Cheltenham Open Data Adds Daily Wildfire Risk and 15 Years of Grass Fires

Today's wildfire risk around Cheltenham, and every grass and woodland fire since 2010.

By Mat Benfield · Published 2026-10-08

Cheltenham Open Data has published a new wildfire risk page, with a wildfire history page alongside it.

The risk page shows the Met Office Fire Severity Index for Cheltenham and the land within 10 km of the town: today’s level and the forecast for the next five days, on a map of the grid squares from Cleeve Hill to the Severn Vale. The history page counts 944 grassland, woodland and crop fires recorded in the GL50 to GL54 postcodes and the surrounding area since April 2010, by year, month and place, with the busiest days and the largest fires.

FAQs

What Does the Wildfire Risk Page Show?

  • The Met Office fire severity level, from 1 (low) to 5 (exceptional), for today and the next five days, taking the highest level across the 10 km grid squares around Cheltenham.
  • A map and table of every grid square, plus advice on preventing fires and what to do if you see one.

What Does the Wildfire History Show?

  • Every fire recorded by fire and rescue services on grassland, woodland or crops around Cheltenham since April 2010, split between Cheltenham and the surrounding area within 10 km.
  • 2022/23 was the busiest year, with 124 fires, and July is the busiest month.

Where Does the Data Come From?

How Often Is It Updated?

  • The fire severity forecast is checked several times a day. The fire history is updated once a year, when the national fire statistics are published each summer.

Can I Get Alerts?

  • Yes. Subscribe to the wildfire risk feed in any RSS reader to hear about every day forecast at high (3) or above, and an alert shows on the homepage when the level reaches very high (4) or exceptional (5).