GREEN & OPEN SPACES
The aim of the 3bs Forum is to identify the green spaces and develop a strategy to protect and bring these spaces, where practical, into use.
Green & Open spaces include:
Parks
Perry Hall, Perry Park, Turnberry Park, Kingsdown Ave.
Allotments
Thornbridge Allotments, Walsall Rd Allotments
Roadside
Verges, Traffic Islands & central reservations
Green Corridors
River Tame, Tame Canal & Thornbridge Brook
Rear Drives
Perrywood Restoration & Calshot
The Forum needs to do what it can to protect, enhance and improve these spaces to enable future generations to continue enjoying them.
We need to consult with the residents as to what they wish to happen with the ‘backlands’ at the rear of properties and alongside parts of the M6 motorway.
With the present climate of saving money we need to ensure the council commits to protecting our parks and open spaces and find alternative low cost solutions to protect central reservation and traffic islands from being covered in tarmac
The park is a site of historic interest and has a moated island upon which sat Perry Hall, and is now home to a community orchard.
It is a park of two halves, divided by the River Tame, one halve consists of playing fields which have the QE11 Fields In Trust Award and contains a cycle track, small wood and a mature wildflower meadow.
The other is an accredited Country Park with an active Friends Group that was awarded a Britain In Bloom ‘It's Your Neighbourhood Award’ at Level 4 “Thriving”
The Friends have also created another wildflower meadow, a wildlife nook and a National Lottery funded Sensory Garden. Facilities include a children’s playground, community football and flying areas, there is a Park Keepers lodge, which is manned, car parks and toilets.
It is also a designated Active Park with Tai’Chi, gardening and a weekly Park run which takes place on Saturdays. A cycle speedway, which is the home of Birmingham Monarchs, sits in one corner of the park.
The park currently consists of some useable amenities such as mini woodland, grass pitched area, a small outdoor gym & a small multiuse games area
The park is in need of development including improving the paths in the mini woodland area & throughout the park. The drainage also needs improving as well as further development for the outdoor gym & multiuse games area. There is section 106 funding which will help towards the costs of these
Perry Park has the Alexander Stadium where many activities take place as well as being home to the Birchfield Harriers Athletics Club; there is also a BMX track, a Gymnastics and Martial Arts Centre, a skateboard park and a lake which was built to maintain the level in the Tame Canal.
Over the years due to cuts Perry Park has become neglected. The Lake was once a thriving, popular fishing venue which is now edged with overgrown bramble
Perry Park have regularly & continue to host popular music festivals, circus' & funfairs over the years
©Image by Birmingham live
KINGSDOWN AVE
Kingsdown Avenue isn't readily recognised as a park. It is a large open space that was once part of the Hamstead Collieries estate. The space was landscaped as part of the new housing estate built at the latter end of the 1960s and beginning of the 1970s
The Kingsdown open space is regularly used by the Maritime youth group (pictured) which is based opposite.
PERRYWOOD
Perrywood is a small area of wasteland which is triangular in shape and situated behind houses on Calshot rd, Walsall rd & the Rise.
On the 12th march 2018, Jericho started clearing the land ready for planting to start. They also installed gates to restrict access & prevent further flytipping
The 4th April 2018 saw the forum with the help of the local brownies start seeding wild flowers as well as starting to lay a path as part of the restoration
24th June 2018 was another action day which included planting saplings & more wild flowers
On 19th November 2018 Nick Sandford of the Woodlands Trust met with somecommittee member to discuss tree planting
CALSHOT
At the rear of Calshot rd & Mildenhall Rd has a large area of open space that leads to gardens & garages at the back of the houses for these 2 roads. During a recent walk of the area we came across some parts being used as allotments & some parts as an extension of their back gardens.
In Feb 19. Residents of Calshot & Mildenhall Rds were asked what they would like to happen if anything with the land including possibly naming the area behind their houses. The results are as below
A - Barr Bank
B - New Perrywood
C - Perry Hall Extention
D - St Pauls
