IMAGES TAKEN NEAR TO
Gerardsfield Road, BIRMINGHAM, B33 0BP

Bonjour tristesse! The green on Geraldsfield Road is part of a much larger band of public open space than extends in a U shape, crossing East Meadway, which runs across the foreground of the picture. Behind the photographer it extends around Sheldon Hall Avenue, in front along Geraldsfield Road and Shirestone Road. These 1950s council estates were built to a very low density by 21st century British standards, with large expanses of green, though there is also a some high rise housing on Shirestone Road.

Viewed from former school.

These six Y-shaped housing blocks were built in 1951, a time of acute housing shortage, for Birmingham County Borough Council (according to Lynsey Hanley in 'Estates', they were the first high-rise council housing in Birmingham). Each block is of 6 storeys with 30 dwellings, so, 180 homes in total. They were built by Wimpey to their 'no-fines' method (concrete made from clinker with no fine aggregates). They were named after Midlands country towns: Banbury, Ledbury, Leominster, Monmouth (now in Wales), Redditch and Stafford. Ledbury House can be seen in the foreground. See https://www.towerblock.eca.ed.ac.uk/development/tile-cross

Situated on Shirestone Road in Tile Cross.

Mural in upstairs room (staff room?) of the smaller of the two groups of buildings, which were demolished in 2017.

Sheldon Hall Avenue looking NE towards Sheldon Hall, photo taken from the former Sheldon Hall School (formerly Byng Kenrick Central School).

The school buildings appear to date from the late 1950s. They were part of a larger complex of school buildings on a nearby, but not adjoining, site on Gressel Lane. Two schools used the sites, the Wilfred Martineau School, and the Bing Kenrick Central School, which was itself an merger of two earlier schools, Bing Kenrick Girls' Grammar School and Central School (originally a boys's school). In 2001 the two schools became The International School and Community College. The Sheldon Hall Avenue site was later closed and between 2013 and 2017 provided slum housing for property guardians. The buildings were then demolished and houses built on the site. The larger Gressel Lane site (not visible in this photo) continues to be used as a school.

The smaller of the two groups of buildings on the site. Built late 1950s? for Byng Kenrick Central School and/or Wilfred Martineau School (they appear to have shared the same sites here and at Gressel Lane nearby). In 2001 the school became the International School and Community College, which used this site on Sheldon Hall Avenue until c2010-12. From 2013 to 2017 it provided slummy housing to property guardians. This building comprised four classrooms and various offices and store rooms and what may have been a staff room. Part of the ground floor was latterly occupied by SADIE, a drug & alcohol counselling service. Between 2013-2017 up to 5 property guardians lived here in slowly deteriorating conditions. The buildings were demolished in 2017 and houses built on the site.

Built late 1950s? for Byng Kenrick Central School and/or Wilfred Martineau School, which used this site and a larger one on Gressel Lane nearby. In 2001 the school became the International School & Community College, which used this, the smaller site, until c2010-12. It housed property guardians from July 2013 to February 2017. Later that year the buildings on the site were demolished and houses built in their place. (The Gressel Lane site continued to be used as a school.)

Part of the former International School & Community College. The site was redeveloped for housing in 2017.