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| Perry Barr | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Perry Barr Location within theWest Midlands | |
| Population | 23,652 (2011Ward)[1] |
| • Density | 29.7 per ha |
| OS grid reference | SP065919 |
| Metropolitan borough | |
| Metropolitan county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | BIRMINGHAM |
| Postcode district | B42 |
| Dialling code | 0121 |
| Police | West Midlands |
| Fire | West Midlands |
| Ambulance | West Midlands |
| UK Parliament | |
| |
Perry Barr is a suburban area in northBirmingham, in the county of theWest Midlands, England. It is also the name of acouncil constituency, managed by its owndistrict committee.Birmingham Perry Barr is also aparliamentary constituency; itsMember of Parliament between 2001 and 2024 was Labour'sKhalid Mahmood. The MP as of July 2024 isAyoub Khan, who ran as an Independent.
The constituency includes the smaller Perry Barrward, and the wards ofHandsworth Wood,Lozells and East Handsworth, andOscott, which each elect three councillors toBirmingham City Council.
There were four ancient manors in this area (all part of the parish of Handsworth) called Hamstead, Oscott, Perry, and Little (or Parva) Barr. Perry is the area around the parish church and this name is seen on maps but now seldom used. Over time, through confusion or convenience, the whole district came to be known as Perry Barr.[2] "Perry" comes from the Old English "pirige", meaning "pear tree".[3] The derivation of "Barr" is Old Celtic "barro" meaning "hill top".[4]Barr Beacon, the area's highest hill, is in neighbouringGreat Barr.
Perry Barr was originally two separate entities, both mentioned in theDomesday Book as 'Pirio'[5] and 'Barre'. Pirio is recorded as having an estimated population of 35 and Barre with an estimated population of 25.William Fitz-Ansculf is recorded as being thetenant in chief of bothmanors, and Drogo as the tenant. It is thought that the two manors may have been combined in theEarly Middle Ages.
In 1874, Perry Barr established its own institute based on the model of theBirmingham and Midland Institute. In 1878,Henry Irving became the president of the Perry Barr Institute and addressed members of the institute on 6 March 1878. His speech was reprinted in the 13 March release ofTheatre and also reprinted onto pamphlets by the institute's members and sold forsixpence to fund the construction of a new building for the institute.[6] It was converted into aCarnegie-funded library in September 1897. In early 2007, this library, ultimately known as Birchfield Community Library, was demolished due to its dilapidated condition. Another library in the area is Tower Hill Library.[7]
Aston Villa opened theirWellington Road ground in Perry Barr in 1876, playing there until 1897.
Perry Barr was formerly achapelry in the parish ofHandsworth,[8] on 26 March 1894 Perry Barr became a separatecivil parish.Perry Barr Urban District was anurban district inStaffordshire from 1894 until 1928,[9] when it was largely incorporated intoBirmingham and thus alsoWarwickshire (this included an area which is now considered part ofGreat Barr). On 1 October 1930 the parish was abolished and merged with Birmingham.[10] In 1921 the parish had a population of 2700.[11] It then became part of theWest Midlands in 1974 when Birmingham became ametropolitan borough in the county.
In 1903,Birmingham Crematorium, the City's first, was opened bySir Henry Thompson, president of theCremation Society, in Perry Barr at 389 Walsall Road. It has been privately owned, currently byDignity plc.[12]
In the 1920s,Oscar Deutsch opened his first everOdeon cinema here. The original cinema is now a conference venue, having also been abingo hall. The 1920sPerry Barr Stadium on the Aldridge Road hostedgreyhound racing and theBirmingham Brummiesspeedway team until its closure and demolition in 2025. It had a 500-seat capacity, and was refurbished in 2004. It was the former home of theBirchfield Harriers, whoseArt Deco-styledbas relief badge it still carried.[13] The Harriers now operate from nearbyAlexander Stadium.
Aston Technical College (later renamed North Birmingham Technical College) moved to a new site in Perry Barr in the late 1960s, and was incorporated into the creation ofBirmingham Polytechnic (nowBirmingham City University) in 1971. The site had formerly been the location of Birchfield Road Primary School and Birchfield Road Secondary Modern School. Two of the college's buildings existed as part of the university's City North Campus, but closed in 2018 when the site was again levelled and construction began on accommodation for athletes competing in the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022 in Perry Park. Delays in construction due to the Covid 19 pandemic meant that the accommodation was not completed in time to be used for this purpose.
There is a mall-style shopping centre in the district known as "One Stop" Shopping Centre. This was built in the early 1990s, replacing a previous 1960s-era shopping centre. To facilitate the 1990s construction, a length of the River Tame was diverted andcanalised. AWetherspoons pub, the Arthur Robertson,[14] opened later is named afterArthur Robertson, the Birchfield Harriers' firstOlympic gold medallist (1908).[15]
A memorial toPC Malcolm Walker, of theWest Midlands Police, is situated outside shops on the city-bound side of Birchfield Road. He died on 4 October 2001, when his motorcycle was struck during a police pursuit.
The site of the formerPerry Hall is nowPerry Hall Park. Perry Park hosted theBirmingham Carnival in 2005.
 | This section needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(May 2018) |
Major roads in the ward and constituency include theM6 motorway and theA34. Bus routes operated by theNational Express West Midlands Perry Barr bus garage in the area include Nos 11A, 11C, 33, 46, 51, 54, 68A, 68C, 907, 907A, 936, 937, 937A (evenings and Sundays), 952, 997, and 997E (towardsPheasey).[16][17] TheA4040 andA34 roads cross at Perry Barr, the former carrying theBirmingham Outer Circle bus routes. In addition theA453 towardsSutton Coldfield begins at Perry Barr.
Route X51 runs through Perry Barr, but does not stop in Perry Barr. The nearest stop on the route is Walsall Road,Alexander Stadium before running non-stop toBirmingham City Centre.[18]
To the south-west of the ward is the Walsall line, part of the oldGrand Junction Railway, which has two railway stations within the boundaries of the ward;Hamstead railway station andPerry Barr railway station. The latter, opened in 1837, is one of the oldest stations in the country to remain on its original site. It has been rebuilt several times, most recently in 2022.
TheTame Valley Canal bisects the ward, with boats fromSalford Junction, underGravelly Hill Interchange climbing the 13-flight Perry BarrLocks towards Hamstead and on to Rushall Junction. There is a feeder reservoir, Perry Reservoir, inPerry Park.[19]
TheRiver Tame passes through the area and is crossed by several bridges, includingPerry Bridge, a scheduled ancient monument of 1711, on the line of the RomanRyknild Street, and its 1932 Art Deco replacement carrying the Aldridge Road. The old bridge appears on the badge of nearbyHandsworth Grammar School. A stream, theHolbrook, originating on the slopes ofBarr Beacon, flows into the river just upstream from the bridge. The area around the bridge is known asHolford.[20]
Aston Manor Cricket Club are situated in Perry Barr, as is the international athletics stadiumAlexander Stadium. These are located on Church Road just byPerry Park. The Hub on Holford Drive is home toContinental Star F.C., as well as Continental Star Cricket, Continental Stars table tennis club, tennis clubs, and Aston Amateur Boxing Club.[21]
| This section needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(May 2011) |
The Perry Barr ward is part of theBirmingham, Perry Barr parliamentary constituency. Following boundary changes in 2004, the eastern edge of the ward follows theM6 motorway fromSpaghetti Junction to junction 7 atGreat Barr, including parts of the communities ofWitton,Aston, Perry Barr andGreat Barr.
Since 2004, the three councillors representing Perry Barr onBirmingham City Council have beenRay Hassall, Karen Hamilton and Jon Hunt, all of themLiberal Democrats. Hassall was elected in 1990, Hunt in 2003 and Hamilton in 2004. Hamilton became the first black councillor elected for the ward. In a 2017by-election, Morriam Jan, elected as a Liberal Democrat, became the first councillor ofSouth Asian origin elected for the ward.
Prior to 1990, the ward had a strong tendency towards theConservative Party. No single party held all the seats in the ward between 1990 and 2004. The Liberal Democrats took a clean sweep at the 2004 Council Elections in which all seats were contested, but only after three recounts. In 2006, Hamilton increased her personal majority from 31 to more than 1,500, and the party went on to win every election in the ward until boundary changes in 2018.
The ward hadLabour representation for a period, from 1995 till 2004 following the election of Mike Leddy (1995–2003), along with the defection of Ron Whitehouse from the Liberal Democrats to the Labour Party (2000–2004).
For the 2018 and any subsequent elections the ward was reduced in size to two councillors and parts of the former Aston ward, included in 2004, were returned to a new Aston ward. The new Perry Barr ward includesWitton Cemetery and the Moor Lane Sports Ground.
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The2001 Population Census recorded that 22,704 people lived in Perry Barr. 28.2% (6,410) of the ward's population was represented byethnic minorities, compared with 29.6% for Birmingham in general. According to the UK Census 2021, 69.4% of Perry Barr and South Hamstead werenon-White ethnicities.
British musicianSteve Winwood was achoirboy at St John the Evangelist Church of Englandparish church in Perry Barr.[23]
Birmingham UK parliamentary constituencies (left) and city council wards | ||
| Edgbaston |  | |
| Erdington | ||
| Hall Green | ||
| Hodge Hill |
| |
| Ladywood | ||
| Northfield | ||
| Perry Barr | ||
| Selly Oak | ||
| Sutton Coldfield | ||
| Yardley | ||
