About us
Chiltern District Council key facts
• Chiltern is within the South East region of England and is served by Chiltern District Council, a local authority based in the town of Amersham.
• Most of the Chiltern District is situated in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and covered by the Metropolitan Green Belt.
• Located 25 miles north west of London and just outside the M25, the capital can be reached in about 30 minutes by rail and the district is connected to the Metropolitan Underground line.
• The overall population of the district is 90,3001.
• Around one-third live in the main towns of Amersham and Chesham.
• The other main settlements are Chalfont St Peter, Chalfont St Giles and Little Chalfont; Prestwood, Great Missenden, Holmer Green and Seer Green.
• In 2001, 76% of residents described themselves as in good health and 65% were economically active. Chiltern is above the national average in both of these respects (2001 Census).
• Unemployment rate is low at 3.7% (Jan 06 - Dec 06) compared with 4.5% across the South East.
• Of our residents, 20,800 work in the district, and 22,200 work outside. This is partly offset by 11,600 who commute into the district (2001 Census).
• In 2006, on average the price of a detached house in Chiltern was more than double the national average. • National wealth indicators confirm that Chiltern District is an affluent area, although there are areas of deprivation.
• Residents of Chiltern have the best quality of life in Great Britain according to the Halifax 'rural' areas Quality of Life survey 2008.
• Chiltern District Council has 214 (full time equivalent) officers serving a population of 90,300 and is responsible for delivering a wide range of local government functions and services.
• These services include planning, housing benefits, waste management and recycling, community support and leisure facilities, environmental health, housing enabling, community safety, cremation, building regulations, licensing, parking management and council tax.
• Chiltern District is assessed by the Audit Commission and in 2004 the Council and its services were judged excellent. More recently the Council was assessed as having maintained a 'Positive Direction of Travel'.
• Chiltern has an older than average population and the number of people over 65 is projected to increase over the next 20 years.