Dorset 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 2,653 square kilometres (1,024 sq mi), Dorset borders Devon to the west, Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north-east, and Hampshire to the east. The county town is Dorchester, in the south. After the reorganisation of local government in 1974, the county border was extended eastward to incorporate the Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch. Around half of the population lives in the South East Dorset conurbation, while the rest of the county is largely rural with a low population density.
Wimborne Minster 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, 5 miles (8 km) north of Poole, on the Dorset Heaths, and is part of the South East Dorset conurbation. According to Office for National Statistics data the population of the Wimborne Minster built-up area as of 2014 was 15,552.
Poole is a coastal town and seaport on the south coast of England in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole unitary authority area in Dorset, England. The town is 21 miles (34 km) east of Dorchester and adjoins Bournemouth to the east. Since 1 April 2019, the local authority is Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council. The town had an estimated population of 151,500 making it the second-largest town in the ceremonial county of Dorset. Together with Bournemouth and Christchurch, the conurbation has a total population of nearly 400,000.
Verwood is a town and civil parish in eastern Dorset, England. The town lies 10 miles (16 km) north of Bournemouth and 13 miles (21 km) north east of Poole as the crow flies. The civil parish comprises the town of Verwood together with the extended village of Three Legged Cross, and in 2014 had a population of 15,170. Verwood is the largest town in Dorset without an upper school.
East Dorset was a local government district in Dorset, England. Its council met in Wimborne Minster between 2016 and 2019.
West Moors is a village in Dorset, England, on the northern fringe of the Poole-Bournemouth conurbation, just outside the larger settlements of Ferndown and Verwood. The parish of West Moors had an estimated population of 7,400 in 2004, increasing to 7,561 for both the parish and electoral ward at the 2011 Census. The parish council was renamed West Moors Town Council in 2020.
Christchurch is a constituency in Dorset represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 1997 by Sir Christopher Chope of the Conservative Party.
Branksome is a suburb of Poole in Dorset, England. The area consists of residential properties and also a number of commercial and industrial areas.
The South East Dorset conurbation is a multi-centred conurbation on the south coast of Dorset in England.
The BH postcode area, also known as the Bournemouth postcode area, is a group of 26 postcode districts in southern England, within eleven post towns. These cover east Dorset and part of south-west Hampshire.
Dorset is a county in South West England. The county is largely rural and therefore does not have a dense transport network, and is one of the few English counties without a motorway. Due to its position on the English Channel coast, and its natural sheltered harbours, it has a maritime history, though lack of inland transport routes have led to the decline of its ports.
Verwood railway station served the town of Verwood, Dorset, and its hinterland, from 1866 to 1964. It was one of many casualties of the mass closure of British railway lines in the 1960s; the last train running on 2 May 1964. The village is now much larger than when the line ran as it is within reasonable travelling distance of the South East Dorset conurbation.
Wilts & Dorset is a bus and coach operator providing services in East Dorset, South Wiltshire, and West Hampshire. It operates services under the morebus brand around Bournemouth and Poole, and under the Salisbury Reds brand around Salisbury and Amesbury. It is part of Go South Coast, a subsidiary of the Go-Ahead Group.
The Dorset Heaths form an important area of heathland within the Poole Basin in southern England. Much of the area is protected.
The 2020 Wareham Forest fire was a forest fire in Wareham Forest, Dorset, in May 2020. It destroyed over 220 Hectares of the forest, and was described a "one of the most devastating fires in Dorset, in living memory" by Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service.
