Poole () is a large coastal town and seaport 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 , ...
, on the south coast of England. The town is east of
Dorchester and adjoins
Bournemouth to the east. Since 1 April 2019, the local authority is
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council which is a
unitary authority
A unitary authority is a local authority responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are usually performed by a higher level of sub-national government or the national governmen ...
. Poole had an estimated population of 151,500 (mid-2016 census estimates) making it the second-largest town in the ceremonial county of Dorset. Together with
Bournemouth and
Christchurch
Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...
, the conurbation has a total population of nearly 400,000.
Human settlement in the area dates back to before the
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...
. The earliest recorded use of the town's name was in the 12th century when the town began to emerge as an important port, prospering with the introduction of the
wool trade
Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have properties similar to animal wool.
As ...
. Later, the town had important trade links with North America and, at its peak during the 18th century, it was one of the busiest ports in Britain. In the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, Poole was one of the main departing points for the
Normandy landings
The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allies of World War II, Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and ...
.
Poole is a tourist resort, attracting visitors with its large
natural harbour
A harbor (American English), harbour (British English; see spelling differences), or haven is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be docked. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is a ...
, history, the
Lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways.
Lighthouses mar ...
arts centre and
Blue Flag beaches. The town has a
commercial port
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...
with
cross-Channel freight and passenger ferry services, which connect with the
Channel Islands
The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...
of
Jersey
Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label= Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west France. It is the l ...
and
Guernsey, as well as the
French port town of
Saint-Malo
Saint-Malo (, , ; Gallo: ; ) is a historic French port in Ille-et-Vilaine, Brittany, on the English Channel coast.
The walled city had a long history of piracy, earning much wealth from local extortion and overseas adventures. In 1944, the Alli ...
,
Brittany
Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, Historical region, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known ...
.
The headquarters of the
Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is in Poole, and the
Royal Marines have a base in the town's harbour. Despite their names, Poole is the home of
The Arts University Bournemouth
Arts University Bournemouth (abbreviated AUB) is a further and higher education university based in Poole, England, specialising in art, performance, design, and media. It was formerly known as The Arts University College at Bournemouth and T ...
, the
Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra
The Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an English orchestra, founded in 1893 and originally based in Bournemouth. With a remit to serve the South and South West of England, the BSO is administratively based in the adjacent town of Poole, s ...
and a significant part of
Bournemouth University
Bournemouth University is a public university in Bournemouth, England, with its main campus situated in neighbouring Poole. The university was founded in 1992; however, the origins of its predecessor date back to the early 1900s.
The univer ...
.
History
![Poole Logboat](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/Poole_Logboat.jpg)
The town's name derives from a corruption of the
Celtic
Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to:
Language and ethnicity
*pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia
**Celts (modern)
*Celtic languages
**Proto-Celtic language
* Celtic music
*Celtic nations
Sports Fo ...
word ''bol'' and the
Old English
Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...
word ''pool'' meaning a place near a pool or creek.
Variants include Pool, Pole, Poles, Poll, Polle, Polman, and Poolman. The area around modern Poole has been inhabited for the past 2,500 years. During the 3rd century BC,
Celts
The Celts (, see pronunciation for different usages) or Celtic peoples () are. "CELTS location: Greater Europe time period: Second millennium B.C.E. to present ancestry: Celtic a collection of Indo-European peoples. "The Celts, an ancien ...
known as the
Durotriges
The Durotriges were one of the Celtic tribes living in Britain prior to the Roman invasion. The tribe lived in modern Dorset, south Wiltshire, south Somerset and Devon east of the River Axe and the discovery of an Iron Age hoard in 2009 at Shalfl ...
moved from hilltop settlements at
Maiden Castle and
Badbury Rings
Badbury Rings is an Iron Age hill fort and Scheduled Monument in east Dorset, England. It was in the territory of the Durotriges. In the Roman era a temple was located immediately west of the fort, and there was a Romano-British town known as ''Vi ...
to heathland around the
River Frome and
Poole Harbour
Poole Harbour is a large natural harbour in Dorset, southern England, with the town of Poole on its shores. The harbour is a drowned valley (ria) formed at the end of the last ice age and is the estuary of several rivers, the largest being t ...
. The
Romans
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
* Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
landed at Poole during their
conquest of Britain in the 1st century and took over an
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...
settlement at
Hamworthy
Hamworthy is a village, parish, peninsula and suburb of Poole in Dorset, England. It is sited on a peninsula of approximately that is bordered by the town of Upton to the north, Poole Harbour to the south, Lytchett Bay to the west and Hol ...
, an area just west of the modern town centre. In
Anglo-Saxon times, Poole was included in the Kingdom of
Wessex
la, Regnum Occidentalium Saxonum
, conventional_long_name = Kingdom of the West Saxons
, common_name = Wessex
, image_map = Southern British Isles 9th century.svg
, map_caption = S ...
. The settlement was used as a base for fishing and the harbour a place for ships to anchor on their way to the River Frome and the important Anglo-Saxon town of
Wareham.
Poole experienced two large-scale
Viking
Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden),
who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...
invasions during this era: in 876,
Guthrum
Guthrum ( ang, Guðrum, c. 835 – c. 890) was King of East Anglia in the late 9th century. Originally a native of what is now Denmark, he was one of the leaders of the "Great Summer Army" that arrived in Reading during April 871 to join forces ...
sailed his fleet through the harbour to attack Wareham, and in 1015,
Canute
Cnut (; ang, Cnut cyning; non, Knútr inn ríki ; or , no, Knut den mektige, sv, Knut den Store. died 12 November 1035), also known as Cnut the Great and Canute, was King of England from 1016, King of Denmark from 1018, and King of Norwa ...
began his conquest of England in Poole Harbour, using it as a base to raid and pillage Wessex.
Following the
Norman conquest of England, Poole rapidly grew into a busy port as the importance of Wareham declined. The town was part of the
manor of Canford but does not exist as an identifiable entry in the
Domesday Book
Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
. The earliest written mention of Poole occurred on a document from 1196 describing the newly built St James's Chapel in "La Pole". The
Lord of the Manor
Lord of the Manor is a title that, in Anglo-Saxon England, referred to the landholder of a rural estate. The lord enjoyed manorial rights (the rights to establish and occupy a residence, known as the manor house and demesne) as well as seig ...
, Sir
William Longspée, sold a
charter of liberties to the
burgesses of Poole in 1248 to raise funds for his participation in the
Seventh Crusade.
Consequently, Poole gained a small measure of freedom from
feudal rule and acquired the right to appoint a mayor and hold a court within the town. Poole's growing importance was recognised in 1433 when it was awarded
staple port status by
King Henry VI, enabling the port to begin exporting wool and in turn granting a licence for the construction of a town wall. In 1568, Poole gained further autonomy when it was granted legal independence from Dorset and made a
county corporate by the Great Charter of
Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is ...
.
During the
English Civil War
The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...
, Poole's
puritan
The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should become more Protestant. ...
stance and its merchants' opposition to the
ship money
Ship money was a tax of medieval origin levied intermittently in the Kingdom of England until the middle of the 17th century. Assessed typically on the inhabitants of coastal areas of England, it was one of several taxes that English monarchs co ...
tax introduced by
King Charles I led to the town declaring for
Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...
. Poole escaped any large-scale attack and with the
Royalists
A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governm ...
on the brink of defeat in 1646, the Parliamentary garrison from Poole laid siege to and captured the nearby Royalist stronghold at
Corfe Castle
Corfe Castle is a fortification standing above the village of the same name on the Isle of Purbeck peninsula in the English county of Dorset. Built by William the Conqueror, the castle dates to the 11th century and commands a gap in the P ...
.
![Beech Hurst, Poole](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c8/Beech_Hurst%2C_Poole.JPG)
Poole established successful commerce with the
North American colonies in the 16th century, including the important fisheries of
Newfoundland.
Trade with Newfoundland grew steadily to meet the demand for fish from the Catholic countries of Europe. Poole's share of this trade varied but the most prosperous period started in the early 18th century and lasted until the early 19th century. The trade followed a three-cornered route; ships sailed to Newfoundland with salt and provisions, then carried dried and salted fish to Europe before returning to Poole with wine, olive oil, and salt.
[Beamish (p.8–11)] By the early 18th century Poole had more ships trading with North America than any other English port and vast wealth was brought to Poole's merchants.
This prosperity supported much of the development which now characterises the Old Town where many of the
medieval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
buildings were replaced with
Georgian
Georgian may refer to:
Common meanings
* Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country)
** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group
** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians
**Georgian scripts, three scrip ...
mansions and
terraced housing
In architecture and city planning, a terrace or terraced house ( UK) or townhouse ( US) is a form of medium-density housing that originated in Europe in the 16th century, whereby a row of attached dwellings share side walls. In the United State ...
.
The end of the
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...
and the conclusion of the
War of 1812
The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...
ended Britain's monopoly over the Newfoundland fisheries and other nations took over services provided by Poole's merchants at a lower cost. Poole's Newfoundland trade rapidly declined and within a decade most merchants had ceased trading.
![Poole Quay - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b8/Poole_Quay_-_geograph.co.uk_636450.jpg)
The town grew rapidly during the
industrial revolution
The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...
as urbanisation took place and the town became an area of
mercantile prosperity and overcrowded poverty. At the turn of the 19th century, nine out of ten workers were engaged in harbour activities, but as the century progressed ships became too large for the shallow harbour and the port lost business to the deepwater ports at
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
,
Southampton
Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
and
Plymouth.
Poole's first railway station opened in
Hamworthy
Hamworthy is a village, parish, peninsula and suburb of Poole in Dorset, England. It is sited on a peninsula of approximately that is bordered by the town of Upton to the north, Poole Harbour to the south, Lytchett Bay to the west and Hol ...
in 1847 and later extended to the centre of Poole in 1872, effectively ending the port's busy coastal shipping trade.
The beaches and landscape of southern Dorset and south-west
Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...
began to attract tourists during the 19th century and the villages to the east of Poole began to grow and merge until the
seaside resort
A seaside resort is a town, village, or hotel that serves as a vacation resort and is located on a coast. Sometimes the concept includes an aspect of official accreditation based on the satisfaction of certain requirements, such as in the Germ ...
of
Bournemouth emerged. Although Poole did not become a resort, like many of its neighbours, it continued to prosper as the rapid expansion of Bournemouth created a large demand for goods manufactured in Poole.
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, Poole was the third-largest embarkation point for
D-Day landings of
Operation Overlord and afterwards served as a base for supplies to the
allied forces in Europe.
Eighty-one landing craft containing American troops from the
29th Infantry Division and the
US Army Rangers
United States Army Rangers, according to the US Army's definition, are personnel, past or present, in any unit that has the official designation "Ranger". The term is commonly used to include graduates of the US Army Ranger School, even if t ...
departed Poole Harbour for
Omaha Beach. Poole was also an important centre for the development of
Combined Operations and the base for a
US Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and maritime law enforcement, law enforcement military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight Uniformed services ...
rescue
flotilla
A flotilla (from Spanish, meaning a small ''flota'' ( fleet) of ships), or naval flotilla, is a formation of small warships that may be part of a larger fleet.
Composition
A flotilla is usually composed of a homogeneous group of the same clas ...
of 60
cutters. Much of the town suffered from German bombing during the war and years of neglect in the post-war
economic decline. Major
redevelopment
Redevelopment is any new construction on a site that has pre-existing uses. It represents a process of land development uses to revitalize the physical, economic and social fabric of urban space.
Description
Variations on redevelopment include: ...
projects began in the 1950s and 1960s and large areas of
slum properties were demolished and replaced with modern public housing and facilities. Many of Poole's historic buildings were demolished during this period, particularly in the Old Town area of Poole. Consequently, a
Conservation Area was created in the town centre in 1975 to preserve Poole's most notable buildings.
The
Poole explosion of 1988 caused 3,500 people to be evacuated out of the
town centre
A town centre is the commercial or geographical centre or core area of a town. Town centres are traditionally associated with shopping or retail. They are also the centre of communications with major public transport hubs such as train or bus s ...
in the biggest peacetime evacuation the country had seen since the
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.
Governance
Council
On 1 April 1997, the town was made a
unitary authority
A unitary authority is a local authority responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are usually performed by a higher level of sub-national government or the national governmen ...
following a review by the
Local Government Commission for England Poole Borough Council
Poole Borough Council was the unitary authority responsible for local government in the Borough of Poole, Dorset, England. It was created on 1 April 1997 following a review by the Local Government Commission for England (1992), becoming adminis ...
was created, and the town, once again, became administratively independent from Dorset.
The borough reverted to its previous title of the ''Borough and County of the Town of Poole'', which recalled its status as a
county corporate before the implementation of the
Local Government Act 1888
Local may refer to:
Geography and transportation
* Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand
* Local, Missouri, a community in the United States
* Local government, a form of public administration, usually the lowest tier of administrat ...
. For
local elections
In many parts of the world, local elections take place to select office-holders in local government, such as mayors and councillors. Elections to positions within a city or town are often known as "municipal elections". Their form and conduct vary ...
, 42
councillor
A councillor is an elected representative for a local government council in some countries.
Canada
Due to the control that the provinces have over their municipal governments, terms that councillors serve vary from province to province. Unl ...
s were elected across 16
wards and elections take place every four years.
The last elections were held in 2015. The council were based at
Poole Civic Centre
Poole Civic Centre is an Art Deco municipal building in Poole, Dorset. Since 7 October 2019 the building has been a Grade II listed building. Also sometimes known as Poole Town Hall, the civic centre was the headquarters of Poole Borough Counc ...
in
Parkstone
Parkstone is an area of Poole, Dorset. It is divided into 'Lower' and 'Upper' Parkstone. Upper Parkstone - "Up-on-'ill" as it used to be known in local parlance - is so-called because it is largely on higher ground slightly to the north of t ...
.
On 1 April 2019, the borough being combined with Bournemouth and Christchurch to form the
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole unitary authority, with the
first elections taking place in 2019. Whilst the Conservatives were the largest party, the council remained under
no overall control, with a Unity Alliance Administration being formed of other parties. Poole's
Sheriff, a position created by the town's charter of 1568 and just one of 16 Sheriffs in England and Wales, is Julie Bagwell.
Parliamentary representation
UK Parliament
Poole is represented by three parliamentary
constituencies
An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other polity ...
in the
House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...
;
Poole,
Mid Dorset and North Poole
Mid Dorset and North Poole is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2015 by Michael Tomlinson, a Conservative.
Boundaries
1997–2010: The District of Purbeck wards of Bere Regis, Lytchett Matravers, ...
, and
Bournemouth West. The borough constituency of
Poole has existed since 1950. Previously the town had been a
parliamentary borough, electing two members of parliament from 1455 until 1865 when representation was reduced to one member. In 1885 the constituency was abolished altogether and absorbed into the
East Dorset constituency until its reintroduction in 1950.
Robert Syms
The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...
(Conservative) has been the Member of Parliament since 1997. At the
2015 general election, the Conservatives won a majority of 15,789 and 50.1% of the vote. The
UKIP
The UK Independence Party (UKIP; ) is a Eurosceptic, right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. The party reached its greatest level of success in the mid-2010s, when it gained two members of Parliament and was the largest p ...
won 16.8% of the vote,
Labour
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
12.9% and the Liberal Democrats 11.8%. The county constituency of Mid Dorset and North Poole was created in 1997 and includes the north-east of Poole,
Wimborne Minster
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 Poo ...
,
Wareham and extends into rural Dorset. At the 2015 general election, the Conservative candidate
Michael Tomlinson
Michael James Tomlinson-Mynors (born 1 October 1977) is a British politician serving as Solicitor General for England and Wales since September 2022. He served as Vice-Chamberlain of the Household from July to September 2022. He has been the M ...
gained the constituency from the Liberal Democrats with a majority of 10,530 and 50.8% of the vote. The Liberal Democrats won 28.2% of the vote, UKIP 12.2% and Labour 6%. The boundary of the Bournemouth West borough constituency was extended to include the Poole local council wards Branksome East and Alderney in 2010. It is represented by
Conor Burns
Conor Burns (born 24 September 1972) is a British politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Bournemouth West since 2010. A member of the Conservative Party, he served as Minister of State for Trade Policy from 2019 to 202 ...
, a Conservative Member of Parliament, who retained the seat with a majority of 12,410 and 48.2% of the vote in 2015.
European Parliament
Between 1979 and 2020, Poole was represented in the
European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...
.
From 1979 to 1984, Poole was part of the
Single-member district of
Wessex
la, Regnum Occidentalium Saxonum
, conventional_long_name = Kingdom of the West Saxons
, common_name = Wessex
, image_map = Southern British Isles 9th century.svg
, map_caption = S ...
and was represented by
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament.
When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, its ...
James Spicer.
From 1984 to 1994, Poole was part of the
Dorset East and Hampshire West constituency and from 1994 to 1999, Poole was part of the
Dorset and East Devon constituency represented by Conservative
Bryan Cassidy.
Poole was included in the
South West England constituency for elections to the
European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...
from 1999 to 2020.
Coat of arms
The design of the
coat of arms
A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central ele ...
originated in a
seal
Seal may refer to any of the following:
Common uses
* Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly:
** Earless seal, or "true seal"
** Fur seal
* Seal (emblem), a device to imp ...
from the late 14th century and were recorded by
Clarenceux King of Arms
Clarenceux King of Arms, historically often spelled Clarencieux (both pronounced ), is an officer of arms at the College of Arms in London. Clarenceux is the senior of the two provincial kings of arms and his jurisdiction is that part of Engla ...
during the
heraldic visitation
Heraldic visitations were tours of inspection undertaken by Kings of Arms (or alternatively by heralds, or junior officers of arms, acting as their deputies) throughout England, Wales and Ireland. Their purpose was to register and regulate the ...
of Dorset in 1563. The wavy bars of black and gold represent the sea and the dolphin is a sign of Poole's maritime interests.
The scallop shells are the emblem of
Saint James and are associated with his
shrine
A shrine ( la, scrinium "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred or holy space dedicated to a specific deity, ancestor, hero, martyr, saint, daemon, or similar figure of respect, wherein they ...
at
Santiago de Compostela
Santiago de Compostela is the capital of the autonomous community of Galicia, in northwestern Spain. The city has its origin in the shrine of Saint James the Great, now the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, as the destination of the Way of St ...
– a popular destination for
Christian pilgrims departing from Poole Harbour in the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
.
The arms were confirmed by the
College of Arms
The College of Arms, or Heralds' College, is a royal corporation consisting of professional officers of arms, with jurisdiction over England, Wales, Northern Ireland and some Commonwealth realms. The heralds are appointed by the British Sovere ...
on 19 June 1948, and at the same time, the crest (a
mermaid
In folklore, a mermaid is an aquatic creature with the head and upper body of a female human and the tail of a fish. Mermaids appear in the folklore of many cultures worldwide, including Europe, Asia, and Africa.
Mermaids are sometimes ass ...
supporting an anchor and holding a cannonball) was granted. Following
local government reorganisation in 1974, the 1948 arms were transferred to Poole Borough Council. In 1976, the council received the grant of
supporters for the coat of arms. The supporters refer to important charters given to the town; to the left is a gold lion holding a long sword representing
William Longespee who in 1248 granted the town's first charter; on the right is a
dragon derived from the
Royal Arms of
Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is ...
who granted Poole
county corporate status in 1568. The
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
motto
A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. Mot ...
– ''Ad Morem Villae De Poole'', means: ''According to the Custom of the Town of Poole'', and derives from the Great Charter of 1568.
Geography
Poole is a complex shore of the
English Channel
The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...
; it lies on the northern and eastern edges of
Poole Harbour
Poole Harbour is a large natural harbour in Dorset, southern England, with the town of Poole on its shores. The harbour is a drowned valley (ria) formed at the end of the last ice age and is the estuary of several rivers, the largest being t ...
, west-southwest of London. The oldest part of the town (including the historic Old Town, Poole Quay and the
Dolphin Shopping Centre
The Dolphin Shopping Centre is a shopping centre in Poole, Dorset, England, formerly known as the Arndale Centre.
The shopping centre adjoins Poole Bus Station.
History and development
In 1957 discussions began about creating a covered in shopp ...
) lies to the south-east of
Holes Bay
A hole is an opening in or through a particular medium, usually a solid body. Holes occur through natural and artificial processes, and may be useful for various purposes, or may represent a problem needing to be addressed in many fields of en ...
on a peninsula jutting into the harbour, although much of the land to the east of the peninsula has been reclaimed from the harbour since the mid-20th century. To the west is
Upton and
Corfe Mullen
Corfe Mullen is a village in Dorset, England, on the north-western urban fringe of the South East Dorset conurbation. The village had a population of 10,133 at the 2011 Census. It is served by six churches, four pubs, five schools, a library, v ...
and across the northern border at the
River Stour lies
Wimborne Minster
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 Poo ...
. At the eastern edge of Poole, the town abuts Bournemouth and the settlements of
Kinson
Kinson is a former village which has been absorbed by the town of Bournemouth in the county of Dorset in England. The area became part of Bournemouth on 1 April 1931. There were two electoral wards containing the name Kinson (North & South). The ...
,
Winton and
Westbourne. To the south of Poole along the coast lies
Poole Bay
Poole Bay is a bay in the English Channel, on the coast of Dorset in southern England, which stretches 16km from Sandbanks at the mouth of Poole Harbour in the west, to Hengistbury Head in the east. Poole Bay is a relatively shallow embayment a ...
, which has of sandy beaches from
Sandbanks
Sandbanks is an affluent neighbourhood of Poole, Dorset, on the south coast of England, situated on a narrow spit of around 1 km2 or 0.39 sq mi extending into the mouth of Poole Harbour.
It is known for its high property prices and for it ...
in the west to Bournemouth in the east.
Urban areas and districts of the town
''Poole is made up of numerous suburbs and neighbourhoods, many of which developed from villages or
hamlets
A hamlet is a human settlement that is smaller than a town or village. Its size relative to a parish can depend on the administration and region. A hamlet may be considered to be a smaller settlement or subdivision or satellite entity to a lar ...
that were absorbed into Poole as the town grew.''
Alderney –
Bearwood –
Branksome –
Branksome Park –
Broadstone –
Canford Cliffs
Canford Cliffs is a suburb of Poole in Dorset, England. The neighbourhood lies on the English Channel coast midway between Poole and Bournemouth. To the southwest is Sandbanks which has some of the highest property values in the world; with Canf ...
–
Canford Heath –
Creekmoor –
Fleetsbridge
Fleetsbridge is a small area of Poole, Dorset, centred on a busy gyratory and flyover. It lies north of Poole town centre and borders the neighbouring suburbs of Waterloo, Creekmoor, Oakdale and Canford Heath. The use of land varies between ...
–
Hamworthy
Hamworthy is a village, parish, peninsula and suburb of Poole in Dorset, England. It is sited on a peninsula of approximately that is bordered by the town of Upton to the north, Poole Harbour to the south, Lytchett Bay to the west and Hol ...
–
Lilliput –
Longfleet
Longfleet is a small district of Poole, Dorset centred on Longfleet Road. It is situated directly north of the town centre and lies to the east of Oakdale and to the south and west of Parkstone.
History
The area of Longfleet was originally par ...
–
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 ...
–
Oakley –
Newtown –
Oakdale –
Parkstone
Parkstone is an area of Poole, Dorset. It is divided into 'Lower' and 'Upper' Parkstone. Upper Parkstone - "Up-on-'ill" as it used to be known in local parlance - is so-called because it is largely on higher ground slightly to the north of t ...
–
Penn Hill –
Sandbanks
Sandbanks is an affluent neighbourhood of Poole, Dorset, on the south coast of England, situated on a narrow spit of around 1 km2 or 0.39 sq mi extending into the mouth of Poole Harbour.
It is known for its high property prices and for it ...
–
Sterte –
Talbot Village
Talbot Village is located on the boundary of Bournemouth and Poole in Dorset, England.
The old Talbot Village was built between 1850 and 1862 because of the generosity of two sisters, Georgina and Mary Talbot. Georgina and Mary divided their y ...
–
Wallisdown
Wallisdown is a residential and commercial area situated partly in Bournemouth and partly in Poole, in southern England. The appropriate ward is called Wallisdown and Winton West.
Geography
Wallisdown is situated on the border between Bourne ...
–
Waterloo –
Whitecliff
![Dorset geology](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/56/Dorset_geology.png)
The natural environment of Poole is characterised by lowland
heathland
A heath () is a shrubland habitat found mainly on free-draining infertile, acidic soils and characterised by open, low-growing woody vegetation. Moorland is generally related to high-ground heaths with—especially in Great Britain—a coole ...
to the north and wooded
chine
A chine () is a steep-sided coastal gorge where a river flows to the sea through, typically, soft eroding cliffs of sandstone or clays. The word is still in use in central Southern England—notably in East Devon, Dorset, Hampshire and the Is ...
s and coastline to the south. The heathland habitat supports the six native
British reptile species and provides a home for a range of
dragonflies
A dragonfly is a flying insect belonging to the infraorder Anisoptera below the order Odonata. About 3,000 extant species of true dragonfly are known. Most are tropical, with fewer species in temperate regions. Loss of wetland habitat threa ...
and rare birds. Development has destroyed much of the heath but scattered fragments remain to the north of Poole and have been designated
Special Protection Area
A Special Protection Area (SPA) is a designation under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds. Under the Directive, Member States of the European Union (EU) have a duty to safeguard the habitats of migratory birds and certa ...
s. The town lies on unresistant beds of
Eocene
The Eocene ( ) Epoch is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (mya). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), Era. The name ''Eocene' ...
clays (mainly London Clay and Gault Clay), sands and gravels.
The
River Frome runs through this weak rock, and its many tributary, tributaries have carved out a wide estuary. At the mouth of the estuary spit (landform), sand spits have been deposited, enclosing the estuary to create Poole Harbour.
The harbour is the largest Harbour#Natural harbors, natural harbour in Europe and the second-largest natural harbour in the world after Port Jackson, Sydney Harbour. It is an area of international importance for nature conservation and is noted for its ecology, supporting salt marshes, mudflats and an internationally important habitat for several species of Migrating birds, migrating bird. It has been designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest, Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), a Special Protection Area and a Ramsar Convention, Ramsar site as well as falling within an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
The harbour covers an area of and is extremely shallow. The main shipping channels are deep the average depth of the harbour is .
It contains several small islands, the largest is Brownsea Island, a nature reserve owned by the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, National Trust and the birthplace of the Scouting movement and location of the first Brownsea Island Scout Camp, Scout Camp.
Britain's largest onshore oil field operates from Wytch Farm on the south shore of the harbour.
The Petroleum reservoir, oil reservoirs extend under the harbour and eastwards from Sandbanks and Studland for under the sea to the south of Bournemouth.
[Andrews I.J. & Balson P.S. (1995), ''Wight: Sheet 50N 02W Solid Geology'', 1:250,000 Geological map series, Keyworth: British Geological Survey.]
Situated directly to the east of the Jurassic Coast, Poole is a gateway town to the UNESCO World Heritage Site, which includes of the Dorset and east Devon coast important for its geology, landforms and rich fossil record.
The South West Coast Path stretches for from Minehead in Somerset, along the coast of Devon and Cornwall and on to Poole. The path is England's longest Long-distance footpaths in the UK, national trail.
Climate
Due to its location on the south coast of England, Poole has a temperate climate with a small variation in daily and annual temperatures. The average annual Arithmetic mean, mean temperature from 1971 to 2000 was .
The warmest months in Poole are July and August, which have an average Diurnal temperature variation, temperature range of , and the coolest months are January and February, which have a range of .
Mean sea surface temperatures range from in February to in August.
The average annual rainfall of is well below the UK average of .
Green belt
Poole lies at the centre of a Green belt (United Kingdom), green belt region that extends into the wider surrounding counties. It is in place to reduce urban sprawl, prevent the towns in the South East Dorset conurbation from further convergence, protect the identity of outlying communities, and preserve nearby countryside. This is achieved by restricting inappropriate development within the designated areas and imposing stricter conditions on permitted building.
Poole has areas of green belt to the north and west of the district, mostly on the fringes of the shared border with the Purbeck and East Dorset districts. These cover landscape features and greenfield facilities including the rivers Stour and River Sherford, Sherford and their floodplains, the Stour Valley Way,
Canford Heathland, Dunyeats Hill and Corfe & Barrow Hills, Corfe and Barrow Hill nature reserves, Upton Country Park, Pergins Island, and the Wimborne District Society of Model Engineers miniature railway.
The small communities at Merley, Canford Magna, Oakley and Oakley Hill are separated from the main urban area, and while inset, are not covered by green belt. However, the isolated hamlets of Knighton, Merley Hall and Ashington, Dorset, Ashington are 'washed over', and development is limited in these locations.
A specific function of the restrictions is to prevent further urban encroachment towards
Wimborne Minster
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 Poo ...
, to help maintain its historic character and surroundings.
Demography
Poole merges with several other towns to form the South East Dorset conurbation which has a combined population of over 465,000, forming one of the South Coast's major urban areas.
In the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 census, the population of the borough of Poole was 147,645,
[ an increase from 138,288 in 2001 UK Census, 2001.] The town has a built-up area of , giving an approximate population density of in 60,512 dwellings. The population has grown steadily since the 1960s, Internal migration, inward migration has accounted for most of the town's growth and a significant part of this has been for retirement. Housing stock has increased by over 100 per cent in the past 40 years from 30,000 in 1961 to approximately 62,700 in 2004. Compared to the rest of England and Wales, Poole has an above-average number of residents aged over 65 (20.3%), but this is less than the Dorset average of 22.2%. The largest proportion of the population (24.8%) is between the ages of 45 to 64, slightly above the national average of 23.8%. Population projections have predicted a continual growth; a population of 151,481 is estimated by 2016.
The district is overwhelmingly populated by people of a White ethnic background, 95.98% of residents are of White British ethnicity, well above the rest of England at 86.99%. Minority ethnic groups (including those in White ethnic groups who did not classify themselves as British) represent 4.0% of Poole's population. The largest religion in Poole is Christianity, at almost 74.34%, slightly above the Religion in the United Kingdom#Statistics, United Kingdom average of 71.6%. The next-largest sector is those with no religion, at almost 16.23%, also above the UK average of 15.5%.
The average house price in Poole is high compared to the rest of the UK and the surrounding South West England, south-west region. The average price of a property in Poole in 2008 was £274,011; Single-family detached home, detached houses were on average £374,150, semi-detached and terraced houses were cheaper at £226,465 and £217,128 respectively. An apartment or flat costs on average £216,097, more than any other part of Dorset. The average house prices in Poole are boosted by those in Sandbanks
Sandbanks is an affluent neighbourhood of Poole, Dorset, on the south coast of England, situated on a narrow spit of around 1 km2 or 0.39 sq mi extending into the mouth of Poole Harbour.
It is known for its high property prices and for it ...
which had the fourth-most expensive house prices in the world in 2000; in 2007 the average house price was £488,761. A study in 2006 by the National Housing Federation reported that Poole was the most unaffordable town in which to live in the UK.
Economy
Poole's economy is more balanced than the rest of Dorset. In the 1960s, prosperity was fuelled by growth in the Secondary sector of economic activity, manufacturing sector, whereas the 1980s and 1990s saw expansion in the Tertiary sector of economic activity, service sector as office-based employers relocated to the area. The importance of manufacturing has declined since the 1960s but still employed approximately 17% of the workforce in 2002 and remains more prominent than in the economy of Great Britain as a whole. Sunseeker, the world's largest privately-owned builder of Luxury yacht, motor yachts and the UK's largest manufacturer, is based in Poole and employs over 1,800 people in its Poole shipyards. Other major employers in the local manufacturing industry include Lush (company), Lush, Siemens and Ryvita. Poole has the largest number of industrial estates in South East Dorset conurbation, South East Dorset, including the Nuffield Industrial estate, Mannings Heath, Arena Business Park, Poole Trade Park and the Branksome Business Centre.
The service sector is the principal economy of Poole; a large number of employees work for the service economy of residents or for tourists. During the 1970s, Poole's less restrictive regional planning policies attracted businesses wishing to relocate from London. These included employers in the banking and financial sector, such as Barclays Bank (who operated Barclays House as a regional headquarters in Poole), American Express Bank and the corporate trust division of Bank of New York Mellon. Other important service sector employers include the national headquarters and college of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution, Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), the UK headquarters of Fitness First, Bournemouth University
Bournemouth University is a public university in Bournemouth, England, with its main campus situated in neighbouring Poole. The university was founded in 1992; however, the origins of its predecessor date back to the early 1900s.
The univer ...
and Arts University Bournemouth. Poole is also the headquarters for clothing company Animal (clothing), Animal, cosmetics manufacturer, Lush, and Merlin Entertainments, the world's second-largest theme park operator after Disney. The Dolphin Shopping Centre
The Dolphin Shopping Centre is a shopping centre in Poole, Dorset, England, formerly known as the Arndale Centre.
The shopping centre adjoins Poole Bus Station.
History and development
In 1957 discussions began about creating a covered in shopp ...
is Poole's main retail area and the largest indoor shopping centre in Dorset. It opened in 1969 as an Arndale Centre and underwent three major refurbishments in 1980, 1989 and 2004. The centre provides of retail space with 110 stores and two multi-storey car parks with 1,400 parking spaces. A pedestrianised high street with shops, bars, pubs and restaurants connects the Dolphin Centre with the historic Old Town area and Poole Quay. Tourism is important to the Poole's economy and was worth an estimated £158 million in 2002. Poole's Harbour, Quay and the beaches are some of the main attractions for visitors. Visitor accommodation consists of hotels, Guest house (lodging), guest houses and bed and breakfast rooms located around the town, particularly in Sandbanks and the town centre. Rockley Park, a large RV park, caravan site in Hamworthy
Hamworthy is a village, parish, peninsula and suburb of Poole in Dorset, England. It is sited on a peninsula of approximately that is bordered by the town of Upton to the north, Poole Harbour to the south, Lytchett Bay to the west and Hol ...
, is owned and operated by Haven Holidays.
Poole is served by the Port of Poole. Since the 1970s, Poole has become one of Britain's busiest ports. Investment in new port facilities in Hamworthy and the deepening of shipping channels allowed considerable growth in English Channel, cross-channel freight and passenger traffic. The port is a destination for bulk cargo imports such as steel, timber, bricks, fertiliser, grain, aggregates and palletised traffic. Export cargoes include clay, sand, fragmented steel and grain. Commercial ferry operators run regular passenger and freight services from Poole to Cherbourg, St Malo and the Channel Islands
The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...
. The Royal Marines operate out of the harbour at RM Poole, established in Hamworthy in 1954. The base is home to special forces unit the Special Boat Service and a detachment of the Royal Marines Reserve. In 2008, 105 fishing boats were registered and licensed to the port and held a permit issued by the Southern Sea Fisheries District Committee (SSFDC) to fish commercially. It is the largest port in terms of licences in the SSFDC district which covers the coastline of Dorset, Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...
and the Isle of Wight, and one of the largest registered fishing fleets in the UK. However, the fleet is gradually declining because of rising fuel costs and restrictive Common Fisheries Policy, fishing quotas introduced by the European Union. A large number of unlicensed boats also operate charted or private angling excursions.
Landmarks
Poole Quay is a visitor attraction to the south of the town centre lined with a mixture of traditional pubs and listed buildings alongside new bars, redeveloped warehouses and apartment blocks. Once the busy centre of Poole's Shipping, maritime industry, all port activities moved to Hamworthy
Hamworthy is a village, parish, peninsula and suburb of Poole in Dorset, England. It is sited on a peninsula of approximately that is bordered by the town of Upton to the north, Poole Harbour to the south, Lytchett Bay to the west and Hol ...
in the 1970s as the Quay became increasingly popular with tourists. The Grade II* listed Custom House, Poole, Customs House on the quay-front was built in 1814 and now functions as a restaurant and bar. Nearby the Grade I listed Town Cellars, a medieval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
warehouse built in the 15th century on the foundations of a 14th-century stone building, houses a local history centre. Scaplen's Court, another Grade I listed building, also dates from the medieval era. Poole Pottery has been redeveloped into an Tower block, apartment block. Boats regularly depart from the quay during the summer and provide cruises around the harbour and to Brownsea Island, the River Frome and Swanage. Public artworks along the Quay include ''Sea Music'' – a large metal sculpture designed by Sir Anthony Caro, and a life-size Statue of Robert Baden-Powell, Poole, bronze sculpture of Robert Baden-Powell created to celebrate the founding of the Scouting, Scout Movement on Brownsea Island. At the western end of the quay, near the mouth of Holes Bay, is Poole Bridge. Built in 1927, it is the third bridge to be located on the site since 1834.
Poole Guildhall has played a varied part in the history of the town. A Grade II* listed building, the Guildhall was built in 1761 at a cost of £2,250. The new building included an open Marketplace, market house on the ground floor and a courtroom and offices for the town council on the first floor and has also been used as a court of record, magistrates' court (England and Wales), magistrates' court, admiralty court, court of admiralty and a venue for court of quarter sessions, quarter sessions. Between 1819 and 1821 the building was consecrated as a Church of England parish church, parish church while the old St James' Church, Poole, St. James Church was pulled down and replaced with the present church. During the Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, the building was used as a canteen and meeting room for American soldiers before the Operation Overlord, invasion of France. The showers and washing facilities installed at this time were later converted into Public bathing, public baths which were used until the 1960s. The building was converted for use as the town museum between 1971 and 1991 but stood empty for the next 16 years. After a renovation project funded by Poole Borough Council, the restored Guildhall opened in June 2007 as a Register Office for weddings, Civil partnership in the United Kingdom, civil partnerships and other civic ceremonies.
Poole has several urban parks – the largest is Poole Park adjacent to Poole Harbour
Poole Harbour is a large natural harbour in Dorset, southern England, with the town of Poole on its shores. The harbour is a drowned valley (ria) formed at the end of the last ice age and is the estuary of several rivers, the largest being t ...
and the town centre. It opened in 1890 and is one of two Victorian era, Victorian parks in Poole. Designated a Conservation Area in 1995 and awarded a Green Flag Award, Green Flag in 2008, the park comprises of which include the park's man-made lake and ponds. The park contains two children's play areas, a Poole Park Railway, miniature railway, tennis courts, a bowling green, a miniature golf course, an Italian restaurant and an indoor ice rink for children. A cricket field and pavilion at the eastern end are home to Poole Town Cricket Club and water sport activities such as sailing, windsurfing, kayaking and rowing take place on the large lake. A war memorial stands in the centre of the park as a monument to Poole citizens killed during the World War I, First and Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
s. The park hosts several Road running, road races such as the Race for Life and the annual Poole Festival of Running.
Poole's sandy beaches are a popular tourist destination extending along Poole Bay
Poole Bay is a bay in the English Channel, on the coast of Dorset in southern England, which stretches 16km from Sandbanks at the mouth of Poole Harbour in the west, to Hengistbury Head in the east. Poole Bay is a relatively shallow embayment a ...
from the Sandbanks
Sandbanks is an affluent neighbourhood of Poole, Dorset, on the south coast of England, situated on a narrow spit of around 1 km2 or 0.39 sq mi extending into the mouth of Poole Harbour.
It is known for its high property prices and for it ...
peninsular to Branksome Dene Chine at the border with Bournemouth. The beaches are divided into four areas: Sandbanks, Shore Road, Canford Cliffs Chine and Branksome Chine. Poole's beaches have been awarded the Blue Flag beach, European Blue Flag for cleanliness and safety 21 times since 1987, more than any other British seaside resort and in 2000 the Keep Britain Tidy, Tidy Britain Group resort survey rated Poole's beaches among the top five in the country. Along the seafront, there are seaside cafés, restaurants, beach huts and numerous water-sports facilities. Royal National Lifeboat Institution Beach Rescue lifeguards patrol the coastline in the busy summer season between May and September.
Religious sites
Poole falls within the Church of England Diocese of Salisbury and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Plymouth. Poole has many sites of Christian Church, Christian worship including five Grade II* and five Grade II Listed building, listed churches, but no notable sites of worship for any other major religious groups. The Grade II* St James' Church, Poole, St James' Church is a simplified Gothic Revival architecture, Gothic Revival style Church of England parish church in the Old Town which was rebuilt in 1820. The previous church on the site was first mentioned in documents from 1142 and had been extensively rebuilt in the 16th century, but in 1819 it was deemed structurally unsafe by a surveyors report. The United Reformed Church hall, also in the town centre, is a Grade II* building built in 1777. The other Grade II* churches are: St. Peter's Parish Church in Parkstone
Parkstone is an area of Poole, Dorset. It is divided into 'Lower' and 'Upper' Parkstone. Upper Parkstone - "Up-on-'ill" as it used to be known in local parlance - is so-called because it is largely on higher ground slightly to the north of t ...
which was first built in 1833 and replaced in 1876; St Dunstan of Canterbury Orthodox Church, also in Parkstone, an Antiochian Orthodox Church, Antiochian Orthodox church, formerly the Anglicanism, Anglican Church of St Osmund, in a Neo-Byzantine style building; and the St Aldhelm's Church, Poole, Parish Church of St. Aldhelm in Branksome, built by the architects George Frederick Bodley, Bodley and Thomas Garner, Garner in 1892 in the Gothic Revival style. Described by English Heritage as "one of Poole's most important landmarks", the Gothic Revival church of St Mary's Church, Longfleet, St Mary's in Longfleet
Longfleet is a small district of Poole, Dorset centred on Longfleet Road. It is situated directly north of the town centre and lies to the east of Oakdale and to the south and west of Parkstone.
History
The area of Longfleet was originally par ...
, built in 1833, is one of Poole's Grade II listed churches. There are also two Christadelphian meeting halls in the town.
Sport and recreation
Poole Harbour
Poole Harbour is a large natural harbour in Dorset, southern England, with the town of Poole on its shores. The harbour is a drowned valley (ria) formed at the end of the last ice age and is the estuary of several rivers, the largest being t ...
and Poole Bay
Poole Bay is a bay in the English Channel, on the coast of Dorset in southern England, which stretches 16km from Sandbanks at the mouth of Poole Harbour in the west, to Hengistbury Head in the east. Poole Bay is a relatively shallow embayment a ...
are popular areas for recreational pursuits such as: sailing, windsurfing, surfing, kitesurfing and water skiing. The harbour's large areas of sheltered waters attract windsurfers, particularly around the northern and eastern shores. Water skiing takes place in the harbour in a specially designated area known as the Wareham Channel. The waters around the harbour, Poole Bay and Studland Bay are also popular for recreational angling and diving.
The beaches at Sandbanks
Sandbanks is an affluent neighbourhood of Poole, Dorset, on the south coast of England, situated on a narrow spit of around 1 km2 or 0.39 sq mi extending into the mouth of Poole Harbour.
It is known for its high property prices and for it ...
are often used for sporting events such as the Sandbanks Beach Volleyball Festival, and the annual British Beach polo Championship.
Since 1999 the town's Rossmore Leisure Centre has hosted the GMPD Poole Gymnastics Competition every October with the Holiday Inn Express hosting some of the competitors as well as previously a Disco on the Saturday evening which has since been scrapped, hundreds of competitors from across the country compete each year, the competition celebrated its 20th Anniversary in 2019. Following a 2 year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic it is hoped it will return in 2022.
Sailing
Poole Harbour is one of the largest centres for sailing in the UK with a number of yacht clubs such as the: East Dorset Sailing Club, Lilliput Sailing Club, Parkstone Yacht Club, Poole Yacht Club, Sandbanks Yacht Company and the Royal Motor Yacht Club.
Parkstone Yacht Club hosted the OK (dinghy), OK Dinghy World Championships in 2004, the J/24 National Championships in 2006 and the J/24 European Championships in 2007, with th
2020 J24 Worlds
hosted here also and are the organisers of Youth Week and Poole Week – two of the largest annual dinghy regattas of their type in the country.
Football
Poole's oldest Association Football, football team is Poole Town F.C., a semi-professional team who play in the Southern Football League – the seventh tier of the English football league system. Established in 1880, the team has had erratic success at their level; they have never risen above Non-League football, non-League levels but once reached the third round of the FA Cup. They played at Poole Stadium until 1994 and have since settled at Tatnam Farm, sharing the school playing field with Oakdale Junior School. Poole's other football teams are Hamworthy United, formed in 1970, and play in the Wessex Premier League, and the amateur team Poole Borough F.C. who play in the Dorset Premier League. Poole is one of the largest towns in England without a professional football team.
Speedway
Poole's motorcycle speedway team, the Poole Pirates, were established and began racing at Poole Stadium in 1948 in the Speedway National League Division Three, National League Division Three. The team now races in the top tier of league racing (the Elite League (speedway), Elite League) which they won in 2008 Elite League speedway season, 2008, 2011 Elite League speedway season, 2011, 2013 Elite League speedway season, 2013, and 2014 Elite League speedway season, 2014. Poole Stadium is also a venue for greyhound racing; race nights occur three days a week throughout the year.
Scouting
Poole has three of the oldest Scout Association groups in the world, 1st Parkstone Air Scout Group holds records dating back to February 1908 and 1st Hamworthy Scout Group has records dating back to October 1908; both groups were formed out of the original Boys' Brigade units that had members take part in the original Scout Camp in 1907. Broadstone Group has records dating back to December 1908 and was home to the first King's/Queen's Scout.
Nature parks
Working with the Dorset Wildlife Trust, Poole Council has opened two nature parks:
* Holes Bay Nature Park, opened in 2015, includes Upton Country Park. The bay is an important feeding and roosting site for wetland birds.
* Corfe Barrows Nature Park, opened in 2016, is a group of eight natural sites, including Happy Bottom Nature Reserve, that is being jointly managed for wildlife and people in the north of the borough.
Walking
Poole Tourism has developed and waymarked a number of trails and circular walks, collectively called the Poole Harbour Trails.
Cycling
Poole has over of cycle network, including the Castleman Trailway, the Poole Heritage Cycle Route and the Bourne Valley Greenway.
Culture
The 'Beating the bounds, Beating of the bounds' is an ancient annual custom first carried out in 1612, which revives the traditional checking of the sea boundaries awarded to Poole by the Cinque Ports, Cinque Port of Winchelsea in 1364. The Admiral of the Port of Poole (the mayor) and other dignitaries, and members of the public sail from the mouth of the River Frome to Old Harry Rocks to confirm the Mayor's authority over the water boundaries of the harbour and check for any encroachments. As there are no physical landmarks that can be beaten at sea, traditionally children from Poole were encouraged to remember the bounds of their town by taking part in the 'Pins and Points' ceremony involving the beating of a boy and pricking of a girl's hand with a needle. In modern times, the acts have been symbolically carried out.
Poole's ''Summertime in the South'' is an annual programme providing various events on Poole Quay and Sandbanks from May until September. During June and July, live music, street entertainment and a large firework display take place on Poole Quay every Thursday evening. In August, the entertainment moves to the beaches at Sandbanks.
Poole's Lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways.
Lighthouses mar ...
is the largest arts centre complex in the United Kingdom outside London. Built in 1978, the centre contains a cinema, concert hall, studio, theatre, image lab and media suite and galleries featuring exhibitions of contemporary photography and modern digital art. The venue underwent an £8.5 million refurbishment in 2002, paid for by the Arts Council England, the Borough of Poole and private donations. The centre's concert hall has been the residence of the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra
The Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an English orchestra, founded in 1893 and originally based in Bournemouth. With a remit to serve the South and South West of England, the BSO is administratively based in the adjacent town of Poole, s ...
's main concert series since their former base at the Bournemouth Winter Gardens closed in 1985. Situated in the centre of the Old Town, Poole Museum illustrates the story of the area and its people and the collections reflect the cultural, social and industrial history of Poole. Displays include the Poole Logboat and a detailed history of Poole from the Iron Age
The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...
to the present day. The museum has a floor devoted to the history of Poole Pottery and some of the company's products are on display. Entrance to the museum is free.
Transport
The A350 road is Poole town centre's main artery, running north along Holes Bay and on to the A35 road, A35, and as a single carriageway to Bath, Somerset, Bath and Bristol. To the east, the A337 road leads to Lymington and the New Forest. The A35 trunk road runs from Devon to Southampton
Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
and connects to the A31 road, A31 on the outskirts of the town. The A31, the major trunk road in central southern England, connects to the M27 motorway at Southampton. From here the M3 motorway (Great Britain), M3 motorway leads to London, and fast access may also be gained via the A34 road (England), A34 to the M4 motorway, M4 north of Newbury, Berkshire, Newbury. Poole Bridge, a narrow bascule bridge constructed in 1927, connects the town centre and Hamworthy. Approval for a second bridge was given by the Department for Transport in 2006 and the £37 million Twin Sails bridge was completed in 2012. A road link to Studland and the Isle of Purbeck across the narrow entrance of Poole Harbour is provided by the Sandbanks Ferry. Poole is also home to the Poole Heritage Cycle Route.
Most local bus services are run by Wilts & Dorset, morebus who are based at the town's bus station and have served Poole since 1983. morebus operate networks across Poole, Bournemouth, Christchurch
Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...
and Salisbury, in addition to operations on the Isle of Purbeck and the New Forest. Other services are run by Bournemouth-based Yellow Buses and Damory Coaches. Poole is connected to towns and villages along the Jurassic Coast by the First Hampshire & Dorset X54 service, which runs along a route to Wareham, Wool, Dorset, Wool, Lulworth Cove and Weymouth, Dorset, Weymouth. Poole is also a calling point for National Express Coaches, which have frequent departures to London Victoria Coach Station. There are also direct services to the English Midlands, Midlands, the North of England and to Heathrow Airport, Heathrow and Gatwick Airport, Gatwick airports.
Poole has four railway stations on the South West Main Line from London Waterloo railway station, London Waterloo to Weymouth. From east to west these are Branksome railway station, Branksome near the border with Bournemouth, Parkstone railway station, Parkstone, Poole railway station in the town centre and Hamworthy
Hamworthy is a village, parish, peninsula and suburb of Poole in Dorset, England. It is sited on a peninsula of approximately that is bordered by the town of Upton to the north, Poole Harbour to the south, Lytchett Bay to the west and Hol ...
. Services are operated by South Western Railway (train operating company), South Western Railway and consist of up to three trains an hour (fast, semi-fast and stopping services) to and from London, and twice an hour to and from Weymouth.
Poole is a cross-Channel port for passengers and freight. Ferry services from Poole Harbour
Poole Harbour is a large natural harbour in Dorset, southern England, with the town of Poole on its shores. The harbour is a drowned valley (ria) formed at the end of the last ice age and is the estuary of several rivers, the largest being t ...
to Cherbourg are provided by Brittany Ferries who operate one round trip per day using the MV Barfleur, ''Barfleur'' The Condor Ferries fast ferry HSC Condor Liberation, ''Condor Liberation'' provides seasonal services to Guernsey, Jersey
Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label= Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west France. It is the l ...
and St. Malo, Brittany. Bournemouth Airport, Bournemouth International Airport in Hurn, on the periphery of Bournemouth, is the nearest airport to Poole – from the town centre. Ryanair, easyJet and TUI Airways operate from the airport and provide scheduled services to destinations in the UK and Europe.
Education
Poole has eleven infant schools, seven junior schools, ten primary schools, nine Secondary school#United Kingdom, secondary schools, three special schools, five Independent school (UK), independent schools and one college of further education. Two of Poole's secondary schools are grammar schools which maintain a selective education system, assessed by the Eleven-plus, eleven-plus exam. Poole High School is the largest secondary school in Poole with 1,660 pupils. The Bournemouth and Poole College attracts over 16,000 students a year and is one of the largest further education colleges in the country and the leading provider of academic and vocational education in Dorset. It has two centrally located main campuses in Poole and Bournemouth.
From the 2007 General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) results, Poole was ranked 18th out of 148 local authorities in England based on the percentage of pupils attaining at least five A* to C grades at GCSE level including English and maths (54.5% compared with the national average of 46.8%). Parkstone Grammar School was the most successful secondary school in Poole for GCSE results in 2007: 100% of pupils gained five or more GCSEs at A* to C grade including English and maths. Canford School also achieved 100% and Poole Grammar School was the next best performing school with 98%. Poole High School achieved 39% and the worst performing school was Rossmore Community College where only 19% of students achieved five or more A* to C grade results. Poole's grammar schools were also the best performing for A-level results. Poole Grammar School was the 60th most successful school/sixth form in the country in 2007: each student achieved on average 1071.4 points compared to the national average of 731.2. Parkstone Grammar School students averaged 1017.9 points.
Bournemouth University
Bournemouth University is a public university in Bournemouth, England, with its main campus situated in neighbouring Poole. The university was founded in 1992; however, the origins of its predecessor date back to the early 1900s.
The univer ...
was designated as a university in 1992 and despite its name, the university's main campus (the Talbot Campus) and buildings are within the boundaries of Poole Borough; a smaller campus is situated in Bournemouth itself. Media courses are the university's strength, and recent teaching quality assessments have resulted in ratings of 'excellent' for courses in the areas of communication and media, business and management, catering and hospitality, archaeology and nursing and midwifery. The Arts University Bournemouth was designated as a university in 2012 and is located at Wallisdown
Wallisdown is a residential and commercial area situated partly in Bournemouth and partly in Poole, in southern England. The appropriate ward is called Wallisdown and Winton West.
Geography
Wallisdown is situated on the border between Bourne ...
. It offers Undergraduate degree, undergraduate, foundation degree, Postgraduate education, postgraduate and further education courses in contemporary arts, design and media.
Public services
Home Office policing is provided by the Poole and Bournemouth Division of Dorset Police which has one police station in Poole on Wimborne Road in the town centre. Dorset Fire and Rescue Service provides Fire service in the United Kingdom, statutory emergency fire and rescue services for Poole and are based at Poole Fire Station in Creekmoor which opened in 2008. The former fire station on Wimborne Road was demolished in 2008 and was replaced with a joint fire and police divisional headquarters which opened in 2009.
Poole Hospital is a large acute hospital in Longfleet
Longfleet is a small district of Poole, Dorset centred on Longfleet Road. It is situated directly north of the town centre and lies to the east of Oakdale and to the south and west of Parkstone.
History
The area of Longfleet was originally par ...
with 638 beds and is part of University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust. It opened in 1969 as Poole General Hospital, replacing Poole's Cornelia Hospital which had stood on the site since 1907. The hospital is the major Emergency department, trauma centre for East Dorset and provides core services such as child health and maternity for a catchment area including Bournemouth and Christchurch. Specialist services such as neurological care and cancer treatment are also provided for the rest of Dorset. The South Western Ambulance Service provides emergency patient transport.
Waste management and recycling are co-ordinated by Poole Borough Council in partnership with Viridor. Locally produced inert waste is sent to landfill for disposal. Recycle waste is taken to Viridor's Materials Recycling Facility in Crayford for processing. Poole's distribution network operator for electricity is Scottish and Southern Energy. The water supply and sewerage systems are managed by Wessex Water; groundwater sources in Wiltshire and Dorset provide 75% of drinking water, the rest comes from reservoirs fed by rivers and streams.
Media
Poole has one local newspaper, the ''Bournemouth Daily Echo, Daily Echo'', which is owned by Newsquest. Published since 1900, the newspaper features news from Poole, Bournemouth and the surrounding area. Issues are produced Monday through Saturday with an average Newspaper circulation, daily circulation of 13,579. For local television, Poole is served by the BBC South studios based in Southampton
Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
, and ITV Meridian from studios in Whiteley. Local radio stations broadcasting to the town include BBC Radio Solent, Wave 105, Heart Solent, Sam FM (South Coast), Sam FM, Fire Radio and The Bay 102.8, Hot Radio.
Notable people
The town has been the birthplace and home to notable people, of national and international acclaim. Former residents include British radio disc jockey Tony Blackburn, the artist Augustus John, John Lennon's aunt and parental guardian Mimi Smith, and ''The Lord of the Rings'' author J. R. R. Tolkien who lived in Poole for four years during his retirement. Alfred Russel Wallace, the 19th-century explorer, naturalist and co-formulator of the theory of evolution by natural selection, moved to Poole in 1902 when he was 78 years old and is buried in Broadstone cemetery.
Notable people born in Poole include the Suede (band), Suede guitarist Richard Oakes (guitarist), Richard Oakes,
Greg Lake of the band Emerson, Lake & Palmer, the author John le Carré, the novelist Maggie Gee (novelist), Maggie Gee, stage actor Oswald Yorke, actress Louisa Clein, cellist Natalie Clein, boxer Freddie Mills, the writer and actor David Croft (TV producer), David Croft, and James Stephen (British politician), James Stephen, the principal lawyer associated with the British Abolitionism in the United Kingdom, abolitionist movement. Edgar Wright, the director of films such as ''Shaun of the Dead'', ''Hot Fuzz'' and The World's End (film), The World's End was born in Poole and out of the five previous British winners of the Miss World title, two have hailed from Poole: Ann Sydney and Sarah-Jane Hutt. Harry Redknapp, the former Tottenham Hotspur F.C. manager, and his son Jamie Redknapp, a former England national football team player, have owned homes in Sandbanks
Sandbanks is an affluent neighbourhood of Poole, Dorset, on the south coast of England, situated on a narrow spit of around 1 km2 or 0.39 sq mi extending into the mouth of Poole Harbour.
It is known for its high property prices and for it ...
. Former Blue Peter presenter Katy Hill was also born in Poole. Molly Kingsbury who competed in the 2018 Commonwealth Games was born in Poole. The actress Susannah Fielding featured in This Time with Alan Partridge. Current Arsenal footballer Ben White (footballer), Ben White was born in Poole. Current Chelsea footballer Tino Anjorin was born in Poole. Chad Gould currently lives in Poole.
Twin towns
Poole is Town twinning, twinned with:
* Cherbourg-Octeville, Cherbourg in France (since 1977)
See also
*Compton Acres (garden), Compton Acres
*List of Dorset Beaches
*List of places in Dorset
*UK coastline
Notes
References
Bournemouth Local Transport Plan 2006–2011
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
External links
Borough of Poole website
*
*
{{Good article
Poole,
Seaside resorts in England
Towns in Dorset
Local government in Dorset
Unitary authority districts of England
Populated coastal places in Dorset
Local government districts of South West England
Unparished areas in Dorset
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
Port cities and towns in South West England
Former boroughs in England
Former non-metropolitan districts