BH4 8DX Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
Live postcode, introduced January 1980. Ward: Westbourne & West Cliff. Region: South West.
Streets
- Alum Chine Road, Bournemouth: 74 addresses
- Heatherbank Road, Bournemouth: 1 address
Council tax
What each band costs in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole in 2026-27: Band D £2,436 a year on average, including the police, fire and any county and parish charges.
| A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £1,624 | £1,894 | £2,165 | £2,436 | £2,977 | £3,518 | £4,059 | £4,871 |
Homes by band in the neighbourhood around this postcode: most are in band A (37% of about 870 homes).
Planning and heritage
- Conservation area: yes, Westbourne (council page). Extensions, demolition, some windows and doors, and work on trees need consent.
- Listed buildings within 100 m of this postcode: none.
- 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.
Brownfield land registered for housing within 1.0 km
- 42-44 Tower Road: up to 20 homes, not permissioned (450 m)
- Land adj. Princess Road/Wessex Way: up to 97 homes, not permissioned (480 m)
- 18, 18a, 20, 20a & 20b Balcombe Road Canford Cliffs BH13 6DY: up to 30 homes, permissioned (660 m)
- HANNAH LEVY HOUSE, 15 POOLE ROAD: up to 25 homes, not permissioned (680 m)
- 328 Poole Road, Branksome, Poole, Dorset, BH12 1AR: up to 12 homes, not permissioned (840 m)
- 1 Poole Road: up to 20 homes, permissioned (1.0 km)
Flood risk
No address in this postcode is in an area at high, medium or low risk of flooding from rivers, the sea or surface water. The rest are in areas at very low risk: less than a 0.1% (1 in 1,000) chance a year.
Rivers and the sea alone: no home is in an area at risk.
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 75 addresses are between 38 m and 41 m above sea level (39 m on average).
Broadband
Superfast 100%, ultrafast 96%, gigabit 96% of premises; 0% cannot get 10 Mbit/s. Ofcom Connected Nations, data as at January 2026.
Getting around
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| Railway stations | Branksome 280,000 journeys in 2024–25 | 1.4 km |
| Bournemouth 2.7 million journeys in 2024–25 | 2.8 km | |
| Parkstone (Dorset) 229,000 journeys in 2024–25 | 3.2 km | |
| Bus stops | 17 stops within 400 m, 55 within 800 m; nearest RL Stevenson Avenue Westbourne | 110 m |
| Bus or coach station | Bournemouth University Talbot Heath | 2.5 km |
| Ferry terminal | Brownsea Island Ferry Landing Sandbanks | 5.2 km |
| Car parks | 1 within 800 m; nearest Milburn Road Car Park | 390 m |
| EV charging points | 15 within 1.6 km; nearest Be.EV Charging Station | 270 m |
| Airport with scheduled flights | Bournemouth Airport BOH | 8.0 km |
| Nearest large airport | Bristol Airport BRS | 93.1 km |
Local services
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| GP surgeries | 1 practices within 1.6 km; nearest Westbourne Medical Centre | 360 m |
| Pharmacies | 7 pharmacies within 1.6 km; nearest Vantage Pharmacy | 300 m |
| NHS dentists | 7 practices within 1.6 km; nearest Westbourne Dental Practice | 110 m |
| Hospital | Herbert Hospital | 420 m |
| Police station | Winton Police Station | 3.5 km |
| Cash machines | 2 machines within 800 m; nearest ATM | 180 m |
Parks and green space
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| Park or garden | 5 within 800 m; nearest Skerryvore 1,920 m² | 150 m |
| Largest park within 800 m | Unnamed 12 ha | 200 m |
| Play area | 2 within 800 m; nearest Unnamed 3,090 m² | 380 m |
| Playing field | Unnamed 4.5 ha | 1.7 km |
| Allotments | Alder Farm Allotments 1.5 ha | 2.4 km |
Within 800 m: 5 parks and gardens, 23 hectares in all.
Landmarks
The nearest historic landmark is Church of St Ambrose, a listed building (Grade II*), 370 m south-east. 17 listed buildings are within 1.0 km, 2 of them Grade II*.
| Name | What it is | From the postcode's centre |
|---|---|---|
| Church of St Ambrose | Listed building, Grade II* | 370 m south-east |
| Church of St Michael (including tower) | Listed building, Grade II* | 1.0 km east |
| Upper, Central and Lower Pleasure Gardens, and Coy Pond Gardens | Registered park or garden, Grade II | 1.0 km east |
| Fern Barrow: a bowl barrow on Talbot Heath | Scheduled monument | 1.4 km north |
| Compton Acres | Registered park or garden, Grade II* | 2.3 km south-west |
| Name | What it is | From the postcode's centre |
|---|---|---|
| Alum Chine | Valley | 670 m south |
| Branksome Park Wood | Wood | 1.1 km west |
| Coy Pond | Lake or reservoir | 1.2 km north |
| Branksome Dene Chine | Beach | 1.3 km south |
| Blake Hill | Hill | 2.9 km west |
| Blue Lagoon | Wetland | 3.6 km west |
Air quality
| Pollutant | Here | UK limit | WHO guideline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) | 8.9 | 40 | 10 |
| Fine particles (PM2.5) | 6.0 | 20 | 5 |
| Particles (PM10) | 9.2 | 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 | 1 | 0 |
| Under 55 | 74 | 75 |
1 of the postcode's 75 addresses is modelled at 55 dB or more from road traffic, above the WHO guidelines.
People and work
Who lives here
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Median age | 48 | 40 |
| Children under 15 | 10% | 17% |
| Aged 65 and over | 25% | 18% |
Homes
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Owned (outright or with a mortgage) | 50% | 61% |
| Owned outright | 33% | 33% |
| Shared ownership | 0% | 1% |
| Social rented | under 1% | 17% |
| Private rented | 49% | 21% |
Work and commuting
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Adults (16 and over) in work | 55% | 57% |
| Unemployment (of those working or looking for work) | 5% | 6% |
| Retired (of adults) | 28% | 22% |
| Long-term sick or disabled (of adults) | 3% | 4% |
| Work mainly from home (of those in work) | 36% | 32% |
| Travel to work by car or van | 40% | 48% |
| By train, Underground, metro or tram | 0% | 4% |
| By any public transport, including bus | 6% | 8% |
| On foot or by bicycle | 17% | 10% |
| Work within 10 km of home (of those who travel to work) | 78% | 65% |
| Work 30 km or more away | 6% | 8% |
Education and languages
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Degree or other higher qualification, Level 4+ (of adults) | 39% | 34% |
| No qualifications | 14% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship as highest qualification | 6% | 5% |
| Main language English (aged 3 and over) | 87% | 91% |
| Cannot speak English well or at all | under 1% | 2% |
Deprivation
The neighbourhood around this postcode is in decile 3 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 Alum Chine Road.