Melksham’s biggest
King George Field
Playing field
4.6 ha (11 acres)0.4 km of path
6 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
Centralin the middle of Melksham
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Photo: My another account · CC BY-SA 3.0C+Outdoors Grade
Outdoors in Melksham · parks, paths & countryside
87% of Melksham’s residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park
The Cotswolds National Landscape and the North Wessex Downs National Landscape both begin about 4 miles from the town’s edge. 55 km of footpaths run through the town and the kilometre around it, 2.7 for every square kilometre. Parks and playing fields in Melksham add up to 2.2 ha for every 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1. Melksham grades C+ for the outdoors: #23 of 30 in Wiltshire. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Green space
2.2 ha
per 1,000 residents
Typical UK town 2.1
Near a park
87%
of residents within 400 m
Typical UK town 83%
Footpaths
55 km
2.7 km per km², town + 1 km
Typical UK town 3.0 per km²
Protected landscape
0%
of the land within 5 km
Cotswolds starts 3.6 mi out, past the 5 km
Outdoors grade
Melksham grades C+ for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Melksham, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
C+
Better than 40% of UK towns#23 of 30 in Wiltshire · 44th of 60 UK towns its size
Public green space2.2 haper 1,000 residents: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces
51out of
100
100
A park within a walk87%of residents within 400 m (a 5-minute walk)
61out of
100
100
National Park or National Landscape0%of the land within 5 km · Cotswolds begins just past 5 km
31out of
100
100
Footpaths2.7 kmper km², the town and 1 km around it
51out 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
Melksham is 44th of 60 UK towns its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 17,000 to 19,700 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
Melksham2.7
Towns its size3.5
Wiltshire towns3.0
All UK towns3.0
Green space, ha per 1,000 residents
Melksham2.2
Towns its size2.1
Wiltshire towns2.0
All UK towns2.1
Residents within 400 m of a park
Melksham87%
Towns its size86%
Wiltshire towns86%
All UK towns83%
Melksham falls furthest behind on path per km², where 40 of the 59 others do better.
Show as a table
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cirencester Gloucestershire | A+ | 4.3 | 95% | 4.1 | 48% |
| 2 | Littlehampton West Sussex | A+ | 2.1 | 99% | 3.1 | 18% |
| 3 | Dorking Surrey | A | 4.4 | 75% | 7 | 57% |
| 4 | Litherland Merseyside | A | 7.3 | 94% | 3.3 | 0% |
| 5 | Houghton Regis Bedfordshire | A | 3.5 | 81% | 8 | 20% |
| 6 | Brixham Devon | A | 3.1 | 76% | 2.5 | 30% |
| 7 | Waltham Abbey Essex | A | 11.9 | 92% | 6.7 | 0% |
| 8 | Colne Lancashire | A | 3.2 | 86% | 5.3 | 8% |
| 9 | Forest Town Nottinghamshire | A | 6.4 | 94% | 5.7 | 0% |
| 10 | Northwich Cheshire | A | 8.8 | 92% | 4.8 | 0% |
| 11 | Leek Staffordshire | A | 4.2 | 83% | 3.6 | 19% |
| 12 | Keynsham Somerset | A | 2.1 | 95% | 4.6 | 11% |
| 13 | Clifton Greater Manchester | A | 10 | 92% | 4.4 | 0% |
| 14 | Abbots Langley and Kings Langley Hertfordshire | A | 3.8 | 88% | 3.6 | 3% |
| 15 | Bredbury and Woodley Greater Manchester | A | 4.8 | 94% | 4.8 | 0% |
| 16 | Ebbw Vale Gwent | A− | 2 | 92% | 3.3 | 29% |
| 17 | Mansfield Woodhouse Nottinghamshire | A− | 2.8 | 94% | 4.9 | 0% |
| 18 | Devizes Wiltshire | A− | 1.8 | 91% | 3.2 | 38% |
| 19 | Euxton Lancashire | A− | 3.7 | 98% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 20 | Alton Hampshire | B+ | 2.6 | 82% | 3 | 27% |
| 21 | Glossop Derbyshire | B+ | 1.5 | 78% | 4.2 | 60% |
| 22 | Walkden Greater Manchester | B+ | 3.4 | 92% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 23 | Belper Derbyshire | B+ | 2.4 | 94% | 4.1 | 0% |
| 24 | Eastwood Nottinghamshire | B+ | 2.6 | 93% | 3.9 | 0% |
| 25 | Swanley Kent | B+ | 1.8 | 78% | 4.2 | 20% |
| 26 | Warminster Wiltshire | B+ | 1.7 | 86% | 3 | 44% |
| 27 | Liversedge West Yorkshire | B+ | 2 | 98% | 4.3 | 0% |
| 28 | Mirfield West Yorkshire | B | 2.5 | 90% | 3.7 | 0% |
| 29 | Amersham Buckinghamshire | B | 1.8 | 62% | 3.7 | 64% |
| 30 | Cradley Heath West Midlands | B | 3.3 | 76% | 4.3 | 0% |
| 31 | Cobham Surrey | B | 3.1 | 49% | 4 | 1% |
| 32 | Ely Cambridgeshire | B | 2.7 | 88% | 3.3 | 0% |
| 33 | Stanley County Durham | B | 1.7 | 88% | 5.2 | 0% |
| 34 | Shaw Greater Manchester | B | 1.9 | 96% | 3.7 | 0% |
| 35 | Ware Hertfordshire | B− | 2 | 81% | 4.9 | 0% |
| 36 | Bramhall Greater Manchester | B− | 4.7 | 71% | 3.4 | 0% |
| 37 | Biddulph Staffordshire | B− | 3.3 | 86% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 38 | Guisborough North Yorkshire | B− | 1.5 | 80% | 2.6 | 35% |
| 39 | Baildon West Yorkshire | B− | 2 | 71% | 7.5 | 0% |
| 40 | Carterton Oxfordshire | B− | 2.1 | 82% | 2 | 13% |
| 41 | Ramsbottom Greater Manchester | C+ | 2.1 | 74% | 4.1 | 0% |
| 42 | Rawmarsh South Yorkshire | C+ | 2 | 84% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 43 | Maesteg Mid Glamorgan | C+ | 2 | 94% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 44 | Melksham Wiltshire | C+ | 2.2 | 87% | 2.7 | 0% |
| 45 | Bideford Devon | C+ | 0.9 | 83% | 1 | 11% |
| 46 | Newmarket Suffolk | C+ | 1.9 | 91% | 2.6 | 0% |
| 47 | Royston Hertfordshire | C+ | 1.3 | 83% | 4.1 | 0% |
| 48 | Knowle and Dorridge West Midlands | C+ | 2.7 | 82% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 49 | Adwick le Street South Yorkshire | C+ | 2.8 | 89% | 1.8 | 0% |
| 50 | Thornton Lancashire | C | 2.1 | 71% | 1.6 | 0% |
| 51 | Nantwich Cheshire | C | 2.2 | 86% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 52 | Bourne Lincolnshire | C | 1.3 | 70% | 4.6 | 0% |
| 53 | Sleaford Lincolnshire | C | 1.7 | 93% | 2 | 0% |
| 54 | Tonypandy Mid Glamorgan | C | 1.5 | 85% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 55 | Stone Staffordshire | C− | 1.5 | 86% | 2.1 | 0% |
| 56 | Louth Lincolnshire | C− | 0.6 | 76% | 1.3 | 47% |
| 57 | Oswestry Shropshire | C− | 1.3 | 88% | 2 | 0% |
| 58 | Willerby and Anlaby East Riding of Yorkshire | C− | 1.6 | 46% | 1.7 | 0% |
| 59 | Selby North Yorkshire | C− | 1.6 | 81% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 60 | Great Wyrley and Cheslyn Hay Staffordshire | C− | 1.5 | 60% | 1.6 | 3% |
The map
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Melksham’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 Melksham
The biggest is King George Field, 4.6 ha (11 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
All 5 named parks by size: 8 ha (19 acres)
Playing fields 7.0 haPlay spaces 0.6 ha
The two biggest, King George Field and Melksham Cricket Club, are 92% of the named green space. 3 of the 5 are under 2 ha: small gardens, play spaces and pitches.
Melksham Cricket Club
Playing field
2.5 ha (6 acres)
3 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
0.5 mi westfrom the centre
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Dunch Lane Play Area
Play space
0.1 ha (0 acres)
1.2 mi north-westfrom the centre
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Berryfield Play Area
Play space · 130 m outside town
0.1 ha (0 acres)
1.1 mi south-westfrom the centre
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Close to home
How close Melksham’s homes are to 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 (87%)Further (13%)
Melksham87%
Towns its size86%
Wiltshire towns86%
All UK towns83%
About 2,400 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 31 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 590 residents.
National Parks & National Landscapes
Cotswolds and North Wessex Downs both start about 4 miles from Melksham
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 Melksham scores 0% on it even though the Cotswolds National Landscape is 3.6 mi away.
Footpaths & waymarked walks
1 waymarked walk passes through or near Melksham
55 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Melksham and the kilometre around it, 2.7 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the town.
Regional
Kennet and Avon Canal Trail4.5 km
The regional route here is the Kennet and Avon Canal Trail.
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 Melksham: May 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) | 8.3 | 9.9 | 11.7 | 13.8 | 15.6 | 16.6 | 16.2 | 14.6 | 12.5 | 10.6 | 8.8 | 7.9 |
| High (°C) | 8 | 9 | 11 | 14 | 18 | 21 | 23 | 22 | 19 | 15 | 11 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 73 | 54 | 48 | 50 | 57 | 51 | 55 | 60 | 55 | 76 | 77 | 77 |
March is the driest month (48 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 23 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 77 mm of rain falls in November, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 48 nights a year. The climate in Melksham →
Things to do
31 playgrounds
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.
Every named place, with directions
Picnic sites 1
Bowerhill Community Picnic Area0.9 mi from town
DirectionsPlaygrounds 31
Awdry Avenue Play Areain town
DirectionsGeorge Ward Gardens Play Areain town
DirectionsPlus 29 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Dog parks 1
Plus 1 dog park 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.
BerryfieldBowerhillHoltAtworthBromhamCorshamMelksham
ABCDOutdoors Grade
Bromham, 3.6 miles away, grades A+, the best next door: every resident lives within 400 m of a park. Bowerhill and Bromham have at least twice Melksham’s green space per resident.
Questions about the outdoors in Melksham
What is the biggest park in Melksham?
King George Field, 4.6 ha (11 acres). Melksham Cricket Club (2.5 ha) is second. 5 named parks, gardens and playing fields are in the town or within 400 m of it.
Is Melksham near a National Park?
The nearest protected landscape is the Cotswolds National Landscape, 3.6 mi north-west of the town’s edge. It covers 2,041 km² and was designated in 1966.
What are the best walks near Melksham?
1 waymarked walking route passes within 2 km of the town, including the Kennet and Avon Canal Trail.
How many people in Melksham live near a park?
87% 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 Melksham?
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Melksham good for walking?
About average for paths: 2.7 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 51% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 51% (2.2 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 Melksham’s overall grade.
Sources
Where Melksham’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.