Sittingbourne
Sittingbourne is a town in Kent, England, with a population of around 54,392. It has around 1 school, 2 GPs & clinics, 1 pharmacy, 3 supermarkets, and 19 restaurants and cafés, 47 bus stops, and the nearest railway station is Sittingbourne, 0.7 km away. The average sold house price is around £334,034, and there were around 341 recorded street crimes in June 2026, 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 Sittingbourne area — all from official UK open data.
On deprivation, the Swale area is among the most deprived areas in England (IoD2025). The wider council area has around 151,677 residents at roughly 406 people per km².
My Area Score
Challenged
Ranked 265th of 294 English council areas — better than 10% 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
10°COvercast
- Today: 10° / 7° · 20% rain
- Tomorrow: 10° / 5° · Sunny
Source: WeatherAPI
Daylight
Sunrise 06:55Sunset 16:25
9h 30m of daylight today
Next bank holiday: Christmas Day, Fri 25 Dec
Source: sunrise-sunset.org · gov.uk
Air quality
32US AQI · Good
Main pollutant: fine particles (PM2.5)
Source: WAQI · Rochester Stoke, United Kingdom
Air pollution (PM2.5)
- 7.1 µg/m³ average fine-particle (PM2.5) concentration
- 5.3% of adult (30+) deaths estimated attributable to fine-particle pollution
Lower is better for both figures.
Source: OHID Fingertips · 2024
Crime
378 reported · August 2026▲ 6% YoY
- Violence & sexual offences108
- Anti-social behaviour100
- Shoplifting52
- Other theft23
30 stop & searches · mostly controlled drugs
Neighbourhood team: Chalkwell · Kent
Local policing priorities
- Antisocial behaviour - other.
- Drug dealing.
Source: data.police.uk (within ~1 mile)
Road safety
277 reported road collisions (2025)
76 killed or seriously injured · 379 casualties · 18.3 collisions per 10,000 residents
Source: DfT reported road collisions (STATS19)
Food hygiene
314 food businesses within 2 miles
- 287 rated 4–5 ★ (245 top)
- 5 rated 0–2 (poor)
Source: Food Standards Agency
Flood risk
Buses & trains
- Nearest station: Sittingbourne (0.2 km)
- 47 bus stops within ~½ mile
Live trains from Sittingbourne (0.1 km):
Loading live departures…
Source: OpenStreetMap, National Rail
House prices
£296,578 average▲ 0.6% YoY
Across Swale · to 2026-08
Source: UK House Price Index (HM Land Registry)
Private rents
£1,114 average monthly rent▲ 0.8% YoY
- 1 bed £779
- 2 bed £1,029
- 3 bed £1,244
Source: ONS Price Index of Private Rents · to 2026-08
Affordability
8.8× house price to earnings
A typical home costs 8.8 times median annual pay (9.4× for cheaper homes vs lower pay).
Source: ONS house price to workplace earnings ratio · 2025
Property sales
2,057 property sales in the last 12 months
12 months to May 2026
A busier or quieter market is not by itself good or bad. Monthly counts are small and volatile, so only the annual total is shown.
Source: HM Land Registry UK HPI, 12 months to 2026-05
Fuel prices
- Cheapest petrol: 169.9p · Asda (11.7 km)
- Cheapest diesel: 197.9p · Asda (11.7 km)
6 stations within ~8 miles
Source: CMA fuel price scheme
EV charging
18 charging locations within ~8 km
- 3 with rapid charging (50 kW+)
- Fastest nearby: 75 kW
- Nearest: Swale Council-Albany Road Car Park (0.2 km)
Source: Open Charge Map
Sport & leisure
- Sports centres5
- Gyms3
- Sports pitches51
- Playgrounds15
Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)
Population
151,677 residents in Swale · 406/km²
- Under 16: 20%
- 16–64: 61%
- 65+: 19%
Source: ONS Census 2021 (local authority)
Internal migration
- Moves in from elsewhere in the UK8,640
- Moves out to elsewhere in the UK6,950
- Net moves+1,690
Residential moves between local authorities (counts of moves, not people) · ONS Internal migration, YE Jun 2025
Deprivation
Among the most deprived areas in England
Ranked 59 of 296 English local authorities (1 = most deprived)
14% of neighbourhoods are in England’s most deprived 10%
Source: English Indices of Deprivation 2025
Council tax
£2,406 a year · Band D, 2026-27
Most homes here are Band C (27% of 67,440)
Source: VOA council-tax stock · MHCLG band levels 2026-27
Schools
71 schools · 24,238 pupils
49 primary · 9 secondary · 13 other
Ofsted: 18 of 23 graded schools rated Good or Outstanding (78%)
61 inspected under Ofsted’s 2024+ framework (graded by area, no single overall grade)
Secondary schools:
- Highsted Grammar SchoolGood
- Queen Elizabeth's Grammar SchoolGood
- The Sittingbourne SchoolGood
- Fulston Manor SchoolRequires improvement
- The Abbey SchoolInadequate
- Borden Grammar School
- EKC Sheppey Secondary
- Leigh Academy Minster
- Westlands School
Source: DfE Get Information about Schools · Ofsted · Swale
Care & health services
1,676 CQC-registered services
- Care homes503
- GP practices222
- Dentists360
- Homecare agencies415
- Hospitals & hospices47
CQC ratings: 87% of rated services Good or Outstanding · 20 Inadequate
Source: Care Quality Commission · Kent
Heritage & planning
- Not in the Green Belt
- 92 listed buildings within ~1.5 km
Source: planning.data.gov.uk (England)
Planning decisions
155 applications decided
89% granted · 138 granted, 17 refused
Source: MHCLG planning statistics (PS2) · 2026 Q2
Your MP
Kevin McKenna
Labour
Sittingbourne and Sheppey
Recent votes:
- AyeBudget Resolution No. 86: High value council tax surcharge
- AyeBudget Resolution No. 76: Rates of alcohol duty
- AyeBudget Resolution No. 55: Value added tax (electric vehicle charging)
- AyeBudget Resolution No. 15: Charges in connection with employment visas
Source: UK Parliament
Council control
Labour (minority)
- Lab 15
- Con 10
- LD 5
- Grn 2
- Ref 4
- Oth 11
Source: Open Council Data UK (CC BY-SA)
Amenities nearby
- Schools20
- GPs & clinics4
- Pharmacies5
- Supermarkets10
- Parks & greens18
- Restaurants & cafés53
Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)
Local businesses
6,185 active business enterprises in the area
Source: ONS UK Business Counts (2026)
Jobs
534 jobs advertised · £42,247 avg
e.g. Market Research Field Interviewer Car Required Part-time, HGV Class 1 Driver, Commercial Manager
Source: Adzuna
Local economy
£761 median full-time weekly pay
3.5% of residents aged 16–64 claim unemployment-related benefits
£24,338 disposable income per head (2024)
Source: ONS / Nomis (claimant count · ASHE) · ONS regional GDHI
Energy efficiency
46% of homes rated EPC C or above
Most common band: D · 68,235 certificates
11.3% of households were in fuel poverty (2023)
Source: MHCLG EPC statistics · DESNZ sub-regional fuel poverty
Grid electricity
39% low-carbon electricity
Gas 58% · Wind 30% · Nuclear 6% · Biomass 3%
235 gCO₂/kWh · very high intensity
Latest estimate for South East England · National Grid ESO
Health
Life expectancy: 82.8 yrs women · 79.9 yrs men
Healthy life expectancy (Kent): 63.9 women · 62.5 men
71% of adults overweight or obese
Source: OHID Fingertips · 2025
Wellbeing
- Life satisfaction7.4
- Feeling worthwhile7.7
- Happiness yesterday7.8
- Anxiety yesterday (lower is better)2.8
Average rating out of 10 · ONS personal well-being 2022-23
Health services
11 GP surgeries · 11 pharmacies in ME10
- Grovehurst Health
- The Chestnuts Surgery
- London Road Medical Centre
Source: NHS Organisation Data Service
Local petitions
Open UK Parliament petitions most signed in Sittingbourne and Sheppey:
- Mandatory suicide risk assessment for adolescents in hospital who express intent2,678 local signatures · 18,972 nationwide
- Change surrogacy law to recognise intended parents from birth313 local signatures · 113,305 nationwide
- Remove sentence reductions for guilty pleas in controlling and coercive cases311 local signatures · 105,832 nationwide
- Protect legal right to support for children with SEND256 local signatures · 111,357 nationwide
- Make catapult attacks against animals a standalone criminal offence184 local signatures · 55,084 nationwide
Source: petition.parliament.uk · as of 2026-10-05
Notable places nearby
Sittingbourne railway station · 0.2 kmSittingbourne railway station is on the Chatham Main Line and the Sheerness Line in north Kent. It is 44 miles 59 chains (72.0 km) down the line from London Victoria. Train services are provided by Southeastern.
Borough of Swale · 0.2 kmSwale is a local government district with borough status in Kent, England. The council is based in Sittingbourne, the borough's largest town. The borough also contains the towns of Faversham, Queenborough and Sheernes…
Borden Grammar School · 0.5 kmBorden Grammar School is a grammar school with academy status in Sittingbourne, Kent, England, which educates boys aged 11–18. A small number of girls have also been admitted to the Sixth Form. The school holds specia…
Sittingbourne · 0.5 kmSittingbourne is an industrial town in the Swale district of Kent, southeast England, 17 miles (27 km) from Canterbury and 45 miles (72 km) from London, beside the Roman Watling Street, an ancient trackway used by the…
Highsted Grammar School · 1.0 kmHighsted Grammar School is a state-funded selective secondary school for girls in Sittingbourne, Kent.
Sittingbourne and Milton Urban District · 1.0 kmSittingbourne and Milton was an urban district in Kent, England, consisting of the settlements of Sittingbourne and Milton Regis. It was abolished in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, and made part of the Swal…
Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA)
Nearby towns
Frequently asked questions
- Where is Sittingbourne?
- Sittingbourne is a town in Kent, England, in the Swale local authority.
- What is the population of Sittingbourne?
- Sittingbourne has an approximate settlement population of 54,392.
- How deprived is Sittingbourne?
- The Swale local authority, which includes Sittingbourne, is among the most deprived areas in England on the IoD2025.