Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...
, situated between
Ward End
Ward End is an area of Birmingham, England. It covers the area between Saltley, Hodge Hill and Stechford and includes Ward End Park, a public park that has been open for over 100 years.
Ward End territory
Pelham in Ward End joins with Alum R ...
Hodge Hill
Hodge Hill is an area 4 miles east of Birmingham City Centre, England. It is also a council constituency, managed by its own district committee. The MP of Hodge Hill is currently Liam Byrne.
The constituency includes the smaller constituency w ...
,
Washwood Heath
Washwood Heath is a ward in Birmingham, within the formal district of Hodge Hill, roughly two miles north-east of Birmingham city centre, England. Washwood Heath covers the areas of Birmingham that lie between Nechells, Bordesley Green, Stechf ...
,
Shard End
Shard End is an area of Birmingham, England. It is also a ward within the formal district of Hodge Hill. Shard End borders Castle Bromwich to the north and Kingshurst to the east which are situated in the northern part of the neighbouring Metr ...
,
Stechford
Stechford is an area of East Birmingham, England, situated about five miles east of the city centre, bordering Ward End, Yardley, Hodge Hill and Kitts Green. Historically it lay within Worcestershire.
History
Stechford's history is unclear. It ...
,
Castle Bromwich
Castle Bromwich () is a large suburban village situated within the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull in the English county of the West Midlands. It is bordered by the rest of the borough to the south east; also Sutton Coldfield to the east and ...
and
Tyburn
Tyburn was a manor (estate) in the county of Middlesex, one of two which were served by the parish of Marylebone.
The parish, probably therefore also the manor, was bounded by Roman roads to the west (modern Edgware Road) and south (modern Ox ...
. The industrial area is predominantly situated on the north side of the M6 motorway, including The Bromford Gate industrial park, Fort Shopping Park, and Fort Dunlop, with one industrial site sitting east of the M6 called Bromford Central. The residential area sits adjacent to the East of the M6 comprising two neighbourhoods, Bromford (formally referred to as Bromford Bridge) built along Bromford Drive, and The Firs built along Chipperfield Road. The industrial and residential areas have increasingly become two separate distinguishable places, and not recognised locally as joined or one. This is signified by the M6 & River Tame dividing the two areas, poor public transport links between the two areas, and the areas sitting within three different local authority wards (industrial being split between Gravelly Hill and Pype Hayes, and the residential situated within Bromford & Hodge Hill), and two parliamentary constituencies (industrial area situated within
Birmingham Erdington (UK Parliament constituency)
Birmingham Erdington is a parliamentary constituency in Birmingham, England, represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom since 2022 by Paulette Hamilton of the Labour Party.
Members of Parliament
MPs 1918– ...
and residential area situated within
Birmingham Hodge Hill (UK Parliament constituency)
Birmingham Hodge Hill is a constituency of part of the city of Birmingham represented in the House of Commons since 2004 by Liam Byrne, a member of the Labour Party.
Constituency profile
The constituency covers a diverse area of east Birmingha ...
.
Toponymy
In
Old English
Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...
, "Bromford" means "broom ford", signifying abundance of broom shrubs (or similar hard-wearing plants) and a location to cross the River Tame.
In the
United Kingdom Census of 1841
The United Kingdom Census of 1841 recorded the occupants of every United Kingdom household on the night of Sunday 6 June 1841. The enactment of the Population Act 1840 meant a new procedure was adopted for taking the 1841 census. It was described a ...
the area was named as "Bromfield", however the exact location is uncertain.
History
Bromford has historically been associated with two main features – the river crossing (a bridge in the area was first documented in 1317) and a mill. Bromford Mill, serving nearby Erdington, was first recorded in the
Domesday Book
Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
in 1086 and was a
corn mill
A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that has been separated ...
. At around 1600, it was converted to an
iron mill
An ironworks or iron works is an industrial plant where iron is smelted and where heavy iron and steel products are made. The term is both singular and plural, i.e. the singular of ''ironworks'' is ''ironworks''.
Ironworks succeeded bloomeri ...
map of 1864, the mill was annotated as ''Bromyard Forge''; its use had changed from iron milling to
paper mill
A paper mill is a factory devoted to making paper from vegetable fibres such as wood pulp, old rags, and other ingredients. Prior to the invention and adoption of the Fourdrinier machine and other types of paper machine that use an endless belt, ...
ing and finally to
wire drawing
Wire drawing is a metalworking process used to reduce the cross-section of a wire by pulling the wire through a single, or series of, drawing die(s). There are many applications for wire drawing, including electrical wiring, cables, tension-lo ...
and steel rolling at approximately 1850. The production of steel continued in the surrounding area until the late 20th century.
The area covered by the
Firs and Bromford Estates
Firs (''Abies'') are a genus of 48–56 species of evergreen coniferous trees in the family Pinaceae. They are found on mountains throughout much of North and Central America, Europe, Asia, and North Africa. The genus is most closely related to ...
was originally farmland. With the growth of urbanization before the War (1939–1945) the process of ribbon development took place at the southern end of Chipperfield Road. at this point the remainder of the Firs Estate area remained farmland, except for the part that was developed into a golf course, the Club House is on the site of the current Comet Hotel. While this transformation was taking place on the Firs Estate, the present Bromford Estate was being developed into the
Birmingham Racecourse
Bromford Bridge Racecourse was a racecourse in the Bromford area of Birmingham, England. Its official name was 'Birmingham'. It staged flat and national hunt racing.
History
The earliest recorded horse-race in Birmingham according to Chris Pi ...
.
At this time, both areas came under the Parish of
Castle Bromwich Church
A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...
, and this link is still evident today as the Firs'
Royal British Legion
The Royal British Legion (RBL), formerly the British Legion, is a British charity providing financial, social and emotional support to members and veterans of the British Armed Forces, their families and dependants, as well as all others in ne ...
still use this church as their church of worship and remembrance. To this day, many people living in the area of the Firs and Bromford Estates state their address as
Castle Bromwich
Castle Bromwich () is a large suburban village situated within the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull in the English county of the West Midlands. It is bordered by the rest of the borough to the south east; also Sutton Coldfield to the east and ...
.
With the need for housing after the war, the area of the Firs Estate was developed by the City Council in the 1950s. This mainly consisted of three-story flats, high rise flats and terrace housing on a high-density level.
The increasing need for housing was the reason for the closure of Birmingham Racecourse in 1965 and the building of the Bromford Estate, which was finalised in 1966. This estate was planned on the New Town principle, containing high and low rise flats, terrace housing, and included and built within these plans were housing for Co-ownership and Private housing.
The two Estates are not, strictly speaking, distinguishable from each other, although they are easily identifiable as a joint entity by a glance at a map of the area. Local residents make a clear distinction, however between the older Firs Estate and the more recent Bromford.
An estimate of the population based on the latest Census Data would put the population at something over 10,000 in an area of about three-quarters of a square mile. There are some 1,000 households on the Firs Estate, 2,000 on the Bromford Estates, and perhaps a further 800 households in the area of older 1930s housing which lies between the post-war estates.
In 2009 Firs and Bromford was awarded Big Local, a National Lottery investment of £1 million into 150 areas across England. Big Local is an exciting opportunity for residents in 150 areas around England to use at least £1m each to make a massive and lasting positive difference to their communities. Big Local brings together all the local talent, ambitions, skills and energy from individuals, groups and organisations who want to make their area an even better place to live. In 2011 Firs and Bromford Neighbours Togethe a 100% resident-led partnership, was established to oversee Big Local in Firs and Bromford. The partnership is committed and passionate to make Firs and Bromford an even better place to live for all.
Transport
Bromford lies on the River Tame, and is adjacent to the
Birmingham and Fazeley Canal
The Birmingham and Fazeley Canal is a canal of the Birmingham Canal Navigations in the West Midlands of England. Its purpose was to provide a link between the Coventry Canal and Birmingham and thereby connect Birmingham to London via the Oxford ...
.
Bromford Bridge railway station
Bromford Bridge railway station was a railway station in Birmingham opened by the Midland Railway in 1896.
It was built on the site of the previous Bromford Forge railway station which had been opened by the Birmingham and Derby Junction Railwa ...
served the area between 1898 and 1965, closing when
Bromford Bridge Racecourse
Bromford Bridge Racecourse was a racecourse in the Bromford area of Birmingham, England. Its official name was 'Birmingham'. It staged flat and national hunt racing.
History
The earliest recorded horse-race in Birmingham according to Chris Pi ...
ceased to operate. Since this closure there is no longer a nearby train station serving Bromford. Closest stations are Stechford (1.5 miles away), Erdington (2 miles away), or Gravelly Hill (1.5 miles away).
National Express West Midlands
National Express West Midlands (NXWM) is a bus operator in the West Midlands that operates services in Birmingham, Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall, Wolverhampton, and Solihull, as well as limited routes outside of the general area of Birmingham, su ...
run a number of bus services through Firs and Bromford (the residential area). Including the X12 and X70 service and also the long discontinued 26 service, which run express services between
Birmingham City Centre
Birmingham City Centre, also known as Central Birmingham and often known locally as town, is the central business district of Birmingham, England. Following the removal of the Inner Ring Road, the city centre is now defined as being the area wi ...
and Bromford via the
Aston Expressway
The A38(M), commonly known as the Aston Expressway, is a motorway in Birmingham, England. It is long and was opened on 24 May 1972.Heartlands Parkway. The Number 11 bus service runs on the edge of the Bromford estate and through Bromford industrial area, but no longer serves the Fort Shopping Park. There is no direct bus route that runs through the residential area and the industrial area which does mean the opportunities around employment, retail, and entertainment are not as accessible as they could be to the residents living in Firs and Bromford.
The
M6 motorway
The M6 motorway is the longest motorway in the United Kingdom. It is located entirely within England, running for just over from the Midlands to the border with Scotland. It begins at Junction 19 of the M1 and the western end of the A14 at t ...
cuts through Bromford. The
Gravelly Hill Interchange
The Gravelly Hill Interchange, popularly known as Spaghetti Junction, is a road junction in Birmingham, England. It is junction 6 of the M6 motorway where it meets the A38(M) Aston Expressway in the Gravelly Hill area of Birmingham. The interc ...
(known as "Spaghetti Junction") is approximately west of Bromford.