The Bournemouth One News Centre

All the news you need for Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole with travel information and national headlines.

• Bournemouth firms raise concerns with minister

  Business owners in Bournemouth town centre have shared their concerns directly with the UK’s Small Business Minister during a roundtable organised by Bournemouth Town Centre Bid. Around twenty five local firms met the minister and Bournemouth West MP to discuss issues affecting businesses. Topics included rising employment costs, business rates, parking and attracting more visitors into the town centre. Businesses also raised concerns about opportunities for young people entering the workforce and the number of empty units. The Bid says the meeting helps ensure the experiences of local businesses are heard by decision makers.

• Councillor welcomes £3million investment for East Cliff

  BCP Council has confirmed a three million pound government grant to stabilise East Cliff in Bournemouth. Work on the project is set to start in September this year, with the first phase already out to tender. Councillors say the investment will make access to the beach safer and restore the promenade. An additional one point four million pounds will fund ongoing cliff drainage and maintenance. Councillors stress long-term monitoring is key to preventing future landslides.

• Weekend rail works affect Bournemouth trains

  Engineering work on the South Western Railway network will affect some trains this weekend. Services between London Waterloo and Weymouth and routes linking Southampton and Bournemouth will be disrupted while lines around Winchester are closed. Rail replacement buses will run on several routes and some journeys will require passengers to change trains. Separate work between Yeovil Junction and Exeter St Davids will also affect services towards the south west. Passengers are being advised to check their journey and allow extra time.

• Poole car park disposal approved by BCP

  BCP Council has approved plans to sell an underused public car park in Poole. Penn Hill Car Park in Canford Cliffs has forty seven spaces, plus two motorcycle bays and a disabled space, but a report says it is regularly underused and produces low income. The site sits in a high value area within a conservation area and will be sold on the open market. Council officers say the land is not needed for housing delivery and there are no viable operational uses for it. The decision was approved by cabinet on the fourth of March.

• Boscombe chosen for first Best Start hub

  Boscombe has been selected as the first location for a Best Start Family Hub in the Bournemouth Christchurch and Poole council area. The plan is part of a national strategy to improve child development from pregnancy to the age of five. The council has set aside two point five million pounds for the programme running from twenty twenty six to twenty twenty nine. Councillor Richard Burton says there are around twenty thousand five hundred children aged zero to five locally and the hub will help strengthen support for families. Cabinet members approved the proposal without debate.