Poole - Demography

Demography

Poole merges with several other towns to form the South East Dorset conurbation which has a combined population of 445,000, forming one of the South Coast's major urban areas. The population of Poole according to the 2001 UK Census was 138,288. The town has a built-up area of 65 square kilometres (25 sq mi), giving an approximate population density of 2,128 residents per square kilometre (5,532 per sq mi) in 60,512 dwellings. The population has grown steadily since the 1960s, inward migration has accounted for most of the town’s growth and a significant part of this has been for retirement. Housing stock has increased by over 100% in the past 40 years from 30,000 in 1961 to approximately 62,700 in 2004. Compared to the rest of England and Wales, Poole has an above average number of residents aged 65+ (20.3%), but this is less than the Dorset average of 22.2%. The largest proportion of the population (24.8%) is between the ages of 45 to 64, slightly above the national average of 23.8%. Population projections have predicted a continual growth; a population of 151,481 is estimated by 2016.

The district is overwhelmingly populated by people of a white ethnic background, 95.98% of residents are of White British ethnicity, well above the rest of England at 86.99%. Minority ethnic groups (including those in white ethnic groups who did not classify themselves as British) represent 4.0% of Poole’s population. The largest religion in Poole is Christianity, at almost 74.34%, slightly above the United Kingdom average of 71.6%. The next-largest sector is those with no religion, at almost 16.23%, also above the UK average of 15.5%.

The average house price in Poole is high compared to the rest of the UK and the surrounding south west region. The average price of a property in Poole in 2008 was £274,011; detached houses were on average £374,150, semi-detached and terraced houses were cheaper at £226,465 and £217,128 respectively. An apartment or flat costs on average £216,097, more than any other part of Dorset. The average house prices in Poole are boosted by those in Sandbanks which had the fourth most expensive house prices in the world in 2000; in 2007 the average house price was £488,761. A study in 2006 by the National Housing Federation reported that Poole was the most unaffordable town in which to live in the UK.