This constituency encompasses some of the rural parts in the western half of Basingstoke and Deane borough, now almost reaching to the town of Basingstoke itself, with the addition of Sherborne St John; and the northern part of the Test Valley, centred on the town of Andover.
Andover is the largest centre of population. It was one of the communities chosen to expand to take London spillover in the post-war years. The proportion of council housing trebled in the 1960s and in the two decades after 1961 the population of the town doubled to 32,000.
Post-war growth has steadied off now, and many council homes have been bought by their previous tenants. Unemployment is low with most of the workforce engaged in white collar employment. Outside the town, the seat boasts attractive countryside including the trout-rich River Test.