Photo: David Martin · CC BY-SA 2.0People in Cranborne live longer than across England: 83.5 for men and 89.4 for women
Across England the figures for 2019 to 2023 are 79.1 and 83.0. Cranborne has no Health Grade.
What stands out about health in Cranborne
A&E waits run longer than England’s
Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust, which runs the A&E at Salisbury District Hospital, saw 55% of major-A&E patients within four hours in the 12 months to September 2026, against 61% across England: 80th of 117 trusts. 12% of patients admitted through its A&Es waited more than 12 hours from the decision to admit, against 13% in England. A&E ↓
NHS dentists are harder to get than in most of England
Of adults in the Dorset area who tried to get an NHS dental appointment in the last two years, 75% succeeded, 5th lowest of England’s 36 health areas; across England it was 82%. Dentists ↓
Patients rate Cranborne’s GP practices above England’s
In the 2026 GP Patient Survey, 91% of patients at Cranborne’s one practice called their overall experience good, against 77% across England, and 84% found it easy to get through by phone (57% in England). That is ahead of 92% of English towns. GP practices ↓
Written from the OHID, NHS England and GP Patient Survey figures on this page. Life expectancy covers 2019 to 2023; neighbourhoods are ONS middle-layer areas of about 8,000 people.
91% of patients rate Cranborne’s GP practice good
GP Patient Survey 2026 (NHS England, run by Ipsos), about 100 patients a practice, against 77% across England.
| Practice | Overall experience | Easy by phone | Wait about right | CQC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Cranborne Practice BH21 5QE · 11,129 adult patients | 91% good · range 79%–97% | 84% | 84% | Good2016 |
You can register with any practice whose area covers your address.
GP Patient Survey 2026: surveys sent January to March 2026; results weighted by NHS England. The range is the 95% confidence interval. Adult patients: the survey’s practice population aged 16 and over. A practice counts as in Cranborne when its main surgery is inside the built-up area; branch surgeries are part of their main practice. CQC ratings © Care Quality Commission.
Salisbury saw 55% of major-A&E patients within four hours
Type 1 (major) A&E attendances seen, admitted or discharged within four hours of arrival, by month. NHS England publishes it by trust, not hospital: Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust runs the A&E at Salisbury District Hospital, the nearest to Cranborne (10 mi).
The share seen within four hours slipped from an average of 58% in April 2025 to September 2025 to 53% in the latest six months; England’s was 62%. Long waits for a bed are close to the typical trust’s: 1,941 patients in 12 months, 12% of emergency admissions through A&E. CQC’s latest ratings for Salisbury District Hospital: urgent and emergency services good (2019), the hospital overall requires improvement (2026).
South West trusts
Hospitals within 25 miles
| Distance | Hospital | CQC overall | Urgent & emergency |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8.8 mi | Victoria Hospital, Wimborne Wimborne · Dorset Healthcare University NHS Foundation Trust | Not rated | — |
| 10 mi | Salisbury District Hospital A&E Salisbury · Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust | Requires improvement2026 | Good2019 |
| 13 mi | The Royal Bournemouth Hospital A&E Bournemouth · University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust | Requires improvement2026 | Good2018 |
| 13 mi | Royal Bournemouth Hospital Bournemouth · Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust | Not rated | — |
| 13 mi | University Hospitals Dorset Bournemouth · Dorset Healthcare University NHS Foundation Trust | Not rated | — |
| 13 mi | Christchurch Hospital Christchurch · University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust | Good2016 | — |
| 14 mi | Poole Hospital A&E Poole · University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust | Not rated | Good2016 |
| 19 mi | Lymington New Forest Hospital Lymington · Hampshire and Isle of Wight Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust | Not rated | — |
NHS acute hospitals registered with the Care Quality Commission (care directory, 01 October 2026). “A&E” marks a major (type 1) emergency department, open 24 hours and led by consultants, in NHS England’s Emergency Care Data Set; a hospital without the mark may still have a minor injury unit or urgent treatment centre. Ratings run Outstanding, Good, Requires improvement, Inadequate; the year is when each was published. Distances are straight lines from the town centre.
75% of adults in the Dorset area who tried got an NHS dental appointment
Adults who tried to get an NHS dental appointment for themselves in the last two years, and got one. GP Patient Survey 2026, by integrated care system (the NHS area that plans dentistry for Cranborne).
Dorset has the 5th lowest of England’s 36 health areas; across England 82% of those who tried got an appointment. Of Dorset patients who did, 66% rated the experience good (England 74%). NHS practices taking new patients are listed on the NHS website’s Find a dentist; for urgent dental pain, call NHS 111.
The survey asks GP patients about dentistry, so results are published for health areas, not towns or practices.
Care in and near Cranborne
The nearest A&E, the practice patients rate highest, and where to go when it’s urgent but not an emergency. In an emergency, call 999.
81% of residents say their health is good or very good
Census 2021, all residents, as answered (not adjusted for age).
Adjusted for age, 76 report bad health for every 100 expected, fewer than the national rate.
Show as a table
| Census 2021 | Cranborne | Dorset | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 81% | 81% | 82% |
| Fair health | 15% | 14% | 13% |
| Bad or very bad health | 4.7% | 5.3% | 5.2% |
| Disabled under the Equality Act | 17% | 19% | 17% |
| Day-to-day activities limited a lot | 6.7% | 7.8% | 7.4% |
Dorset and England: all residents of their built-up areas (towns and cities), from the same Census 2021 output areas.
Health in the places around Cranborne
Life expectancy for men / women, and the nearest A&E. Tap a town for its health page.
| Town | People | Life expectancy | Nearest A&E | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cranborne | 579 | 83.5 / 89.4 | 10 mi | — |
| Verwood | 13,706 | 82.2 / 85.4 | 9.1 mi | A− |
| Alderholt | 2,868 | 83.5 / 89.4 | 9.3 mi | A |
| Sandleheath | 1,546 | 82.7 / 85.1 | 8 mi | A− |
| Three Legged Cross | 1,129 | 81.9 / 84.3 | 7.8 mi | B− |
| Fordingbridge | 4,947 | 82.7 / 85.1 | 7.9 mi | B+ |
| Ashley Heath | 7,151 | 82.0 / 87.0 | 6.1 mi | A |
| West Moors | 10,432 | 79.9 / 85.2 | 5.5 mi | B− |
West Moors, 7.2 miles away, has men’s life expectancy of 79.9, 3.6 years shorter than Cranborne’s.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- A&E figures are for the trust. NHS England publishes four-hour waits by trust, not hospital, so Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust’s figures cover every major A&E it runs. They count type 1 (major) departments; minor injury units and urgent treatment centres are left out, which is why they sit below the all-types figure NHS England headlines (75% for England).
- The GP survey is a survey. About 100 patients answer for each practice, so a practice’s figure has a range (shown in the table); small differences between practices aren’t meaningful. The town figure weights each practice by its adult patients, some of whom live outside Cranborne.
- Adjusted for age. A ratio of 100 means as many deaths, admissions or reports of bad health as England’s rates (England and Wales’s for the Census) would give a town with these ages; 120 means a fifth more.
- Small areas, summed to the town. OHID publishes these figures for middle-layer areas of about 8,000 people; the town’s figure averages the areas it covers, weighted by how many of their residents live in it, so a village shares its area’s figure with the countryside around it.
- Different years. Life expectancy and deaths cover 2019 to 2023; emergency admissions 2016/17 to 2020/21 (the latest OHID publishes for small areas, including the pandemic dip); child obesity the three school years to 2024/25; A&E the 12 months to September 2026; the GP Patient Survey early 2026; CQC ratings were published on different dates, shown in each row.
- Distances are straight lines. Miles are measured from the town’s centre to each site; the road is longer. For an emergency, call 999; for urgent advice, call NHS 111.
Questions about health in Cranborne
How long are A&E waits at Salisbury District Hospital?
NHS England publishes waits for the trust, Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust. In the 12 months to September 2026 it saw 55% of major-A&E patients within four hours, against 61% across England; in September 2026 the figure was 50%. In an emergency call 999; for urgent advice call NHS 111.
Can I get an NHS dentist in Cranborne?
It is harder than in most of England. In the 2026 GP Patient Survey, 75% of adults in the Dorset area who tried to get an NHS dental appointment in the last two years got one, against 82% across England. Practices taking new NHS patients are listed on the NHS website’s Find a dentist service.
How many GP practices are there in Cranborne?
Cranborne has 1 GP practice with surgeries inside the town; 1 of the 1 rated by the Care Quality Commission are good or outstanding.
What is the life expectancy in Cranborne?
83.5 years for men and 89.4 for women, on OHID’s figures for 2019 to 2023. Men can expect 71.0 of those years and women 72.4 in good health.
CQC ratings © Care Quality Commission.
Sources: OHID Fingertips small-area indicators (life expectancy and deaths 2019–23, emergency admissions 2016/17–2020/21, NCMP 2022/23–2024/25); House of Commons Library MSOA names · ONS health state life expectancy for small areas (MSOAs), England and Wales, 2019 to 2023 (healthy life expectancy) · ONS Census 2021 general health and disability, adjusted for age · Care Quality Commission care directory and latest ratings, 01 October 2026 · NHS Organisation Data Service · GP Patient Survey 2026 (NHS England, run by Ipsos) · NHS England, A&E Attendances and Emergency Admissions (monthly, by trust) and Emergency Care Data Set activity by site, June–September 2026 (type 1 A&Es) · MHCLG English Indices of Deprivation 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.