Merley is a large housing estate in the borough of Poole

Poole

Poole is a large coastal town and seaport in the county of Dorset, on the south coast of England. The town is east of Dorchester, and Bournemouth adjoins Poole to the east. The Borough of Poole was made a unitary authority in 1997, gaining administrative independence from Dorset County Council...

, a mile (2 km) south of Wimborne Minster

Wimborne Minster

Wimborne Minster is a market town in the East Dorset district of Dorset in South West England, and the name of the Church of England church in that town...

. Originally called Myrle, Merley was a manor in the tithing of Great Canford (or Canford Magna

Canford Magna

Canford Magna is a village in Dorset, England. The village is situated just south of the River Stour and lies in between the towns of Wimborne Minster and Poole. The village is the site of the large boarding school - Canford School. The school was previously the mansion and estate of Lord Wimborne....

). The village merges with that of Oakley

Oakley, Dorset

Oakley is a village community in Dorset, England. Sitting just south of the River Stour it borders the suburb of Merley and the village of Canford Magna to the East and South and the Town of Wimborne 2 km to the North...

, and the housing estate was originally going to be called "Oakley Garden Village", note Oakley Shops and other signposts around the community but the name was changed. The housing estate only covers part of the area that was originally called Merley/Myrle.

Statistics

Merley is part of the greater ward called "Merley and Bearwood" and here are some statistics on this area:

People

• 10634 people live in Merley and Bearwood.
• There are about 4078 dwellings in the ward
• There are 2228 people over the age of 60 living in this ward
• 52.54% of people over the age of 16 are currently married.

Housing

• 88.99% of residents either own their homes outright or with a mortgage.
• 5.27% of residents live in council or housing association homes.
• 4.27% of residents live in privately rented homes.

Environment

• The population density
  Population density
  Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
  
   of Merley and Bearwood is approximately 1673 people per square mile (646/km²).
• The actual size of the ward is 6.4 square miles (17 km²).

Employment

• The biggest industry in this area (with 16.62% of people) are the wholesale and retail trade motor mechanic industries.
• The biggest male industry in this area (with 21.86% of males) is the manufacturing industry.
• The biggest females industry in this area (with 21.84% of females) is the health and social work industry.

Source: First release of the 2001 Census

Census

A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

 data, released in September 2002.

History

The 1970s housing estate surrounding Sopwith Crescent was built over a period of several years from the Oakley Straight end on former farmland. It was originally called Oakley Garden Village by the developers, but soon became incorporated into the adjacent older village.

Landmarks (amenities)

• Lantern Church
• Oakley Shopping Center with butchers, a Nisa Shop, a Pharmacy and a Chinese takeaway
• Merley First School
• Merley Community Center
• The public house
  Public house
  A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
  
   The Willet Arms
• Park [x2]
• Fenners Field
• The privately run Canford School
  Canford School
  Canford School is a coeducational independent school for both day and boarding pupils, in the village of Canford Magna, near to the market town of Wimborne Minster in Dorset, in South West England. The school was founded in 1923. There are approximately 600 pupils at Canford, organised into houses...
  
  is located nearby
• Down in the Woods - Playground
• The Youth club in Down in the Woods got demolished in 2010
• The Pulse Christian Youth Club

External links