Biddenden
Biddenden is a village in Kent, England, with a population of around 1,303. The area has around 1 restaurant and café, 2 bus stops, and the nearest railway station is Headcorn, 5.6 km away. In June 2026, there were around 5 recorded street crimes, most commonly violence & sexual offences. This page gathers weather, crime, food hygiene, transport, flood risk, house prices, population, deprivation and your local MP for the Biddenden area — all from official UK open data.
On deprivation, the Ashford area is around the average in England (IoD2019). The wider council area has around 132,747 residents at roughly 229 people per km².
My Area Score
Good
Ranked 117th of 294 English council areas — better than 60% 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
17°CSunny
- Today: 24° / 16° · 61% rain
- Tomorrow: 24° / 14° · Overcast
Source: WeatherAPI
Daylight
Sunrise 06:29Sunset 19:16
12h 47m of daylight today
Next bank holiday: Christmas Day, Fri 25 Dec
Source: sunrise-sunset.org · gov.uk
Air quality
11US AQI · Good
Main pollutant: coarse particles (PM10)
Source: WAQI · Chatham Roadside, United Kingdom
Crime
4 reported · July 2026▼ 50% YoY
- Violence & sexual offences2
- Anti-social behaviour1
- Other theft1
Neighbourhood team: Biddenden · Kent
Source: data.police.uk (within ~1 mile)
Road safety
261 reported road collisions (2024)
77 killed or seriously injured · 348 casualties · 19.7 collisions per 10,000 residents
Source: DfT reported road collisions (STATS19)
Food hygiene
23 food businesses within 2 miles
- 22 rated 4–5 ★ (22 top)
- 0 rated 0–2 (poor)
Source: Food Standards Agency
Flood risk
Buses & trains
- Nearest station: Headcorn (5.6 km)
- 2 bus stops within ~½ mile
Live trains from Headcorn (5.6 km):
Loading live departures…
Source: OpenStreetMap, National Rail
House prices
£344,332 average▲ 0.3% YoY
Across Ashford · to 2026-06
Source: UK House Price Index (HM Land Registry)
Private rents
£1,246 average monthly rent▲ 3.4% YoY
- 1 bed £893
- 2 bed £1,140
- 3 bed £1,404
Source: ONS Price Index of Private Rents · to 2026-07
Affordability
10.2× house price to earnings
A typical home costs 10.2 times median annual pay (10.3× for cheaper homes vs lower pay).
Source: ONS house price to workplace earnings ratio · 2025
Fuel prices
- Cheapest petrol: 158.9p · Esso (5.3 km)
- Cheapest diesel: 192.9p · Esso (5.3 km)
3 stations within ~8 miles
Source: CMA fuel price scheme
EV charging
8 charging locations within ~8 km
- Fastest nearby: 22 kW
- Nearest: Bloomsburys Biddenden (0.9 km)
Source: Open Charge Map
Sport & leisure
- Swimming pools6
- Sports pitches7
- Playgrounds2
Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)
Population
132,747 residents in Ashford · 229/km²
- Under 16: 20%
- 16–64: 61%
- 65+: 20%
Source: ONS Census 2021 (local authority)
Deprivation
Around the average in England
Ranked 152 of 317 English local authorities (1 = most deprived)
1% of neighbourhoods are in England’s most deprived 10%
Source: English Indices of Deprivation 2019
Council tax
£2,410 a year · Band D, 2026-27
Most homes here are Band B (23% of 59,330)
Source: VOA council-tax stock · MHCLG band levels 2026-27
Schools
62 schools · 23,045 pupils
43 primary · 7 secondary · 12 other
Ofsted: 20 of 20 graded schools rated Good or Outstanding (100%)
54inspected under Ofsted’s 2024+ framework (graded by area, no single overall grade)
Secondary schools:
- Homewood School and Sixth Form CentreGood
- The Norton Knatchbull SchoolGood
- Chilmington Green School
- Highworth Grammar School
- The North School
- Towers School and Sixth Form Centre
- Wye School
Source: DfE Get Information about Schools · Ofsted · Ashford
Care & health services
1,672 CQC-registered services
- Care homes501
- GP practices221
- Dentists362
- Homecare agencies415
- Hospitals & hospices47
CQC ratings: 87% of rated services Good or Outstanding · 25 Inadequate
Source: Care Quality Commission · Kent
Heritage & planning
- Not in the Green Belt
- 62 listed buildings within ~1.5 km
Source: planning.data.gov.uk (England)
Planning decisions
207 applications decided
89.4% granted · 185 granted, 22 refused
Source: MHCLG planning statistics (PS2) · 2026 Q1
Your MP
Katie Lam
Conservative
Weald of Kent
Recent votes:
- NoRepresentation of the People Bill: Third Reading
- NoRepresentation of the People Bill: Report Stage: New Clause 88
- AyeRepresentation of the People Bill: Report Stage: New Clause 67
- AyeRepresentation of the People Bill: Report Stage: New Clause 65
Source: UK Parliament
Council control
Independent / Green coalition
- Lab 7
- Con 17
- Grn 12
- Oth 11
Source: Open Council Data UK (CC BY-SA)
Amenities nearby
- Schools1
- Parks & greens17
- Restaurants & cafés2
Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)
Local businesses
7,500 active business enterprises in the area
Source: ONS UK Business Counts (2025)
Jobs
6 jobs advertised · £52,500 avg
e.g. Sign Up as A Delivery Person - Earn With Uber Eats, Be Your Own Boss - Deliver with Uber Eats, Deliver with Uber Eats - Sign Up and Start Earning
Source: Adzuna
Local economy
£743 median full-time weekly pay
3% of residents aged 16–64 claim unemployment-related benefits
£26,868 disposable income per head (2024)
Source: ONS / Nomis (claimant count · ASHE) · ONS regional GDHI
Energy efficiency
52% of homes rated EPC C or above
Most common band: C · 62,944 certificates
9.9% of households were in fuel poverty (2023)
Source: MHCLG EPC statistics · DESNZ sub-regional fuel poverty
Grid electricity
13% low-carbon electricity
Gas 49% · Imports 38% · Wind 5% · Nuclear 4%
215 gCO₂/kWh · high intensity
Latest estimate for South East England · National Grid ESO
Health
Life expectancy: 83.9 yrs women · 81.6 yrs men
61% of adults overweight or obese
Source: OHID Fingertips · 2025
Wellbeing
- Life satisfaction7.3
- Feeling worthwhile8.0
- Happiness yesterday7.6
- Anxiety yesterday (lower is better)3.5
Average rating out of 10 · ONS personal well-being 2022-23
Health services
5 GP surgeries · 2 pharmacies in TN27
- Charing Surgery
- Charing Urology
- Apcos Headcorn Eye Centre
Source: NHS Organisation Data Service
Local petitions
Open UK Parliament petitions most signed in Weald of Kent:
- Hold a referendum to bring the water industry into public ownership553 local signatures · 163,883 nationwide
- Make a public animal abuser register & automatically ban ownership371 local signatures · 242,705 nationwide
- Ban anyone convicted of terrorism offences from standing for public office337 local signatures · 205,058 nationwide
- Review the evidence and fund the addition of SMA to the Newborn Screening Test290 local signatures · 151,287 nationwide
- Do not ban social media for under 16s278 local signatures · 217,501 nationwide
Source: petition.parliament.uk · as of 2026-08-06
Notable places nearby
- Frittenden Road railway station · 2.4 km
Frittenden Road was a railway station on the Kent and East Sussex Railway which closed in January 1954. The wooden station building lay derelict for years and was destroyed by fire in October 2003.
Sissinghurst Castle Garden · 4.1 kmSissinghurst Castle Garden, at Sissinghurst in the Weald of Kent in England, was created by Vita Sackville-West, poet and writer, and her husband Harold Nicolson, author and diplomat. It is among the most famous garde…
- Lashenden Air Warfare Museum · 4.2 km
Lashenden Air Warfare Museum is an aviation museum at Lashenden (Headcorn) Airfield in Kent in southeast England.
Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA)
Nearby towns
Compare Ashford with nearby areas
Frequently asked questions
- Where is Biddenden?
- Biddenden is a town in Kent, England, in the Ashford local authority.
- What is the population of Biddenden?
- Biddenden has an approximate settlement population of 1,303.
- How deprived is Biddenden?
- The Ashford local authority, which includes Biddenden, is around the average in England on the IoD2019.