Dunster
Dunster is a village in Somerset, England, with a population of around 408. There are around 11 restaurants and cafés, 3 bus stops, and the nearest railway station is Dunster, located 1.2 km away. There were around 7 recorded street crimes in June 2026, most commonly other theft. This page gathers weather, crime, food hygiene, transport, flood risk, house prices, population, deprivation and your local MP for the Dunster area — all from official UK open data.
On deprivation, the Somerset area is around the average in England (IoD2025).
My Area Score
Mixed
Ranked 202nd of 294 English council areas — better than 31% 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 90% of the full weighting — some data isn't available here. See the rankings · methodology
Weather
12°CPartly Cloudy
- Today: 12° / 9° · 41% rain
- Tomorrow: 11° / 9° · Patchy rain nearby
Source: WeatherAPI
Daylight
Sunrise 07:10Sunset 16:44
9h 35m of daylight today
Next bank holiday: Christmas Day, Fri 25 Dec
Source: sunrise-sunset.org · gov.uk
Air quality
30US AQI · Good
Main pollutant: fine particles (PM2.5)
Source: WAQI · Cardiff Centre, United Kingdom
Air pollution (PM2.5)
- 5.5 µg/m³ average fine-particle (PM2.5) concentration
- 4.2% of adult (30+) deaths estimated attributable to fine-particle pollution
Lower is better for both figures.
Source: OHID Fingertips · 2024
Crime
10 reported · August 2026▲ 11% YoY
- Violence & sexual offences5
- Anti-social behaviour1
- Burglary1
- Criminal damage & arson1
Neighbourhood team: Exmoor · Avon And Somerset
Local policing priorities
- Autumn Seasonal Advice With harvesting activities concluding and valuable machinery, tools and fuel being stored for winter, we encourage…
- After a busy summer, we will be renewing our focus on the local community, seeking opportunities and events to give crime reduction advic…
Source: data.police.uk (within ~1 mile)
Road safety
856 reported road collisions (2025)
248 killed or seriously injured · 1,148 casualties · 15 collisions per 10,000 residents
Source: DfT reported road collisions (STATS19)
Food hygiene
87 food businesses within 2 miles
- 83 rated 4–5 ★ (74 top)
- 1 rated 0–2 (poor)
Source: Food Standards Agency
Flood risk
Buses & trains
- Nearest station: Dunster (1.2 km)
- 3 bus stops within ~½ mile
Source: OpenStreetMap
House prices
£282,498 average▲ 2.8% YoY
Across Somerset · to 2026-08
Source: UK House Price Index (HM Land Registry)
Private rents
£1,016 average monthly rent▲ 6.2% YoY
- 1 bed £692
- 2 bed £913
- 3 bed £1,135
Source: ONS Price Index of Private Rents · to 2026-08
Affordability
8.0× house price to earnings
A typical home costs 8.0 times median annual pay (7.9× for cheaper homes vs lower pay).
Source: ONS house price to workplace earnings ratio · 2025
Property sales
8,075 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
8 charging locations within ~8 km
- 1 with rapid charging (50 kW+)
- Fastest nearby: 120 kW
- Nearest: Dunster Steep car park (0.4 km)
Source: Open Charge Map
Sport & leisure
- Sports pitches4
- Playgrounds2
Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)
Local news
- Ham Hill Visitor Centre celebrates regional building excellence award success· 3 Nov 2026
- Somerset residents can now check mobile coverage based on real-world data· 2 Nov 2026
- New video showcases Somerset volunteers to inspire others to get involved· 2 Nov 2026
- Bridgwater’s historic clock to be reinstated· 30 Oct 2026
- Private Fostering Awareness Day highlights support available to families in Somerset· 30 Oct 2026
Source: Somerset Council
Population
571,548 residents in Somerset
- Under 16: 17%
- 16–64: 58%
- 65+: 25%
Source: ONS Census 2021 (local authority)
Internal migration
- Moves in from elsewhere in the UK25,114
- Moves out to elsewhere in the UK20,841
- Net moves+4,273
Residential moves between local authorities (counts of moves, not people) · ONS Internal migration, YE Jun 2025
Deprivation
Around the average in England
Ranked 134 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
£2,561 a year · Band D, 2026-27
Most homes here are Band B (27% of 272,060)
Source: VOA council-tax stock · MHCLG band levels 2026-27
Schools
306 schools · 76,894 pupils
218 primary · 28 secondary · 60 other
Ofsted: 100 of 137 graded schools rated Good or Outstanding (73%)
264 inspected under Ofsted’s 2024+ framework (graded by area, no single overall grade)
Secondary schools:
- The Castle SchoolOutstanding
- Buckler's Mead SchoolGood
- Court Fields SchoolGood
- Haygrove SchoolGood
- Holyrood AcademyGood
- Preston School AcademyGood
- Sexey's SchoolGood
- St Dunstan's SchoolGood
- The King Alfred SchoolGood
- WhitstoneGood
- Ansford AcademyRequires improvement
- West Somerset CollegeRequires improvement
- Huish Episcopi AcademyInadequate
- Monkton Wood AcademyInadequate
- Bishop Fox's School
- Brymore Academy
- Chilton Trinity School
- Crispin School Academy
- Frome Community College
- King Arthur's School
- Kingsmead Academy
- Pyrland School
- Robert Blake Academy
- Stanchester Academy
- The Blue School
- The Kings of Wessex Academy
- Wadham School
- Westfield Academy
Source: DfE Get Information about Schools · Ofsted · Somerset
Care & health services
555 CQC-registered services
- Care homes197
- GP practices73
- Dentists106
- Homecare agencies126
- Hospitals & hospices25
CQC ratings: 94% of rated services Good or Outstanding · 2 Inadequate
Source: Care Quality Commission · Somerset
Heritage & planning
- In a conservation area (Dunster)
- Not in the Green Belt
- 156 listed buildings within ~1.5 km
Source: planning.data.gov.uk (England)
Planning decisions
762 applications decided
89% granted · 678 granted, 84 refused
Source: MHCLG planning statistics (PS2) · 2026 Q2
Your MP
Rachel Gilmour
Liberal Democrat
Tiverton and Minehead
Recent votes:
- AyeOpposition day motion: Support for British farmers
- AyeWithdrawal Agreement (Windsor Framework and Governance) (Amendment) Regulations 2026
- AyeDraft Railways (Interoperability in Northern Ireland) (Convention on International Carriage by Rail) (Amendment) Regulations 2026
- NoNorthern Ireland Troubles Bill: Third Reading
Source: UK Parliament
Council control
Liberal Democrat majority
- Lab 5
- Con 31
- LD 61
- Grn 5
- Ref 2
- Oth 6
Source: Open Council Data UK (CC BY-SA)
Amenities nearby
- Schools1
- Parks & greens7
- Restaurants & cafés12
Source: OpenStreetMap (within ~1 mile)
Local businesses
28,585 active business enterprises in the area
Source: ONS UK Business Counts (2026)
Jobs
2 jobs advertised
e.g. Store Supervisor, Salaried GP
Source: Adzuna
Local economy
£711 median full-time weekly pay
2.6% of residents aged 16–64 claim unemployment-related benefits
£25,473 disposable income per head (2024)
Source: ONS / Nomis (claimant count · ASHE) · ONS regional GDHI
Energy efficiency
58% of homes rated EPC C or above
Most common band: C · 50,033 certificates
10.5% of households were in fuel poverty (2023)
Source: MHCLG EPC statistics · DESNZ sub-regional fuel poverty
Grid electricity
4% low-carbon electricity
Gas 97% · Wind 4%
380 gCO₂/kWh · very high intensity
Latest estimate for South West England · National Grid ESO
Health
Life expectancy: 84.4 yrs women · 80.6 yrs men
Healthy life expectancy: 63 women · 62.8 men
68% of adults overweight or obese
Source: OHID Fingertips · 2025
Health services
2 GP surgeries · 4 pharmacies in TA24
- Minehead Medical Centre
- Dunster & Porlock Surgeries
Source: NHS Organisation Data Service
Local petitions
Open UK Parliament petitions most signed in Tiverton and Minehead:
- Hold a UK-wide briefing on climate and nature risks411 local signatures · 127,144 nationwide
- Introduce urgent moratorium on AI Data Centres and BESS outside AI Growth Zones359 local signatures · 38,553 nationwide
- Remove sentence reductions for guilty pleas in controlling and coercive cases260 local signatures · 105,832 nationwide
- Protect legal right to support for children with SEND215 local signatures · 111,357 nationwide
- End the mandatory fortification of white flour with folic acid immediately180 local signatures · 76,640 nationwide
Source: petition.parliament.uk · as of 2026-10-05
Notable places nearby
- Dunster Dovecote · 0.0 km
The Dovecote in Dunster, Somerset, England was probably built in the late 16th century. It has been designated as a Grade II* listed building and Scheduled Monument.
Dunster · 0.1 kmDunster is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, within the north-eastern boundary of Exmoor National Park. It lies on the Bristol Channel 2.5 miles (4 km) southeast of Minehead and 20 miles (32 km) northwe…
Tithe Barn, Dunster · 0.1 kmThe Tithe Barn is a 14th-century tithe barn in Dunster, Somerset, England.
- Dunster Museum & Doll Collection · 0.2 km
The Dunster Museum & Doll Collection in Dunster, Somerset, England houses a collection of more than 800 dolls from around the world, based on the collection of the late Mollie Hardwick, who died in 1970 and donated he…
- Dunster Priory · 0.2 km
Dunster Priory was established as a Benedictine monastery around 1100 in Dunster, Somerset, England.
Yarn Market, Dunster · 0.2 kmThe Yarn Market in Dunster, Somerset, England was built in the early 17th century. It has been designated as a Grade I listed building and scheduled monument. Dunster was an important market place in the Middle Ages p…
Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA)
Nearby towns
Frequently asked questions
- Where is Dunster?
- Dunster is a town in Somerset, England, in the Somerset local authority.
- What is the population of Dunster?
- Dunster has an approximate settlement population of 408.
- How deprived is Dunster?
- The Somerset local authority, which includes Dunster, is around the average in England on the IoD2025.