BH20 5NG Dorset
Live postcode, introduced January 1980. Ward: South East Purbeck. Region: South West.
Streets
- Church Knowle, Church Knowle: 23 addresses
- Unnamed street near Church Knowle, Church Knowle: 9 addresses
Council tax
What each band costs in Dorset in 2026-27: Band D £2,765 a year on average, including the police, fire and any county and parish charges.
| A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £1,843 | £2,151 | £2,458 | £2,765 | £3,379 | £3,994 | £4,608 | £5,530 |
Homes by band in the neighbourhood around this postcode: most are in band F (21% of about 910 homes).
Planning and heritage
- Conservation area: yes, Church Knowle Conservation Area. Extensions, demolition, some windows and doors, and work on trees need consent.
- Listed buildings within 100 m of this postcode: 8.
- Article 4 direction (removing permitted development rights): none recorded, though not every council has published theirs.
- Tree preservation orders: none recorded, though not every council has published theirs.
- Green belt: no.
Listed buildings
- 6, grade II
- BOUNDARY WALL AND GATE PIERS, NORTH AND WEST OF THE OLD RECTORY, grade II
- CHURCH FARM HOUSE, INCLUDING FRONT BOUNDARY WALL, grade II
- FORMER FARM BUILDING IMMEDIATELY EAST OF KNOWLE FARM HOUSE, grade II
- KNOWLE COTTAGE, grade II
- KNOWLE FARM HOUSE, INCLUDING FRONT BOUNDARY WALL, grade II
- NOS 11 AND 12, INCLUDING CHURCH KNOWLE STORES, grade II
- THE OLD RECTORY, grade II
Flood risk
Rivers, the sea or surface water: in this postcode, 0 addresses are in areas at high risk, 0 at medium risk and 2 at low risk. Each address counts once, at the higher of its rivers-and-sea and surface-water risk.
Rivers and the sea alone: no home is in an area at risk.
Groundwater flooding is possible in this postcode: an address there is in a groundwater flood alert area.
High: 3.3% (1 in 30) or more chance of flooding a year. Medium: 1% to 3.3%. Low: 0.1% to 1%. Very low: under 0.1%. The rivers and sea figures allow for flood defences. Counts cover whole postcodes, which can include other streets.
Flood zone for planning: no postcode centre is in flood zone 2 or 3.
Height above sea level
The postcode's 32 addresses are between 48 m and 76 m above sea level (59 m on average).
Broadband
Superfast 76%, ultrafast 8%, gigabit 8% of premises; 20% cannot get 10 Mbit/s. Ofcom Connected Nations, data as at January 2026.
Getting around
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| Railway stations | Wareham (Dorset) 302,000 journeys in 2024–25 | 6.7 km (4.2 miles) |
| Holton Heath 42,000 journeys in 2024–25 | 8.4 km (5.2 miles) | |
| Wool 209,000 journeys in 2024–25 | 10.9 km (6.8 miles) | |
| Bus stops | 2 stops within 400 m (0.2 miles), 2 within 800 m (0.5 miles); nearest The Old Rectory Church Knowle | 50 m |
| Bus or coach station | Coach Park Swanage | 9 km (5.6 miles) |
| Ferry terminal | Poole Ferry Terminal Lower Hamworthy | 10.4 km (6.4 miles) |
| EV charging points | Be.EV Charging Station | 1.8 km (1.1 miles) |
| Airport with scheduled flights | Bournemouth Airport BOH | 23.7 km (15 miles) |
| Nearest large airport | Bristol Airport BRS | 94.1 km (58 miles) |
Local services
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| GP surgeries | Corfe Castle Surgery | 1.8 km (1.1 miles) |
| Pharmacies | Day Lewis Pharmacy | 5.7 km (3.6 miles) |
| NHS dentists | Purbeck Dental Care | 5.8 km (3.6 miles) |
| Hospital | Wareham Community Hospital | 6.1 km (3.8 miles) |
| Police station | Purbeck Police | 5.8 km (3.6 miles) |
Parks and green space
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| Park or garden | Corfe Common 95 ha | 1.7 km (1.1 miles) |
| Play area | 1 within 800 m (0.5 miles); nearest Unnamed 580 m² | 360 m |
| Playing field | 1 within 800 m (0.5 miles); nearest Unnamed 3,670 m² | 350 m |
| Allotments | Unnamed 2,080 m² | 1.9 km (1.2 miles) |
Landmarks
The nearest historic landmark is Parish Church of Saint Peter, a listed building (Grade II*), 130 m north. 22 listed buildings are within 1 km (0.6 miles), 1 of them Grade II*.
| Name | What it is | From the postcode's centre |
|---|---|---|
| Parish Church of Saint Peter | Listed building, Grade II* | 130 m north |
| Bowl barrow and cross dyke on Knowle Hill, 500m NNE of St Peter's Church | Scheduled monument | 650 m (0.4 miles) north-east |
| Hilltop enclosure and a pillow mound on Knowle Hill | Scheduled monument | 690 m (0.4 miles) north-west |
| Bowl barrow on Knowle Hill, 630m north east of St Peter's Church | Scheduled monument | 730 m (0.5 miles) north-east |
| Steeple Manor | Registered park or garden, Grade II | 3 km (1.8 miles) west |
| Name | What it is | From the postcode's centre |
|---|---|---|
| Knowle Hill | Hill | 610 m (0.4 miles) north-west |
| Norden Wood | Wood | 720 m (0.4 miles) north |
| Blue Pool | Lake or reservoir | 1.6 km (1 mile) north |
| Creech Bottom | Valley | 3 km (1.9 miles) north-west |
| Rope Lake Head | Headland | 4.5 km (2.8 miles) south |
| Broad Marsh | Wetland | 4.7 km (2.9 miles) north |
Air quality
| Pollutant | Here | UK limit | WHO guideline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) | 3.8 | 40 | 10 |
| Fine particles (PM2.5) | 5.2 | 20 | 5 |
| Particles (PM10) | 8.2 | 40 | 15 |
All three are within the UK legal limits; PM2.5 is above the WHO guideline, as in most towns and cities.
Road and rail noise
| Level | Road traffic | Railways |
|---|---|---|
| 55 to 59 | 5 | 0 |
| Under 55 | 27 | 32 |
5 of the postcode's 32 addresses are modelled at 55 dB or more from road traffic, above the WHO guidelines.
Climate, daylight and earthquakes
Monthly temperatures and rainfall, sunrise and sunset through the year, and earthquakes recorded nearby since 1970 are much the same across the area, so they are worked out once for Dorset: see them on the Dorset page.
People and work
Who lives here
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Median age | 55 | 40 |
| Children under 15 | 13% | 17% |
| Aged 65 and over | 29% | 18% |
Homes
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Owned (outright or with a mortgage) | 78% | 61% |
| Owned outright | 54% | 33% |
| Shared ownership | 0% | 1% |
| Social rented | 0% | 17% |
| Private rented | 22% | 21% |
Work and commuting
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Adults (16 and over) in work | 56% | 57% |
| Unemployment (of those working or looking for work) | 6% | 6% |
| Retired (of adults) | 30% | 22% |
| Long-term sick or disabled (of adults) | under 1% | 4% |
| Work mainly from home (of those in work) | 48% | 32% |
| Travel to work by car or van | 45% | 48% |
| By train, Underground, metro or tram | 0% | 4% |
| By any public transport, including bus | 0% | 8% |
| On foot or by bicycle | 6% | 10% |
| Work within 10 km (6 miles) of home (of those who travel to work) | 32% | 65% |
| Work 30 km (19 miles) or more away | 19% | 8% |
Education and languages
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Degree or other higher qualification, Level 4+ (of adults) | 41% | 34% |
| No qualifications | 11% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship as highest qualification | 5% | 5% |
| Main language English (aged 3 and over) | 99% | 91% |
| Cannot speak English well or at all | 0% | 2% |
Deprivation
The neighbourhood around this postcode is in decile 7 of 10 on the English Indices of Deprivation 2025, where 1 is the most deprived tenth of England's 33,755 neighbourhoods and 10 the least.
The full dossier for this postcode's main street is on Church Knowle.