Hitcham
Hitcham is a village in Suffolk, England, with a population of around 774. There are 8 bus stops. This page gathers weather, crime, food hygiene, transport, flood risk, house prices, population, deprivation and your local MP for the Hitcham area — all from official UK open data.
On deprivation, the Babergh area is less deprived than the average in England (IoD2025). The wider council area has around 92,345 residents at roughly 156 people per km².
My Area Score
Good
Ranked 50th of 294 English council areas — better than 83% of them.
A percentile blend of eight open measures (100 = best in England); bars show this area’s England-wide percentile on each. Scored on 80% of the full weighting — some data isn't available here. See the rankings · methodology
Weather
9°COvercast
- Today: 10° / 8° · 16% rain
- Tomorrow: 11° / 8° · Overcast
Source: WeatherAPI
Daylight
Next bank holiday: Christmas Day, Fri 25 Dec
Source: sunrise-sunset.org · gov.uk
Air quality
23US AQI · Good
Main pollutant: fine particles (PM2.5)
Source: WAQI · Southend-on-Sea, United Kingdom
Air pollution (PM2.5)
- 7.0 µg/m³ average fine-particle (PM2.5) concentration
- 5.2% of adult (30+) deaths estimated attributable to fine-particle pollution
Lower is better for both figures.
Source: OHID Fingertips · 2024
Crime
Road safety
162 reported road collisions (2025)
44 killed or seriously injured · 224 casualties · 17.5 collisions per 10,000 residents
Source: DfT reported road collisions (STATS19)
Food hygiene
12 food businesses within 2 miles
- 12 rated 4–5 ★ (10 top)
- 0 rated 0–2 (poor)
Source: Food Standards Agency
Flood risk
Buses & trains
- 8 bus stops within ~½ mile
Live trains from Stowmarket (10.4 km):
Loading live departures…
Source: OpenStreetMap, National Rail
House prices
£331,207 average▲ 0.9% YoY
Across Babergh · to 2026-08
Source: UK House Price Index (HM Land Registry)
Private rents
£965 average monthly rent▲ 3.3% YoY
- 1 bed £717
- 2 bed £916
- 3 bed £1,110
Source: ONS Price Index of Private Rents · to 2026-08
Affordability
10.6× house price to earnings
A typical home costs 10.6 times median annual pay (10.3× for cheaper homes vs lower pay).
Source: ONS house price to workplace earnings ratio · 2025
Property sales
1,320 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
EV charging
4 charging locations within ~8 km
- Fastest nearby: 22 kW
- Nearest: IP7 6PS (6.3 km)
Source: Open Charge Map
Sport & leisure
- Swimming pools4
- Sports pitches5
Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)
Population
92,345 residents in Babergh · 156/km²
- Under 16: 16%
- 16–64: 57%
- 65+: 27%
Source: ONS Census 2021 (local authority)
Internal migration
- Moves in from elsewhere in the UK6,365
- Moves out to elsewhere in the UK5,128
- Net moves+1,237
Residential moves between local authorities (counts of moves, not people) · ONS Internal migration, YE Jun 2025
Deprivation
Less deprived than the average in England
Ranked 184 of 296 English local authorities (1 = most deprived)
Source: English Indices of Deprivation 2025
Council tax
£2,342 a year · Band D, 2026-27
Most homes here are Band B (28% of 44,270)
Source: VOA council-tax stock · MHCLG band levels 2026-27
Schools
55 schools · 14,846 pupils
38 primary · 5 secondary · 12 other
Ofsted: 22 of 24 graded schools rated Good or Outstanding (92%)
45 inspected under Ofsted’s 2024+ framework (graded by area, no single overall grade)
Secondary schools:
- Ormiston Sudbury AcademyRequires improvement
- East Bergholt High School
- Hadleigh High School
- Holbrook Academy
- Thomas Gainsborough School
Source: DfE Get Information about Schools · Ofsted · Babergh
Care & health services
692 CQC-registered services
- Care homes197
- GP practices92
- Dentists135
- Homecare agencies208
- Hospitals & hospices15
CQC ratings: 89% of rated services Good or Outstanding · 9 Inadequate
Source: Care Quality Commission · Suffolk
Heritage & planning
- Not in the Green Belt
- 37 listed buildings within ~1.5 km
Source: planning.data.gov.uk (England)
Planning decisions
223 applications decided
91.5% granted · 204 granted, 19 refused
Source: MHCLG planning statistics (PS2) · 2026 Q2
Your MP
James Cartlidge
Conservative
South Suffolk
Recent votes:
- NoRailways Bill: Carry-over extension (Motion)
- AyeSporting Events Bill [Lords] Report: Amendment 8
- AyeSporting Events Bill [Lords] Report: Amendment 6
- NoBudget Resolution No. 86: High value council tax surcharge
Source: UK Parliament
Council control
Green / Independent / Liberal Democrat coalition
- Lab 1
- Con 6
- LD 4
- Grn 10
- Ref 2
- Oth 9
Source: Open Council Data UK (CC BY-SA)
Amenities nearby
- Schools1
Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)
Local businesses
4,725 active business enterprises in the area
Source: ONS UK Business Counts (2026)
Local economy
£682 median full-time weekly pay
2.4% of residents aged 16–64 claim unemployment-related benefits
£27,849 disposable income per head (2024)
Source: ONS / Nomis (claimant count · ASHE) · ONS regional GDHI
Energy efficiency
43% of homes rated EPC C or above
Most common band: D · 43,181 certificates
11.4% of households were in fuel poverty (2023)
Source: MHCLG EPC statistics · DESNZ sub-regional fuel poverty
Grid electricity
80% low-carbon electricity
Wind 49% · Nuclear 21% · Gas 18% · Biomass 11%
86 gCO₂/kWh · low intensity
Latest estimate for East England · National Grid ESO
Health
Life expectancy: 85.4 yrs women · 82.4 yrs men
Healthy life expectancy (Suffolk): 61.7 women · 62.1 men
57% of adults overweight or obese
Source: OHID Fingertips · 2025
Wellbeing
- Life satisfaction7.7
- Feeling worthwhile8.1
- Happiness yesterday7.8
- Anxiety yesterday (lower is better)2.8
Average rating out of 10 · ONS personal well-being 2022-23
Health services
4 GP surgeries · 2 pharmacies in IP7
- Wattisham Medical Centre
- Bildeston Health Centre
- Hadleigh Health Centre
Source: NHS Organisation Data Service
Local petitions
Open UK Parliament petitions most signed in South Suffolk:
- Hold a UK-wide briefing on climate and nature risks314 local signatures · 127,144 nationwide
- Automatic extension for Non- Molestation order when it is breached232 local signatures · 10,314 nationwide
- Support the Ceramics Industry and protect British manufacturing jobs and skills180 local signatures · 111,154 nationwide
- Protect legal right to support for children with SEND169 local signatures · 111,357 nationwide
- Change surrogacy law to recognise intended parents from birth167 local signatures · 113,305 nationwide
Source: petition.parliament.uk · as of 2026-10-05
Notable places nearby
Hitcham, Suffolk · 0.9 kmHitcham is a village and civil parish in Suffolk, England. Located on the B1115 road, between Hadleigh and Stowmarket, it is part of Babergh district. The parish contains the hamlets of Bird Street, Cook's Green and C…
Clock Tower, Bildeston · 2.0 kmThe Clock Tower is a clock tower in the market place, in the centre of Bildeston, Suffolk, England. It was erected in 1864. In 2010 it became Grade II listed.
Bildeston · 2.1 kmBildeston is a village and civil parish in the Babergh district of Suffolk, England, around 5 miles (8 km) north of Hadleigh. In 2005 it had a population of 960. Population had increased to 1,054 at the 2011 Census.

Wattisham · 3.1 kmWattisham is a village and civil parish near to the town of Stowmarket in Suffolk, England. From the 2011 Census the population of the parish was 110, according to the Office for National Statistics, included in the c…
Chelsworth · 3.2 kmChelsworth is a village and civil parish in the Babergh district, in the county of Suffolk, England. It lies on the B1115 road, 10 miles in either direction from Sudbury and Stowmarket. The parish also contains the ha…
Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA)
Nearby towns
Compare Babergh with nearby areas
Frequently asked questions
- Where is Hitcham?
- Hitcham is a town in Suffolk, England, in the Babergh local authority.
- What is the population of Hitcham?
- Hitcham has an approximate settlement population of 774.
- How deprived is Hitcham?
- The Babergh local authority, which includes Hitcham, is less deprived than the average in England on the IoD2025.