33%) and England’s towns (31%). 21% of commuters left the car at home at the census, walking, cycling or taking public transport. The 2026 claimant rate among 16 to 64s was 4.3%.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
One GP practice serves the town; 82% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey. The nearest A&E to Petworth is St Richard's Hospital, 12 miles away. A disability affects nearly a fifth of people locally.
| Census 2021 | Petworth | West Sussex | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 81% | 83% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 5.1% | 4.5% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 19% | 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.
In the 12 months to August 2026, police logged 88 crimes and 36 reports of anti-social behaviour inside Petworth’s built-up area. Violent crime ran at 14.9 per 1,000 residents a year, below both West Sussex’s towns (17.6) and England’s towns (22). Violence and sexual offences accounted for 42% of recorded crime. Also worth knowing: for its size, Petworth records less crime per resident than 71% 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.
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Petworth. Best known first.
Historic house · National TrustServants' Housein townAttractionAttraction · National TrustDoric Temple100 m outside town, to the northPark or estatePark or estate · National TrustPleasure grounds100 m outside town, to the northAttractionAttractionCoultershaw Beam Pump1.5 km outside town, to the southAttractionAttractionIonic Rotunda100 m outside town, to the northRuinsRuinsTudor Remains100 m outside town, to the northPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
16 notable people were born in Petworth.
Wilfrid Scawen Blunt: The original uploader was Montanabw at English Wikipedia. (Original text: Unknown, uploaded by (Montanabw)), Public domain · Elizabeth Seymour, Duchess of Somerset: Peter Lely, Public domain · Henry de Percy, 1st Baron Percy: Howard de Walden, Public domain · George Wyndham, 3rd Earl of Egremont: Thomas Phillips, Public domain · Charles Wyndham, 3rd Baron Leconfield: Photographer: Walter Kevis. Published Bailey's Magazine, Sports and Pastimes (1908), Public domain
Town in West Sussex, England
Petworth is a built-up area of 2,592 people, in the Chichester 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Petworth | 2,592 | — | C+ | D | B+ | B+ |
| Codmore Hill | 1,288 | 4.8 | — | C+ | C+ | B+ |
| Pulborough | 3,651 | 5 | C+ | B− | B− | B+ |
| Easebourne | 1,396 | 5.3 | — | D | A− | B+ |
| Midhurst | 5,366 | 5.9 | B− | D | B+ | B+ |
| Fernhurst | 1,830 | 6.6 | — | D | A− | B |
| Ifold | 1,202 | 6.6 | — | D | A+ | A |
| Billingshurst | 9,121 | 7.3 | B+ | C+ | C+ | B+ |
Codmore Hill, Easebourne, Fernhurst and Ifold have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 28.7 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I buildings include Petworth House.
Primary results trail 68% of towns in England (Department for Education, Key Stage 2). One state school is inside the town; places are handled by West Sussex council.
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £392,500, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £215,000, terraced houses £386,000, semi-detached houses £390,000 and detached houses £747,500.
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.