The Community Assembly of Portsmouth is located in a port city in Hampshire in the south-east of the British Isles. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in England not located primarily on the mainland. The city lies south-east of Southampton, west of Brighton and Hove and south-west of London.

Portsmouth's history can be traced to Roman times and it has contained a significant Royal Navy dockyard and base for centuries. Portsmouth was founded 1180 by Anglo-Norman merchant Jean de Gisors in the south-west area of Portsea Island, a location now known as Old Portsmouth. Portsmouth has the world's oldest dry dock called The Great Stone Dock , originally built in 1698, and rebuilt in 1769. It is  presently known as No.5 Dock.

Southsea is Portsmouth's seaside resort, named after Southsea Castle. Southsea has two piers; Clarence Pier amusement park and South Parade Pier. The world's only regular hovercraft service operates from Southsea Hoverport to Ryde on the Isle of Wight.