Healthiest Places to Live in the South West
13 upper-tier local authorities in the South West, ranked by the Gera Healthy-Place Index — air quality, life expectancy and GP access from real government data.
What are the healthiest places to live in the South West?
In the South West, Dorset is the healthiest place to live on the Gera Healthy-Place Index, scoring 79.1/100 across 13 upper-tier local authorities. It combines clean air (max 7/18 μg/m³ PM2.5/NO2, DEFRA 2024), life expectancy of 83.1 years (ONS) and 97.3% of GP practices rated Good or Outstanding (CQC).
| Region rank | Local authority | GHPI | Max PM2.5 / NO2 | Life expectancy | GP Good/Outstanding |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dorset | 79.1 / 100 | 7 / 18 μg/m³ | 83.1 years | 97.3% |
| 2 | Wiltshire | 75.3 / 100 | 8 / 21 μg/m³ | 82.9 years | 97.7% |
| 3 | Bath and North East Somerset | 74.7 / 100 | 8 / 25 μg/m³ | 83.1 years | 100.0% |
| 4 | Devon | 74 / 100 | 7 / 23 μg/m³ | 82.5 years | 98.8% |
| 5 | Swindon | 73.9 / 100 | 8 / 20 μg/m³ | 81.8 years | 100.0% |
| 6 | South Gloucestershire | 73.8 / 100 | 9 / 25 μg/m³ | 83.0 years | 100.0% |
| 7 | Cornwall | 73.4 / 100 | 8 / 18 μg/m³ | 81.7 years | 98.2% |
| 8 | North Somerset | 71.2 / 100 | 7 / 21 μg/m³ | 82.6 years | 92.9% |
| 9 | Gloucestershire | 69.3 / 100 | 9 / 27 μg/m³ | 82.3 years | 100.0% |
| 10 | Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole | 65.8 / 100 | 8 / 28 μg/m³ | 82.1 years | 96.9% |
| 11 | Torbay | 64.2 / 100 | 7 / 18 μg/m³ | 80.8 years | 90.0% |
| 12 | Plymouth | 61 / 100 | 8 / 25 μg/m³ | 80.6 years | 95.2% |
| 13 | Bristol, City of | 45.9 / 100 | 9 / 45 μg/m³ | 80.6 years | 97.3% |
South West areas in detail
- Is Dorset a healthy place to live? (79.1/100)
- Is Wiltshire a healthy place to live? (75.3/100)
- Is Bath and North East Somerset a healthy place to live? (74.7/100)
- Is Devon a healthy place to live? (74/100)
- Is Swindon a healthy place to live? (73.9/100)
- Is South Gloucestershire a healthy place to live? (73.8/100)
- Is Cornwall a healthy place to live? (73.4/100)
- Is North Somerset a healthy place to live? (71.2/100)
- Is Gloucestershire a healthy place to live? (69.3/100)
- Is Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole a healthy place to live? (65.8/100)
- Is Torbay a healthy place to live? (64.2/100)
- Is Plymouth a healthy place to live? (61/100)
- Is Bristol, City of a healthy place to live? (45.9/100)
Other regions
- Healthiest places in the East Midlands
- Healthiest places in the East of England
- Healthiest places in the London
- Healthiest places in the North East
- Healthiest places in the North West
- Healthiest places in the South East
- Healthiest places in the West Midlands
- Healthiest places in the Yorkshire and The Humber
- National ranking →
Healthiest places in the South West: FAQs
- Which is the healthiest place to live in the South West?
- Dorset ranks healthiest in the South West on the Gera Healthy-Place Index (79.1/100), ahead of 12 other upper-tier local authorities in the region, on a composite of DEFRA air quality, ONS life expectancy and CQC GP access.
- How many South West areas are ranked?
- 13 upper-tier local authorities in the South West have full data on all three pillars and are ranked. Nationally, 145 English areas are included; areas missing any pillar are excluded transparently, never estimated.
Healthcare across the South West
A GeraClinic UK-registered clinician can see you by secure video from anywhere in the UK — wherever you are in the region, often the same day.
Contains public sector information published by Gera Systems and licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0 (source data). Source: Gera Healthy-Place Index — composite of DEFRA + ONS + CQC open data (Air 2024 calendar year; life expectancy 2017-19; GP ratings 2026-06-01, published 19 June 2026).