Oakley is a village community in
Dorset
Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of , ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. Sitting just south of the
River Stour it borders the suburb of
Merley
Merley is a large housing estate in the unparished area of Poole, a mile (2 km) south of Wimborne Minster. Originally called Myrle, Merley was a manor in the tithing of Great Canford (or Canford Magna). The village merges with that of Oakl ...
and the village of
Canford Magna
Canford Magna is a village in Dorset, England. The village is situated just south of the River Stour and lies between the towns of Wimborne Minster
Wimborne Minster (often referred to as Wimborne, ) is a market town in Dorset in South Wes ...
to the East and South and the Town of
Wimborne
Wimborne Minster (often referred to as Wimborne, ) is a market town in Dorset in South West England, and the name of the Church of England church in that town. It lies at the confluence of the River Stour and the River Allen, north of Poole ...
2 km to the North. The B3073, which links Wimborne and Poole, runs through the community.
Oakley has four major roads; Oakley Hill, Oakley Lane, Oakley Road and Merley Ways and approximately 800 individual
dwellings. Smaller roads include Ullswater Road, Silverwood Close and Harrier Drive.
Buildings and architecture
A conservation area covers Oakley and its attractive Lady Wimborne Cottages. Oakley Hill, Oakley Lane and Cruxton Farm are all listed as containing Buildings of Local Importance by the Borough of Poole. The Cottages date back to the late 19th Century when they were built by Lord Wimborne to house specialist workers from his Estate. The cottages were beautifully designed and so were given the title 'Lady Wimborne' cottages. Nowadays many of them have been extended, though keeping to the original style and building materials.
Most of the houses in Merley Ways and Oakley Hill were added in the 1930s and 1940s. They range from large,
detached
A stand-alone house (also called a single-detached dwelling, detached residence or detached house) is a free-standing residential building. It is sometimes referred to as a single-family home, as opposed to a multi-family residential dwelli ...
, villa-style houses, to more modest
bungalow residences for the more elderly residents. The houses at the bottom of Merley Ways have access to the
River Stour and many families own rowing boats and canoes. Most houses have large gardens, private garages and some have swimming pools.
Silverwood Close, Cruxton Farm and Harrier Drive are the newest roads in the community. The houses are large, detached and modern with those at the bottom of Silverwood Close looking out onto farming fields and the River Stour at the bottom of the hill.
The Willett Arms pub
The largest landmark in Oakley, The Willett Arms is situated on the top of Oakley Hill. Originally a private Public House, the Willett as it is referred to by locals, served travellers on the Wimborne to Poole road, as well as the
Southampton and Dorchester Railway
The Southampton and Dorchester Railway was an English railway company formed to join Southampton in Hampshire with Dorchester in Dorset, with hopes of forming part of a route from London to Exeter. It received Parliamentary authority in 1845 and ...
. Once the Railway line was closed the pub became less popular until the community in Merley was built and Oakley and Canford Magna began to grow. The railway line was converted into the
Castleman Trailway
The Castleman Trailway is a footpath in Southern England. Portions of the trailway are also used as a cyclepath but the middle section from East Wimborne (close to The Old Thatch public house) to the River Allen bridge (just south of Wimbor ...
and the Pub now serves the community, tourists, cyclists and walkers.
The Merley Community Centre
The centre serves the residence of Oakley, Merley and Canford Magna. Built in the 1960s It has two main halls and a large community lounge. The small hall is home to the Footlight Dance Academy, and the Oakley Art Club. The Val Jones Memorial Hall is home to the Merley Karate Academy, part of the Dorset Goju Ryu Karate Association and led by
Sensei
Sensei, Seonsaeng, Tiên sinh or Xiansheng, corresponding to Chinese characters , is an East Asian honorific term shared in Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese and Chinese; it is literally translated as "person born before another" or "one who c ...
Penny Hughes.
UK Goju karate dojo directory
/ref> The community lounge is home to the Merley Social Club and tends to serve the residents of Merley. Many Oakley residents are members of Canford Magna Golf Club instead.
The old Post Office
There used to be a post office/newsagents and a small supermarket at the cross roads between Merley Lane and the A341. These closed down in the late 1970s after the shopping centre on the new Merley housing estate was opened. The old supermarket was a restaurant for many years, but is now a solicitors office.
Merley House
Merley House is an ancient manor house which belonged to Canford estate and housed Merley Bird Gardens, a collection of exotic birds in a picturesque walled garden, on its estate. It is now a holiday caravan park.
Oakley House
A small, mental health hospital for older people, Oakley House sits surrounded by fields used by a local dairy herd. The hospital was constructed in the 1850s and is staffed by the Wimborne & Purbeck Mental Health Team. It also provides support for carers. The hospital has a large garden of its own and a small wood in the grounds.
Demographics and education
The community is home to mainly middle- and upper-middle-class families with a proportion of the adults being employed by Cobham plc
Cobham Limited is a British aerospace manufacturing company based in Bournemouth, England.
Cobham was originally founded by Sir Alan Cobham as Flight Refuelling Limited (FRL) in 1934. During 1939, British airline Imperial Airways performed s ...
in the field of Defence, Avionics and Surveillance Systems, and in occupations such as teaching. Many of the other adults work in Bournemouth and Poole, with some commuting to London.
The Independent Canford School
Canford School is a public school (English independent day and boarding school for pupils aged 13–18). Situated in 300 acres of parkland near to the market town of Wimborne Minster in Dorset, south west England, it is one of the largest s ...
is situated nearby and serves the community alongside Poole Grammar School
Poole Grammar School (commonly abbreviated to PGS) is a selective, all‐boys grammar school and academy in the coastal town of Poole in Dorset, on the south coast of England. It is a member of the South West Academic Trust (SWAT). The school w ...
for boys, Parkstone Grammar School
Parkstone Grammar School (commonly abbreviated to "PGS") is a selective, all-girls academy school in Poole specializing in science and languages, on the southern coast of England.
Admissions
The school is situated in the northern end of the tow ...
for girls and the mixed Corfe Hills School.
Merley First School sits on the border between Merley and Oakley and many of the community's children are in attendance.
Relationship with Merley
Merley, a large suburb and housing estate was built alongside Oakley and Canford Magna in the 1970s. Originally the developers wanted to call is 'Oakley Garden Village' but this met with protests from the residents of Oakley and the name Merley was chosen.
There is no defined border between Oakley, Merley and Canford Magna and only the latter is signposted. Furthering to the confusion, the Oakley Shopping Centre is in Merley, whilst the Merley Community Centre is technically in Oakley.
A simple way of dividing the communities is to take the bottom of Oakley Straight, pronouncing everything south and east of Harrier Drive, Merley, and everything north and west, Oakley. The residents of Oakley frequently use the amenities in Merley, which include a quality butchers, post office, doctors surgery, pharmacy, Chinese take away and a convenience store.
References
External links
{{authority control
Villages in Dorset
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole