Charminster
Charminster is a village in Dorset, England, with a population of around 1,366. It is located 2.7 km from Dorchester West railway station. There were around 4 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 Charminster area — all from official UK open data.
On deprivation, the Dorset area is around the average in England (IoD2025). The wider council area has around 379,579 residents at roughly 152 people per km².
My Area Score
Good
Ranked 123rd of 294 English council areas — better than 58% 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
6°CClear
- Today: 10° / 6° · 22% rain
- Tomorrow: 9° / 6° · Overcast
Source: WeatherAPI
Daylight
Sunrise 07:06Sunset 16:40
9h 34m of daylight today
Next bank holiday: Christmas Day, Fri 25 Dec
Source: sunrise-sunset.org · gov.uk
Air quality
38US AQI · Good
Main pollutant: fine particles (PM2.5)
Source: WAQI · Bournemouth, United Kingdom
Air pollution (PM2.5)
- 5.5 µg/m³ average fine-particle (PM2.5) concentration
- 4.1% of adult (30+) deaths estimated attributable to fine-particle pollution
Lower is better for both figures.
Source: OHID Fingertips · 2024
Crime
2 reported · August 2026▼ 71% YoY
- Burglary1
- Violence & sexual offences1
Neighbourhood team: Dorchester · Dorset
Local policing priorities
- Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB) - youth related nuisance Location: South Walks and Trinity Street Issue: Young people are gathering in groups…
- Criminal damage and nuisance Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB) Location: River Walks Issue: Criminal damage to the boardwalk and reports of ASB…
Source: data.police.uk (within ~1 mile)
Road safety
675 reported road collisions (2025)
215 killed or seriously injured · 893 casualties · 17.8 collisions per 10,000 residents
Source: DfT reported road collisions (STATS19)
Food hygiene
264 food businesses within 2 miles
- 197 rated 4–5 ★ (191 top)
- 1 rated 0–2 (poor)
Source: Food Standards Agency
Flood risk
Buses & trains
- Nearest station: Dorchester West (2.5 km)
- 0 bus stops within ~½ mile
Live trains from Dorchester West (2.6 km):
Loading live departures…
Source: OpenStreetMap, National Rail
House prices
£328,589 average▼ 0.4% YoY
Across Dorset · to 2026-08
Source: UK House Price Index (HM Land Registry)
Private rents
£1,056 average monthly rent▲ 4.9% YoY
- 1 bed £732
- 2 bed £967
- 3 bed £1,191
Source: ONS Price Index of Private Rents · to 2026-08
Affordability
9.9× house price to earnings
A typical home costs 9.9 times median annual pay (9.5× for cheaper homes vs lower pay).
Source: ONS house price to workplace earnings ratio · 2025
Property sales
5,771 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
10 charging locations within ~8 km
- 5 with rapid charging (50 kW+)
- Fastest nearby: 75 kW
- Nearest: MG Cannon-Dorchester (1.7 km)
Source: Open Charge Map
Sport & leisure
- Sports pitches1
- Golf courses3
- Playgrounds1
Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)
Population
379,579 residents in Dorset · 152/km²
- Under 16: 15%
- 16–64: 55%
- 65+: 30%
Source: ONS Census 2021 (local authority)
Internal migration
- Moves in from elsewhere in the UK20,787
- Moves out to elsewhere in the UK16,709
- Net moves+4,078
Residential moves between local authorities (counts of moves, not people) · ONS Internal migration, YE Jun 2025
Deprivation
Around the average in England
Ranked 174 of 296 English local authorities (1 = most deprived)
2% of neighbourhoods are in England’s most deprived 10%
Source: English Indices of Deprivation 2025
Council tax
£2,765 a year · Band D, 2026-27
Most homes here are Band C (23% of 187,680)
Source: VOA council-tax stock · MHCLG band levels 2026-27
Schools
184 schools · 49,648 pupils
119 primary · 18 secondary · 47 other
Ofsted: 67 of 85 graded schools rated Good or Outstanding (79%)
157 inspected under Ofsted’s 2024+ framework (graded by area, no single overall grade)
Secondary schools:
- Beaminster SchoolGood
- Dorset Studio SchoolGood
- Shaftesbury SchoolGood
- The Blandford SchoolGood
- The Swanage SchoolGood
- The Woodroffe SchoolGood
- Wey Valley AcademyGood
- All Saints' Church of England AcademyRequires improvement
- Budmouth Academy WeymouthRequires improvement
- Queen Elizabeth's SchoolRequires improvement
- Ferndown Upper School
- Gillingham School
- Lytchett Minster School
- Sturminster Newton High School
- The Gryphon School
- The Purbeck School
- The Sir John Colfox Academy
- The Thomas Hardye School
Source: DfE Get Information about Schools · Ofsted · Dorset
Care & health services
388 CQC-registered services
- Care homes120
- GP practices61
- Dentists85
- Homecare agencies87
- Hospitals & hospices14
CQC ratings: 97% of rated services Good or Outstanding
Source: Care Quality Commission · Dorset
Heritage & planning
- Not in the Green Belt
- 29 listed buildings within ~1.5 km
Source: planning.data.gov.uk (England)
Planning decisions
683 applications decided
91.7% granted · 626 granted, 57 refused
Source: MHCLG planning statistics (PS2) · 2026 Q2
Your MP
Edward Morello
Liberal Democrat
West Dorset
Recent votes:
- NoBudget Resolution No. 86: High value council tax surcharge
- NoBudget Resolution No. 76: Rates of alcohol duty
- NoBudget Resolution No. 55: Value added tax (electric vehicle charging)
- AyeBudget Resolution No. 15: Charges in connection with employment visas
Source: UK Parliament
Council control
Liberal Democrat majority
- Lab 2
- Con 30
- LD 42
- Grn 4
- Oth 4
Source: Open Council Data UK (CC BY-SA)
Amenities nearby
- Schools1
- Parks & greens9
Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)
Local businesses
20,570 active business enterprises in the area
Source: ONS UK Business Counts (2026)
Jobs
6 jobs advertised · £36,513 avg
e.g. Construction Manager, Construction Assistant Technician, Senior Arborist
Source: Adzuna
Local economy
£737 median full-time weekly pay
2.3% of residents aged 16–64 claim unemployment-related benefits
£27,403 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 · 186,790 certificates
9.9% of households were in fuel poverty (2023)
Source: MHCLG EPC statistics · DESNZ sub-regional fuel poverty
Grid electricity
29% low-carbon electricity
Gas 69% · Wind 14% · Biomass 8% · Nuclear 7%
282 gCO₂/kWh · very high intensity
Latest estimate for South England · National Grid ESO
Health
Life expectancy: 85.4 yrs women · 82.1 yrs men
Healthy life expectancy: 65.6 women · 65.3 men
66% of adults overweight or obese
Source: OHID Fingertips · 2025
Wellbeing
- Life satisfaction7.6
- Feeling worthwhile7.9
- Happiness yesterday7.6
- Anxiety yesterday (lower is better)2.9
Average rating out of 10 · ONS personal well-being 2022-23
Health services
3 GP surgeries · 1 pharmacy in DT2
- Cerne Abbas Surgery
- Puddletown Surgery
- Dorset Medicated Weight Management Serv
Source: NHS Organisation Data Service
Local petitions
Open UK Parliament petitions most signed in West Dorset:
- Hold a UK-wide briefing on climate and nature risks572 local signatures · 127,144 nationwide
- Make catapult attacks against animals a standalone criminal offence304 local signatures · 55,084 nationwide
- Remove sentence reductions for guilty pleas in controlling and coercive cases233 local signatures · 105,832 nationwide
- End the mandatory fortification of white flour with folic acid immediately197 local signatures · 76,640 nationwide
- Support the Ceramics Industry and protect British manufacturing jobs and skills188 local signatures · 111,154 nationwide
Source: petition.parliament.uk · as of 2026-10-05
Notable places nearby
Charminster · 0.3 kmCharminster is a village and civil parish in west Dorset, England, situated on the River Cerne and A352 road 1 mile (1.6 km) north of the county town Dorchester. In the 2011 census the parish had a population of 2,940…
St Mary's Church, Charminster · 0.4 kmSt Mary's Church is an Anglican church in the village of Charminster, Dorset, in the Diocese of Salisbury. It is a Grade I listed building. The oldest parts date from the 11th and 12th centuries, and the tower was bui…
Wolfeton House · 0.8 kmWolfeton House is an early Tudor and Elizabethan manor house in Dorset, England. It is situated amongst water-meadows north-west of Dorchester not far from the confluence of the rivers Frome and Cerne. It is near to t…
- St George's Hundred, Dorset · 1.3 km
St George's Hundred, later often George Hundred, was a hundred in the county of Dorset, England, containing the parishes of Bradford Peverell, Broadmayne, Charminster, Frome Whitfield, Stinsford, Stratton and Winter…
Poundbury Hill · 1.6 kmPoundbury Hill is the site of a scheduled Prehistoric and Roman archaeological remains and includes evidence of a Neolithic settlement, a substantial Bronze Age occupation site and an Iron Age hillfort. There are also…
Town Walks, Dorchester · 1.8 kmThe Town Walks are a series of public walks in Dorchester, Dorset, England, along the former Roman defences of the town.
Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA)
Nearby towns
Frequently asked questions
- Where is Charminster?
- Charminster is a town in Dorset, England, in the Dorset local authority.
- What is the population of Charminster?
- Charminster has an approximate settlement population of 1,366.
- How deprived is Charminster?
- The Dorset local authority, which includes Charminster, is around the average in England on the IoD2025.