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{{Short description|Population centre in Southern England}}
{{Use British English|date=March 2025}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2025}}
[[File:BCPBUA.png|thumb|Map of the Bournemouth/Poole built-up area, showing subdivisions|600px]]

The '''South East Dorset conurbation''' (also known as the '''South Dorset conurbation''',<ref>e.g. [[Audit Commission (United Kingdom)|Audit Commission]], [http://www.audit-commission.gov.uk/reports/accessible.asp?ProdID=D4AE26B4-CE5F-44B1-927F-89260139087B]</ref> '''Poole-Bournemouth [[urban area]]'''<ref>e.g. [[Hampshire]] County Council, [http://www.hants.gov.uk/decisions/decisions-docs/050726-exmrnh-R0720102502.html]</ref> and '''Bournemouth urban area''') is a multi-centred [[conurbation]] on the south coast of [[Dorset]] in England.

==Extent==
The main population centres are [[Bournemouth]], [[Christchurch, Dorset|Christchurch]], and [[Poole]] which are served by the single [[Unitary authorities of England|unitary authority]] of [[Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole]]. However, the urbanised area spreads into the area of the [[Dorset (district)|Dorset unitary authority]] and into the [[New Forest District]] as far east as [[Barton on Sea]]. There are a number of satellite towns peripheral to the urban centres, including (listed clockwise) [[Wareham, Dorset|Wareham]], [[Verwood]], and [[Ringwood, Hampshire|Ringwood]] (Hampshire). The urban area is generally surrounded by a [[South West Hampshire/South East Dorset Green Belt|green belt]].

In 2006, the [[South West England]] [[Regional Development Agency]] and the [[Highways Agency]], which maintains England's [[trunk road]]s, defined a South East Dorset Conurbation with over 400,000 people.<ref>{{cite web |title=Draft Regional Spatial Strategy |url=http://www.southwest-ra.gov.uk/swra/ourwork/RSS/draft_RSS.shtml |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060615093229/http://www.southwest-ra.gov.uk/swra/ourwork/RSS/draft_RSS.shtml |archive-date=15 June 2006 |access-date=2007-04-14 |website=South West Regional Assembly |df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite report |url=https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20081107155048/http://www.highways.gov.uk/business/documents/South_West.pdf |title=Safe roads, Reliable journeys, Informed travellers |date=November 2006 |publisher=Highways agency}}</ref> The term has also been applied to the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole boroughs, excluding the surrounding towns, for example, in their 2006 Joint [[Local Transport Plan]].<ref>Bournemouth Borough Council, [http://www.bournemouth.gov.uk/Library/PDF/Residents/Local_TRansport_Plan/LDR.pdf Local Transport Plan] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070126032159/http://www.bournemouth.gov.uk/Library/PDF/Residents/Local_TRansport_Plan/LDR.pdf|date=26 January 2007}}</ref> The conurbation is the largest urban area in Britain with no part having [[city status in the United Kingdom|city status]].<ref name="key">{{cite web |date= |title=Key Statistics for Urban Areas 2001 |url=http://www.statistics.gov.uk/census2001/ks_ub_ad.asp |accessdate=28 March 2012 |publisher=Statistics.gov.uk}}</ref>

==Population==
The 2011 census gave a population of 466,626 for the conurbation, defined by the [[Office for National Statistics]] as the Bournemouth/Poole Built-up Area, and divided it into six main parts: Bournemouth, [[Ferndown]], [[Wimborne Minster]], Christchurch, [[New Milton]], and Poole.<ref name="BUA">{{cite web |title=2011 Census – Built-up areas |url=http://www.nomisweb.co.uk/articles/747.aspx |accessdate=3 July 2013 |publisher=[[Office for National Statistics|ONS]]}}</ref>

The population of the conurbation increased significantly between the 2001 and 2011 censuses, mainly because the towns of Ferndown and Wimborne Minster became part of it. The population for the conurbation according to the 2001 and 1991 censuses was 383,713 and 358,321, respectively.<ref>Office for National Statistics, [http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/ssdataset.asp?vlnk=8271&Pos=2&ColRank=1&Rank=224 Census data]</ref>

==Nearby places==
There are a number of nearby towns and villages that are separated from the conurbation by narrow gaps. They include:

*[[Bransgore]]
*[[Lytchett Matravers]]
*[[Lymington]]
*[[Milford on Sea]]
*[[Ringwood, Hampshire|Ringwood]]
*[[St Ives, Dorset|St Ives]]
*[[St Leonards, Dorset|St Leonards]]
*[[Verwood]]
*[[West Moors]]

==Transport==
The conurbation is served by a number of main roads. The [[M27 motorway]] feeds the [[M3 motorway (Great Britain)|M3]] to London and ends on the eastern edge of the New Forest near [[Southampton]], but extends west as the [[A31 road|A31]] [[trunk road]]. The A31 serves as a bypass for the conurbation, north of Poole and Bournemouth but south of many of the satellite towns, and is dual carriageway for most of its length. To the west the A31 merges with the A35 at [[Bere Regis]] where they continue west to [[Dorchester, Dorset|Dorchester]] and [[Exeter]]. The A35 runs through the centres of the main towns in the conurbation. The [[A338 road|A338]] is the main arterial route in Bournemouth, running as a dual carriageway from Bournemouth town centre to the A31, and as a single carriageway north to [[Salisbury]]. The [[A350 road|A350]] is Poole town centre's main artery, running north along [[Holes Bay]] to the A35, and as a single carriageway to [[Bath, Somerset|Bath]] and [[Bristol]]. The [[A337 road|A337]] runs east to Lymington and the New Forest.

The conurbation is served by the [[South West Main Line]] which runs from London to [[Weymouth, Dorset|Weymouth]] via [[Winchester]], [[Southampton]] and [[Dorchester, Dorset|Dorchester]]. There are stations at [[New Milton railway station|New Milton]], [[Hinton Admiral railway station|Hinton Admiral]], [[Christchurch railway station (England)|Christchurch]], [[Pokesdown railway station|Pokesdown]], [[Bournemouth railway station|Bournemouth]], [[Branksome railway station|Branksome]], [[Parkstone railway station|Parkstone]], [[Poole railway station|Poole]], [[Hamworthy railway station|Hamworthy]] and [[Holton Heath railway station|Holton Heath]]. The [[Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway]] to Bath had its southern terminus here, until its closure in 1966 under the [[Beeching Axe]].

The conurbation's bus services are almost entirely provided by [[morebus]].

The Port of Poole has regular [[roll-on/roll-off]] ferry connections to [[Cherbourg-en-Cotentin|Cherbourg]] in France, and [[Gijón|Gijon]] and [[Santander, Spain|Santander]] in Spain. High-speed car ferries operate to the Channel Islands, Cherbourg and [[Saint-Malo|St. Malo]], and a regular all-freight service to the Channel Islands. [[Bournemouth Airport]] is about {{Convert|4|mi|4=0}} north of Bournemouth town centre; [[Ryanair]],<ref>{{Cite web |date=27 April 2022 |title=Ryanair announces new route to Malta |url=https://www.bournemouthairport.com/ryanair-announces-new-route-to-malta/ |access-date=21 October 2022 |website=Bournemouth Airport}}</ref> [[Jet2.com|Jet2]] and [[TUI Airways]]<ref>{{Cite web |date=21 July 2020 |title=TUI UK restarts summer holidays from Bournemouth Airport |url=https://www.bournemouthairport.com/tui-uk-restarts-summer-holidays-from-bournemouth-airport/ |access-date=21 October 2022 |website=Bournemouth Airport}}</ref> are the main operators.

==See also==
*[[South Hampshire]]

==References==
{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}

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{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Geography of Dorset]]
[[Category:Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole]]
[[Category:Urban areas of England]]

South East Dorset conurbation - Revision history

imported>Citation bot: Removed parameters. | Use this bot. Report bugs. | Suggested by Abductive | Category:Use British English from March 2025 | #UCB_Category 612/896