West Dorset

West Dorset District
Non-metropolitan district
Coat of arms
West Dorset shown within Dorset
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Constituent country	England
Region	South West England
Non-metropolitan county	Dorset
Status	Abolished
Admin HQ	Dorchester
Incorporated	1 April 1974
Government
• Type	Non-metropolitan district council
• Body	West Dorset District Council
• Leadership	Leader & Cabinet ( )
Area
• Total	417.6 sq mi (1,081.5 km2)
Population  (2017)
• Total	102,100
• Density	240/sq mi (94/km2)
• Ethnicity	98.7% White
Time zone	UTC0 (GMT)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+1 (BST)
ONS code	19UH (ONS) E07000052 (GSS)
OS grid reference	SY5785299047
Website	www.dorsetforyou.gov.uk

West Dorset was a local government district in Dorset, England. The district was formed on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, and was a merger of the boroughs of Bridport, Dorchester and Lyme Regis, along with Sherborne urban district and the rural districts of Beaminster, Bridport, Dorchester and Sherborne. Its council was based in Dorchester.

The district and its council were abolished on 1 April 2019 and, together with the other four districts outside the greater Bournemouth area, replaced by a new Dorset unitary authority.^[1]