United Kingdom · Local Authorities · Compare
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole vs Swindon
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (South West, England · ~397k people) · Swindon (South West, England · ~223k people)
Of 7 strictly-comparable measures: Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole leads on 2, Swindon on 4, 1 effectively tied. Which trade-offs matter is yours to weigh — the rows below show where each one wins.
Head to head
Median pay
ONS ASHE (residence) · 2025
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
£37,903/yr
Worse than 63% of UK LAs
Swindon
£39,421/yr
Around UK average
Swindon: 4% higher median pay.
House price
ONS HPSSA-9 median · Year ending Sep 2025
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
£340,000
Worse than 65% of UK LAs
Swindon
£280,000
Around UK average
Swindon: 21% lower median price.
Monthly rent
ONS PIPR (newly-signed lets) · 2026-03
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
£1,397/mo
Worse than 77% of UK LAs
Swindon
£1,082/mo
Worse than 57% of UK LAs
Swindon: 29% lower median rent.
Council tax (Band D)
MHCLG · 2026-27
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
£2,436/yr
Around UK average
Swindon
£2,438/yr
Around UK average
Effectively tied — under 2% apart.
Recorded crime
ONS PFA Table C4 · Year ending Dec 2025
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
89.9/1k
Worse than 73% of UK LAs
Swindon
68.8/1k
Better than 56% of UK LAs
Swindon: 31% lower recorded-crime rate.
Deprivation (IMD)
MHCLG Indices of Deprivation · 2019
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
18.2
Around UK average
Swindon
18.6
Around UK average
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole: lower average deprivation score (18.2 vs 18.6).
Schools (Ofsted)
Ofsted MI · Feb 2026 snapshot
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
96.9%
Better than 82% of UK LAs
Swindon
93.0%
Around UK average
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole: 3.9 percentage points more pupils in Good/Outstanding schools.
What local pay actually covers
Same-place ratios — each area's own median rent and house price against its own median gross pay. A cheap-looking area stops looking cheap when local pay is lower still.
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
Rent takes 44% of median gross monthly pay
A median home costs 9.0× median annual pay
Swindon
Rent takes 33% of median gross monthly pay
A median home costs 7.1× median annual pay
Full Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole profile →
Every indicator, all state-funded schools with Ofsted grades, and similar areas.
Full Swindon profile →
Every indicator, all state-funded schools with Ofsted grades, and similar areas.