Our data & methodology
Kerbside brings public data together at town level. Here is what goes into the guides, how dates and comparisons work, and where the limits are.
What Kerbside can help you do
Make a shortlist, compare specific measures and work out what to investigate next. The guides are not property valuations, safety certificates, school admissions advice or a substitute for a professional survey.
Kerbside publishes the guides and their source notes. Tell us about an error and include the page URL and the figure you are querying.
What do we mean by a town?
Most town figures are mapped to ONS built-up-area geography. Our county and local-authority labels help you browse; they do not mean every dataset follows that administrative boundary.
Some measures, including planning statistics, describe a whole local authority. Those are labelled as wider-area context. Population counts can use different geographies or vintages, so a displayed Census count must not silently replace the denominator used in a crime rate.
Postcodes help match some source records to places. A postcode is not itself a neighbourhood boundary, and a town average cannot identify conditions at every address.
Which date should I look at?
- Data period or version
- When the information describes. For example, January broadband coverage or a rolling year of recorded sales.
- Source publication
- When the originating organisation released that file or version.
- Retrieved by Kerbside
- When we obtained the source for processing.
- Published on Kerbside
- When a checked data run was made available here. This does not turn older observations into current ones.
We refresh according to each source’s release pattern and retain the provenance of the published run. A new page layout or wording change is not a new observation or a new inspection.
Reading the main measures
Sold prices
Completed transactions from HM Land Registry. We show the period and sales count, and distinguish medians from averages. The mix of homes sold affects the result.
Crime
Mapped Police.uk incidents, including antisocial behaviour, expressed as counts or rates against the dataset’s population denominator. Reporting and coverage vary; the rate is not a complete measure of safety.
Schools
School records and historical overall grades from the linked GIAS and Ofsted extracts. A recent download date does not mean an old grade was awarded recently. Count rated schools, do not infer catchment eligibility, and check the individual school’s current information.
Broadband
Coverage is the share of premises able to access a service in the source release. It is distinct from measured speed and from availability at an individual address. We do not combine newer coverage figures with an older speed series as if they were one snapshot.
Flood coverage
Planning flood zones and surface-water mapping are separate datasets. The figures describe the share of mapped town land area, not the share of homes affected. No mapped overlap is not proof that a property cannot flood.
Energy performance
EPC summaries describe the certificates included by the published aggregation rules, rather than every home in the town. The town guide specifies its certificate window and de-duplication. It does not certify an individual home’s running costs.
Air quality and deprivation
Modelled background air pollution and small-area deprivation measures add context. Neither is an individual health assessment or a judgement about residents. Model year, geography and aggregation are essential to interpretation.
Planning and heritage
Local-authority planning statistics are not town-specific forecasts. Listed-building counts describe mapped designated assets. A source being available does not mean every possible derived measure is suitable to publish.
How the comparisons work
We publish a separate comparison for each measure rather than a combined “best town” score. Sample thresholds reduce some small-sample problems; they do not remove every source or mapping limitation.
Sold prices
At least 20 recorded sales in the 12-month period. The median is the middle recorded price, not the asking price or a forecast. Towns with fewer than 20 sales are left out of this comparison. Equal medians share a rank; the next rank skips the tied places.
Recorded crime
A population denominator of at least 5,000 residents. Mapped Police.uk incidents are divided by the population denominator used in the crime dataset and multiplied by 1,000. That denominator can differ from the newer Census population shown in a town guide. The population threshold does not establish complete police reporting coverage.
Gigabit availability
At least 100 premises in the coverage dataset. Towns are ordered by the percentage of premises with gigabit-capable coverage. Identical percentages share a rank, including towns with 100% availability. No artificial tie-breaker is used to make one of them appear better.
School ratings
At least five schools with a usable recorded overall grade. The ordering uses the 95% Wilson lower bound for the share of schools recorded as Good or Outstanding. This reduces the advantage of a very small all-positive sample. It is a conservative comparison statistic, not a school quality score or a prediction. The published percentage and sample size remain visible.
Flood-zone coverage
A published controlled Flood Map for Planning result for the town. Flood Zone 3 includes land with a 1% or greater annual river-flood probability or a 0.5% or greater annual sea-flood probability, ignoring the presence of defences. The mapped overlap with the town boundary is grouped into four bands. Towns are listed alphabetically within the selected band, with no ordinal ranks.
EPC ratings
At least 250 mapped domestic properties with a usable latest certificate in the source window. The controlled dataset keeps the latest certificate per UPRN, or normalised address where unavailable, within its documented ten-year window. We order the share rated A, B or C at published precision, keeping tied ranks. The 250-property threshold is a practical rule, not proof the sample represents all homes.
Surface-water coverage
A complete, published controlled present-day RoFSW result for the town. Missing results are excluded, never treated as zero. We add the High and Medium category areas intersecting each ONS built-up-area boundary. High means at least a 3.3% annual chance; Medium means at least 1% but below 3.3%. Their combined coverage therefore describes mapped land with at least a 1% annual chance. We use present-day mapping, not a future climate-change scenario.
Missing data is not zero
We keep unavailable, below-threshold and zero values distinct. A source may not cover a town, records may not map reliably, or a sample may be too small to use. Where a value is held back, we explain why rather than filling the gap with a reassuring label.
Data preparation includes validation and publication checks. These are safeguards, not a guarantee that every source record is correct. Coverage and limitations should remain visible next to the relevant claim.
How page content and monetisation fit in
The data-led summaries should describe what the published figures support. Source dates belong to the data they describe. We do not label a page personally reviewed unless a real editorial review has taken place.
Any future affiliate or advertising placement must be recognisable as commercial and kept separate from the data. The survey and broadband placements on Kerbside are ordinary links to external comparison services. Kerbside earns no commission from them and adds no affiliate identifiers or tracking. The destination sites have their own terms and privacy policies. Advertising and affiliate partnerships are not activated.
Data sources
Dates below distinguish the period represented by the data from when the source was collected and published here. How we use these sources
Modelled background pollution dataDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs · Defra PCM 2024
- Data version
- Defra PCM 2024
- Source published
- 30 September 2025
- Retrieved by Kerbside
- 2 September 2026
- Published on Kerbside
- 2 September 2026
- Refresh cadence
- annual
- Towns with a published result
- 6,807
Open original source · Open Government Licence v3.0
Publication reference: a9cb6fbd-3b88-4fc0-90b9-e3f8d751e96e. A published result is not a guarantee of complete local coverage.
Built-up areas and administrative geographyOffice for National Statistics · ONS BUA 2024 / LAD December 2025 / hierarchy April 2025
- Data version
- ONS BUA 2024 / LAD December 2025 / hierarchy April 2025
- Source published
- 29 April 2026
- Retrieved by Kerbside
- 2 September 2026
- Published on Kerbside
- 2 September 2026
- Refresh cadence
- annual
- Towns with a published result
- 7,099
Open original source · Open Government Licence v3.0
Publication reference: 57acc0a8-b401-48c6-aab6-bbf71f0f8653. A published result is not a guarantee of complete local coverage.
Connected Nations fixed broadbandOfcom · Ofcom Connected Nations Spring 2026 (January 2026, v2)
- Data version
- Ofcom Connected Nations Spring 2026 (January 2026, v2)
- Source published
- 7 July 2026
- Retrieved by Kerbside
- 1 September 2026
- Published on Kerbside
- 1 September 2026
- Refresh cadence
- annual
- Towns with a published result
- 6,250
Open original source · Open Government Licence v3.0
Publication reference: 1de793a3-4b49-451e-b8e6-a53dabe9ff24. A published result is not a guarantee of complete local coverage.
Police.uk street-level crimeHome Office / Police.uk · 2026-06
- Data version
- 2026-06
- Source published
- 29 July 2026
- Retrieved by Kerbside
- 1 September 2026
- Published on Kerbside
- 1 September 2026
- Refresh cadence
- monthly
- Towns with a published result
- 6,260
Open original source · Open Government Licence v3.0
Publication reference: 4d94afb3-682c-4003-9eef-f006b8451ce9. A published result is not a guarantee of complete local coverage.
Understanding towns in England and WalesOffice for National Statistics · Census 2021, BUA24 geography; released May 2026
- Data version
- Census 2021, BUA24 geography; released May 2026
- Source published
- 15 May 2026
- Retrieved by Kerbside
- 3 September 2026
- Published on Kerbside
- 3 September 2026
- Refresh cadence
- release-based
- Towns with a published result
- 1,266
Open original source · Open Government Licence v3.0
Publication reference: 9c95eeab-00b4-4a59-ba69-482644419c71. A published result is not a guarantee of complete local coverage.
English Indices of DeprivationMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local Government · English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (corrected v2)
- Data version
- English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (corrected v2)
- Source published
- 17 November 2025
- Retrieved by Kerbside
- 2 September 2026
- Published on Kerbside
- 2 September 2026
- Refresh cadence
- approximately every five years
- Towns with a published result
- 3,793
Open original source · Open Government Licence v3.0
Publication reference: b9817fd7-2109-4c23-937f-7b5bc28b0d53. A published result is not a guarantee of complete local coverage.
Energy Performance CertificatesMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local Government · MHCLG domestic EPC register August 2026
- Data version
- MHCLG domestic EPC register August 2026
- Source published
- 1 September 2026
- Retrieved by Kerbside
- 2 September 2026
- Published on Kerbside
- 2 September 2026
- Refresh cadence
- quarterly
- Towns with a published result
- 6,336
Open original source · Open Government Licence v3.0
Publication reference: fbe075dd-3890-4075-adcc-1af0da0943e5. A published result is not a guarantee of complete local coverage.
Flood Map for Planning - Flood ZonesEnvironment Agency · Flood Map for Planning Flood Zones, revision 20 May 2026
- Data version
- Flood Map for Planning Flood Zones, revision 20 May 2026
- Source published
- 20 May 2026
- Retrieved by Kerbside
- 2 September 2026
- Published on Kerbside
- 2 September 2026
- Refresh cadence
- as needed
- Towns with a published result
- 6,807
Open original source · Open Government Licence v3.0
Publication reference: e315db85-8651-4532-b88f-b0f6233390a3. A published result is not a guarantee of complete local coverage.
Listed buildings and conservation areasHistoric England · Listed buildings Sep 2026; conservation areas Jul 2025
- Data version
- Listed buildings Sep 2026; conservation areas Jul 2025
- Source published
- 2 September 2026
- Retrieved by Kerbside
- 2 September 2026
- Published on Kerbside
- 2 September 2026
- Refresh cadence
- monthly
- Towns with a published result
- 6,807
Open original source · Open Government Licence v3.0
Publication reference: b6109497-cc70-4816-bd75-8bbd151d2bca. A published result is not a guarantee of complete local coverage.
District planning application statisticsMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local Government · MHCLG PS1/PS2 year to Mar 2026
- Data version
- MHCLG PS1/PS2 year to Mar 2026
- Source published
- 19 June 2026
- Retrieved by Kerbside
- 2 September 2026
- Published on Kerbside
- 2 September 2026
- Refresh cadence
- quarterly
- Towns with a published result
- 7,094
Open original source · Open Government Licence v3.0
Publication reference: ef472acd-f430-4e09-a212-b3576567ee57. A published result is not a guarantee of complete local coverage.
National Statistics Postcode LookupOffice for National Statistics Geography · National Statistics Postcode Lookup August 2026
- Data version
- National Statistics Postcode Lookup August 2026
- Source published
- 24 August 2026
- Retrieved by Kerbside
- 1 September 2026
- Published on Kerbside
- 1 September 2026
- Refresh cadence
- quarterly
- Towns with a published result
- 3,489
Open original source · Open Government Licence v3.0 with postcode-product attribution requirements
Publication reference: 9f075d69-70f1-428a-8718-2bc1c6e524b1. A published result is not a guarantee of complete local coverage.
Get Information About SchoolsDepartment for Education · GIAS 2026-09-01 + Ofsted 2026-07-31
- Data version
- GIAS 2026-09-01 + Ofsted 2026-07-31
- Source published
- 1 September 2026
- Retrieved by Kerbside
- 1 September 2026
- Published on Kerbside
- 1 September 2026
- Refresh cadence
- monthly
- Towns with a published result
- 5,070
Open original source · Open Government Licence v3.0
Publication reference: bfa454a5-2429-4fcf-9562-02ab8aec64e4. A published result is not a guarantee of complete local coverage.
Price Paid DataHM Land Registry · HM Land Registry Price Paid Data 2021-2026 through July 2026
- Data version
- HM Land Registry Price Paid Data 2021-2026 through July 2026
- Source published
- 28 August 2026
- Retrieved by Kerbside
- 1 September 2026
- Published on Kerbside
- 1 September 2026
- Refresh cadence
- monthly
- Towns with a published result
- 6,150
Open original source · Open Government Licence v3.0
Publication reference: b636c9b0-ad56-425a-864a-6c1c2b7b13ac. A published result is not a guarantee of complete local coverage.
Risk of Flooding from Surface WaterEnvironment Agency · NaFRA2 RoFSW v202509
- Data version
- NaFRA2 RoFSW v202509
- Source published
- 17 September 2025
- Retrieved by Kerbside
- 2 September 2026
- Published on Kerbside
- 2 September 2026
- Refresh cadence
- as needed
- Towns with a published result
- 6,807
Open original source · Open Government Licence v3.0
Publication reference: 5ebbae90-38ab-4f73-abc7-b515beec4ae8. A published result is not a guarantee of complete local coverage.