There is a strong culture
of enterprise and innovation
within the area

Invest in the West Solent region

According to the Annual Business Inquiry 2003, employment sectors for the Bournemouth region were dominated by distribution, hotels and restaurants, followed by finance and IT.

Recently the town has seen significant growth in other sectors including financial services and the public sector.

GVA data for Bournemouth and Poole shows between 1996 and 2006 GVA per head has grown just over 78%. This compares with around 60% for the South West and 62% in the UK (Source: Bournemouth Borough Council).

In April 2008 Bournemouth became the first Fibrecity in the UK with the aim of bringing 100Mgbt broadband access to homes and businesses.

There is a strong culture of enterprise and innovation within the area and employment in higher skilled occupations has been steadily increasing during the last decade.

In the Raising the Game document produced by the Bournemouth, Poole and Dorset Economic Partnership, it talks about the need for cross-border relationships to be built with cities such as Southampton.
Christchurch enjoys a diverse and prosperous local economy with much of the activity focused around Bournemouth Airport which is based in the borough. There are many opportunities for existing businesses to grow and for relocating businesses to move into the area.

With the focus for sailing for the 2012 Olympics in Weymouth, there is a great deal of interest in the growth of the marine sector in Poole, Weymouth and Portland. Trailblazers in the region include Sunseeker International Ltd and Luhrs Marine Ltd.