Crap Towns / Northamptonshire / Kettering
Kettering
54/100Crap Score
Locals call it the Ketto.
452nd crappest of 984 towns, and 4th in Northamptonshire. Higher scores are crapper.
Have your say
Crap Town of the Year 2026/27
See the raceThe public vote. It's separate from the Crap Score, and it closes on 31 December 2027.
Letters from the locals
Got something to say about Kettering? Write in.
agree it's crap have defended it
Charity shop, coffee shop, charity shop.
Boot and shoe town. The shoes went, the cinema went, and the shoppers went to Rushden Lakes.
Kettering used to make boots. Now it makes charity shops and coffee shops. The cinema's gone, Newlands is empty and everyone drives to Rushden Lakes. Wicksteed Park is great, and somebody brings it up every time anyone says the town's shit, as if a park sorts out the centre.
The yobs are busy. Anti-social behaviour runs at 1.7 times the typical town's rate, and the drugs and weapons offences at more than twice. Locals cheer themselves up by saying Corby's worse. On the Crap Score, Corby isn't. Low bar, lads, and you're under it.
What the score is made of
Ten ingredients, each marked out of 100. Higher is crapper.
Kettering's 86 for anti-social behaviour means it's crapper than 86% of towns.
- Anti-social behaviour86/10023.8 per 1,000 people a year, September 2023 to August 2026
- Air pollution78/1009.8 µg/m³ of nitrogen dioxide and 7.4 of fine particles, 2024 average
- Fly-tipping62/10011.8 incidents per 1,000 people a year, North Northamptonshire council area, 2022-23 to 2024-25
- Deliberate fires60/1007.0 per 10,000 people a year, April 2023 to March 2026
- Criminal damage and arson57/1007.6 per 1,000 people a year, September 2023 to August 2026
- Serious road collisions50/1002.4 per 10,000 people a year, fatal and serious, 2021 to 2025
- Food hygiene37/1002.0% rated 0 to 2, of the 348 food businesses with a rating
- Sewage spills25/10067.0 spill hours per 10,000 people a year, storm overflows within 1 km, 2023 to 2025
- Rain20/100118 days of rain a year, at least 1 mm, 1991 to 2020 average
- Broadband13/1002.7% of premises can't get gigabit, January 2026, and 4.7% across the North Northamptonshire council area
| Pos | Town | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Northampton | 82 |
| 2 | Daventry | 75 |
| 3 | Wellingborough | 74 |
| 4 | Kettering | 54 |
| 5 | Corby | 52 |
| 6 | Rushden | 47 |
| 7 | Raunds | 43 |
| In danger of becoming nice from here down.8 | Burton Latimer | 34 |
| 9 | Towcester | 31 |
Below the dashed line: in danger of becoming nice.
Kettering by numbers
Thinking of moving here? Don't say we didn't warn you.
Crime, muck and dodgy water
- 94.9 crimes per 1,000 people a year (September 2023 to August 2026) Worse: 25% higher than the typical town's 76.2
- 1,474 reports of potholes and bad road surfaces on FixMyStreet, the most reported problem in the year to October 2026 Worse: 233 per 10,000 people, 68.5x the typical town's 3.4
- 7 serious pollution incidents within 1 km since 2016, the latest in 2021
What's left on the high street
- 29 pubs, 40 hairdressers, 10 charity shops, 8 bookmakers, 5 vape shops, 5 banks, 3 Greggs on the map here as of 1 October 2026
- 0.0% of takeaways rated 0 to 2 for hygiene (0 of 61) Better: Against the typical town's 4.0%
- 2 bank branch closures announced since 2022 Better: 3.2 per 100,000 people, 6% lower than the typical town's 3.4
- 15 public toilets on the map (October 2026) Better: 2.4 per 10,000 people, 1.5x the typical town's 1.6
- 4 public swimming pools open Worse: 0.6 per 10,000 people, 14% lower than the typical English town's 0.7
Getting about, getting online, getting rained on
- 1.17am last bus out on a Wednesday Better: Later than the typical town's 12.14am
- 0.2% of premises can't get superfast broadband (January 2026) Better: 60% lower than the typical town's 0.5%
- 19.6% live more than 400 metres from a park or play space Worse: 26% higher than the typical town's 15.5%
- 1,540 hours of sunshine a year (1991 to 2020 average) About the same: About the same as the typical town's 1,532
North Northamptonshire council
- £2,424 Band D council tax (2026-27) About the same: £32 more than the English average
- 8% of North Northamptonshire council's unclassified roads should have been considered for maintenance (2025-26) Better: 50% lower than England's 16%
- 25 ombudsman complaints upheld against the council in 2025-26
- More on the council
Have a crap-off
Kettering against your mate's town, and a match ticket to rub it in.
- ?Fly-tippingper 1,000, council area?
- ?Anti-social behaviourper 1,000 people?
- ?Serious road crashesper 10,000 people?
- ?Sewage spillshours per 10,000 people?
- ?Food hygienerated poor?
- ?Criminal damageper 1,000 people?
- ?Dirty airµg/m³?
- ?No gigabitof premises can't get it?
- ?Deliberate firesper 10,000 people?
- ?Raindays a year?
Ten ingredients. One verdict. Who's crapper? The higher Crap Score takes it.