Clare
Clare is a village in Essex, England, with a population of around 2,028. There is 1 GP surgery, 1 pharmacy, 1 supermarket, around 7 restaurants and cafés, and 8 bus stops. There were around 16 recorded street crimes in June 2026, most commonly other theft. This page gathers weather, crime, food hygiene, transport, flood risk, house prices, population, deprivation and your local MP for the Clare area — all from official UK open data.
On deprivation, the Braintree area is less deprived than the average in England (IoD2019). The wider council area has around 155,270 residents at roughly 254 people per km².
My Area Score
Good
Ranked 80th of 294 English council areas — better than 73% of them.
A percentile blend of eight open measures (100 = best in England); bars show this area’s England-wide percentile on each. See the rankings · methodology
Weather
21°CLight rain shower
- Today: 22° / 17° · 77% rain
- Tomorrow: 25° / 16° · Patchy rain nearby
Source: WeatherAPI
Daylight
Sunrise 06:27Sunset 19:19
12h 52m of daylight today
Next bank holiday: Christmas Day, Fri 25 Dec
Source: sunrise-sunset.org · gov.uk
Air quality
18US AQI · Good
Main pollutant: ozone
Source: WAQI · Southend-on-Sea, United Kingdom
Crime
7 reported · July 2026▲ 40% YoY
- Violence & sexual offences4
- Burglary1
- Public order1
- Vehicle crime1
Neighbourhood team: Haverhill Rural and Suffolk South West · Suffolk
Local policing priorities
- Drug use and County Lines Dealing
- Theft from motor vehicles
Source: data.police.uk (within ~1 mile)
Road safety
235 reported road collisions (2024)
67 killed or seriously injured · 294 casualties · 15.1 collisions per 10,000 residents
Source: DfT reported road collisions (STATS19)
Food hygiene
32 food businesses within 2 miles
- 26 rated 4–5 ★ (23 top)
- 0 rated 0–2 (poor)
Source: Food Standards Agency
Flood risk
Buses & trains
- 8 bus stops within ~½ mile
Live trains from Sudbury (Suffolk) (11.5 km):
Loading live departures…
Source: OpenStreetMap, National Rail
House prices
£330,637 average▲ 2% YoY
Across Braintree · to 2026-06
Source: UK House Price Index (HM Land Registry)
Private rents
£1,217 average monthly rent▲ 2.8% YoY
- 1 bed £853
- 2 bed £1,103
- 3 bed £1,359
Source: ONS Price Index of Private Rents · to 2026-07
Affordability
9.2× house price to earnings
A typical home costs 9.2 times median annual pay (10.0× for cheaper homes vs lower pay).
Source: ONS house price to workplace earnings ratio · 2025
Fuel prices
- Cheapest petrol: 169.9p · Esso (8.9 km)
- Cheapest diesel: 191.9p · Esso (8.9 km)
2 stations within ~8 miles
Source: CMA fuel price scheme
Sport & leisure
- Sports centres2
- Swimming pools4
- Sports pitches5
- Playgrounds2
Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)
Local news
- Braintree District Council supports Recycle Week 2026 and calls residents to rescue their recyclables· 11 Sept 2026
- Braintree District Council Leader Cllr Tom Cunningham’s open letter to Essex County Council Leader Cllr Peter Harris on Operation Vanguard and Wethersfield Asylum Accommodation Centre· 11 Sept 2026
- Braintree Town Hall to host inspiring wedding fayre this September· 11 Sept 2026
- New community centre completed in Witham· 8 Sept 2026
- Man prosecuted for operating as a scrap metal dealer without a licence· 4 Sept 2026
Source: Braintree Council
Population
155,270 residents in Braintree · 254/km²
- Under 16: 18%
- 16–64: 61%
- 65+: 20%
Source: ONS Census 2021 (local authority)
Deprivation
Less deprived than the average in England
Ranked 203 of 317 English local authorities (1 = most deprived)
Source: English Indices of Deprivation 2019
Council tax
£2,280 a year · Band D, 2026-27
Most homes here are Band C (29% of 71,120)
Source: VOA council-tax stock · MHCLG band levels 2026-27
Schools
68 schools · 21,326 pupils
52 primary · 8 secondary · 8 other
Ofsted: 30 of 33 graded schools rated Good or Outstanding (91%)
63inspected under Ofsted’s 2024+ framework (graded by area, no single overall grade)
Secondary schools:
- Honywood SchoolGood
- Lift MaltingsRequires improvement
- Notley High School and Braintree Sixth FormRequires improvement
- Tabor AcademyRequires improvement
- Alec Hunter Academy
- Hedingham School and Sixth Form
- Lift New Rickstones
- The Ramsey Academy, Halstead
Source: DfE Get Information about Schools · Ofsted · Braintree
Care & health services
1,571 CQC-registered services
- Care homes407
- GP practices230
- Dentists309
- Homecare agencies475
- Hospitals & hospices39
CQC ratings: 87% of rated services Good or Outstanding · 17 Inadequate
Source: Care Quality Commission · Essex
Heritage & planning
- In a conservation area (Clare)
- Not in the Green Belt
- 129 listed buildings within ~1.5 km
Source: planning.data.gov.uk (England)
Planning decisions
215 applications decided
85.6% granted · 184 granted, 31 refused
Source: MHCLG planning statistics (PS2) · 2026 Q1
Your MP
Nick Timothy
Conservative
West Suffolk
Recent votes:
- NoTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill: Second Reading
- NoClosure motion
- AyeSocial Housing Bill [Lords]: Reasoned Amendment to Second Reading
- NoDraft Plant Health, Seeds, Seed Potatoes and Plant Propagating Material (Amendment) (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2026
Source: UK Parliament
Council control
Conservative majority
- Lab 9
- Con 25
- Grn 4
- Ref 1
- Oth 10
Source: Open Council Data UK (CC BY-SA)
Amenities nearby
- Schools3
- GPs & clinics2
- Pharmacies1
- Supermarkets1
- Parks & greens3
- Restaurants & cafés7
Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)
Local businesses
7,490 active business enterprises in the area
Source: ONS UK Business Counts (2025)
Jobs
15 jobs advertised · £21,550 avg
e.g. Online Psychology Tutor - Part Time, Online Chemistry Tutor - Part Time, Online Psychology Tutoring Job in Clare – Flexible Schedule
Source: Adzuna
Local economy
£826 median full-time weekly pay
2.7% of residents aged 16–64 claim unemployment-related benefits
£26,019 disposable income per head (2024)
Source: ONS / Nomis (claimant count · ASHE) · ONS regional GDHI
Energy efficiency
48% of homes rated EPC C or above
Most common band: D · 68,719 certificates
10.1% of households were in fuel poverty (2023)
Source: MHCLG EPC statistics · DESNZ sub-regional fuel poverty
Grid electricity
52% low-carbon electricity
Gas 46% · Nuclear 23% · Solar 20% · Biomass 6%
191 gCO₂/kWh · high intensity
Latest estimate for East England · National Grid ESO
Health
Life expectancy: 83.9 yrs women · 80.5 yrs men
75% of adults overweight or obese
Source: OHID Fingertips · 2025
Wellbeing
- Life satisfaction7.3
- Feeling worthwhile7.7
- Happiness yesterday7.6
- Anxiety yesterday (lower is better)3.1
Average rating out of 10 · ONS personal well-being 2022-23
Local petitions
Open UK Parliament petitions most signed in West Suffolk:
- Make a public animal abuser register & automatically ban ownership473 local signatures · 242,705 nationwide
- Ban anyone convicted of terrorism offences from standing for public office405 local signatures · 205,058 nationwide
- Do not ban social media for under 16s336 local signatures · 217,501 nationwide
- Review the evidence and fund the addition of SMA to the Newborn Screening Test328 local signatures · 151,287 nationwide
- Legislate to ban FPNs and prosecutions related to school attendance245 local signatures · 94,447 nationwide
Source: petition.parliament.uk · as of 2026-08-06
Notable places nearby
Clare Town Hall, Suffolk · 0.0 kmClare Town Hall is a municipal building in the town of Clare, Suffolk, in England. The building is currently used as a community events venue.
St Peter and St Paul's Church, Clare · 0.1 kmSt Peter and St Paul's Church, Clare is a Grade I listed parish church in the Church of England in Clare, Suffolk. It is one of the largest in East Anglia, and is included by Simon Jenkins in his 2009 book England's T…
Ancient House, Clare · 0.1 kmThe Ancient House is a medieval timber-framed and partly pargeted building located in Clare in Suffolk, England. It is a Grade I listed building.
Clare, Suffolk · 0.2 kmClare is a market town and civil parish on the north bank of the River Stour in the West Suffolk district, in the county of Suffolk, England. Clare is in southwest Suffolk, 14 miles (23 km) from Bury St Edmunds and 9…
Clare Castle Country Park · 0.2 kmClare Castle Country Park in Suffolk, England, was created around the ruins of Clare Castle and incorporates the now defunct Clare railway station on the Colchester to Cambridge branch of the Great Eastern Railway.
Clare Castle · 0.2 kmClare Castle is a high-mounted ruinous medieval castle in the parish and former manor of Clare in Suffolk, England, anciently the caput of a feudal barony. It was built shortly after the Norman Conquest of England in…
Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA)
Nearby towns
Compare Braintree with nearby areas
Frequently asked questions
- Where is Clare?
- Clare is a town in Essex, England, in the Braintree local authority.
- What is the population of Clare?
- Clare has an approximate settlement population of 2,028.
- How deprived is Clare?
- The Braintree local authority, which includes Clare, is less deprived than the average in England on the IoD2019.