Flag of Dorset
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| Names | St Wite's Cross, The Dorset Cross |
|---|---|
| Proportion | 3:5 |
| Adopted | 2008 |
| Designed by | Stephen Coombs and David White |
The Flag of Dorset is the flag of the English county of Dorset. The 'Dorset Cross' was chosen as the flag of Dorset on 16 September 2008 following a public vote, open to all Dorset residents, and organised by Dorset County Council. The unitary authorities of Bournemouth (historically part of Hampshire) and Poole declined an invitation to participate. The flag has subsequently been registered at the Flag Institute and added to their UK Flags Register.
In 2005 Dorset expatriate Stephen Coombs conceived a Dorset flag using white and red from the arms of Dorset County Council, using a simple cross design on a golden background. Dorchester resident David White joined the discussion in 2006 and created the very first version of the flag, but no serious attempt to raise the profile of the flag occurred at that time.
In 2007, an armorial banner of the Dorset County Council coat of arms appeared for commercial sale which prompted David White to raise the question of a flag for Dorset in the press. The council's initial response was to reject these calls saying it had no authority to create a flag as its administrative area was not the same as the county itself.
In early 2008, following discussions with Flag Institute member Jason Saber, an independent campaign led by David White began to promote the flag that Stephen Coombs and he had previously designed. Another campaign led by town criers Chris Brown, Jacqui Hall and Melvyn Gudger was promoting a different design at the same time, but decided to merge with White's campaign and continue promoting the Coombs/White flag.
In order to produce flags for the campaign and spread awareness, local businesses were offered the opportunity to sponsor production of the first 100 flags.
In April 2008 John Peake, the chairman of Dorset County Council, reversed the previous decision on a potential flag and asked the Dorset public to submit other ideas for a Dorset flag through the local press. Designs were submitted until the end of June 2008.
During this time, Chris Brown convinced the town of Wimborne Minster to adopt the Coombs/White flag regardless of the competition outcome.
Although the Bournemouth and Poole unitary authorities declined to participate in the event, council-sponsored voting took place from 12 August to 12 September and all residents of Dorset were eligible to vote. The Dorset Cross was announced as the winner on 16 September 2008 after receiving 54%(2086 votes) of the vote.
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