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Stephenson Place, BIRMINGHAM, B2 4PY

I worked for Midland Bank HSBC for 32 years and spent all but the last two in Birmingham Branches. I am photographing all the branches, or what's left of them, as they were when I joined Midland Bank in 1963. The branches all start with the sorting code 40-11. This is the site of the Foreign Branch at 1,Stephenson Street. This branch dealt with any work from the branches in the area concerned with foreign currency, paying for imported goods and collecting funds for goods exported. It was situated just below the old New Street Branch. Both sites are now occupied by Waterstones the bookshop The sorting code was 40-11-09.

The view of the Taxi Rank below the sloping walkway to the Pallasades shopping centre and New Street Station.

By Cotton, Ballard & Blow, 1965-67.

I worked for Midland Bank HSBC for 32 years and spent all but the last two in Birmingham Branches. I am photographing all the branches, or what's left of them, as they were when I joined Midland Bank in 1963. The branches all start with the sorting code 40-11. This is the 130 New Street Branch. The original site of the branch was across the road at 128 New Street, which is a listed building, and is now occupied by Waterstones the booksellers. The sorting code is 40-11-18.

This shows the shiny façade of New street Station and the Grand Central shopping complex. Note the tram lines in Stephenson Street

This old dry riser sign still stands on Stephenson Place below the current HSBC at Exchange Buildings and opposite the old 128 New Street Branch ( now Waterstones)

Completion of the tramway extension to serve New Street Station continues to proceed at a funereal pace, which compares badly with systems like Manchester & Nottingham who seem able to complete extensions much more quickly. When this photograph was taken on the 20th March 2016 the overhead had been installed, but currently no date for the commencement of services has been announced.

Seen from New Street. Grand Central is the newly revamped shopping and restaurant area at New Street Station.

My son reports: "Birmingham city centre tram lines [West Midlands Metro] are having to be ripped up and replaced because of a defect causing lines to crack. It's a long and loud process." He works in the building on the right. At the bottom of the slope the tracks turn the sharp corner into Stephenson Street which has a stop for New Street station. Behind the camera is pedestrianised New Street and, across the junction, Corporation Street.