Published on Wednesday 18 March 2026
Momentum is building across Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole as targeted investment and stronger partnerships drive change in our local town centres.
Nealy £1billion of new investment is creating jobs and bringing growth with new businesses choosing to make the BCP area their home.
Cllr Millie Earl, Leader of BCP Council, explains below how the Council is working with partners to meet the challenge of changing high streets, early success in 2026, and the importance of backing our own communities over negative rhetoric:
What makes Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole special is our people – the residents, workers, volunteers, and business owners who pour their energy and pride into our communities every single day.
Our towns thrive because of the passionate people that call them home and, whilst high streets are changing across the country, BCP Council is working alongside partners to ensure our town centres meet that challenge.
Across BCP, more than £750million of investment is creating jobs, delivering growth, and enhancing green spaces across our communities.
Poole’s reputation as one of the most welcoming coastal destinations on the south coast continues with more than five million trips to the town centre and Quay made over Christmas and local businesses continuing that momentum into the spring.
Christchurch continues to be a hub of cultural activity with a throng of festivals – covering everything from the Cheese and Chilli Festival to Stompin’ on the Quomps and, of course, the annual carnival – ensuring there’s something for everyone to enjoy.
And more than 30 new businesses have opened their doors in Bournemouth town centre since the start of 2025 from big-name brands such as The Botanist, Savers and JD Gyms to family-run restaurants and cafes like House of Focaccia and Revival, as well as an immersive new VR centre, and a raft of firms opening offices at the heart of the town.
Visitors continue to return in their droves: millions of trips are made to our three town centres every single month with the number of people coming back on a regular basis more than doubling year on year.
That’s no coincidence: it’s continued confidence in the positive progress being made alongside partners.
But we also know consumer habits are different to how they were five, ten, fifteen years ago: that’s reflected in the makeup of our town centres across the country.
Too often big chains have gone bust and shifted their operations away from the high street: meaning closures that are symptomatic of challenges on a national level not specific to BCP.
That’s where our team of experienced officers team comes in – working alongside landlords, business improvement districts, and government officials to bring these shopfronts back into community use.
Our vacancy rate is already falling. Ongoing developments are set to bring them around a third lower than the national average: resulting in more varied and vibrant high streets than comparatively sized towns and coastal destinations.
This demonstrates a growing confidence in our towns as places to invest, work and build for the future. Alongside partners, we are supporting innovative uses of space - from new independent businesses, including stunning bookshops and family run delis to co‑working hubs - ensuring our high streets evolve through local creativity and ambition.
And we’ve been given powers to go even further with new High Street Rental Auction powers that will mean landlords can’t just sit on empty properties for years on end as they have done in the past. We can now step in and bring persistently empty units back onto the market through a ‘right to rent auction’.
Add to that the most Blue Flag beaches of any local authority in the country, theatres, Highcliffe Castle, award-winning museums, penguins, high-quality leisure facilities, more than 20 libraries, a pottery studio (to name just a few attractions) and there is plenty of positive momentum to get behind.
So, this year, let’s take a step back from the noise and negativity whipped up by national newspapers and believe in our own communities: businesses are investing, visitors are returning, and progress is being made.
There’s always more to be done but our challenges aren’t unique: we’ve got plans in place and we’re working with partners to continue that momentum throughout 2026 to make sure Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole is a place everyone feels proud to call their home.