SO42 7XA New Forest
Live postcode, introduced January 1986. Ward: Forest & Solent. Region: South East.
Streets
- Bucklers Hard Road, Bailey's Hard: 28 addresses
- Unnamed street near Bucklers Hard Road, Beaulieu: 9 addresses
- Lodge Lane, New Forest: 4 addresses
- Bailey's Hard Lane, New Forest: 1 address
- St Leonards, Keeping: 1 address
Council tax
What each band costs in New Forest in 2026-27: Band D £2,420 a year on average, including the police, fire and any county and parish charges.
| A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £1,613 | £1,882 | £2,151 | £2,420 | £2,957 | £3,495 | £4,033 | £4,840 |
Homes by band in the neighbourhood around this postcode: most are in band E (18% of about 1,050 homes).
Planning and heritage
- Conservation area: no postcode centre in this postcode is in one.
- Listed buildings within 100 m of this postcode: 1.
- Article 4 direction (removing permitted development rights): ARTICLE 4 DIRECTION 97/1, ARTICLE 4 DIRECTION NP NEW FOREST CAMPSITE, ARTICLE 4 DIRECTION NP NEW FOREST RECREATIONAL CAMPSITE, Hovercraft in the Solent, New Forest National Park Boundary, New Forest National Park Boundary.
- Tree preservation orders: none recorded, though not every council has published theirs.
- Green belt: no.
Listed buildings
- KEEPING FARMHOUSE, grade II
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 43 addresses are between 11 m and 36 m above sea level (25 m on average).
Broadband
Superfast 59%, ultrafast 41%, gigabit 41% of premises; 35% cannot get 10 Mbit/s. Ofcom Connected Nations, data as at January 2026.
Getting around
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| Railway stations | Beaulieu Road 20,000 journeys in 2024–25 | 7.7 km |
| Lymington Pier 101,000 journeys in 2024–25 | 8.3 km | |
| Lymington Town 242,000 journeys in 2024–25 | 8.6 km | |
| Bus stops | None within 800 m | |
| Ferry terminal | Hythe (Hants) Ferry Terminal | 8.0 km |
| EV charging points | Mer | 2.2 km |
| Airport with scheduled flights | Southampton Airport SOU | 17.3 km |
| Nearest large airport | London Gatwick Airport LGW | 95.7 km |
Local services
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| GP surgeries | Forestside Medical Practice | 5.7 km |
| Pharmacies | Wellbeing Pharmacy | 4.6 km |
| NHS dentists | Merrystead Dental Surgery | 4.7 km |
| Hospital | Hythe Hospital | 6.6 km |
| Police station | Lymington Police Station | 9.1 km |
| Cash machines | The Southern Co-operative Holbury Long Lane, Holbury | 5.0 km |
Parks and green space
| Nearest | Distance | |
|---|---|---|
| Play area | Unnamed 230 m² | 2.1 km |
| Playing field | Unnamed 4.2 ha | 2.3 km |
| Allotments | Unnamed 1.8 ha | 2.7 km |
Landmarks
The nearest historic landmark is Exbury House, a registered park or garden (Grade II*), 2.3 km east. 11 listed buildings are within 1.0 km.
| Name | What it is | From the postcode's centre |
|---|---|---|
| Exbury House | Registered park or garden, Grade II* | 2.3 km east |
| Name | What it is | From the postcode's centre |
|---|---|---|
| Crossfield Row | Wood | 330 m south-west |
| Keeping Marsh | Wetland | 840 m east |
| Mill Dam | Lake or reservoir | 2.3 km north-west |
| Gatewood Hill | Hill | 3.3 km east |
| St Margarets Creek | Tidal water | 3.8 km south-east |
| Peaked Bottom | Valley | 3.8 km west |
Air quality
| Pollutant | Here | UK limit | WHO guideline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) | 5.5 | 40 | 10 |
| Fine particles (PM2.5) | 5.6 | 20 | 5 |
| Particles (PM10) | 9.3 | 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 |
|---|---|---|
| 65 to 69 | 1 | 0 |
| 60 to 64 | 4 | 0 |
| 55 to 59 | 3 | 0 |
| Under 55 | 35 | 43 |
8 of the postcode's 43 addresses are 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 | 55 | 40 |
| Children under 15 | 14% | 17% |
| Aged 65 and over | 29% | 18% |
Homes
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Owned (outright or with a mortgage) | 75% | 61% |
| Owned outright | 57% | 33% |
| Shared ownership | 0% | 1% |
| Social rented | 3% | 17% |
| Private rented | 22% | 21% |
Work and commuting
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Adults (16 and over) in work | 50% | 57% |
| Unemployment (of those working or looking for work) | 4% | 6% |
| Retired (of adults) | 34% | 22% |
| Long-term sick or disabled (of adults) | 2% | 4% |
| Work mainly from home (of those in work) | 46% | 32% |
| Travel to work by car or van | 50% | 48% |
| By train, Underground, metro or tram | under 1% | 4% |
| By any public transport, including bus | 2% | 8% |
| On foot or by bicycle | 2% | 10% |
| Work within 10 km of home (of those who travel to work) | 34% | 65% |
| Work 30 km or more away | 9% | 8% |
Education and languages
| Around this postcode | England | |
|---|---|---|
| Degree or other higher qualification, Level 4+ (of adults) | 51% | 34% |
| No qualifications | 7% | 18% |
| Apprenticeship as highest qualification | 3% | 5% |
| Main language English (aged 3 and over) | 98% | 91% |
| Cannot speak English well or at all | 0% | 2% |
Deprivation
The neighbourhood around this postcode is in decile 5 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 Bucklers Hard Road.