Minstead
Minstead is a village in Hampshire, England, with a population of around 326. There is 1 restaurant or café, 7 bus stops, and the nearest railway station is Ashurst New Forest, 5.8 km away. In June 2026, there were around 5 recorded street crimes, most commonly other theft. This page gathers weather, crime, food hygiene, transport, flood risk, house prices, population, deprivation and your local MP for the Minstead area — all from official UK open data.
On deprivation, the New Forest area is less deprived than the average in England (IoD2019). The wider council area has around 175,785 residents at roughly 234 people per km².
- Council
- New Forest
- County
- Hampshire
- Constituency
- New Forest East
- Police force
- Hampshire
My Area Score
Excellent
Ranked 34th of 294 English council areas — better than 88% 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
17°CPatchy rain nearby
- Today: 19° / 17° · 74% rain
- Tomorrow: 25° / 17° · Mist
Source: WeatherAPI
Daylight
Sunrise 06:37Sunset 19:27
12h 50m of daylight today
Next bank holiday: Christmas Day, Fri 25 Dec
Source: sunrise-sunset.org · gov.uk
Air quality
24US AQI · Good
Main pollutant: fine particles (PM2.5)
Source: WAQI · Southampton Centre, United Kingdom
Crime
3 reported · July 2026
- Criminal damage & arson2
- Other crime1
Neighbourhood team: New Forest Heart · Hampshire
Local policing priorities
- OP FORESTGUARD
Source: data.police.uk (within ~1 mile)
Road safety
327 reported road collisions (2024)
99 killed or seriously injured · 399 casualties · 18.6 collisions per 10,000 residents
Source: DfT reported road collisions (STATS19)
Food hygiene
26 food businesses within 2 miles
- 23 rated 4–5 ★ (18 top)
- 1 rated 0–2 (poor)
Source: Food Standards Agency
Flood risk
Buses & trains
- Nearest station: Ashurst New Forest (5.8 km)
- 7 bus stops within ~½ mile
Live trains from Ashurst New Forest (5.9 km):
Loading live departures…
Source: OpenStreetMap, National Rail
House prices
£380,310 average▲ 1.2% YoY
Across New Forest · to 2026-06
Source: UK House Price Index (HM Land Registry)
Private rents
£1,241 average monthly rent▲ 1.4% YoY
- 1 bed £862
- 2 bed £1,130
- 3 bed £1,387
Source: ONS Price Index of Private Rents · to 2026-07
Affordability
10.3× house price to earnings
A typical home costs 10.3 times median annual pay (10.2× for cheaper homes vs lower pay).
Source: ONS house price to workplace earnings ratio · 2025
Fuel prices
- Cheapest petrol: 159.9p · Esso (7.5 km)
- Cheapest diesel: 189.9p · Morrisons (6.1 km)
7 stations within ~8 miles
Source: CMA fuel price scheme
EV charging
17 charging locations within ~8 km
- 3 with rapid charging (50 kW+)
- Fastest nearby: 60 kW
- Nearest: SSE Castle Malwood (0.6 km)
Source: Open Charge Map
Sport & leisure
- Swimming pools6
- Sports pitches4
- Playgrounds1
Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)
Population
175,785 residents in New Forest · 234/km²
- Under 16: 15%
- 16–64: 55%
- 65+: 29%
Source: ONS Census 2021 (local authority)
Deprivation
Less deprived than the average in England
Ranked 241 of 317 English local authorities (1 = most deprived)
Source: English Indices of Deprivation 2019
Council tax
£2,420 a year · Band D, 2026-27
Most homes here are Band D (23% of 83,530)
Source: VOA council-tax stock · MHCLG band levels 2026-27
Schools
86 schools · 21,932 pupils
54 primary · 9 secondary · 23 other
Ofsted: 22 of 23 graded schools rated Good or Outstanding (96%)
67inspected under Ofsted’s 2024+ framework (graded by area, no single overall grade)
Secondary schools:
- Hounsdown SchoolGood
- Lift New ForestGood
- The Arnewood SchoolInadequate
- Applemore College
- Noadswood School
- Priestlands School
- Ringwood School Academy
- Testwood School
- The Burgate School and Sixth Form
Source: DfE Get Information about Schools · Ofsted · New Forest
Care & health services
1,436 CQC-registered services
- Care homes482
- GP practices163
- Dentists325
- Homecare agencies362
- Hospitals & hospices35
CQC ratings: 90% of rated services Good or Outstanding
Source: Care Quality Commission · Hampshire
Heritage & planning
- In a conservation area (Forest Central (South))
- Not in the Green Belt
- 19 listed buildings within ~1.5 km
Source: planning.data.gov.uk (England)
Planning decisions
194 applications decided
89.2% granted · 173 granted, 21 refused
Source: MHCLG planning statistics (PS2) · 2026 Q1
Council control
Conservative (minority)
- Lab 1
- Con 24
- LD 14
- Grn 2
- Ref 2
- Oth 5
Source: Open Council Data UK (CC BY-SA)
Amenities nearby
- Parks & greens3
- Restaurants & cafés1
Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)
Local businesses
9,045 active business enterprises in the area
Source: ONS UK Business Counts (2025)
Jobs
15 jobs advertised · £31,200 avg
e.g. Delivery Opportunities Near Me? - Deliver with Uber Eats, Be Your Own Boss - Deliver with Uber Eats, Sign Up as A Delivery Person - Earn With Uber Eats
Source: Adzuna
Local economy
£733 median full-time weekly pay
2.4% of residents aged 16–64 claim unemployment-related benefits
£30,441 disposable income per head (2024)
Source: ONS / Nomis (claimant count · ASHE) · ONS regional GDHI
Energy efficiency
41% of homes rated EPC C or above
Most common band: D · 81,051 certificates
9.6% of households were in fuel poverty (2023)
Source: MHCLG EPC statistics · DESNZ sub-regional fuel poverty
Health
Life expectancy: 86.2 yrs women · 81.1 yrs men
63% of adults overweight or obese
Source: OHID Fingertips · 2025
Wellbeing
- Life satisfaction7.8
- Feeling worthwhile7.9
- Happiness yesterday7.5
- Anxiety yesterday (lower is better)3.0
Average rating out of 10 · ONS personal well-being 2022-23
Local petitions
Open UK Parliament petitions most signed in New Forest East:
- Remove sentence reductions for guilty pleas in controlling and coercive cases509 local signatures · 104,741 nationwide
- Make a public animal abuser register & automatically ban ownership388 local signatures · 242,705 nationwide
- Hold a referendum to bring the water industry into public ownership338 local signatures · 163,883 nationwide
- Ban anyone convicted of terrorism offences from standing for public office316 local signatures · 205,058 nationwide
- Do not ban social media for under 16s294 local signatures · 217,501 nationwide
Source: petition.parliament.uk · as of 2026-08-06
Notable places nearby
- Minstead · 0.3 km
Minstead is a small village and civil parish in the New Forest, Hampshire, about 2 miles (3.2 km) north of Lyndhurst and south of the A31 road.
Minstead Lodge · 0.9 kmMinstead Lodge in Hampshire is a building of historical significance built in about 1830 and is Grade II listed on the English Heritage Register. Today it is owned by the Minstead Trust.
- Upper Canterton · 1.4 km
Upper Canterton is a village in Hampshire, England, located at 50°54′36″N 1°37′24″W. It is near Minstead.
- Cadnam · 1.9 km
Cadnam is a village situated in Hampshire, England, within the boundaries of the New Forest National Park. The village has existed since the medieval period, when it was an important crossroads between Southampton and…
Brook, New Forest · 2.3 kmBrook is a hamlet in the civil parish of Bramshaw, in Hampshire, England. It lies just inside the New Forest.
Bartley Lodge · 2.4 kmBartley Lodge is a country house near Cadnam in Hampshire, England, within the boundaries of the New Forest National Park. It was built in the 18th century to take advantage of the hunting offered in the surrounding N…
Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA)
Nearby towns
Compare New Forest with nearby areas
Frequently asked questions
- Where is Minstead?
- Minstead is a town in Hampshire, England, in the New Forest local authority.
- What is the population of Minstead?
- Minstead has an approximate settlement population of 326.
- How deprived is Minstead?
- The New Forest local authority, which includes Minstead, is less deprived than the average in England on the IoD2019.