Shard End
Encyclopedia
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 Metropolitan Borough of Solihull
.
, Shard End was completely rural with the only buildings being farmhouses, farm outbuildings and tithe cottages.
Shard End's most infamous resident was Abraham Thornton, son of the owner of Shard End Farm (then part of the Coleshill
estate). He was charged with the murder of a local girl, Mary Ashford, in 1817. The events of the trial led to the abolition of two ancient legal rights - the right of a close relative to demand another trial although the defendant had been acquitted, and the right of a defendant to defend himself by challenging the relative to a duel. The duel did not take place and Thornton left the area soon after his second trial to travel to the USA
.
During World War I
, much of the woodland between Shard End and Kingshurst had been cut down to help with the war effort. The Birmingham and District Association of Boy Scouts
were able to buy a patch of land at a bargain price and set up a permanent camp there. This land was half way between Kingshurst
and Shard End. It was called Yorkswood and opened in 1923. There were five camp fields, covering an area of 25 acres (101,171.5 m²). The total site was over 200 acre (0.809372 km²). The site benefited from permanent washhouses and latrines, a swimming pool, a training centre and headquarters, guesthouse, warden’s hut and other huts. A small brook from a fresh water spring ran past the camp and Cock Sparrow Farm was about 100 yards (91.4 m) away to provide fresh milk. The entrance to the camp was flanked by a series of griffin statues. These had come from the roof of Lewis's Department Store in Birmingham when it was being renovated. After the camp closed in 1972 they were placed upon the Yorkswood housing estate (Kendrick Avenue and nearby roads) in Shard End, built upon the site of the camp. Yorkswood takes its name from the nearby Yorks Wood
, an eleven hectare forest dating back hundreds of years.
In the inter war years the Midland Sand and Gravel Company operated a mine on what is now the Norman Chamberlain Playing Fields, off Packington Avenue. During World War II
, this gravel pit was used to store and repair third-line tank
s. After the war the area was landscaped to become the playing fields. The old gravel pit was allowed to fill with water from a natural spring to form Shard End Lake
and has become a leisure facility.
s were constructed in the ward.
As a result of the construction of the estate, plans for a new church were drawn up. In 1954, construction of All Saints Church, a traditional Church of England
church, began and construction was completed in 1955. Designed by F J Osbourne, it was the first new church to be built in Birmingham after World War II. On November 1, 1955, the Lord Bishop of Birmingham, Leonard Wilson, consecrated the church. This was followed by a visit by Queen Elizabeth II two days later. Nikolaus Pevsner
, an architect and writer, disapproved of the building calling it "a very ugly church".
Shard End Library opened in 1967 and was the first in Birmingham to use plastic membership cards instead of the traditional cardboard tickets. Some of the housing deteriorated in later years, but has improved as tenants have bought their homes.
During the late 1970s, however, this tract of land was almost completely built upon and the area lost much of its charm. Since the building of this development, and a sharp decline in employment levels during the 1980s, Shard End has seen a marked increase in the problems typical of urban areas in large cities.
in 1955. It has the distinction of being the first Church of England
church to be built and consecrated after the war, anywhere in the country. There is also a Methodist and a Baptist church.
Shard End has its own community Centre on Packington Avenue, on the opposite side of the road to the Police Station. At one time, this station had the largest meeting room in the police sub division. There is a shopping area, crown post office and surgery on Shard End Crescent. Cole Hall Farm was derelict for a number of years but has now been converted into a pub. There are four primary and two secondary schools.
The River Cole, a tributary of the River Tame
, runs through Shard End, into Kingshurst
. It forms the heart of the Kingfisher Country Park.
The local library hosts the Shard End Local History Group once every month.
In January 2005, work on replacing a derelict petrol station with a community centre began. The building is a result of a partnership between Birmingham City Council and GOWM. Thomas Vale Construction are building the community centre.
by three Labour
councillors; Marje Bridle, Margaret Byrne and Ian Ward.
Shard End has adopted a Ward Support Officer with the current holder of the title being Karen Prosser.
on the Coventry
to Birmingham New Street line with occasional services to Walsall
via Aston railway station
.
of Electric Light Orchestra
fame grew up in a council house at 368 Shard End Crescent in Shard End. The lyrics to the ELO song "All Over the World
" mention Shard End along with cities like London
, Paris
, Amsterdam
, Rio de Janeiro
, and Tokyo
. Roger Taylor (drummer of Duran Duran
) also lived at 350 Shard End Crescent until the age of 11 and attended Timberley Lane School.
The conceptual artist, Geoff Bunn also grew up in the area.
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 is also a ward within the formal district of Hodge Hill
Hodge Hill
Hodge Hill is an area seven km east of Birmingham city centre, England. It is also a council constituency, managed by its own district committee....
. Shard End borders Castle Bromwich
Castle Bromwich
Castle Bromwich is a suburb situated within the northern part of the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull in the English county of West Midlands. It is bordered by the rest of the borough to the south east, North Warwickshire to the east and north east; also Shard End to the south west, Castle Vale,...
to the north and Kingshurst
Kingshurst
Kingshurst is a post war housing estate and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull, in the West Midlands. It lies about east of Birmingham city centre...
to the east which are situated in the northern part of the neighbouring Metropolitan Borough of Solihull
Metropolitan Borough of Solihull
The Metropolitan Borough of Solihull is a metropolitan borough of the West Midlands, in west-central England. It is named after its largest town, Solihull, from which Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council is based. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary...
.
Pre-War
Before the end of World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Shard End was completely rural with the only buildings being farmhouses, farm outbuildings and tithe cottages.
Shard End's most infamous resident was Abraham Thornton, son of the owner of Shard End Farm (then part of the Coleshill
Coleshill, Warwickshire
Coleshill is a market town in the North Warwickshire district of Warwickshire, England, taking its name from the River Cole. It has a population of 6,343 and is situated east of Birmingham.-Location:...
estate). He was charged with the murder of a local girl, Mary Ashford, in 1817. The events of the trial led to the abolition of two ancient legal rights - the right of a close relative to demand another trial although the defendant had been acquitted, and the right of a defendant to defend himself by challenging the relative to a duel. The duel did not take place and Thornton left the area soon after his second trial to travel to the USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, much of the woodland between Shard End and Kingshurst had been cut down to help with the war effort. The Birmingham and District Association of Boy Scouts
The Scout Association
The Scout Association is the World Organization of the Scout Movement recognised Scouting association in the United Kingdom. Scouting began in 1907 through the efforts of Robert Baden-Powell. The Scout Association was formed under its previous name, The Boy Scout Association, in 1910 by the grant...
were able to buy a patch of land at a bargain price and set up a permanent camp there. This land was half way between Kingshurst
Kingshurst
Kingshurst is a post war housing estate and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull, in the West Midlands. It lies about east of Birmingham city centre...
and Shard End. It was called Yorkswood and opened in 1923. There were five camp fields, covering an area of 25 acres (101,171.5 m²). The total site was over 200 acre (0.809372 km²). The site benefited from permanent washhouses and latrines, a swimming pool, a training centre and headquarters, guesthouse, warden’s hut and other huts. A small brook from a fresh water spring ran past the camp and Cock Sparrow Farm was about 100 yards (91.4 m) away to provide fresh milk. The entrance to the camp was flanked by a series of griffin statues. These had come from the roof of Lewis's Department Store in Birmingham when it was being renovated. After the camp closed in 1972 they were placed upon the Yorkswood housing estate (Kendrick Avenue and nearby roads) in Shard End, built upon the site of the camp. Yorkswood takes its name from the nearby Yorks Wood
Yorks Wood
Yorks Wood is an ancient wood of predominantly oak trees in Kingshurst, Solihull, England. The River Cole is located south of the wood and located within Kingfisher Country Park.-History:...
, an eleven hectare forest dating back hundreds of years.
In the inter war years the Midland Sand and Gravel Company operated a mine on what is now the Norman Chamberlain Playing Fields, off Packington Avenue. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, this gravel pit was used to store and repair third-line tank
Tank
A tank is a tracked, armoured fighting vehicle designed for front-line combat which combines operational mobility, tactical offensive, and defensive capabilities...
s. After the war the area was landscaped to become the playing fields. The old gravel pit was allowed to fill with water from a natural spring to form Shard End Lake
Shard End Lake
Shard End Lake is a man-made lake in the Shard End area of Birmingham, West Midlands, England. The lake was created out of an old quarry and is located to west of Yorks Wood. It is managed by Kingfisher Country Park....
and has become a leisure facility.
The new estate
A plan of the new housing estate was produced at the end of 1945 and compulsory purchase orders were issued in 1946. Building of the estate started in the late 1940s and was added to in stages producing some variety in the housing. As usual, communal facilities lagged behind the building of the housing. Nine tower blockTower block
A tower block, high-rise, apartment tower, office tower, apartment block, or block of flats, is a tall building or structure used as a residential and/or office building...
s were constructed in the ward.
As a result of the construction of the estate, plans for a new church were drawn up. In 1954, construction of All Saints Church, a traditional Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
church, began and construction was completed in 1955. Designed by F J Osbourne, it was the first new church to be built in Birmingham after World War II. On November 1, 1955, the Lord Bishop of Birmingham, Leonard Wilson, consecrated the church. This was followed by a visit by Queen Elizabeth II two days later. Nikolaus Pevsner
Nikolaus Pevsner
Sir Nikolaus Bernhard Leon Pevsner, CBE, FBA was a German-born British scholar of history of art and, especially, of history of architecture...
, an architect and writer, disapproved of the building calling it "a very ugly church".
Shard End Library opened in 1967 and was the first in Birmingham to use plastic membership cards instead of the traditional cardboard tickets. Some of the housing deteriorated in later years, but has improved as tenants have bought their homes.
Development in the 1970s
After the estate of the 1940s had been constructed, a large swathe of green land remained along the River Cole valley. This rare open space in a city provided valuable recreation space for the new and young population of Shard End.During the late 1970s, however, this tract of land was almost completely built upon and the area lost much of its charm. Since the building of this development, and a sharp decline in employment levels during the 1980s, Shard End has seen a marked increase in the problems typical of urban areas in large cities.
Shard End today
All Saints Church (Anglican) is situated in Coneyford Road. It was opened by the QueenElizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
in 1955. It has the distinction of being the first Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
church to be built and consecrated after the war, anywhere in the country. There is also a Methodist and a Baptist church.
Shard End has its own community Centre on Packington Avenue, on the opposite side of the road to the Police Station. At one time, this station had the largest meeting room in the police sub division. There is a shopping area, crown post office and surgery on Shard End Crescent. Cole Hall Farm was derelict for a number of years but has now been converted into a pub. There are four primary and two secondary schools.
The River Cole, a tributary of the River Tame
River Tame, West Midlands
The River Tame is the main river of the West Midlands, and the most important tributary of the River Trent. The Tame is about 40 km from source at Oldbury to its confluence with the Trent near Alrewas, but the main river length of the entire catchment, i.e...
, runs through Shard End, into Kingshurst
Kingshurst
Kingshurst is a post war housing estate and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull, in the West Midlands. It lies about east of Birmingham city centre...
. It forms the heart of the Kingfisher Country Park.
The local library hosts the Shard End Local History Group once every month.
In January 2005, work on replacing a derelict petrol station with a community centre began. The building is a result of a partnership between Birmingham City Council and GOWM. Thomas Vale Construction are building the community centre.
Demographics
According to the 2001 Population Census there were 23,154 people living in Shard End with a population density of 3,817 people per km² compared with 3,649 people per km² for Birmingham. The area is not an ethnically diverse community with ethnic minorities representing 7.9% (1,820) of the ward's population compared with 29.6% for Birmingham in general.Politics
The area is represented on the Birmingham City CouncilBirmingham 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...
by three Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
councillors; Marje Bridle, Margaret Byrne and Ian Ward.
Shard End has adopted a Ward Support Officer with the current holder of the title being Karen Prosser.
Transport
The area is served by Lea Hall railway stationLea Hall railway station
Lea Hall railway station is situated in the Lea Hall area east of the city of Birmingham, in the West Midlands of England. It has two platforms, one each side of the two running lines, with no points or sidings. The ticket office is on a bridge over the tracks, which are a little below street...
on the Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
to Birmingham New Street line with occasional services to Walsall
Walsall
Walsall is a large industrial town in the West Midlands of England. It is located northwest of Birmingham and east of Wolverhampton. Historically a part of Staffordshire, Walsall is a component area of the West Midlands conurbation and part of the Black Country.Walsall is the administrative...
via Aston railway station
Aston railway station
Aston railway station serves the districts of Aston and Nechells in Birmingham, England. The passenger entrance is on Lichfield Road.The station is situated adjacent to and above the Lichfield Road , crossed by a bridge as the railway line, part of the original Grand Junction Railway, opened in...
.
Notable natives
Jeff LynneJeff Lynne
Jeffrey "Jeff" Lynne is an English songwriter, composer, arranger, singer, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer who gained fame as the leader and sole constant member of Electric Light Orchestra and was a co-founder and member of The Traveling Wilburys together with George Harrison, Bob...
of Electric Light Orchestra
Electric Light Orchestra
Electric Light Orchestra were a British rock group from Birmingham who released eleven studio albums between 1971 and 1986 and another album in 2001. ELO were formed to accommodate Roy Wood and Jeff Lynne's desire to create modern rock and pop songs with classical overtones...
fame grew up in a council house at 368 Shard End Crescent in Shard End. The lyrics to the ELO song "All Over the World
All Over the World (song)
"All Over the World" is a song by the Electric Light Orchestra . It is featured in the 1980 feature film Xanadu in a sequence with the film's stars Olivia Newton-John, Gene Kelly, and Michael Beck...
" mention Shard End along with cities like London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
, Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
, and Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
. Roger Taylor (drummer of Duran Duran
Duran Duran
Duran Duran are an English band, formed in Birmingham in 1978. They were one of the most successful bands of the 1980s and a leading band in the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" of the United States...
) also lived at 350 Shard End Crescent until the age of 11 and attended Timberley Lane School.
The conceptual artist, Geoff Bunn also grew up in the area.