Poole

Poole is a large English coastal town, Borough, port and tourist destination, situated on the shores of the English Channel, in the ceremonial county of Dorset. The town has a population of 141,128 and is part of the South East Dorset conurbation. Poole is famed for its large natural harbour, claimed to be the second largest in the world.

The town is one of the principal centres of sailing and yachting in the United Kingdom. Poole is home to the headquarters of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) and the luxury yacht manufacturer Sunseeker. The Special Boat Service (SBS) also operate out of the harbour.

During the summer months the town serves a large number of tourists who visit the waterfront, the town centre and the nearby Sandbanks beach and Brownsea Island. Other prominent employers in Poole include Barclays Bank, Hamworthy Engineering, Poole Packaging, Penske Cars, Ryvita, cosmetics company Lush, and the clothing company, Animal.

Sandbanks, a peninsula across part of the harbour mouth (to the east of the main town centre), is so popular that it has the highest land value, per sq foot, in the world. There are expensive homes both on Sandbanks and the area stretching east from the Harbour to The Avenue (the eastern boundary of Poole).

Poole Harbour (second largest natural harbour in the world after Sydney) has been a working port for many hundreds of years, though the port has declined as the shallow water cannot take any container ships. Today the port is the departure point for ferries.
The Lighthouse Arts Centre, located in the town centre is a theatre and entertainment complex.

Poole has a large public park, located adjacent to Poole Harbour and the towns sports complex and swimming centre. The Park is one of only two Victorian Parks in the Borough of Poole and the only one containing buildings. The park comprises 109.5 acres of which 60 acres are water. The Park has a lake, as well as a large fountain and two children's play areas. There is a monument to Poole citizens lost during the First and Second World Wars. In 2006 the park was redeveloped at a cost of £2 million. The redevelopment included a new restaurant, indoor ice rink and cleaning of the lake.

The majority of local bus services in Poole are provided by Wilts and Dorset who are based at the town’s bus station. Other services are run by Transdev Yellow Buses and Roadliner. There are limited services provided by First. Coach services to London and other destinations are operated by National Express.

Poole has four railway stations on the South Western Main Line from London Waterloo to Weymouth within the Borough. These are, from east to west, Branksome near the border with Bournemouth, Parkstone, Poole in the town centre and Hamworthy.. Poole railway station has the most frequent service and is served by express and semi-fast services to and from London Waterloo and also a local stopping service between Wareham and Brockenhurst.