Acocks Green Focus Group

Kensington High Street - New, Uncluttered, Straight Across Crossing

One of the models we have always looked to in our suggestions for Acocks Green centre has been the famous Kensington High Street redesign. This is not a total Shared Space design, but it has features related to Shared Space Most famously Kensington removed many metres of guard rail … the result? Massively improved safety rates.

To find out more why not come with us on 8 September 2008 to see for yourself and to take part in a guided tour that The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea are laying on especially for Acocks Green. We will meet their Chief Highways Engineer, and Deputy Council Leader Daniel Moylan, who was the councillor most involved in the redesign.

See Kensington and meet Daniel Moylan and Shared Space expert Ben Hamilton-Baillie on this video clip here: Daniel Moylan on Kensington High Street

This may be the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea but the trip will not cost you a king’s ransom. We will be leaving at 10.05 am on Monday the 8th September from Solihull Station and travelling, on The Chiltern Line, in parties of 3 or 4 on special group off-peakGroup Travel tickets to Marylebone and, from there, taking the tube to Kensington. Total cost: £16.00 per person for a party of four on one ticket or £21.00 per person for a party of three on one ticket.  That includes underground travel. The main rail journey is about two hours. We then take one tube train to Kensington High Street. If you would like to check that out with Chiltern call

08456 005 165 (0700hrs to 2000hrs) or look online at http://www.chilternrailways.co.uk/buy-online/

If you think you would like to come with us why not drop us a line by responding to this post, below. Enquiries about Kensington, with your details, will not go live on the site, but we will get back to you - generally same day.

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This picture of 20 Dudley Park Road, in the process of recent demolition, was kindly supplied by David Treadwell from Acocks Green Neighbourhood Forum. The Forum are supporting The Focus Group in our campaign for a Conservation Area in Acocks Green. The picture helps to say exactly why we need one.

The link here takes you to a disturbing story in our neighbouring suburb of Hall Green. Highfield House Reduced to Rubble. Many Acocks Green people have also commented to us about this.

Watch this space for further news about our Conservation Project coming shortly.

Brendon Daly, landlord of The Inn on the Green Pub has put a lot of work into the appearance of both the pub, which is an important feature on The Green, and into the new garden outside. This has included adding trees to the front … except that they kept on being pulled out. A frustrated Brendon said:

It is a real shame that there are a few mindless idiots in Acocks Green who do not want The Green to change. Altogether we have had six trees pulled out and, of those, lost three. But we will persist in doing our part to help Acocks Green change for the better.

Acocks Green Focus Group decided to buy Brendon a new tree, a flowering hawthorn. This, so far, has been vandal proof. Julia Larden, Chair of Acocks Green Focus Group said:

Brendon has worked so hard with the pub, and the attached new restaurant La Verde, and has given a lot of support to campaigners like us. We need people like Brendon to stay in Acocks Green, and we desperately need more permanent planting like this to improve the look of the centre of Acocks Green, as well.

See below photo of some of the Focus Group with Brendon (with spade) and tree.

Focus Group with Brendon and Tree

Also see “Tree of Hope” at the Solihull Observer - however, note it is The Green we want to improve, not The Inn on the Green - Brendon’s leading the way and the pub’s been improved!!

There is another piece at  Anger at Vandels Pulling up Tree at the Solihull Times.

Someone asked a question in a comment that we felt deserved a proper answer.

Since I moved to Oxford Road in 2006 there has been a great increase in through traffic using this road rather than wait in queues on Warwick Road. I see the bus lane is still in place causing single lane traffic 2 years after the meeting about this, so what (if anything) is being done about it?

We do agree that there are serious problems with bus lanes in Acocks Green, especially on Dudley Park Road. We did our own survey on this.  One of the problems is, indeed, traffic peeling off into other roads.  As you note from information on our blog here, we have discussed this problem with The Council.  In principle they have agree with us that the bus lane should go.  However, it was also agreed that, instead of rushing through an expensive scheme, just to replace the bus lane, things should be properly thought through and coordinated with a bigger plan for a more comprehensive re-design for Acocks Green centre.  For this a feasibility study is needed.

Money for a feasibility study was promised last year.  This money (£20,000) is still there to be spent. The funding of the feasibility study was placed on hold last year awaiting the Local Services team to put in place a Town Centre Manager who could best represent them in further discussions about what the study should cover.  The Town Centre Manager post has now been filled.

At time of writing we are awaiting developments.  Watch this space!

Campaign for the Regeneration of Acocks Green Centre

Following our highly successful “Shared Space” Workshop held on September 27 2006 we took part in a meeting with Birmingham City Council Regeneration Team for the East Birmingham area. The meeting was attended by Council planners and representatives from the Transportation Department as well as by representatives from a range of Acocks Green organisations. Everyone seems in broad agreement that, although Acocks Green centre has great potential as an urban village, it has suffered from lack of investment in recent years. For one thing, the village is not as accessible as it might be. This applies equally whether the people wanting to use it are pedestrians, car drivers or cyclists - see our street furniture pics for some ideas why! This, hopefully, is about to change. A redesign may be on the way. Another meeting of Council officials and residents’ organisations is about to take place on 20 March 2006.

New Shared Space Workshop

Watch this space for more details. A new Shared Space Workshop has been arranged for Monday 21st May, 7 - 9 pm at The Inn on the Green, next to The Green, Acocks Green. All welcome, but, in particular, those who live or work in Acocks Green, or whose work concerns Acocks Green.

An Earlier Campaign

At peak times and frequently throughout the day, a substantial queue of traffic builds on Dudley Park Road, waiting to join the out-of-city queue on the Warwick Road.

Traffic on the Warwick Road approaching the Acocks Green island frequently builds to a slow-moving queue reaching back to Broad Road/Flint Green Road.

The Focus Group has noted that:

1. The bus lanes on both roads restrict cars to a single lane.

The action -Following much correspondence and an office meeting with Rachael Kingsley of Birmingham City Council Transportation Strategy, the Focus Group held a site meeting with BCC - present for BCC were Rachael, John Blakemore and Councillor Len Gregory, Cabinet Member for Transportation.

The result - so far…..

The BCC team had been considering changes to this area of Acocks Green. These issues will now be considered in the broader context of the discussions for regenerating the centre of Acocks Green scheduled to begin between Birmingham City Council and local residents’ organisations on 20 March 2007.