Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 7,935 in Gloucestershire, South West. Walking, cycling and public transport carry 15% of commuters.
School results trail most towns (C−): primary results beat 10% of towns in England; secondary results beat 43% of towns in England. Buying a home costs less than in most towns (B+): homes sell for a median £287,500, about 5 times local household income. Overall, that makes a C, good for #41 of 48 in Gloucestershire. It comes out better than a third of UK towns.
Figures: prices, HM Land Registry, the last three years.
Gloucestershire Police published 29 of the 36 months; rates are per year over the months published.
The 3 things Dursley 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 Dursley is from typical. American towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Historic England lists 83 buildings inside Dursley’s built-up area, 1 of them Grade I.
14% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town.
Explore the history →Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Dursley.
Secondary results at the one secondary school within 3 km: an Attainment 8 score of 44.8, with 43% at grade 5 or above in English and maths. Its two schools are below. Key Stage 2 results at the 7 primary schools within 3 km: just over half of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (three-year average).
| School | Level | Pupils | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dursley Church of England Primary AcademyLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 241 | D |
| Rednock SchoolLargest secondary schoolSecondary | Secondary | 1,280 | C+ |
The heritage lists give each building’s grade but not its age, so we don’t say which is oldest.
Grade II* covers 3 of them, Grade I 1. Scaled to its population, Dursley has 105 listed buildings per 10,000 people, above Gloucestershire’s towns (89) and England’s towns (39) alike. Its listed buildings include the Church of St James, Grade I. Homes from before 1919 make up 14% of the total.
Historic England list, October 2026 · Valuation Office Agency, homes by build period · OGL
The nearest A&E to Dursley is Gloucestershire Royal Hospital, 13.7 miles away. 2 GP practices serve the town; 83% of patients rate theirs good in the GP Patient Survey. 19% of residents in Dursley live with a disability.
| Census 2021 | Dursley | Gloucestershire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 82% | 83% | 82% |
| Bad or very bad health | 4.7% | 4.5% | 5.2% |
| Disabled (Equality Act) | 19% | 17% | 17% |
ONS Census 2021, general health and disability · OHID Fingertips, life expectancy 2019–23 · OGL · Census health answers are raw, so younger towns score better on them; for the Health Grade we use age-adjusted figures like life expectancy and early deaths.
381 standard sales inside Dursley’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 put the median at £287,500. Council and housing-body homes hold 17% of households. Home ownership stands at just over two thirds of households.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Detached | £434,997 | 96 |
| Semi-detached | £298,000 | 129 |
| Terraced | £252,250 | 94 |
| Flat or maisonette | £150,000 | 62 |
HM Land Registry Price Paid · ONS private rents · MHCLG / Welsh Government council tax · ONS Census 2021 tenure · OGL
Violence and sexual offences made up 55% of the total. Police figures for Dursley’s built-up area: 168 crimes and 39 anti-social behaviour reports in the 12 months to August 2026. There were 16.5 anti-social behaviour reports per 1,000 residents (not graded), above both Gloucestershire’s towns (9.1) and England’s towns (7.8).
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 · The police category of violence and sexual offences includes harassment and stalking.
The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in lockdown, so 33% of workers were mainly at home; shares here are of those who travelled.
Among 16 to 64s, 2.6% claimed unemployment benefits in 2026. 83% of commuters drove, higher than both Gloucestershire’s towns (78%) and England’s towns (70%). There are 0.5 jobs in Dursley for each resident in work. Of the commuters living locally, 17% work in the town itself.
ONS Census 2021, method of travel and distance to work · ONS small-area income · DWP claimant count · OGL
Children under 15 make up 18% of residents. The middle age in Dursley is 42.5. Graduates make up 35% of adults.
50% women, 50% men
About an even split. Across England, 51% of residents are women.
| Dursley | Gloucestershire | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 18% | 17% | 18% |
| 15–24 | 9.4% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 26% | 26% | 27% |
| 45–64 | 28% | 26% | 25% |
| 65+ | 19% | 20% | 18% |
| No qualifications | 15% | 15% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship | 5.8% | 5.8% | 5.3% |
| A levels or similar | 18% | 18% | 17% |
| Degree level | 35% | 34% | 34% |
ONS Census 2021 · Gloucestershire and England: all residents of their built-up areas · OGL
Museums, castles, gardens and days out in and near Dursley. Best known first.
Historic house · National TrustNewark Park4.2 km outside town, to the southeast
Historic houseOwlpen Manor3.1 km outside town, to the eastAttractionAttractionDursley Town Hallin townPark or estatePark or estate · National TrustCoaley Peak3.8 km outside town, to the northeastGardenGarden · National TrustEast Garden4.2 km outside town, to the southeastPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
83 listed buildings in Dursley, 1 of them Grade I.
Town Hall: Photo: Jongleur100 · Public domain · Raglan House: Photo: Jaggery · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Tabernacle United Reformed Church: Photo: Philip Pankhurst · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Bank House Old Bell Hotel: Photo: Philip Halling · CC BY-SA 2.0
9 notable people were born in Dursley.
Dick King: "The Bower Studio" Durban, Public domain · Walter Rice, 7th Baron Dynevor: William Edwards Miller, Public domain
The nearest built-up areas, from ONS’s 2022 boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dursley | 7,935 | — | C | B+ | C+ | C |
| Cam | 7,730 | 1.3 | B− | B | B− | B |
| Wotton-under-Edge | 4,966 | 3.3 | A− | C+ | B | A− |
| Kingswood | 1,409 | 4 | — | B− | A− | A |
| Charfield | 2,833 | 4.5 | B+ | C | B+ | A |
| Leonard Stanley and King's Stanley | 3,584 | 4.5 | A | B− | A | A− |
| Berkeley | 2,250 | 4.5 | — | B | C+ | B− |
| Eastington | 1,218 | 4.6 | — | B | B+ | B |
Kingswood, Berkeley and Eastington have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. People: Census 2021. Miles: centre to centre.
That is 4.3 times the typical UK town for its size. Its Grade I building is Church of St James.
Dursley has 2 state schools; places are handled by Gloucestershire council.
Surface water isn’t included. Check a specific address on GOV.UK’s flood risk service.
About the middle for its size: 66% of the 1,308 UK towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people report less crime per resident. Against all UK towns, it grades C+. Burglary was rare, with 4 reports in the year.
Town in Gloucestershire, England
Dursley is a built-up area of 7,935 people, in the Stroud 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.