Bere Regis’s story
42 listed buildings, 1 of them Grade I
Historic England lists them inside Bere Regis’ built-up area.
23% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →
Bere RegisDorset
Over-65s are 28% of the population. A village in Dorset, South West, home to 1,320 people.
7 places within 12 milesMap →
Photo: Michael Garlick · CC BY-SA 2.0
Population
1,320
Census 2021 · Dorset council
Median home
£310K
51 sales in 3 years
Median age
50.5
28% are 65+ · Dorset 25%
Degree level
30%
of residents 16+ · England 34%
Walk, cycle, bus
10%
of commuters · England 27%
Is Bere Regis a good place to live?
Residents are healthier than most: men here can expect to live to 82.8, women to 86.3. Its weakest subject is schools — primary results beat 7% of towns in England. Housing is expensive: a typical home costs £310,000 and rent runs £1,056 a month. Elsewhere it is close to typical: B for safety, C+ for jobs & income and B− for hazard risk.
Figures: life expectancy and income, ONS · prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years · crime, police.uk, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026 · claimants, DWP · flood risk, Environment Agency. An overall grade needs 2,500 residents, so Bere Regis is graded subject by subject only.
What makes Bere Regis stand out
The 3 things Bere Regis does most differently from other towns.
Walk, cycle or public transport
Getting around
10% leave the car
of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport (England’s towns 27%)
Listed buildings per 10,000 residents
History
1 Grade I, including Parish Church of St John the Baptist; 13.1 times the typical UK town for its size
Historic England’s list, October 2026.
Residents 65 and over
Who lives here
28% are 65 or over
Against 18% across England’s towns
How Bere Regis grades
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Bere Regis is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
An overall grade needs 2,500 residents, so Bere Regis is graded subject by subject only.
SchoolsPrimary results beat 7% of towns in EnglandD−Open →Cost of livingMedian sale £310,000, 5.9 years of area incomeDOpen →HealthAmong the best of the towns comparedA−Open →WalkabilityBased on walking, cycling and transit to everyday placesC−Open →Jobs & incomeIncomes and work trail most townsC+Open →SafetyBased on crimes reported per residentBOpen →Hazard risk0.3% of homes at high or medium risk of flooding from rivers or the seaB−Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
HistoryGraded on historic places and the town’s ageAOpen →Outdoors100% live within 400 m of a park; 39.2 ha of public green space per 1,000 residentsAOpen →Civic life6.8 local charities per 1,000 residents; 0% live within 1 km of a libraryA−Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Bere Regis.
Who lives here
An older town: 28% of people in Bere Regis are 65 or over, more than in both Dorset’s towns and England’s towns
Nearly one in ten residents are aged 15 to 24. Children under 15 make up 14%, below both Dorset’s towns (15%) and England’s towns (18%). Bere Regis has a median age of 50.5. Among adults, 30% have a degree.
50.5median age
Bere RegisDorsetEngland
Ages · share of residents
28%
Qualifications · residents 16 and older
No qualifications18%
Apprenticeship6%
A levels or similar18%
Degree level30%
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Bere Regis | Dorset | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 14% | 15% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 9.1% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 20% | 23% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 29% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 28% | 25% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 18% | 16% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 5.9% | 6.4% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 18% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 30% | 31% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Dorset and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
History
Bere Regis is rich in listed buildings: 318 per 10,000 residents, more than in both Dorset’s towns and England’s towns
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
23% of homes date from before 1919. Bere Regis’s listed buildings include the Parish Church of St John the Baptist, Grade I. It counts 42 listed buildings on the national list (Historic England): 1 Grade I. Conservation areas cover nearly two fifths of Bere Regis’ land, above both Dorset’s towns (15%) and England’s towns (7%).
42listed buildingsAHistory Grade
Listed buildings by grade · Historic England
Grade I1
Grade II*0
Grade II41
Among them · Grade I
0
scheduled monuments
0
registered parks and gardens
23%
of homes built before 1919 · typical UK town 15%
318
listed buildings per 10,000 residents · typical UK town 24
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
HousingCost of living grade D
More households in Bere Regis live in social housing than in Dorset’s towns or England’s towns: 22%
Private renters make up 17% of households. Home ownership stands at three in five households. Half of the 51 standard sales inside Bere Regis’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 went for more than £310,000.
£310Kmedian sale
Median sale price · Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
Bere Regis£310K
Typical UK town£277K
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £450,000 | 17 |
| Semi-detached | £315,000 | 16 |
| Terraced | £255,000 | 17 |
60%
of households own their home · England 61%
17%
rent privately · England 21%
£1,056
average private rent a month, Dorset council area
£2,756
council tax, Band D, 2026–27
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Health
Lifespans in Bere Regis run longer than in 90% of UK towns
One GP practice serves the town; just over nine in ten patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey. The nearest A&E to Bere Regis is Dorset County Hospital, 10.3 miles away. 18% of residents in Bere Regis live with a disability.
81%good or very good healthA−Health Grade
General health, self-reported
Good or very good 81%Fair 14%Bad or very bad 5%
| Census 2021 | Bere Regis | Dorset | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 81% | 81% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 5% | 5.3% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 18% | 19% | 17% |
82.8
life expectancy at birth, men (2019–23)
86.3
life expectancy at birth, women
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · No age adjustment applies to these census answers, which flatter younger towns; the Health Grade’s measures, life expectancy and early deaths among them, do allow for age.
Work & commuteJobs & income grade C+
Under 5 km to work: 10% in Bere Regis, fewer than in both Dorset’s towns and England’s towns
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 28% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
88% of commuters drove, above Dorset’s towns (76%) and England’s towns (70%) alike. The average household earns £57K a year before tax. Among 16 to 64s, 1.8% claimed unemployment benefits in 2026.
10%walk, cycle or ride
How commuters got to work · March 2021
Driving88%
On foot8%
Bicycle2%
Bus1%
10%
of commuters travel under 5 km · England 45%
28%
worked mainly from home in March 2021
£57K
mean household income, before tax
1.8%
of 16 to 64s claim unemployment benefits (2026)
C−
Walkability: more walkable than 25% of UK towns
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Safety
Bere Regis records less crime per resident than 59% of UK towns
Bere Regis logged 53 reported offences in a year (to August 2026), plus 11 complaints of anti-social conduct. Violence and sexual offences made up 57% of the total. Also worth knowing: violent crime runs at 20.7 per 1,000 residents a year.
20.7violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a yearBSafety Grade
Compared with UK towns its sizeLess crime per resident than 38% of the 1,541 UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people: about the middle for its size. Context only, not part of the grade.
Reports by type · Sep 2025 to Aug 2026
Violence & sexual30
Other theft10
Vehicle crime6
Damage & arson3
Shoplifting1
Burglary1
Weapons1
Theft from person1
Anti-social11
Not gradedAnti-social behaviour, shoplifting and other theft are shown but left out of the Safety Grade, which counts violence and crimes against homes and vehicles per resident.
20.7
violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
7.8
burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026
7.1
anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 (not graded)
53
crimes recorded in the 12 months to August 2026
data.police.uk street-level crime · points inside the ONS built-up-area boundary · OGL · The police category of violence and sexual offences includes harassment and stalking.
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Bere Regis
13pages on Bere Regis
The big questions
SafetyB20.7 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year, averaged Sep 2023 to Aug 2026Cost of livingDMedian home £310K · rent £1,056 a monthHousing13 sold in 12 months · busiest street SouthbrookSchoolsD−HealthA−Life expectancy 82.8 (men), 86.3 (women)Work & commuteC+51% of working residents work in the townFlood & hazardsB−0.3% of homes at high or medium flood risk
Out and about
Bere Regis’s neighbours
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
Milborne St AndrewWoolPuddletownWarehamCrosswaysLytchett MatraversSandfordBere Regis
How the neighbours grade
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bere Regis | 1,320 | — | — | D | B | A− |
| Milborne St Andrew | 1,090 | 3.2 | — | D | A− | A |
| Wool | 5,044 | 4 | C | C− | B+ | C+ |
| Puddletown | 1,193 | 5.5 | — | D | A+ | B+ |
| Wareham | 5,876 | 6.1 | C | D− | B− | B |
| Crossways | 2,494 | 6.1 | — | C− | A− | B+ |
| Lytchett Matravers | 3,455 | 6.2 | A− | D− | A | A− |
| Sandford | 2,004 | 6.3 | — | D | A | B+ |
Milborne St Andrew, Puddletown, Crossways and Sandford have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
Questions about Bere Regis
Are schools in Bere Regis good?
Primary results trail 93% of towns in England (Department for Education, Key Stage 2). Places are handled by Dorset council.
How many listed buildings are there in Bere Regis?
That is 13.1 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I building is Parish Church of St John the Baptist.
How much is council tax in Bere Regis?
Band D council tax in Bere Regis is £2,756 for 2026–27, more than in 98% of UK towns (council, county, police and fire, plus the parish or town council). Your own bill depends on your home’s band; check it on GOV.UK.
About Bere Regis
Village in Dorset, England
Bere Regis is a built-up area of 1,320 people, in the Dorset council area. TownRatings uses ONS’s 2022 built-up areas as towns: the physical town, as people mean the word, rather than a council district, so its figures cover the town itself.
Built from ONS geography and Census 2021
- Population
- 1,320 (Census 2021)
- Council
- Dorset
- County
- Dorset
- Region
- South West
- Area
- 0.2 sq mi (0.5 km²)
- ONS code
- E63006683
Sources: ONS Census 2021, output areas summed to the ONS 2022 built-up area · HM Land Registry Price Paid (standard sales, September 2023 to August 2026) · ONS Price Index of Private Rents (August 2026, by council) · MHCLG and Welsh Government council tax, Band D 2026–27 (with parish precepts in England) · data.police.uk street-level crime, 36 months to August 2026, points inside the built-up-area boundary · ONS small-area life expectancy and healthy life expectancy, 2019 to 2023 (England and Wales), OHID Fingertips small-area indicators (England) and Census 2021 health, adjusted for age · ONS small-area income estimates (financial year ending 2023) · DWP claimant count via Nomis (January to August 2026) · Historic England, National Heritage List for England (listed buildings, scheduled monuments, registered parks and gardens, battlefields, World Heritage Sites), October 2026, inside the ONS 2022 built-up-area boundary · Valuation Office Agency, Council Tax: stock of properties by build period (31 March 2025) · TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranked against UK towns only. All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.