Portland
Portland extends south from the main Dorset coast beyond Weymouth and is attached to the mainland by a narrow stretch of the famous Chesil Beach.
This 'Limestone Isle' has a quality all of its own - enhanced by its vast stone quarries, rows of terraced stone houses and its two castles. It has no real town centre, although Easton on the hill top and Fortuneswell on the northern slopes both have an urban appearance. Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy will host the sailing events for the London 2012 Olympics.
Communications
Portland is linked to the mainland (Weymouth) by the A354. The nearest railway station is Weymouth (6 miles distance)
Education
Chesil Education Partnership Area:
3 infant schools, 2 junior schools, 14 primary schools, 4 secondary schools, 2 special schools.
The secondary school for the area is
The Royal Manor Arts College (696 pupils - 2011 For further information on
Royal Manor Arts College (opens in a new window) 
Commercial land
Between 1994-10, 12.0 hectares of industrial land has been developed in Portland. The total area of land with permission or allocated in local plans is 56.2 hectares, of which 11.5h are at the naval air station and 38h Portland Port.
Crime
Domestic burglaries
Rate per 1,000 households
| Area | 2002/03 | 2003/04 | 2004/05 | 2005/06 | 2006/07 | 2007/08 | 2008/2009 | 2009/10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Portland | 4.3 | 4.6 | 8.7 | 9.1 | 4.1 | n/a | 5.4 | 5.4 |
DCC Dorset | 6.6 | 6.6 | 6.5 | 5.7 | 4.4 | n/a | 4.1 | 3.8 |
South West | 14.8 | 12.3 | 10.7 | 8.9 | 8.4 | n/a | 8.2 | 7.6 |
England and Wales | 20.0 | 18.6 (GB) | 14.4 | 13.5 | 13.1 | n/a | 12.2 | 11.6 |
Note: Due to small numbers burglary rates for small geographical areas (e.g. towns) can vary significantly from year to year.
Source: Dorset County Council
Other sources of crime data
Access the
Police crime mapping Portland (opens in a new window)
where you can find crime data on a month by month basis (starting December 2010) mapped to neighbourhood and street level. This looks at the crime types of burglary, anti-social behaviour, robbery, vehicle crime, violent crime and other crime. Note this comprehensive and up-to-date database only looks at numbers of crimes and not crime rates for individual crimes. It does give an overall crime rate (per 1,000 people) for the neighbourhood.
Population
Latest population figure (2010 mid year estimate) for the town is 12,400
| Year | 1921 | 1931 | 1951 | 1961 | 1971 | 1981 | 1991 | 2001 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Census population (enumerated) | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | 12,330 | 12,410 | 13,190 | 12,800 |
Housing growth
| Year | 98 | 99 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Housing development | 20 | 17 | 12 | 24 | 76 | 41 | 61 | 40 | 85 | 15 | 92 | 203 | 8 |
Note: Figures allows for losses from re-development. Method revised 2009
The 2001 Census records 5,165 dwellings in Portland.
Since 2001, a further 621 have been built giving a total of 5,786.
At March 2010, a further 610 units have permission and 10 have been allocated in local plans
Index of deprivation, 2007
(Figures show LSOA ranking out of 247 SOAs in Dorset with 1 being the most deprived)
SOA | Multiple | Income | Employment | Health and disability | Education and skills | Services | Crime | Living |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Castletown and Chiswell | 16 | 73 | 24 | 17 | 49 | 112 | 4 | 3 |
Fortuneswell North | 5 | 3 | 11 | 7 | 6 | 45 | 12 | 44 |
Fortuneswell South | 22 | 33 | 29 | 18 | 24 | 243 | 63 | 21 |
Southwell and Portland Bill | 126 | 169 | 91 | 84 | 35 | 99 | 147 | 142 |
Tophill East Easton | 74 | 106 | 61 | 30 | 47 | 246 | 141 | 18 |
Tophill East Grove Road | 65 | 152 | 113 | 33 | 29 | 173 | 47 | 9 |
Weston East | 72 | 52 | 88 | 39 | 21 | 218 | 64 | 117 |
Weston West | 26 | 25 | 53 | 32 | 11 | 153 | 51 | 110 |
LSOA = Lower Super Output Area (minimum 400 households or 1,000 population).
Index of deprivation, 2010
| Multiple | Income | Employment | Health | Education and Skills | Housing and Services | Crime | Living | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Castletown and Chiswell | 11 | 45 | 18 | 23 | 29 | 56 | 2 | 3 |
| Fortuneswell North | 3 | 2 | 7 | 6 | 9 | 36 | 10 | 34 |
| Fortuneswell South | 19 | 26 | 19 | 13 | 24 | 237 | 30 | 20 |
| Southwell and Portland Bill | 130 | 174 | 88 | 71 | 58 | 87 | 145 | 160 |
| Tophill East Easton | 60 | 80 | 67 | 26 | 80 | 222 | 52 | 27 |
| Tophill East Grove Road | 34 | 113 | 117 | 35 | 51 | 79 | 12 | 8 |
| Weston East | 45 | 56 | 65 | 43 | 21 | 189 | 22 | 93 |
| Weston West | 17 | 19 | 27 | 32 | 11 | 115 | 14 | 74 |
Click here for detailed information and mapping of the The Index of Deprivation, 2010
Source: DCLG
Average house prices
| Dwelling type | Average Price July - Sept 2009 | Average Price July - Sept 2010 | July - Sept 2010 (sales) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detached | n/a | £194,200 | 5 |
| Semi-detached | £158,800 | n/a | 0 |
| Terraced | £155,813 | £149,727 | 33 |
| Flats/maisonettes | n/a | £110,500 | 3 |
Land Registry average prices (Prices may be affected by low number of sales). Data is based on postcode sectors DT5 1 and DT5 2.
Total Area and Perimeter of Portland
Total Area = 1,150h. Total perimeter = 18km approx
Local authority revenue
| Council tax band D for Year | Council tax payable |
|---|---|
| 11/12 | £1,685.08 |
10/11 | £1,685.08 |
09/10 | £1,636.70 |
08/09 | £1,575.22 |
07/08 | £1,508.51 |
06/07 | £1,439.01 |
05/06 | £1,373.46 |
04/05 | £1,321.48 |
03/04 | £1,246.46 |
02/03 | £1,033.47 |
01/02 | £943.04 |
00/01 | £890.56 |
99/00 | £838.81 |
Second/holiday and vacant homes, 2011
| Total dwellings on Council Tax Register | 5,458 |
|---|---|
| Total number of second homes | 155 |
Second homes as a % of total dwellings | 2.84 |
| Total number of long term empty properties | 160 |
Empty homes as a % of total dwellings | 2.89 |
Source: Council Tax Register (parish figure, rounded)
Population 2010: Mid Year Estimates ONS
| Gender breakdown | DCC Dorset | Portland |
|---|---|---|
Resident Population | 404,790 | 12,400 |
Males | 196,420 | 6,580 |
Females | 208,370 | 5,820 |
Age structure (%): 2010 Mid Year Estimates
| Age range | DCC Dorset | Portland |
|---|---|---|
0-15 | 17.0 | 18.1 |
16+17 | 2.7 | 2.4 |
18-44 | 25.4 | 33.5 |
45-59 | 20.9 | 21.9 |
60-84 | 30.0 | 21.7 |
85+ | 3.9 | 2.3 |
Ethnicity (%): 2001 Census
| Ethnicity | DCC Dorset | Portland |
|---|---|---|
White British | 96.8 | 94.6 |
BME | 3.2 | 5.4 |
Health: 2001 Census
| Health category | DCC Dorset | Portland |
|---|---|---|
% with Long-term Illness / Disability | 19.2 | 18.4 |
Health: % Good | 68.1 | 66.5 |
Health: % Not Good | 8.4 | 8.9 |
% Providing Unpaid Care | 10.8 | 10.0 |
Poverty Indicators
| Benefit population | DCC Dorset | Portland |
|---|---|---|
| as a % of the total population | 13.6 | 18.9 |
Socio-economic classifications: 2010 ACORN
| Classifications | DCC Dorset | Portland |
|---|---|---|
| % Wealthy Achievers | 40.1 | 4.2 |
| % Urban Prosperity | 7.1 | 7.4 |
| % Comfortably Off | 33.2 | 20.3 |
| % Moderate Means | 9.2 | 51.3 |
| % Hard Pressed | 10.2 | 16.8 |
| % unclassified | 0.2 | 0.0 |
ACORN is a geodemographic segmentation of the UK's population which segments small neighbourhoods, postcodes, or consumer households into 5 categories, 17 groups and 56 types.
The 5 higher level categories "wealthy achievers", "urban prosperity", "comfortably off", "moderate means" and "hard pressed" are shown above.
An ACORN profile for the whole island, with mapping of the 3 wards has been created. Access
Portland ACORN Profile (pdf, 1Mb) (opens in a new window)
here.
Retail profile - total town floorspace
58 shops/44,000 sq.ft. (2005)
All local shops plus Co-op & Tesco
Library - Number of issues of books etc
| Library | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | 2009-10 | 2010-11 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portland Tophill | 34,506 | 32,221 | 28,929 | 30,097 |
| Portland Underhill | 10,317 | 8,802 | 7,676 | 6,722 |
Industrial estates
Osprey quay (49h), Portland Port (47h), Immosthay (7.5h),
Tradecroft (6.5h), Southwell Business Park (8h). St Georges Centre Workshops (0.1h)
Unemployment % (persons)
| Year | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
July 1998 | 4.7 (185) | 1.6 (41) | 3.5 (226) |
July 1999 | 4.0 (156) | 1.6 (42) | 3.0 (198) |
July 2000 | 3.0 (119) | 1.1 (30) | 2.3 (149) |
July 2001 | 4.1 (108) | 0.9 (24) | 2.5 (132) |
July 2002 | 2.3 (95) | 1.0 (28) | 1.8 (123) |
July 2003 | 2.0 (81) | 1.1 (31) | 1.6 (112) |
July 2004 | 1.4 (67) | 0.6 (22) | 1.0 (89) |
July 2005 | 1.5 (69) | 0.5 (20) | 1.1 (89) |
July 2006 | 2.5 (117) | 0.9 (35) | 1.8 (152) |
July 2007 | 1.7 (82) | 0.7(26) | 1.2 (108) |
| July 2008 | 1.7 (81) | 0.8 (31) | 1.3 (112) |
| July 2009 | 3.7 (182) | 1.3 (52) | 2.7 (234) |
| July 2010 | 2.5 (124) | 1.6 (62) | 2.1 (186) |
Of July 2009 unemployment figures, the long-term unemployed = 3.4%
Of July 2010 unemployment figures, the long-term unemployed = 12.4%
2009 employment
Total number of people working in the town: 3,900
Number of firms (excluding the self-employed): 290
| Work pattern | percentage |
|---|---|
Full-time | 66% |
Part-time | 44% |
Type of employment | % |
|---|---|
Manufacturing and other non service | 20 |
Construction | 2 |
| Accommodation & Food Service activities | 8 |
| Other Services | 4 |
| Distribution including motor | 8 |
Finance and business services | 19 |
Public administration, Ed and Health | 38 |
Source: Annual Source: Business Register and Employment Survey, 2009, ONS
Major employers
Dorset County Council, HM Prison Service, Portland Harbour Authority Ltd, Manor Marine, Ceewrite Engineering, Portland Engineering, M&N Electrical & Mechanical, Portland Stone , Albion Stone, Portland Port Ltd, The Heights Hotel , Southwell Business Park, Sunseekesr International Ltd, Drumgrange, Portland Stone Firms Ltd.
Traffic Counts - annual average daily traffic
| Road | Location | AADF (Annual Average Daily Traffic) | Percentage Growth Since | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | 1983 | 1990 | 2000 | 2005 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2005 | 2000 | 1990 | 1983 | |
| 1 Year | 2 year | 5 Years | 10 Years | 20 Years | 27 Years | |||||||||
| A354 | Portland Beach Road | 12,900 | 16,500 | 14,900 | 16,200 | 16,400 | 16,500 | 15,600 | -5% | -5% | -4% | 5% | -5% | 21% |
Source:Dorset County Council Environment Directorate June 2011
Local authorities
Dorset County Council
County Hall, Colliton Park, Dorchester, Dorset DT1 1XJ
01305 221000
Weymouth and Portland Borough Council
Council Offices
North Quay, Weymouth
Dorset DT4 8TA 01305 838000
PortlandTown Council
Mr Ian Looker, Town Clerk, Council Offices, Fortuneswell,
Portland, Dorset, DT5 1LW 01305 831638
Useful Websites
Weymouth and Portland Borough Council (opens in a new window) 



