Ruardean

5°CClear

• Today: 10° / 5° · 16% rain
• Tomorrow: 11° / 5° · Sunny

Source: WeatherAPI

Sunrise 07:06Sunset 16:40

9h 34m of daylight today

Next bank holiday: Christmas Day, Fri 25 Dec

Source: sunrise-sunset.org · gov.uk

30US AQI · Good

Main pollutant: fine particles (PM2.5)

Source: WAQI · Chepstow A48, United Kingdom

• 5.7 µg/m³ average fine-particle (PM2.5) concentration
• 4.3% of adult (30+) deaths estimated attributable to fine-particle pollution

Lower is better for both figures.

Source: OHID Fingertips · 2024

103 reported road collisions (2025)

33 killed or seriously injured · 149 casualties · 11.8 collisions per 10,000 residents

Source: DfT reported road collisions (STATS19)

28 food businesses within 2 miles

• 23 rated 4–5 ★ (23 top)
• 0 rated 0–2 (poor)

Source: Food Standards Agency

• 25 bus stops within ~½ mile

Source: OpenStreetMap

£296,807 average▲ 1.1% YoY

Across Forest of Dean · to 2026-08

Source: UK House Price Index (HM Land Registry)

£828 average monthly rent▼ 0.1% YoY

• 1 bed £594
• 2 bed £800
• 3 bed £960

Source: ONS Price Index of Private Rents · to 2026-08

8.2× house price to earnings

A typical home costs 8.2 times median annual pay (7.9× for cheaper homes vs lower pay).

Source: ONS house price to workplace earnings ratio · 2025

1,055 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

• Cheapest petrol: 172.9p · Asda (8.1 km)
• Cheapest diesel: 197.9p · Asda (8.1 km)

1 station within ~8 miles

Source: CMA fuel price scheme

12 charging locations within ~8 km

• 5 with rapid charging (50 kW+)
• Fastest nearby: 120 kW
• Nearest: Tesco Superstore-Cinderford (5 km)

Source: Open Charge Map

• Sports pitches4
• Playgrounds2

Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)

87,004 residents in Forest of Dean · 165/km²

• Under 16: 16%
• 16–64: 59%
• 65+: 25%

Source: ONS Census 2021 (local authority)

• Moves in from elsewhere in the UK5,395
• Moves out to elsewhere in the UK5,084
• Net moves+311

Residential moves between local authorities (counts of moves, not people) · ONS Internal migration, YE Jun 2025

Around the average in England

Ranked 121 of 296 English local authorities (1 = most deprived)

Source: English Indices of Deprivation 2025

£2,443 a year · Band D, 2026-27

Most homes here are Band B (25% of 40,980)

Source: VOA council-tax stock · MHCLG band levels 2026-27

55 schools · 10,867 pupils

45 primary · 6 secondary · 4 other

Ofsted: 23 of 28 graded schools rated Good or Outstanding (82%)

52 inspected under Ofsted’s 2024+ framework (graded by area, no single overall grade)

Source: DfE Get Information about Schools · Ofsted · Forest of Dean

687 CQC-registered services

• Care homes200
• GP practices96
• Dentists142
• Homecare agencies182
• Hospitals & hospices31

CQC ratings: 92% of rated services Good or Outstanding · 2 Inadequate

Source: Care Quality Commission · Gloucestershire

• Not in the Green Belt
• 8 listed buildings within ~1.5 km

Source: planning.data.gov.uk (England)

118 applications decided

92.4% granted · 109 granted, 9 refused

Source: MHCLG planning statistics (PS2) · 2026 Q2

Matt Bishop

Labour

Forest of Dean

Source: UK Parliament

Green (minority)

• Lab 4
• Con 6
• LD 1
• Grn 15
• Ref 1
• Oth 11

Source: Open Council Data UK (CC BY-SA)

• Schools2
• Parks & greens3

Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)

4,195 active business enterprises in the area

Source: ONS UK Business Counts (2026)

£833 median full-time weekly pay

2.6% of residents aged 16–64 claim unemployment-related benefits

£22,925 disposable income per head (2024)

Source: ONS / Nomis (claimant count · ASHE) · ONS regional GDHI

38% of homes rated EPC C or above

Most common band: D · 39,298 certificates

12.3% of households were in fuel poverty (2023)

Source: MHCLG EPC statistics · DESNZ sub-regional fuel poverty

46% low-carbon electricity

Gas 50% · Wind 21% · Nuclear 21% · Imports 4%

200 gCO₂/kWh · high intensity

Latest estimate for West Midlands · National Grid ESO

Life expectancy: 83.7 yrs women · 81 yrs men

Healthy life expectancy (Gloucestershire): 63.4 women · 63.4 men

72% of adults overweight or obese

Source: OHID Fingertips · 2025

• Life satisfaction7.2
• Feeling worthwhile7.9
• Happiness yesterday7.0
• Anxiety yesterday (lower is better)4.1

Average rating out of 10 · ONS personal well-being 2022-23

2 GP surgeries · 2 pharmacies in GL17

• Drybrook Surgery
• Mitcheldean Surgery

Source: NHS Organisation Data Service

Open UK Parliament petitions most signed in Forest of Dean:

• Hold a UK-wide briefing on climate and nature risks365 local signatures · 127,144 nationwide
• Remove sentence reductions for guilty pleas in controlling and coercive cases200 local signatures · 105,832 nationwide
• Review the law on unfit to plead & reform it to protect victims & public safety183 local signatures · 12,590 nationwide
• Support the Ceramics Industry and protect British manufacturing jobs and skills179 local signatures · 111,154 nationwide
• End the mandatory fortification of white flour with folic acid immediately177 local signatures · 76,640 nationwide

Source: petition.parliament.uk · as of 2026-10-05

• 
  Ruardean · 0.1 km

  Ruardean is a village in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, England, to the North West of Cinderford. It is situated on a hillside with views west towards the mountains of South Wales. Little now remains of the vill…

• Ruardyn Castle · 0.3 km

  Ruardyn Castle was a manor house in the village of Ruardean. Its ruins have been scheduled as an ancient monument.

• 
  Ruardean Woodside · 1.1 km

  Ruardean Woodside is a village in Gloucestershire, England, located in the Forest of Dean and tucked away behind Ruardean Hill and Brierley. There is a primary school and a village hall. The Roebuck was the last of th…

• 
  Ruardean Hill · 1.5 km

  Ruardean Hill is a prominent hill and a village in the English county of Gloucestershire, 20 km (12 mi) west of Gloucester. It lies in the Forest of Dean, in the parish of Drybrook.

• 
  The Pludds · 1.6 km

  The Pludds is a hamlet in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, England. Lydbrook and Joys Green are to the west, Ruardean is to the north, and Ruardean Woodside is to the east. The Pludds has a village hall.

• 
  Drybrook Halt railway station · 2.0 km

  Drybrook Halt railway station served the village of Drybrook, Gloucestershire, England, from 1907 to 1930 on the Mitcheldean Road & Forest of Dean Junction Railway.

Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA)