Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Home to 3,651 people, this town lies in West Sussex, South East. 15% of commuters get to work on foot, by bike or by public transport.
The weak point is schools (D−): primary results beat 3% of towns in England. It also trails on hazard risk (C) — 1.5% of homes at high or medium risk of flooding from rivers or the sea. Health outcomes beat most towns (B+): life expectancy 82.5 for men, 86.3 for women. Homes sell for a median £370,000, about 5.5 years of what households in the Horsham council area earn. Put together, the subjects come to a C+ overall, ranking #22 of 40 in West Sussex. Set against the rest, it does better than 45% of UK towns. Its other grades sit near the middle: B− for safety, B− for jobs & income and B for walkability.
Figures: life expectancy and incomes, ONS · flood risk, Environment Agency · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · claimants, DWP · commuting, Census 2021.
The 3 things Pulborough 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 Pulborough is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 60 buildings inside Pulborough’s built-up area, 1 of them Grade I, and 2 scheduled monuments.
15% 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 1903.
Explore the history →Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Pulborough.
Key Stage 2 results at the 4 primary schools within 3 km: 46% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average). The town has one school, shown below. 295 pupils attend Pulborough’s one primary school.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| St Mary's Church of England Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 295 | C− |
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Grade II* covers 3 of them, Grade I 1. Pulborough’s listed buildings include The Parish Church of St Mary, Grade I. It counts 60 listed buildings on the national list (Historic England): 1 Grade I, 3 Grade II*.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
The nearest A&E to Pulborough is Worthing Hospital, 11.5 miles away. One GP practice serves the town; 89% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey. 5.2% of residents described their health as bad or very bad, about level with England’s towns (5.2%) and above West Sussex’s towns (4.5%).
| Census 2021 | Pulborough | West Sussex | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 82% | 83% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 5.2% | 4.5% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 17% | 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.
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.
Just over four in five commuters drove, higher than both West Sussex’s towns (75%) and England’s towns (70%). About 16% of its commuters stay in Pulborough for work. A household here earns £56K a year before tax, on average.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
70% of households are owner-occupiers. The median sale, £370,000, comes from 159 standard sales inside Pulborough’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026. Private rents average £1,474 a month across the Horsham council area.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £602,500 | 62 |
| Semi-detached | £388,000 | 22 |
| Terraced | £352,500 | 41 |
| Flat or maisonette | £230,000 | 34 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Violence and sexual offences made up 37% of the total. In the 12 months to August 2026, police logged 147 crimes and 72 reports of anti-social behaviour inside Pulborough’s built-up area. Each year, 19.8 violent crimes are recorded per 1,000 residents.
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 middle age in Pulborough is 50.7. 14% are under 15, below both West Sussex’s towns (17%) and England’s towns (18%). Young adults of 15 to 24 account for 8.2% of the town.
52% women, 48% men
About 93 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.
| Pulborough | West Sussex | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 14% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 8.2% | 9.8% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 20% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 29% | 27% | 25% |
| 65+ | 28% | 23% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 16% | 16% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 5.7% | 5.5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 17% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 33% | 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 Pulborough. Best known first.
Historic houseParham House3.7 km outside town, to the southMuseumMuseumStorrington and District Museum4.1 km outside town, to the southeastArt galleryArt galleryNifty Art Gallery4.1 km outside town, to the southeastPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
60 listed buildings in Pulborough, 1 of them Grade I.
The Parish Church of St Mary: Photo: Poliphilo · CC0 · Old Place: Photo: Simon Carey · CC BY-SA 2.0 · The Old House: Photo: Charles · Public domain · Chequers Hotel: Photo: Poliphilo · CC0
9 notable people were born in Pulborough.
Percy Ireland Lathy: Unknown photographer, Public domain · Humphrey Ocean: Rubymarguerite, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Laurie Etheridge: Lawson Speedway, Public domain
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pulborough | 3,651 | — | C+ | B− | B− | B+ |
| Codmore Hill | 1,288 | 0.6 | — | C+ | C+ | B+ |
| West Chiltington | 3,095 | 2.3 | B+ | C− | A+ | A+ |
| Abingworth | 1,039 | 3.3 | — | C− | A | A+ |
| Storrington | 8,713 | 3.5 | B | C | B | A |
| Billingshurst | 9,121 | 4.8 | B+ | C+ | C+ | B+ |
| Petworth | 2,592 | 5 | C+ | D | B+ | B+ |
| Ashington | 2,688 | 5.1 | B | C− | A | A+ |
Codmore Hill and Abingworth have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
One state school is inside the town; places are handled by West Sussex council.
That is 6.7 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I building is The Parish Church of St Mary. It also has 2 scheduled monuments.
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £370,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town. By type: flats £230,000, terraced houses £352,500, semi-detached houses £388,000 and detached houses £602,500.
Town in West Sussex, England
Pulborough is a built-up area of 3,651 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
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.