Rock’s story
6 listed buildings
Historic England lists them inside Rock’s built-up area.
14% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →
RockWest Sussex
291 people call this village in West Sussex, South East home.
7 places within 12 milesMap →
Photo: Robin Webster · CC BY-SA 2.0
Population
291
Census 2021 · Horsham council
Median home
£380K
15 sales in 3 years
Median age
42.5
12% are 65+ · West Sussex 23%
Degree level
37%
of residents 16+ · England 34%
Walk, cycle, bus
9%
of commuters · England 27%
Is Rock a good place to live?
Rock has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures on this page are still real. On the way to work, 9% walk, cycle or take a bus or train. 6 listed buildings, 0 of them Grade I. Only 12% of residents are 65 or over.
What makes Rock stand out
The 3 things Rock does most differently from other towns.
Walk, cycle or public transport
Getting around
9% leave the car
of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport (England’s towns 27%)
Listed buildings per 10,000 residents
History
0 Grade II*; 8.5 times the typical UK town for its size
Historic England’s list, October 2026.
Residents 65 and over
Who lives here
Only 12% are 65 or over
Against 18% across England’s towns
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Rock.
Work & commute
The car carries 89% of commuters in Rock, more than in both West Sussex’s towns and England’s towns
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.
Households had £72K a year before tax, above West Sussex’s towns (£63K) and England’s towns (£55K) alike. For just over a third of commuters, work was under 5 km away. Work in town: 4% of resident commuters. 1.4% of people aged 16 to 64 were on unemployment benefits in 2026.
9%walk, cycle or ride
How commuters got to work · March 2021
Driving89%
On foot7%
Bus2%
34%
of commuters travel under 5 km · England 45%
36%
worked mainly from home in March 2021
£72K
mean household income, before tax
1.4%
of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits (2026)
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Housing
Homes in Rock sell for £380K at the median, against £425K in West Sussex’s towns and £308K in England’s towns
Social housing holds nearly a fifth of households, above West Sussex’s towns (13%) and England’s towns (18%) alike. Renting privately is how 15% of households live. Private rents average £1,474 a month across the Horsham council area.
£380Kmedian sale
Median sale price · Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
Rock£380K
Typical UK town£277K
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Semi-detached | £392,500 | 8 |
66%
of households own their home · England 61%
15%
rent privately · England 21%
£1,474
average private rent a month, Horsham council area
£2,406
council tax, Band D, 2026–27
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Safety
Homes in Rock see more burglary and damage than in West Sussex’s towns or England’s towns: 20.6 per 1,000 a year
Violent crime ran at 29.8 per 1,000 residents a year, above West Sussex’s towns (17.5) and England’s towns (22) alike. The 12 months to August 2026 brought 13 recorded crimes inside Rock’s built-up area, and 5 reports of anti-social behaviour. Violence and sexual offences made up 54% of the total.
29.8violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a year
Reports by type · Sep 2025 to Aug 2026
Violence & sexual7
Public order2
Damage & arson1
Burglary1
Vehicle crime1
Other crime1
Shoplifting0
Other theft0
Anti-social5
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.
29.8
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
20.6
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
17.2
anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 (not graded)
13
crimes recorded in the 12 months to August 2026
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.
Health
Is Rock a healthy place? 88% of its people say their health is good, above West Sussex’s towns and England’s towns
A disability affects 15% of people in Rock. At the census, 2.4% of residents said their health was bad or very bad, lower than both West Sussex’s towns (4.5%) and England’s towns (5.2%). The town has no GP practice of its own; the nearest is 2.3 miles away.
88%good or very good health
General health, self-reported
Good or very good 88%Fair 9%Bad or very bad 2%
| Census 2021 | Rock | West Sussex | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 88% | 83% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 2.4% | 4.5% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 15% | 17% | 17% |
82.3
life expectancy at birth, men (2019–23)
86.3
life expectancy at birth, women
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · These shares come straight from the census, without allowing for age, and young towns benefit; the Health Grade instead weighs age-adjusted measures, including life expectancy and early deaths.
History
More buildings in Rock are listed than in West Sussex’s towns or England’s towns: 206 per 10,000 residents
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Homes from before 1919 make up 14% of the total, near West Sussex’s towns (13%) and lower than England’s towns (16%).
6listed buildings
Listed buildings by grade · Historic England
Grade I0
Grade II*0
Grade II6
0
scheduled monuments
0
registered parks and gardens
14%
of homes built before 1919 · typical UK town 15%
206
listed buildings per 10,000 residents · typical UK town 24
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
Who lives here
Rock skews young, with 15% of residents aged 15 to 24, more than in both West Sussex’s towns and England’s towns
Degrees are held by 37% of adults, above both West Sussex’s towns (32%) and England’s towns (34%). The median resident of Rock is 42.5 years old. Children under 15 make up 17% of residents.
42.5median age
RockWest SussexEngland
Ages · share of residents
15%
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications18%
Apprenticeship4%
A levels or similar19%
Degree level37%
Women and men · all residents
48% women, 52% men
About 109 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Rock | West Sussex | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 17% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 15% | 9.8% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 21% | 24% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 36% | 27% | 25% |
| 65+ | 12% | 23% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 18% | 16% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 4.3% | 5.5% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 19% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 37% | 32% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · West Sussex and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Rock
13pages on Rock
The big questions
Safety29.8 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026Cost of livingMedian home £380K · rent £1,474 a monthHousing2 sold in 12 months · busiest street Rock RoadSchoolsHealthLife expectancy 82.3 (men), 86.3 (women)Work & commute55% of working residents work in the townFlood & hazards0.8% of homes at high or medium flood risk
Rock’s neighbours
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
AshingtonStorringtonAbingworthWest ChiltingtonFindonSteyningUpper BeedingRock
How the neighbours grade
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rock | 291 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Ashington | 2,688 | 1.4 | B | C− | A | A+ |
| Storrington | 8,713 | 1.9 | B | C | B | A |
| Abingworth | 1,039 | 2.1 | — | C− | A | A+ |
| West Chiltington | 3,095 | 3 | B+ | C− | A+ | A+ |
| Findon | 1,840 | 3.4 | — | D− | A− | B+ |
| Steyning | 5,513 | 3.9 | B+ | C− | A− | A |
| Upper Beeding | 3,100 | 5 | A− | B− | A | A |
Abingworth and Findon have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Rock
How many listed buildings are there in Rock?
That is 8.5 times the typical UK town for its size.
Is Rock expensive to live in?
Homes cost more than in most UK towns: the median sale over three years was £380,000, against £277,000 in the typical UK town.
About Rock
Village in West Sussex, England
Rock is a built-up area of 291 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
- Population
- 291 (Census 2021)
- Council
- Horsham
- County
- West Sussex
- Region
- South East
- Area
- 0.1 sq mi (0.3 km²)
- ONS code
- E63006380
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.