Bournemouth town centre has been awarded Purple Flag status for the 14th year running.
The international quality standard, similar to the Blue Flag for beaches, aims to raise the standard and broaden the appeal of town and city centres between the hours of 5pm and 5am.
Assessors were particularly impressed with Bournemouth’s work on crime prevention, including targeted police operations and the roll out of a cloud-based incident reporting system to town centre businesses.
Also highlighted were Bournemouth town centre events, such as Arts By The Sea and Christmas Tree Wonderland
Bournemouth is one of 100 Purple Flag destinations around the world.
The international accreditation programme is run by the Association of Towns and City Management.
Paul Kinvig Chief Operating Officer of the Bournemouth Town Centre BID (Business Improvement District), said: “The Purple Flag entails a comprehensive set of standards, management processes and examples of good practice.
“Achieving this accreditation is a clear and independently-verified indication that Bournemouth Town Centre offers a well managed,entertaining, diverse, safe and enjoyable night life.”
Work to ensure Bournemouth retained its Purple Flag status involved key partners including Bournemouth Town Centre BID, BCP Council, Town Watch, Dorset Police and local businesses.
Taking a key role in synchronising efforts over the coming year will be the newly appointed Night-time Economy Co-ordinator Victoria Sheppard, pictured.
Her role is being funded by Bournemouth Town Centre BID and Town Watch, after a similar role within BCP Council and part-funded by Bournemouth Town Centre BID ceased to exist following a council-wide reorganisation last year.
Victoria said: “The Purple Flag reflects the extensive and ongoing work to make the town centre safer and better for all visitors, from more visible policing in the night-time economy, to businesses getting behind the Unity Promise partnership initiative to support the safety of women and girls.
“We hope this positive news will help support positive public perceptions which better reflect the reality that Bournemouth town centre is a safe place to visit, and our night-time economy has a huge amount to offer.”