Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 5,876 in Dorset, South West.
Wareham grades C overall against UK towns: better than 35% of UK towns, and #15 of 30 in Dorset. Its strongest subject is walkability (A−): 21% of commuters walk, cycle or take public transport. Its weakest is cost of living (D−): median sale £350,000, 6.7 years of area income; rent £1,056 a month.
The 3 things Wareham does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compared with the 2,160 UK towns with an overall grade (schools within England), ordered by how far Wareham is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 189 buildings inside Wareham’s built-up area, 4 of them Grade I, and 2 scheduled monuments.
15% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
The archive holds 2 old photos and postcards going back to 1901.
Wareham, Massachusetts, is named after Wareham.
USUS editionWareham, Massachusetts, settled in 1678, takes its name from this town.
Named after: each U.S. town’s Wikipedia article. Grades compare each town with towns in its own country, so they aren’t a head-to-head.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Wareham.
For Wareham, that is above both Dorset’s towns (25%) and England’s towns (18%). 8% of residents are aged 15 to 24. Half the people of Wareham are older than 52.6.
53% women, 47% men
About 88 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
| Wareham | Dorset | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 14% | 15% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 8% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 19% | 23% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 28% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 32% | 25% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 18% | 16% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 7.2% | 6.4% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 17% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 28% | 31% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Dorset and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Its two schools are below.
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wareham St Mary Church of England Primary SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 165 | D |
| The Purbeck SchoolLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 1,022 | B |
Wareham sits below both Dorset’s towns (21%) and England’s towns (21%) on this measure.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £467,000 | 67 |
| Semi-detached | £349,250 | 56 |
| Terraced | £312,500 | 71 |
| Flat or maisonette | £183,000 | 35 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
That puts Wareham above both Dorset’s towns (98) and England’s towns (39). Wareham’s listed buildings include Church of St Martin, Grade I. Wareham has 189 listed buildings on Historic England’s list: 4 Grade I, 7 Grade II*.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 24% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
On this, Wareham is below both Dorset’s towns (48%) and England’s towns (45%). The car carried 77% of commuters at the census.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
In the comparison, Wareham comes below both Dorset’s towns (81%) and England’s towns (82%). Women here live to 85.5 on average and men to 82 (2019–23). These answers aren’t adjusted for age, so young towns look healthier; the Health Grade uses age-adjusted measures, including life expectancy and early deaths.
| Census 2021 | Wareham | Dorset | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 79% | 81% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 6% | 5.3% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 21% | 19% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL
Police recorded 248 crimes inside Wareham’s built-up area in the 12 months to August 2026, plus 88 reports of anti-social behaviour. There were 13.4 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), above both Dorset’s towns (8.8) and England’s towns (7.8). Violence and sexual offences were 44% of the crimes; the police category includes harassment and stalking.
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.
data.police.uk street-level crime · points inside the ONS built-up-area boundary · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Wareham. Best known first.
189 listed buildings in Wareham, 4 of them Grade I.
Church of St Martin: Photo: Wulfrunian1 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Holy Trinity Gallery: Photo: Charlesdrakew · Public domain · Part of the defences of the Anglo-Saxon fortified centre of Wareham and part of the motte and bailey castle with shell keep: Photo: G. T. Clark · Public domain · Warehouse in Occupation of Messrs W Pond, And Wall to East Along North Side of Road: Photo: Derek Harper · CC BY-SA 2.0
9 notable people were born in Wareham.
David Mellor: Chris Golds, CC BY-SA 4.0
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wareham | 5,876 | — | C | D− | B− | B |
| Sandford | 2,004 | 1.2 | — | D | A | B+ |
| Wool | 5,044 | 4.7 | C | C− | B+ | C+ |
| Lytchett Matravers | 3,455 | 4.8 | A− | D− | A | A− |
| Upton | 8,401 | 4.9 | B− | D | B | C+ |
| Bere Regis | 1,320 | 6.1 | — | D | B | A− |
| Corfe Mullen | 10,036 | 6.8 | A− | D− | A | A |
| Poole | 141,009 | 7.4 | C+ | D | C | C+ |
Sandford and Bere Regis have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 13.2 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I buildings include Church of St Martin. It also has 2 scheduled monuments.
Band D council tax in Wareham is £2,925 for 2026–27, more than in almost all 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.
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
Town in Dorset, England
Wareham is a built-up area of 5,876 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
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.