United Kingdom · South West · Local Authority
Forest of Dean
Non-metropolitan district · South West, England · population ~87k · 52 state-funded schools
High earnings paired with relatively accessible housing make the Forest of Dean a standout in the South West. Residents benefit from the highest median weekly earnings in the region at £832.60, while housing remains more attainable than the regional median, with a house price to income ratio of 6.4x. Monthly rent is particularly low, consuming only 22.7% of gross median earnings. The area also reports a crime rate of 48.3 per 1,000, which is significantly lower than the regional median. While the deprivation score sits slightly above the regional median, the quality of education is strong, with 95.5% of pupils attending Good or Outstanding schools. This balance of high pay and manageable living costs suits professionals seeking stability and quality schooling.
Written from the indicators on this page, 2026-10 data.
The signature
How Forest of Dean ranks across 361 UK Local Authorities
Pay
£43,295/yr
High
Better than 75% of UK LAs
House price
£274,995
Mid-range
Around UK average
Rent
£820/mo
Affordable
Better than 71% of UK LAs
Council tax
£2,443/yr
Mid
Around UK average
Crime
48.3/1k
Safest
Better than 90% of UK LAs
Deprivation
18.0
Mid
Around UK average
Schools
86.5%
Concerning
Worse than 89% 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
62 state-funded schools · Ofsted Sep 2026
45 of 52 (86.5%) rated Good or Outstanding under Ofsted's legacy framework. 10 schools are on the post-2024 report-card framework and don't roll up into the legacy total. How we count →
The map
52 schools · pins coloured by Ofsted grade
Grades, phase and pupil numbers for all 52 schools, sortable and filterable.
Schools in Forest of Dean →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.