Dorset (district)

Unitary authority area in England

Unitary authority area in England

Dorset

Unitary authority area

Coat of arms of Dorset Council[1]

The Dorset unitary authority area within the eponymous ceremonial county. To the east is the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole unitary authority area.

Coordinates: 50°48′N 2°18′W﻿ / ﻿50.800°N 2.300°W﻿ / 50.800; -2.300
Sovereign state| United Kingdom
Constituent country| England
Region| South West England
Ceremonial county| Dorset
Historic county| Dorset
Admin HQ| County Hall, Dorchester
Government

• Type| Unitary authority
• Governing body| Dorset Council
• Chair| Cllr Val Pothecary
• Leader| Cllr Spencer Flower
Area

• Total

| 962 sq mi (2,491 km2)
• Rank| 9th (of 296)
Population

(2022)

• Total

| 383,274
• Rank| 20th (of 296)
• Density| 400/sq mi (154/km2)
Ethnicity (2021)

[2]

• Ethnic groups|

List

* 97.1% White
* 1.2% Mixed
* 1.1% Asian
* 0.4% other
* 0.3% Black

Religion (2021)

[2]

• Religion|

List

* 51.6% Christianity
* 40.1% no religion
* 7.9% other
* 0.4% Islam

Time zone| UTC+00:00 (Greenwich Mean Time)
• Summer (DST)| UTC+01:00 (British Summer Time)
Postcodes|

BH, DT, SP

ISO 3166-2| GB-DOR
ONS code| E06000059
NUTS| UKK22 (partially)
Website| www.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk
County Hall, Dorchester

Dorset is a unitary authority area, existing since 1 April 2019, in the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. It covers all of the ceremonial county except for Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole. The council of the district is Dorset Council, which is in effect Dorset County Council re-constituted so as to be vested with the powers and duties of five district councils which were abolished, and shedding its partial responsibility for and powers in Christchurch.

## History and statutory process

[edit]

Statutory instruments for re-organisation of Dorset (as to local government) were made in May 2018. These implemented the Future Dorset plan to see all councils then existing within the county abolished and replaced by two new unitary authorities on 1 April 2019.

* The unitary authorities of Bournemouth and Poole merged with the non-metropolitan district of Christchurch to create a single unitary authority called Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council, which has since created a BCP abbreviation in much of its work and amenities, to serve the coastal conurbation.
* Weymouth and Portland, West Dorset, North Dorset, Purbeck and East Dorset (non-metropolitan districts) combined with the functions vested in Dorset County Council to form Dorset Council.[3]

## Rationale and other tiers of government

[edit]

As regards to planning decisions, highways, cleaning, education and social care no confusion remains as to the potentially relevant body (including occasional open conflict of powers/responsibilities) between two tiers of local government (which can be the case where county and district councils co-exist).

Significant saving (economy of scale) follows from one highly skilled and well-remunerated executive and one body of councillors as compared to six each of varying functions. Co-working measures had long been shown locally to make inroads towards an efficient, combined approach. This delivers better value for ratepayers.

Allaying fears of democratic deficit, the council area's population, approximately 380,000, is smaller than the most populous and complex or larger unitary authorities such as Birmingham City Council (serving more than 1,000,000 people) and Wiltshire Council (covering a larger area). [according to whom?]

All of the unitary authority area retains another tier of local government, by having a civil parish, a late Victorian innovation which has been reduced to a consultative planning and minor amenities role such as co-funding events, festivities, footpaths and sports facilities during the 20th century. The funding of civil parishes is through a small tax supplement to council tax known as civil parish precept.

## See also

[edit]

* 2019–2023 structural changes to local government in England

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "No. 62785". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 2019. p. 7.
2. ^ a b UK Census (2021). "2021 Census Area Profile – Dorset Local Authority (E06000059)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
3. ^ "Future Dorset - Two new authorities for Dorset". futuredorset.co.uk. Archived from the original on 31 May 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2018.

* v
* t
* e

Wards in Dorset (district)

* Beacon
* Beaminster
* Blackmore Vale
* Blandford
* Bridport
* Chalk Valleys
* Charminster St Mary's
* Chesil Bank
* Chickerell
* Colehill and Wimborne Minster East
* Corfe Mullen
* Cranborne and Alderholt
* Cranborne Chase
* Crossways
* Dorchester East
* Dorchester Poundbury
* Dorchester West
* Eggardon
* Ferndown North
* Ferndown South
* Gillingham
* Hill Forts and Upper Tarrants
* Littlemoor and Preston
* Lyme and Charmouth
* Lytchett Matravers and Upton
* Marshwood Vale
* Melcombe Regis
* Portland
* Puddletown and Lower Winterborne
* Radipole
* Rodwell and Wyke
* Shaftesbury Town
* Sherborne East
* Sherborne Rural
* Sherborne West
* South East Purbeck
* St Leonards and St Ives
* Stalbridge and Marnhull
* Stour and Allen Vale
* Sturminster Newton
* Swanage
* Upwey and Broadwey
* Verwood
* Wareham
* West Moors and Three Legged Cross
* West Parley
* West Purbeck
* Westham
* Wimborne Minster
* Winterborne and Broadmayne
* Winterborne North
* Yetminster

* v
* t
* e

Unitary authorities of England

Areas|

* Bath and North East Somerset
* Bedford
* Blackburn with Darwen
* Blackpool
* Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
* Bracknell Forest
* Brighton and Hove
* Bristol
* Buckinghamshire
* Central Bedfordshire
* Cheshire East
* Cheshire West and Chester
* Cornwall
* County Durham
* Cumberland
* Darlington
* Derby
* Dorset
* East Riding of Yorkshire
* Halton
* Hartlepool
* Herefordshire
* Isle of Wight
* Isles of Scilly
* Kingston upon Hull
* Leicester
* Luton
* Medway
* Middlesbrough
* Milton Keynes
* North East Lincolnshire
* North Lincolnshire
* North Northamptonshire
* North Somerset
* North Yorkshire
* Northumberland
* Nottingham
* Peterborough
* Plymouth
* Portsmouth
* Reading
* Redcar and Cleveland
* Rutland
* Shropshire
* Slough
* Somerset
* Southampton
* Southend-on-Sea
* South Gloucestershire
* Stockton-on-Tees
* Stoke-on-Trent
* Swindon
* Telford and Wrekin
* Thurrock
* Torbay
* Warrington
* West Berkshire
* Westmorland and Furness
* West Northamptonshire
* Wiltshire
* Windsor and Maidenhead
* Wokingham
* York

Councils|

* Bath and North East Somerset
* Bedford
* Blackburn with Darwen
* Blackpool
* Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
* Bracknell Forest
* Brighton and Hove
* Bristol
* Buckinghamshire
* Central Bedfordshire
* Cheshire East
* Cheshire West and Chester
* Cornwall
* County Durham
* Cumberland
* Darlington
* Derby
* Dorset
* East Riding of Yorkshire
* Halton
* Hartlepool
* Herefordshire
* Isle of Wight
* Isles of Scilly
* Kingston upon Hull
* Leicester
* Luton
* Medway
* Middlesbrough
* Milton Keynes
* North East Lincolnshire
* North Lincolnshire
* North Northamptonshire
* North Somerset
* North Yorkshire
* Northumberland
* Nottingham
* Peterborough
* Plymouth
* Portsmouth
* Reading
* Redcar and Cleveland
* Rutland
* Shropshire
* Slough
* Somerset
* Southampton
* Southend-on-Sea
* South Gloucestershire
* Stockton-on-Tees
* Stoke-on-Trent
* Swindon
* Telford and Wrekin
* Thurrock
* Torbay
* Warrington
* West Berkshire
* Westmorland and Furness
* West Northamptonshire
* Wiltshire
* Windsor and Maidenhead
* Wokingham
* York

Elections|

* Bath and North East Somerset
* Bedford
* Blackburn with Darwen
* Blackpool
* Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
* Bracknell Forest
* Brighton and Hove
* Bristol
* Buckinghamshire
* Central Bedfordshire
* Cheshire East
* Cheshire West and Chester
* Cornwall
* County Durham
* Cumberland
* Darlington
* Derby
* Dorset
* East Riding of Yorkshire
* Halton
* Hartlepool
* Herefordshire
* Isle of Wight
* Isles of Scilly
* Kingston upon Hull
* Leicester
* Luton
* Medway
* Middlesbrough
* Milton Keynes
* North East Lincolnshire
* North Lincolnshire
* North Northamptonshire
* North Somerset
* North Yorkshire
* Northumberland
* Nottingham
* Peterborough
* Plymouth
* Portsmouth
* Reading
* Redcar and Cleveland
* Rutland
* Shropshire
* Slough
* Somerset
* Southampton
* Southend-on-Sea
* South Gloucestershire
* Stockton-on-Tees
* Stoke-on-Trent
* Swindon
* Telford and Wrekin
* Thurrock
* Torbay
* Warrington
* West Berkshire
* Westmorland and Furness
* West Northamptonshire
* Wiltshire
* Windsor and Maidenhead
* Wokingham
* York

Authority control databases

International|

* VIAF

National|

* Germany
* United States

Other|

* Yale LUX

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