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Unitary authority · E06000059

Dorset

Outstanding borrowing is the MHCLG live-table stock, not a press figure. Crime is police-recorded and mapped from Community Safety Partnership areas. Political control is the 2026 Open Council Data composition snapshot.

No overall control — Liberal Democrats, Green
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Total outstanding borrowing

£299.7m

£299,666,000

Debt per resident

£766

Using mid-2025 population of 391,036

Population

391,036

ONS mid-year estimate

Recorded crime rate

44.5 per 1,000

19,580 offences, year to March 2026

Borrowing

Dorset reported £299,666,000 of outstanding borrowing as at 30 June 2026. That is total outstanding borrowing (all sources, including loans from other local authorities). About £766 per resident.

Figures converted from £ thousand as published. This is a stock of outstanding borrowing, not the annual deficit.

Source: MHCLG — Borrowing and investment live table, Q1 2026 to 2027. As of 30 Jun 2026 · Q1 2026–27 (as at 30 June 2026).

Population

391,036 usual residents at mid-2025, on 2023 local authority boundaries.

Source: ONS — Estimates of the population for England and Wales, mid-2025. As of 30 Jun 2025 · Mid-2025 (2023 local authority boundaries).

Recorded crime

19,580 police-recorded offences excluding fraud, a rate of 44.5 per 1,000.

Police force / area: Dorset.

Community Safety Partnership: Dorset.

Police recorded crime excluding fraud, CSP area “Dorset” (Dorset Police).

Source: ONS / Home Office — Crime in England and Wales: Police Force Area data tables (Tables C2 and C4). As of 31 Mar 2026 · Year ending March 2026.

Who runs the council

No overall control — Liberal Democrats, Green on a council of 82 seats.

  • Labour 2
  • Conservative 29
  • Liberal Democrats 41
  • Plaid Cymru 0
  • Green 4
  • Reform UK 0
  • Other 6

Open Council Data is a curated compilation of published council compositions, not an official government statistical release.

Source: Open Council Data UK — GB council compositions 2016–2026. As of 1 May 2026 · 2026 composition snapshot (shortly after the May local elections / by-elections).

Last local election / current composition

No overall control — Liberal Democrats, Green; 82 seats (Lab 2, Con 29, LD 41, Green 4, Reform 0, other 6)

Next scheduled local election (from the councillor file): 3 May 2029. Election calendar

Next UK general election: not yet set. National and mayoral dates: Election calendar.

Source: Open Council Data UK council compositions and councillor file, 2026. As of 1 May 2026.

2024 general election in this area

Conservative won 2 of 5 overlapping constituency/constituencies. Parliamentary constituencies do not match council boundaries exactly.

  • Conservative35.9% · 89,060 votes
  • Liberal Democrats33.3% · 82,563 votes
  • Labour14.3% · 35,443 votes
  • Reform UK10.1% · 25,023 votes
  • Green4.3% · 10,778 votes

Indicative sum of votes in overlapping constituencies. Some constituencies cross local authority boundaries, so this is not a precise LA result.

5 overlapping constituencies
  • Christchurch: Conservative — Christopher Chope
  • Mid Dorset and North Poole: Liberal Democrats — Vikki Slade
  • North Dorset: Conservative — Simon Hoare
  • South Dorset: Labour — Lloyd Hatton
  • West Dorset: Liberal Democrats — Edward Morello

Source: House of Commons Library — General election 2024 results (CBP-10009). As of 4 Jul 2024.

Council tax (Band D)

Full rankings
Area Band D
£2,765.02
£ change
+£134.72
% change
+5.12%
Rank
1 of 296financial year 2026 to 2027

Area Band D for a two-adult Band D dwelling in this billing authority, including adult social care, parish and major precepts. Ranked 1 of 296 in England for 2026-27.

Source: MHCLG — Live tables on Council Tax: Band D Council Tax figures 1993 onwards (Area_CT / Area_CT_%). As of 22 Apr 2026 · financial year 2026 to 2027.

Explain this numberArea Band D council tax

The MHCLG area Band D figure for a two-adult Band D dwelling in this billing area — the billing authority plus adult social care, parish and major precepts (county or GLA, police, fire, combined authority).

  • Not average council tax per dwelling, and not the amount every household pays (bands A–H are fixed fractions of Band D; discounts and premiums apply).
  • Shire districts appear in the ranking because they are billing authorities. Watchtower’s primary council rows are CTYUA, so counties have no single area Band D.
  • Year-on-year % is the official live-table column. We do not invent bills.
  • Wales is a separate StatsWales / Welsh Government collection and is ranked on its own table — not mixed with MHCLG England figures.

Band D rankings

Source: MHCLG — Live tables on Council Tax: Band D Council Tax figures 1993 onwards (Area_CT / Area_CT_%). As of 22 Apr 2026 · financial year 2026 to 2027.

MPs covering this area

Parliamentary constituencies from the House of Commons Library GE 2024 results that overlap this council (ONS lookup). Sitting MPs are joined from the committed Members API snapshot — usually by constituency name. ONS constituency codes are shown for the seat; the Members API has no ONS codes, so a code-level join is not available. Name-only joins are labelled.

Source: House of Commons Library — General election 2024 results (CBP-10009). As of 4 Jul 2024.

Source: UK Parliament Members API (committed snapshot). As of 13 Sept 2026.