The Bournemouth One News Centre

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

• £10,000 grant supports homeless people

  A ten-thousand-pound grant has helped YMCA Bournemouth residents prepare for more independent lives. Funding from The Roger Raymond Charitable Trust supported one-to-one keyworker sessions, practical help, confidence building and guidance through the charity’s Move-On Project. Across its wider housing service, YMCA Bournemouth housed or supported one hundred and eighty people and provided nine hundred and forty-five individual keyworker sessions. More than one hundred and fifty workshops were held, while twenty-two residents moved into more independent accommodation during the year supported by the grant. Residents can also receive help with health, benefits, budgeting, employment preparation, tenancy responsibilities and finding a longer-term home.

• More artists join Arts by the Sea 2026

  New performances have joined the programme for Bournemouth’s Arts by the Sea festival this September. The free event returns to Bournemouth town centre on Friday twenty-fifth and Saturday twenty-sixth September, with dance, theatre, puppetry, family entertainment and live music. A Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra ensemble will present an elemental family concert, while Roots to Rise will combine contemporary movement with Indian classical and folk dance. Other additions include the Pirate Taxi circus show, the interactive Flood production, the Hydropunk water installation and an eight-foot puppet in Walk of the Dandelion. The Arts by the Sea Fringe will then continue across Bournemouth until Sunday the eleventh of October.

• A31 to be closed for at least two more days

  The A31 will remain closed for at least another two days as the New Forest fire continues. Firefighters are entering a third night at the scene, supported by partner organisations as they work to contain the blaze and stop it spreading further. National Highways has found significant damage to the road surface, safety barrier and boundary fencing, with repairs unable to begin until conditions are safe. The closures are also allowing fire crews and other emergency responders to reach the scene safely while work continues on the complex incident. The fire service has thanked communities for their patience and asked people to avoid areas affected by closures or emergency operations.

• Steamship Shieldhall visits Poole Quay

  Europe’s largest operational steamship is visiting Poole Quay for five days of events this week. Shieldhall is due to arrive from Southampton on Thursday evening, accompanied by live music from the Shieldhall Stompers, before mooring near the Sea Music sculpture. A free open day on Friday will allow visitors to board the heritage vessel while it is in steam and learn about its maritime history. The ship will cruise along the Jurassic Coast on Saturday, followed by Sunday sailings offering views of Old Harry Rocks and The Needles. Shieldhall will leave Poole on Monday morning for a one-way return voyage to Southampton.

• Cherries reveal cream and gold third kit

  AFC Bournemouth have revealed their new third kit for the twenty twenty-six, twenty-seven season. The cream shirt completes the club’s hummel collection and features black and gold detailing, including a black fold-over collar and black chevrons on the shoulders. A repeating cherry pattern has been worked into the body of the shirt, with the club’s Cherry logo embroidered in black and gold. The design also includes an Up the Cherries message on the back of the neck, alongside the club’s shirt partners. The new third kit completes AFC Bournemouth’s set of shirts for the coming campaign.