Five Ways, Birmingham
Encyclopedia
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It takes its name from a major road junction, now a busy roundabout
Roundabout
A roundabout is the name for a road junction in which traffic moves in one direction around a central island. The word dates from the early 20th century. Roundabouts are common in many countries around the world...
(with pedestrian subway
Subway (underpass)
In England and Wales, the Republic of Ireland, Hong Kong and some Commonwealth countries , the term subway normally refers to a specially constructed underpass for pedestrians and/or cyclists beneath a road or railway, allowing them to reach the other side in safety.The term is also used in the...
s through a traffic island) to the south-west of the city centre which lies at the outward end of Broad Street
Broad Street, Birmingham
Broad Street is a major thoroughfare and popular nightspot in Birmingham City Centre, United Kingdom. Traditionally, Broad Street was considered to be outside Birmingham City Centre, but as the city centre expanded with the removal of the Inner Ring Road, Broad Street has been incorporated into...
, where the Birmingham Middle ring road
A4540 road
The A4540 is a Ring Road in Birmingham, England, also known as the Middle Ring Road, or the Middleway. There are proposals to make it a red route. It runs around the centre of the city at a distance of approximately . Birmingham City Centre is the area within this ring road. The ring road was...
crosses the start of the A456
A456 road
The A456 is a main road in England running between Birmingham and Woofferton, Shropshire, south of Ludlow.-History:Much of the road is almost certainly medieval in origin...
(Hagley
Hagley
Hagley is a village and civil parish on the northern boundary of Worcestershire, England, near to the towns of Kidderminster and Stourbridge. The parish had a population of 4,283 in 2001, but the whole village had a population of perhaps 5,600, including the part in Clent parish...
Road).
History
The name of Five Ways dates back to 1565 when it was roads leading to HarborneHarborne
Harborne is an area three miles southwest from Birmingham city centre, England. It is a Birmingham City Council ward in the formal district and in the parliamentary constituency of Birmingham Edgbaston.- Geography :...
and Halesowen
Halesowen
Halesowen is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, in the West Midlands, England.The population, as measured by the United Kingdom Census 2001, was 55,273...
were recorded as being located there. Mary Anne Schimmelpenninck
Mary Anne Schimmelpenninck
Mary Anne Schimmelpenninck was a British writer in the anti-slavery movement.The eldest Daughter of Samuel "John" Galton and Lucy Barclay, Mary Anne Galton was the sister of Samuel Tertius Galton and the aunt of Francis Galton...
, who lived at Five Ways up until 1785, describes that the origins of its name were as a result of the location being the junction of five roadways.
Five Ways was disturnpiked
Turnpike trust
Turnpike trusts in the United Kingdom were bodies set up by individual Acts of Parliament, with powers to collect road tolls for maintaining the principal highways in Britain from the 17th but especially during the 18th and 19th centuries...
in 1841 after disputes over the reparation of the roadways in the area. It was the former home of King Edward VI Five Ways
King Edward VI Five Ways
King Edward VI Five Ways is a selective, humanities specialist grammar school located in the Bartley Green area of south Birmingham, England. As of April 2008, the school has a second specialism, a specialist Science College.-Background:...
School, before it relocated to its present site in Bartley Green
Bartley Green
Bartley Green is a residential suburban area and electoral ward to the south west of Birmingham city centre, England. The ward is part of the Edgbaston constituency which has been under Labour rule for almost ten years. It is located in the metropolitan county of the West Midlands and was in the...
. Five Ways railway station
Five Ways railway station
Five Ways railway station is a railway station serving Five Ways and Lee Bank in Birmingham. It is situated on the Redditch-Birmingham New Street-Lichfield Cross-City Line.-History:...
is located on the Cross-City Line. It opened in 1884 to replace the Granville Street station and closed in 1944, it reopened in 1979. The old station building survives as offices on Islington Row. There are plans to extend the Midland Metro
Midland Metro
The Midland Metro is a light-rail or tram line in the West Midlands of England between the cities of Birmingham and Wolverhampton via West Bromwich and Wednesbury. It is owned and promoted by Centro, and operated by West Midlands Travel Limited, a subsidiary of the National Express Group , under...
light rail
Light rail
Light rail or light rail transit is a form of urban rail public transportation that generally has a lower capacity and lower speed than heavy rail and metro systems, but higher capacity and higher speed than traditional street-running tram systems...
system underneath Five Ways underpass and on through to the city centre along Broad Street.
On 4 June 1862, a memorial to Joseph Sturge
Joseph Sturge
Joseph Sturge , son of a farmer in Gloucestershire, was an English Quaker, abolitionist and activist. He founded the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society . He worked throughout his life in Radical political actions supporting pacifism, working-class rights, and the universal emancipation of...
(which originally incorporated drinking fountains) was unveiled in front of a crowd of 12,000. The sculptor was John Thomas, who Sir Charles Barry had employed as stone and wood carver on the former King Edward's Grammar School at Five Ways. In 2006/7 the partnership of The Birmingham Civic Society, Birmingham City Council
Birmingham City Council
The Birmingham City Council is the body responsible for the governance of the City of Birmingham in England, which has been a metropolitan district since 1974. It is the most populated local authority in the United Kingdom with, following a reorganisation of boundaries in June 2004, 120 Birmingham...
and the Sturge family saw the statue restored in time for the 200th anniversary of the Slave Trade Act of 1807. On 24 March 2007, there was a civic ceremony that formally rededicated the statue, and an interpretation board, giving details of his life, was unveiled by the Lord Mayor of Birmingham. The statue is grade II listed.
Architect
Buildings also located at Five Ways include Philip Chatwin'sP. B. Chatwin
P. B. Chatwin was an architect in Birmingham, England.From 1866 he worked with his father, architect J. A...
Lloyds Bank
Lloyds TSB
Lloyds TSB Bank Plc is a retail bank in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1995 by the merger of Lloyds Bank, established in Birmingham, England in 1765 and traditionally considered one of the Big Four clearing banks, with the TSB Group which traces its origins to 1810...
(1908-9) and the Marriott Hotel (formerly the Swallow Hotel, and before that Tube Investments House), which was expected to receive a five-star rating when opened to rival the Hyatt Regency Hotel on Broad Street, however it was unable to achieve this. The building was built in 1957 to a design by Cotton, Ballard & Blow. It is now a Grade B locally listed building.
Five Ways is a major commercial area of Birmingham city centre. The area began to develop in the early 1960s when Birmingham's business centre expanded westwards towards Edgbaston
Edgbaston
Edgbaston is an area in the city of Birmingham in England. It is also a formal district, managed by its own district committee. The constituency includes the smaller Edgbaston ward and the wards of Bartley Green, Harborne and Quinton....
, along Broad Street and the Hagley Road. Calthorpe Estates, the landowners, started various schemes to encourage highrise construction in the area and to develop it into a business centre. One of the first developments here was Five Ways Shopping Centre and Auchinleck House above it. It consists of a traffic-free piazza with ground floor retail, an indoor market area, a car park on the second floor and the 10 storey Auchinleck House, which is named after Claude Auchinleck
Claude Auchinleck
Field Marshal Sir Claude John Eyre Auchinleck, GCB, GCIE, CSI, DSO, OBE , nicknamed "The Auk", was a British army commander during World War II. He was a career soldier who spent much of his military career in India, where he developed a love of the country and a lasting affinity for the soldiers...
, with office accommodation. Designed by J. Seymour Harris & Partners
Seymour Harris Partnership
Seymour Harris Partnership is an architectural partnership based in Birmingham, England. Buildings designed by the practice include Colmore Gate in Birmingham, Queensgate Market in Huddersfield and St David's Hall in Cardiff....
, it was completed in 1962. On the side of Auchinleck House was a mural by Trewin Copplestone which was illuminated at night. This was removed though another mural by Trewin Copplestone remains in the courtyard. Other developments in the near vicinity of Five Ways include Five Ways House on Islington Row, designed by Cotton, Ballard & Blow, and the Birmingham Chamber of Commerce building, by John Madin. Five Ways House was the location of the Ministry of Public Building and Works' library.
Other highrise buildings that were constructed later on include:
- Five Ways TowerFive Ways TowerFive Ways Tower is a 23 storey commercial building on a prime site located in the Birmingham City Centre by the corner of Frederick Road and Islington Road, near to the Five Ways roundabout and close to Five Ways Station, at the gateway to the Edgbaston area of Birmingham 15, England.The building...
(off Islington Row) - Tricorn House (an office building adjacent to 1 Hagley Road)
- Metropolitan HouseMetropolitan HouseMetropolitan House is a commercial building in Birmingham, England. It is situated on the A456 Hagley Road at Five Ways...
(also known as 1 Hagley Road after its address; design by John MadinJohn MadinJohn Hardcastle Dalton Madin is an English architect. He was born in Moseley, Birmingham on 23 March 1924. His company, known as John H D Madin & Partners from 1962 and the John Madin Design Group from 1968, were active in Birmingham for over 30 years. Some of the buildings his company designed...
)
Recent developments
TescoTesco
Tesco plc is a global grocery and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Cheshunt, United Kingdom. It is the third-largest retailer in the world measured by revenues and the second-largest measured by profits...
and the Department for Work and Pensions
Department for Work and Pensions
The Department for Work and Pensions is the largest government department in the United Kingdom, created on June 8, 2001 from the merger of the employment part of the Department for Education and Employment and the Department of Social Security and headed by the Secretary of State for Work and...
also have branches at Five Ways. The former Birmingham Children's Hospital
Birmingham Children's Hospital
The Birmingham Children's Hospital is a children's hospital located in Birmingham, England.It provides general and emergency health care services to children in Birmingham, the West Midlands and beyond. It specialises in liver transplantation, cardiac, and neonatal surgery...
site is now the Broadway Plaza entertainment complex. Completed in the early 2000s, it cost £80 million and consists of leisure, retail and residential space. Nearby, is a 12-screen Cineworld
Cineworld
Cineworld Group plc is a cinema chain operating in the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Jersey. The chain consists of 78 cinemas; 76 of which are located in the UK and one each in Ireland and Jersey. It is the second-largest cinema operator in the UK with 801 screens, and the owner of...
cinema complex which also consists of restaurants, clubs and a casino
Casino
In modern English, a casino is a facility which houses and accommodates certain types of gambling activities. Casinos are most commonly built near or combined with hotels, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships or other tourist attractions...
(Grosvenor Casino). The recent development was managed by Richardson Developments (responsible for the nearby Broad Street Tower
Broad Street Tower
Broad Street Tower is an approved 134-metre skyscraper for Broad Street, Birmingham, England...
) and cost £50 million. The listed public house
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
on the corner of Bishopsgate Street and Tennant Street, currently known as 'The City Tavern', was fully restored as part of the development. It has an approximate total area of 200,000 square feet (18,580 sq. m.).
Future developments
Future developments at Five Ways include the £100 million redevelopment of Five Ways Shopping Centre by BPG Urban. The mixed-use scheme comprising shops, offices, a hotel and apartments is to be constructed on a 1.25 acres (5,058.6 m²) site. It will feature around 300 apartments and around 150000 sq ft (13,935.5 m²) of office space as well as a basement car park. The front of the Five Ways shopping centre will be reclad as will Auchinleck House. A 28-storey mixed-use block was unveiled at the March 2008 MIPIMMIPIM
MIPIM is a trade show that its organisers describe as a "market for international property trade". It takes place annually in Cannes, France in March. In 2004, MIPIM attracted 15,157 participants from 67 countries...
show in Cannes
Cannes
Cannes is one of the best-known cities of the French Riviera, a busy tourist destination and host of the annual Cannes Film Festival. It is a Commune of France in the Alpes-Maritimes department....
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. Named Pentavia, the building has been designed by Aedas Architects and will be constructed alongside the shopping centre.
Although no planning application has yet been submitted, traders have been ordered to vacate the premises by 3 January 2008 'pending the commencement of certain demolition works'. This has created a groundswell of support for the newly formed Fiveways Traders Association from the many local interest, campaign, student and youth groups that use the centre's facilities, particularly Cafe One, the UK's first Fairtrade music venue. Under the banner 'Mars Attacks! Save Fiveways!' the campaign continues for consultation with traders and local residents on the future of the community space. The campaign has also gained the support of local MPs, councillors and media personalities, generating press coverage locally and nationally.
Located at Five Ways island, Edgbaston Galleries represents the largest regeneration project at a principal gateway to Birmingham. With demolition of Edgbaston Shopping Centre currently underway and construction scheduled to start on site later in 2008, the scheme has planning for 425000 sq ft (39,483.8 m²) of Grade A office space, retail and leisure facilities, a hotel and significant car parking. Calthorpe House, an office tower on the Edgbaston Galleries site, was demolished by controlled explosion on 9 March 2008.