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| News Headlines: March 2011 |
| 31.03.11 Cafe Fire in Digbeth |
| The Moon Lounge Cafe on Adelaide Street in Digbeth was gutted by fire at around 7am on Saturday 26 March. Arson is suspected. |
| 31.03.11 Woman Cut From Crash Wreckage in Shenley |
| A woman was cut from wreckage following a collision at the junction of Shenley Lane and Shenley Fields Road at around 12.30pm on Tuesday 29 March. |
| 31.03.11 Shopkeeper Pistol-Whipped in Hamstead |
| A 58-year-old shopkeeper was pistol-whipped by masked robbers at the Good Cheer Store on Dorrington Road in Hamstead at around 9.15pm on Sunday 27 March. |
| 30.03.11 New Entrance at Snow Hill Station |
| A new entrance to Snow Hill Station has opened on Livery Street. It will enable passengers to reach the Midland Metro from the Jewellery Quarter without crossing Great Charles Street Queensway. |
| 30.03.11 Northfield Flat Fire on Popes Lane |
| Firefighters were called to a bedroom blaze at a flat on Popes Lane in the Wychalll area of Northfield at around 5.30am on Monday 28 March; nobody was injured. |
| 30.03.11 Lordswood School Bar Pink Hair Girl |
| The head teacher of Lordswood Girls School in Harborne has prevented a 16-year-old girl from attending lessons because she has a pink streak in her hair. The girl was sent home to re-dye her hair in order to comply with a strict uniform policy intended to install pride and protect pupils from social pressure. |
| 29/03/11 Murder Stab Victim in Rubery |
| Police were called to Maple Road in Rubery at around 6.15pm on Friday 25 March; they discovered a man with stab wounds who later died at QE Hospital; two people have been arrested on suspicion of murder. |
| 29/03/11 Joyrider Hits Policeman in Lea Hall |
| A joyrider hit a policeman on Lea Hall Road during a high-speed pursuit through east Birmingham on the evening of Saturday 26 March. The policeman, who injured his leg, was attempting to deploy a stinger. The stolen vehicle was subsequently recovered and an 18-year-old youth has been arrested for attempted murder. |
| 29/03/11 Police Car Hits OAP in Handsworth |
| A police patrol car hit a 79-year-old woman by the junction of Rookery Road and Newcombe Road in Handsworth at 3.35pm on Friday 25 March. The woman has been hospitalised in a stable condition. |
| 28.03.11 Man Threatens Suicide in Rubery |
| A man in his twenties threatened to hang himself from a bridge above the A38 on Callowbridge Road in Rubery on Friday 25 March. The A38 was closed from 5.30pm until 7.30pm when negotiators talked the man down. |
| 28.03.11 Machete-Wielding Knifeman in Erdington |
| Police attended after a machete-wielding knifeman was reported in the car park behind the Rugby House Hotel on Slade Road in Stockland Green at 11.30am on Thursday 24 March. The man had disappeared by the time they arrived. |
| 27.03.11 Edgbaston Priory Tennis Centre Approved |
| Planning permission has been granted for a new indoor tennis centre at the Priory Club in Edgbaston with six courts including a 2,500-seat centre court capable of staging Davis Cup matches. |
| 27.03.11 Late Night Brawl at New Street Station |
| There was a brawl at New Street Station between two gangs, one apparently from Coventry, at around 11pm on Saturday 5 March; three men sustained minor injuries. |
| 27.03.11 Cannabis Seizure in Alum Rock |
| The police seized 300 cannabis plants and arrested a 17-year-old youth during a raid at a house on Cotterills Lane in the Alum Rock area of east Birmingham at around 8am on Tuesday 22 March. |
| 26.03.11 Staff Take Over John Taylor Hospice |
| The John Taylor Hospice on Grange Rod in Erdington will be run by its own staff as an independent social enterprise outside the direct control of the NHS from 1st April 2011. |
| 26.03.11 Drugs Raid in Handsworth |
| A 27-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of drug dealing at a house on Headingly Road in Handsworth at approximately 9am on Thursday 24 March following a police raid in which a quantity of white powder was seized. |
| 26.03.11 Alum Rock Man Lived Off Albanian Prostitute |
| A 41-year-old man from Alum Rock Road in east Birmingham has been found guilty at Warwick Crown Court of living off the proceeds of prostitution and controlling prostitution for gain. The man brought a 19-year-old Albanian girl to Birmingham in 2001 and forced her to work as a prostitute until she ran away in October 2006. He then found out where she was living and threatened her repeatedly until he was arrested in April 2010. |
| 25.03.11 Cash Grant For Key Hill and Warstone Lane Cemeteries |
| Service Birmingham has awarded a cash grant of £4,000 to the Friends of Key Hill and Warstone Lane Cemeteries for the reinstatement of old headstones that were pushed over during council health and safety checks in 2004. |
| 25.03.11 Hakuna Matata Nightclub to Reopen |
| The Licensing Committee has given the nightclub Hakuna Matata on Dale End permission to reopen provided that it closes no later than midnight, gives 28 days notice of special events and allows the police to vet door staff. Hakuna Matata was closed down on Saturday 26 February after cannabis, ecstasy, unidentified white powder, knives and a loaded handgun were seized during a police raid. |
| 25.03.11 Enterprise Zone for Birmingham |
| The Chancellor George Osborne announced in his budget speech on Wednesday 23 March that a business-friendly enterprise zone with tax concessions, discounted business rates, reduced planning restrictions and access to super-fast broadband will be created in Birmingham. |
| 24.03.11 Solar Panels at Balsall Heath Church Centre |
| The Church Centre on Mary Street in Balsall Heath, which is shared by St Paul's and the United Reform Church, has installed solar panels in order to generate an income from the supply of environmentally-clean electricity. |
| 24.03.11 Learning Disability College Approved in Sutton Coldfield |
| The Planning Committee has approved the proposed conversion of a former farmhouse on Lindridge Road in Sutton Coldfield into a college for adults with severe learning disabilities despite an objection that only 8 parking spaces will be provided for an anticipated staff of 24. |
| 24.03.11 Norovirus Outbreak at Good Hope Hospital |
| All wards except for children, maternity and intensive care at Good Hope Hospital in Sutton Coldfield have been closed to new patients following an outbreak of the highly-contagious norovirus winter-sickness bug. |
| 23.03.11 Men Jailed for Attack on Bordesley Green Crash Victim |
| Five men aged 50, 33, 19, 18 and 17 have been jailed for 11, 11, 8, 9 and 6.5 years respectively at Birmingham Crown Court for battering a 66-year-old crash victim after the car in which he had been travelling crashed on Yardley Green Road at around 7pm on Monday 1 August. The victim sustained severe head, stomach and back injuries as a result of the attack which was motivated by a longstanding feud. |
| 23.03.11 Gay Fertility Clinic to Open in Digbeth |
| A lesbian couple are opening a gay fertility clinic at the Custard Factory in Digbeth. The official launch party will be held at the Purple Lounge and Bar on Hurst Street from 6pm on Sunday 27th March. |
| 23.03.11 New Slots Arcade in Hurst Street |
| The licensing committee has approved a new slots arcade on Hurst Street in Southside that will contain a cash dispenser and 42 slot machines with maximum payouts of between £75 and £500. The owner will install CCTV, ban alcohol on the premises and employ door supervisors at busy times. |
| 22.03.11 Plans to Transform Digbeth Viaduct into Parkland |
| The Digbeth Residents Association plan to create an urban park on the disused Victorian rail viaduct off Adderley Street which was abandoned after the Great Western decided to build its Birmingham terminus at Snow Hill instead of Curzon Street. |
| 22.03.11 Cannabis Farm Blaze in Ward End |
| Fire crews attended a blaze at a semi-detached house being used to cultivate cannabis on Woodwells Road in Ward End at around 9.15 am on Sunday 20 March. The fire, which appears to have been caused by an attempt to bypass the electricity meter, gutted the ground floor; two men were hospitalised with serious burn injuries. |
| 22.03.11 Travelodge Opens New Hotel at Bullring |
| Travelodge has opened a new 210-room hotel on Upper Dean Street at the Bullring in Birmingham city centre. |
| 21.03.11 Kitchen Fire in Rubery |
| Firefighters rescued two men, one of whom sustained minor burns, from a kitchen fire at a house on Deelands Road in Rubery at around 7.30pm on Thursday 17 March. |
| 21.03.11 Teenager Died During Minor Surgery At Children's Hospital |
| A 16-year-old boy died of multiple organ failure during routine minor keyhole surgery at Birmingham Children's Hospital on Wednesday 16 February 2010. According to a recently-published report, it appears that his death may have been caused by a senior surgeon piercing a major artery with the wrong surgical instrument. |
| 21.03.11 Too Many Takeaways on Kings Heath High Street? |
| The Lib Dem Councillor Emily Cox, who represents the Moseley & King Heath ward, is worried that Kings Heath High Street is losing its identity and becoming the "home of takeaways" rather than shopping. Speaking at a ward committee meeting, she pointed out the litter and health problems caused by a preponderance of fast food outlets and suggested that a development plan might be necessary to control the problem. |
| 20.03.11 Ram Raid at Weoley Castle Co-op |
| Thieves crashed three cars into the Co-op on Castle Square in Weoley Castle in an attempt to steal a cash machine from the front window at around 4am on Friday 18 March. |
| 20.03.11 Kings Heath Pushbike Bag Snatcher Jailed |
| A 28-year-old cyclist has been jailed for 18 months for snatching a bag from a woman waiting at a bus stop on Woodthorpe Road in Kings Heath on Friday 3 September. |
| 20.03.11 Thieves Target Private Car Sellers in Hockley |
| Two men stole a car advertised for sale on Great King Street in Hockley after contacting the owner and asking for a test drive on Thursday 3 February. The thieves also burgled the owner's home in Aston after finding his house keys in the vehicle. |
| 19.03.11 Amphetamine Dealer Jailed for 4 Years |
| A 42-year-old man from Tooting in London, who was caught in possession of amphetamine with a street value of £50,000 at New Street Station on 15 December 2010, has been jailed for 4 years at Birmingham Crown Court. |
| 19.03.11 Waste-Fuelled Power Plant at Gosta Green |
| The former Gosta Green TV studios, next to Aston University in the Eastside area of central Birmingham, will be converted into a £16.5 million waste-fuelled power plant and demonstration centre by October 2012. The project is being financed by Aston University, Advantage West Midlands and the European Regional Development Fund. |
| 19.03.11 Selly Oak Playing Fields Registered as Village Green |
| The 7-acre playing fields at Westhill College in Selly Oak have been registered as a village green under the Commons Act 2006. The fields had been earmarked for housing after the college merged with the University of Birmingham in 2001. However, local residents have blocked the planned development by proving their continued recreational use of the fields as of right for the past 20 years. |
| 18.03.11 Hand Grenades Found in Bournville |
| The Bomb Squad were called to a terraced house on Mary Vale Road in Bournville after two hand grenades were discovered in the back garden at around 2.30pm on Wednesday 16 March; neighbouring houses were evacuated and the road cordoned-off. |
| 18.03.11 Cannabis Raid in Handsworth |
| Police seized 3 cannabis plants during a raid on a flat on Douglas Road in Handsworth at around 6am on Wednesday 16 March; a 42-year-old man was arrested and charged with cannabis cultivation. |
| 18.03.11 Cellar Cannabis Farm in Lozells |
| Police raided a cannabis farm with 85 plants hidden in a cellar beneath a multi-occupied house in Lozells at around 7.30am on Tuesday 15 March; a 39-year-old man was arrested. |
| 17.03.11 Cash Grant for Bartley Sailing Club |
| Bartley Sailing Club has received an £8,500 grant from Sport England for the purchase of 4 Laser Pico dinghies so that more people may learn to sail on Bartley Reservoir. |
| 17.03.11 Motorist Battered in Sparkbrook |
| A 45-year-old motorist, who had been battered and robbed, was discovered slumped in his car on Henley Street in Sparkbrook with serious head injuries at around 8pm on Monday 14 March. |
| 17.03.11 Baby Rescued From Shenley House Fire |
| Firefighters rescued a woman and her baby from a house fire on Veronica Close in Shenley at around 8.30pm on Sunday 13 March. |
| 16.03.11 Scrapyard Arson in Erdington |
| 6 cars were torched by intruders at Brewers Auto Salvage on Gravelly Lane in Erdington at around 11pm on Sunday 13 March. |
| 16.03.11 Brazilian Restaurant Opens on Broad Street |
| A new restaurant, Amazon Brazil, which serves traditional Brazilian churrascaria, has opened on upper Broad Street in the Five Ways area of central Birmingham. |
| 16.03.11 Robbers Target Tesco Kingstanding |
| Three masked men fled upon being confronted by staff after breaking into the Tesco Express store on Hawthorn Road in Kingstanding at around 5.30am on Monday 14 March. |
| 15.03.11 Historic Houses Withdrawn from Auction |
| Two historic council-owned properties in Handsworth Wood have been withdrawn from auction. Milton Grange, a former children's home, and Hawthorn House, a former library, were due to be sold to the highest bidder and would probably have been redeveloped as flats. However, it now appears that both properties will be transferred to local community organisations under asset transfer schemes. |
| 15.03.11 Kitchen Fire in Rotton Park |
| Firefighters were called to a kitchen blaze at a house on Twyning Road in the Rotton Park area of Edgbaston at around 1.30am on Monday 14 March. |
| 15.03.11 Canal Boat Fire in Kings Norton |
| A canal boat, moored off Lifford Lane on the Birmingham & Worcester Canal in Kings Norton, caught fire and sunk at around 6.30am on Sunday 13 March. |
| 14.03.11 Planned Conversion of Moseley Pub into Flats |
| Plans have been submitted for the proposed conversion into residential units of the Village Inn on the Alcester Road in Moseley and for the construction of an additional 6 flats on the site of its car park. |
| 14.03.11 Transport Minister Visits Stechford 94 Steps |
| The Under-Secretary of State for Transport, Liberal Democrat MP Norman Baker, has visited the 94-step entrance to Stechford Railway Station and promised to investigate the possibility of improving access for the elderly and wheelchair users. |
| 14.03.11 Handsworth Cocaine Smuggler Jailed |
| A Handsworth man has been jailed for 6 years at Birmingham Crown Court after pleading guilty to the attempted importation of 493 grams of cocaine; the drugs were hidden in metal castings and posted to his home address on Hamstead Road. |
| 13.03.11 Tramp Lived Under Holte End at Villa Park |
| A routine security sweep of Villa Park has revealed a middle-aged tramp living in a makeshift cardboard shelter beneath the Holte End Stand. The man, who has been dubbed the Hermit of the Holte, appears to have survived on scraps from catering booths; he has since disappeared. |
| 13.03.11 Ticket Offices to Close at Birmingham Stations |
| London Midland rail bosses have launched a consultation procedure over plans to close ticket offices at Witton, Duddeston, Small Heath, the Jewellery Quarter and Adderley Park stations and to leave many other Birmingham stations unmanned for long periods. |
| 12.03.11 Work Begins on Regeneration of HP Sauce Site |
| Work has started on the redevelopment of the former site of the HP Sauce Factory at Aston Cross. The factory, which was demolished in 2007, will be replaced by an East End Foods cash and carry warehouse and distribution centre, an Urban Farm and Technology Centre, a 15-storey hotel and a 1,200-capacity conference centre. |
| 12.03.11 Bus Driver Cleared of Killing Drunk |
| A 30-year-old bus driver has been cleared at Birmingham Crown Court of causing the death by dangerous driving of a 43-year-old man whom he ran over on New Street in Rubery on 16th January 2010. Prosecutors dropped the case after an expert witness told the jury that it was unlikely the driver could have known the deceased had fallen under his bus before driving off. |
| 12.03.11 Council Invites Tenders for Golf Course Management |
| The City Council has invited 4 private companies to submit outline tenders for the management for the next 25 years of all 7 municipal golf courses in Birmingham. |
| 11.03.11 Will UK Athletics Move to Perry Barr? |
| UK Athletics will not confirm the proposed relocation of its headquarters from Blythe Valley Park in Solihull to the Alexander Stadium in Perry Barr. The council has borrowed £11 million in order to upgrade the Alexander Stadium and hoped to meet the interest payments by renting office space beneath a new 5,000-seat stand; councillors fear that UK Athletics may now favour an alternative move to the Olympic Stadium in London |
| 11.03.11 Shots Fired in Saltley |
| The driver of a BMW shot at a Renault estate near the entrance to Adderley School on Arden Road in Saltley at around 2.45pm on Wednesday 9 March. |
| 11.03.11 Planned Demolition of Sutton Coldfield Postal Depot |
| The Royal Mail has filed an application to demolish the postal depot on Upper Clifton Road in Sutton Coldfield and to redevelop the site as housing. The depot, which was built by the US army to handle service mail in 1942, is a grade-two-listed building. |
| 10.03.11 Diocese Approves Solar Panels for Moseley Church |
| The Chancellor of the Diocese of Birmingham has approved the installation of 42 solar panels on the roof of St Mary's Church in Moseley. |
| 10.03.11 Car Hits Tree in Edgbaston |
| A car rolled onto its side and hit a tree on Somerset Road in Edgbaston at around 6pm on Tuesday 8 March; two men were taken to QE Hospital. |
| 10.03.11 Three Jailed For Northfield Murder |
| Two men aged 23 and 20 have been jailed for a minimum of 15 years and a 17-year-old youth has been jailed for a minimum of 11 years at Birmingham Crown Court for the murder of a 57-year-old man who died after he was battered on Wychall Road in Northfield during the early hours of Saturday 5 December 2009; a 20 year-old woman, who also attacked the victim, has been jailed for 3.5 years for GBH. |
| 09.03.11 Licensing Committee Closes Basement Bar |
| The Licensing Committee has revoked the license for the Basement Bar and Restaurant on Livery Street in the Jewellery Quarter after hearing evidence that the owners had ignored fire safety regulations and had failed to observe a Prohibition Order issued in December 2010. |
| 09.03.11 Woman Cut From Kingstanding Crash Wreckage |
| A female motorist was cut from wreckage after her car was hit by a van on Finchley Road in Kingstanding at around 2.30pm on Tuesday 8 March. |
| 08.03.11 License Extension for Bulls Head Moseley |
| The Bulls Head on St Mary's Row in Moseley, whose clubroom stays open until 2am on Friday and Saturday nights, has been granted a license extension from 11.30am to midnight on Monday-Thursday and until 2am on bank holidays. |
| 08.03.11 Four Car Crash on Tyburn Road |
| A four-car pile-up was caused by black ice on the Tyburn Road, near its junction with Jarvis Way, at around 6am on Tuesday 8th March; two men sustained minor head and neck injuries; one was hospitalised. |
| 08.03.11 Woman Managed Moseley Brothel |
| A 31-year-old woman has been jailed for 16 weeks suspended for 18 months for managing a brothel under the guise of an aromatherapy massage parlour on St Mary's Row in Moseley; the prosecutor alleged that the woman had been paid £15 per client by self-employed prostitutes; the premises were raided in October 2010. |
| 07.03.11 Lead Thieves Target Conway School in Sparkbrook |
| Thieves stole lead from Conway Primary School in Sparkbrook during the half-term holiday of 18-28 February; flashing was stripped from the roof, windows and skylights and the school's lightening conductor was taken. |
| 07.03.11 Attempted Child Abduction in Shard End |
| Police are investigating the attempted abduction of a 10-year-old girl by 3 men in the Shard End area of Birmingham at roughly 8.35am on Thursday 3 March; the men apparently attempted to force the girl into a white van but she struggled free and ran to a nearby house. |
| 07.03.11 Robbery at Yardley Travel Agents |
| Two men armed with a machete robbed First Choice Travel Agents on Church Road in Yardley of around £6,500 at approximately 4.45pm on Wednesday 16 February. |
| 06.03.11 Sexual Assault in Warstock |
| A woman was sexually assaulted on the Prince of Wales Lane in Warstock at around 1am on Friday 4 March; the surrounding area, which is a quiet residential suburb, was sealed for forensic examination. |
| 06.03.11 Suspected Arson Attack in Ward End |
| A house was broken into on Northleigh Road in Ward End and a fire started in an upstairs bedroom at around 8.30pm on Thursday 3 March; nobody was injured; the occupants, a woman and her two children, were out at the time. |
| 06.03.11 Family Flats for Jewellery Quarter |
| Plans for a new 4-storey apartment block on Tenby Street in the Jewellery Quarter have been approved; the development will include several three-bedroom family flats. |
| 05.03.11 McDonalds Opens Restaurant at Star City |
| McDonalds is opening a new "drive thru" restaurant at Star City in Nechells that will create around 80 jobs. |
| 05.03.11 Lozells Community Centre Reopens After Refurbishment |
| The Methodist Community Centre (1895) on Gerard Street in Lozells has re-opened after a £600,000 refurbishment and now contains state-of-the-art function and meeting rooms and a recording and dance studio. |
| 05.03.11 Car Crashes into Kings Norton Flats |
| A car crashed into an apartment block on St Francis Drive in Kings Norton at around 3am on Thursday 3 March. The impact caused structural damage and 12 residents were evacuated; a 22-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of taking a vehicle without consent. |
| 04.03.11 Tesco Get Permission for Moseley Store |
| The Planning Committee has granted permission for a new Tesco store and health centre at the former Ford Meteor site on St Mary's Row in Mosely Village. Permission had previously been refusal because of the lack of parking spaces and risk of traffic congestion. However, planning officers have since advised that there is insufficient evidence to justify refusal on these grounds. |
| 04.03.11 Dead Teenage Girl in Handsworth |
| The corpse of an 18-year-old girl was discovered at a house on Whateley Road in Handsworth at around 11am on Wednesday 2 March. The police regard her death as suspicious and two men have been arrested. |
| 04.03.11 Child Hit by Bus in Weoley Castle |
| An 11-year-old girl died at Birmingham Children's Hospital shortly after she was hit by a bus on Beckbury Road in Weoley Castle at around 7.30 am on Thursday 3 March. |
| 03.03.11 Woman Hit by Car in Sparkhill |
| A woman sustained serious head injuries after being hit by a car on the Stratford Road in Sparkhill at around 2.45 pm on Wednesday 2 March; she was hospitalised in a stable condition. |
| 03.03.11 Harborne Tower Lights Annoy Local Residents |
| Local residents have complained about a lighting display installed by Birmingham City Council on the 16-storey summit of Kendall Tower on Malins Road in Harborne. The display, which was intended to brighten the tower's drab facade, has annoyed the occupants of surrounding houses and has been switched off pending a consultative review. |
| 03.03.11 NEC Chief Criticises Birmingham International Station |
| Kathryn James, the Managing Director of the NEC, has described Birmingham International Railway Station as a "disgrace". The concrete station, which was built in the 1970's, is generally regarded as ugly and uninviting despite recent improvements by Virgin, the current franchisee, who have added new toilets and a first-class lounge. |
| 02.03.11 High-Speed Chase Ends in Great Barr |
| A 31 year-old motorist was arrested on the Queslett Road in Great Barr at around 11pm on Monday 28 February following a six-mile high-speed chase through Kingstanding and Sutton Coldfield. |
| 02.03.11 Youths Jailed for Birches Green Murder |
| Two youths aged 17 have been jailed for life for the murder of a 21-year-old man who was chased from a house party in Birches Green and stabbed to death in an alleyway off the Kingsbury Road during the early hours of Sunday 17 July 2010. The youth who led the attack must serve a minimum of 14 years; his accomplice must serve at least 12 years. |
| 01.03.11 Murder Inquiry in Handsworth |
| Police have launched a murder inquiry following the death by multiple stab wounds of a 53-year-old man whose body was discovered at a ground floor flat on Austin Road in Handsworth at roughly 1 pm on Sunday 26 February. |
| 01.03.11 Counterfeit Drugs Seized in Longbridge |
| Police seized between fifteen and twenty thousand fake viagra tablets during a dawn raid at a house on Rednal Mill Lane in Longbridge on Monday 28 February. |
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