Balsall Heath, Inner City Birmingham in the 1970s
Photos taken by Mike Turner and used in his presentation about working in Balsall Heath.
If the photos below change to quickly for you, hover the mouse pointer over the image to stop it. You can also use the 'Back Arrow' ( < ) and the 'Forward Arrow" ( > ) to go through the photo selection.
If the photos below change to quickly for you, hover the mouse pointer over the image to stop it. You can also use the 'Back Arrow' ( < ) and the 'Forward Arrow" ( > ) to go through the photo selection.
A Note to think about
The Second Tab shows a copy of an extended report sent to the local papers - which may or may not get published! WebEd - Just 'Click' the tab to have a read!
Balsall Heath in the 1970s
A last minute change of speaker, gave club member Mike Turner the chance to talk about his work in Birmingham's 'inner city' area of Balsall Heath, and show some of the black and white photos he took there in the 1970s. Mike explained that he was employed by Birmingham Social Services Department as a Community Worker in that very 'run down' area of the city.
The Balsall Heath of around 50 years ago was an area of extremely poor housing, very limited play space, environmentally unhealthy and where anyone with any 'get-up-and-go' tried to move out as fast as possible. Photos from that time illustrated this to the club members. These photos and many more, were presented to the City Council by representatives of the local residents who eventually got the Housing Department to change its policy and embark on an ambitious 'Urban Renewal' program across several inner city areas.
The physical improvement and repair of the housing stock gave more confidence to many residents and motivated them to play a more active role in the area. A Residents Association was formed and an 'Area Caretaker' scheme was started - think of the role of a school caretaker, but to help people in their homes as well as looking after open areas. With large numbers of older people and single parent families, this proved very useful indeed.
Working together, residents groups; local teachers and care professionals; volunteers and council officials were making a positive change to the area. So much so that when Prince Charles was invited to visit the ‘New’ Balsall Heath, he accepted! This got everyone very excited and it was decided to decorate the area with bunting (hand made by a group of ladies who worked in a couple of local garment factories – or ‘sweatshops’, to be more accurate). Other local businesses decorated their buildings and provided lots of flags for residents to wave, and a procession was also organised. It was a fantastic day for everyone, and Prince Charles over ran his stay to nearly three hours, instead of the scheduled short tour planed.
Following ‘the Royal Visit’, it was decided to have an annual event to celebrate Balsall Heath's mixed cultures, which worked together in making the area a good place to live. The population of the area was about one third English/Irish; one third Afro-Caribbean; one third Asian. Nearly 40 years later, the 'Balsall Heath Carnival' is still celebrated on the first Saturday in July.
During the 70s and 80s Balsall Heath changed hugely. Apart from the 'Renewed' houses and safe open play spaces, the area developed an adventure playground with an all weather track and games area; an Urban Farm with stables, allotments and a classroom used by local schools; a day nursery for 45 under 5's; A secondary school for children excluded from 'normal' schools; Regular social and cultural events (held in the evenings and weekends at the Nursery building, previously a Church Hall); A community workshop (the original base for the Area Caretakers); A strong Residents Association with linked activities like a local history group, a drama club, an OAP Bingo evening, social events, and so on. In addition, there was also a local 'Newspaper' - a monthly magazine reporting on events in and affecting, Balsall Heath. This was called (unsurprisingly) 'The Heathan'.
Mike's talk may have started with some depressing pictures of urban deprivation, but these were gradually changing to show a area that was gaining confidence and a place where people wanted to live, not leave.
The Balsall Heath of around 50 years ago was an area of extremely poor housing, very limited play space, environmentally unhealthy and where anyone with any 'get-up-and-go' tried to move out as fast as possible. Photos from that time illustrated this to the club members. These photos and many more, were presented to the City Council by representatives of the local residents who eventually got the Housing Department to change its policy and embark on an ambitious 'Urban Renewal' program across several inner city areas.
The physical improvement and repair of the housing stock gave more confidence to many residents and motivated them to play a more active role in the area. A Residents Association was formed and an 'Area Caretaker' scheme was started - think of the role of a school caretaker, but to help people in their homes as well as looking after open areas. With large numbers of older people and single parent families, this proved very useful indeed.
Working together, residents groups; local teachers and care professionals; volunteers and council officials were making a positive change to the area. So much so that when Prince Charles was invited to visit the ‘New’ Balsall Heath, he accepted! This got everyone very excited and it was decided to decorate the area with bunting (hand made by a group of ladies who worked in a couple of local garment factories – or ‘sweatshops’, to be more accurate). Other local businesses decorated their buildings and provided lots of flags for residents to wave, and a procession was also organised. It was a fantastic day for everyone, and Prince Charles over ran his stay to nearly three hours, instead of the scheduled short tour planed.
Following ‘the Royal Visit’, it was decided to have an annual event to celebrate Balsall Heath's mixed cultures, which worked together in making the area a good place to live. The population of the area was about one third English/Irish; one third Afro-Caribbean; one third Asian. Nearly 40 years later, the 'Balsall Heath Carnival' is still celebrated on the first Saturday in July.
During the 70s and 80s Balsall Heath changed hugely. Apart from the 'Renewed' houses and safe open play spaces, the area developed an adventure playground with an all weather track and games area; an Urban Farm with stables, allotments and a classroom used by local schools; a day nursery for 45 under 5's; A secondary school for children excluded from 'normal' schools; Regular social and cultural events (held in the evenings and weekends at the Nursery building, previously a Church Hall); A community workshop (the original base for the Area Caretakers); A strong Residents Association with linked activities like a local history group, a drama club, an OAP Bingo evening, social events, and so on. In addition, there was also a local 'Newspaper' - a monthly magazine reporting on events in and affecting, Balsall Heath. This was called (unsurprisingly) 'The Heathan'.
Mike's talk may have started with some depressing pictures of urban deprivation, but these were gradually changing to show a area that was gaining confidence and a place where people wanted to live, not leave.