THE Princess Royal was in Poole, Bournemouth and Shaftesbury on Tuesday to visit the RNLI, the Guildhall, the Arts Institute and Guys Marsh Prison in a packed tour of the area.

Princess Anne began her trip at the RNLI's Lifeboat college in West Quay Road, where she met staff, saw the lifeboat simulator and watched a demonstration in the sea survival centre.

Then it was on to Poole's historic Guildhall to celebrate the £800,000 restoration of the Market Street building, which had stood empty for 16 years. It now has a new life as a register office.

The Princess Royal was met by the mayor, Cllr Jeff Allen, and superintendent registrar Christine Stainton, and introduced to some 50 councillors and others involved with the project, sharing a few words with everyone present.

She then unveiled a plaque commemorating her visit, and congratulated the crowd on what they had achieved.

Christine said: "It was absolutely fantastic. She's a real people person, very interested in the building and the history. She was very down-to-earth."

The next stop was the Arts Institute at Bournemouth, in Wallisdown.

It was a return visit for the Princess who was there to mark the laying of a foundation stone back in 1982 when the establishment was known as the Bournemouth and Poole College of Art.

After a tour of the gallery, library and museum she headed to a new building which will house the graphic design and architecture departments, meeting students and staff along the way and was presented with a painting of yachts by a student.

The Princess Royal then unveiled a commemorative stone, which will be set into the new building.

The tour concluded with a visit to Guys Marsh Prison in Shaftesbury.