United Kingdom · South West · Local Authority
Dorset Council
Unitary authority · South West, England · population ~380k · 158 state-funded schools
The signature
How Dorset Council ranks across 361 UK Local Authorities
Pay
£38,329/yr
Mid
Worse than 58% of UK LAs
House price
£349,000
Expensive
Worse than 68% of UK LAs
Rent
£1,037/mo
Mid-range
Worse than 55% of UK LAs
Council tax
£2,765/yr
Most expensive
Worse than 100% of UK LAs
Crime
45.0/1k
Safest
Better than 93% of UK LAs
Deprivation
15.7
Low
Better than 64% of UK LAs
Schools
87.3%
Concerning
Worse than 85% of UK LAs
Colour shows quintile position against 361 UK Local Authorities. Green is the best position for someone moving here; red is the worst. Direction is set per indicator — higher pay, lower rent, less crime, less deprivation are all green.
Schools
158 state-funded schools · Ofsted Feb 2026
137 of 157 (87.3%) rated Good or Outstanding under Ofsted's legacy framework. 1 school is on the post-2024 report-card framework and don't roll up into the legacy total. How we count →
The map
158 schools · pins coloured by Ofsted grade
Showing 20 of 158 schools.
| New framework | Links | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Thomas Hardye School | Secondary | 2,051 | Good2025 | — | OfstedWebsite |
Gillingham School | Secondary | 1,670 | Good2023 | — | OfstedWebsite |
Lytchett Minster School | Secondary | 1,590 | Good2023 | — | OfstedWebsite |
The Gryphon School | Secondary | 1,555 | Good2023 | — | OfstedWebsite |
Budmouth Academy Weymouth | Secondary | 1,499 | Requires Improvement2024 | — | OfstedWebsite |
Queen Elizabeth's School | Secondary | 1,452 | Requires Improvement2023 | — | OfstedWebsite |
Ferndown Upper School | Secondary | 1,169 | Good2021 | — | OfstedWebsite |
The Blandford School | Secondary | 1,135 | Good2024 | — | OfstedWebsite |
The Purbeck School | Secondary | 1,028 | Good2014 | — | OfstedWebsite |
Wey Valley Academy | Secondary | 996 | Good2023 | — | OfstedWebsite |
The Woodroffe School | Secondary | 978 | Good2023 | — | OfstedWebsite |
Shaftesbury School | Secondary | 864 | Good2023 | — | OfstedWebsite |
The Sir John Colfox Academy | Secondary | 792 | Good2023 | — | OfstedWebsite |
Atlantic Academy Portland | Secondary | 748 | Good2022 | — | OfstedWebsite |
St Osmund's Church of England Middle School | Secondary | 717 | Good2022 | — | OfstedWebsite |
All Saints' Church of England Academy | Secondary | 696 | Requires Improvement2023 | — | OfstedWebsite |
Beaminster School | Secondary | 679 | Good2023 | — | OfstedWebsite |
Sturminster Newton High School | Secondary | 617 | Good2015 | — | OfstedWebsite |
Ferndown Middle School | Secondary | 613 | Good2023 | — | OfstedWebsite |
St Michael's Church of England Middle School, Colehill | Secondary | 583 | Good2024 | — | OfstedWebsite |
Places with similar signatures
Nearest by quintile position across pay · housing · tax · crime · IMD · schools
What we don't know yet
Commute times · GP appointment availability · broadband speeds · air quality at LA level · green-space proximity · public transport coverage. These matter for a relocation decision. We'll add them when the source data is reliable nationally and consistent across LA boundaries.