Parents looking to keep their children occoupied this half term have plenty of choice in Sutton Coldfield. The town hall is hosting events this February holiday with Art Workshops for Children and Cartoon Circus Live!
Do you have children aged 5-14 years old? The town hall is hosting various art workshops led by artistic professionals this half-term. Unleash your child’s artistic potential through painting, drawing, crafting and 3-D modelling.
The events take place on Monday 12, Tuesday 13 and Wednesday 14 February from 10am-4pm
At the same time the venue on Upper Clifton Road will be presenting Cartoon Circus Live! a show filled with slapstick comedy, illusions, magic and more. This half-term offers the the thrill of the circus on Tuesday 13 February. Doors open at 12:30 pm for a 1.30pm show.
Visit the town hall website for more information and to book tickets.
You can also book your tickets online, by calling thebox office or by visiting the box office in person:
An artist’s impression of what Gracechurch Shopping Centre may look like after a major revamp
Homes, leisure, retail and commercial plans for major revamp
Sutton Coldfield rundown Gracechurch Shopping Centre is set to get a new lease of life with a multi-million pound investment. Plans to transform the 1970s-built centre with new homes, leisure, retail, commercial and other uses are being backed by the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA).
The WMCA has agreed, in principle, to make the investment in the 250,000 acre shopping centreto help re-energise the town centre in line with the vision set out in the Royal Town Council’s masterplan.
It will be the latest in a series of WMCA investments focused on breathing new life into the region’s town and city centres.
The decision will now trigger detailed negotiations between the WMCA and the developers, Birmingham Property Group and the London-based SAV Group, to finalise a deal.
Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands, and Chair of the WMCA, said: “It’s wonderful to have good news to share about the well-known Gracechurch Shopping Centre site in Royal Sutton Coldfield.
“I’m so pleased to see that the new owners have exciting plans to breathe new life into the town centre.
“We will continue to work in close collaboration with them to help them realise their vision for Gracechurch – benefitting local people through job creation, leisure options and overall regeneration in the months and years ahead.”
Cllr Ian Courts, leader of Solihull Council, and portfolio holder for housing and regeneration at the WMCA, said: “Our town centres and shopping areas are at the heart of our communities and it’s important that we help them to prosper so they offer the retail, homes and services local people need.
“The WMCA is playing an active role across the region, investing in centres like Sutton Coldfield, to support our local economy as well as providing new homes for our people.”
Anton Nikolaenko, investment director of SAV group, said: “We have been working closely with Frontier and the WMCA and are grateful for their support of our ambitious proposals in Royal Sutton Coldfield.”
Emilios Tsavellas, development director at SAV Group, added: “The Gracechurch Centre holds enormous potential, and Andy Street has been integral in facilitating conversations within the WMCA and with other key stakeholders.
“We look forward to continuing our work with the WMCA to ensure that our proposals are delivered and integrated with other plans in Royal Sutton Coldfield and the wider region.”
Cllr Simon Ward, leader of Sutton Coldfield Town Council, said: “It is great to see such a significant vote of confidence in the regeneration of Royal Sutton Coldfield town centre.
“Andy Street has been a strong supporter of our plans since we began this journey six years ago.
“We look forward to working with BPG/SAV to deliver their ambitious and exciting plans, which will boost retail, bring in new and exciting leisure and food offers, and mean The Royal Town becomes a real destination for visitors.”
Access to funding for the project was provided by Frontier Development Capital Ltd, a fund manager working closely with property developers to arrange investments from the WMCA’s Commercial Investment Fund (CIF) and Residential Investment fund (RIF).
Second Sutton Park venue to get makeover ad rebrand
A second Sutton Park hospitality venue is set for a huge facelift if plans are agreed by Birmingham City Council. The landmark Park House in Sutton Park, home of the Toby Carvery is set to be replaced by a new restaurant if city planners give the go-ahead.
It follows the closure and imminent reopening of Bracebridge restaurant, also in Sutton Park and adjacent to Bracebridge Pool.
The Carvery, near Town Gate, will become a Mitchells & Butlers Browns restaurant.
According to a Birmingham Mail report, the company, which leases the Grade II listed building from Birmingham City Council, has applied for listed building consent to make alterations, including a new floor, and external redecoration, as well as for permission to make changes to the rear extension.
A planning, design and heritage statement by JTS Partnership on behalf of M&B, reveals the proposed changes to what was an 18 th century mill house, which has had several extensions and changes since.
The statement says: “Little remains of the layout and footprint of the original mill house. The few original features are potentially limited to fireplaces and ceilings.” The plan is to turn the carvery into a Browns Bar and Restaurant, like the one by the Bullring in Spiceal Street in the city centre.
The exterior of the venue will be redecorated in colors appropriate to the late 19th-century additions in the Tudor style. The applicants assure that the internal changes to the historic core will not impact the heritage significance of the building.
Sutton Coldfield Town Hall hosts celebration of female anthems
From Quatro to Joplin, Cher to Turner, Pink to Blondie, Heart to Benatar, fans of female rock are in for a treat next week in Sutton Coldfield.
Women in Rock will be on stage at Sutton Coldfield Town Hall next Friday, January 12.
Since 2016, Women in Rock have been wowing audiences across the UK & Europe with their sell out show. Having just returned from a hugely successful global tour on board celebrity cruises, they are back in the UK and ready to take you on a journey featuring soaring vocals, choreography, audience interaction, striking costumes and backed by a band of world-class musicians, Women in Rock has built a reputation one of the most enjoyable music shows now touring the UK theatres.
The show celebrates decades of the world’s greatest female rock legends with the set list featuring one classic after another and has something for everyone.
BEFORE AND AFTER: Above, the main Bracebridge building is closed and fenced off. Below, work under way for the January reopening
Popular Sutton Park venue The Bracebridge to open again under new ownership
The Bracebridge restaurant in Sutton Park, which closed suddenly in October, will open again at the end of January, under new ownership.
One of the region’s most famous and picturesque restaurants and noted for its fine dining, The Bracebridge and its associated kiosk snack area, closed suddenly with a Facebook message saying they were closing with a ‘heavy heart’.
It has now been acquired by a consortium involving the Open Restaurants group and is undergoing a refit with work well under way at the venue.
The Liverpool-based group runs several high end eateries including 8, Black and Green, OXA and The Craft Bar.
It is understood The Kiosk, a popular stop-off point for walkers and cyclists in the park, is being converted into a cafe and bakery, while the restaurant is redecorated and the refurbished outside terrace will feature a bar area.
The Bracebridge, situated in the heart of the 2,400 acre Sutton Park overlooking the pool, was previously run by the Stonnall-based Brough family. it is unclear what the reason was for the closure, but the hospitality industry has been suffering a torrid time, first with the pandemic, staff shortages and then rocketing energy prices, putting pressure on profits.
Before closure, the waterside restaurant, formerly known as The Boathouse, comprised two dining areas, including the main dining room and the adjoining terrace and the kiosk, with seating for up to 150 people.
It looks like the reopening of one of Sutton Coldfield’s most iconic restaurant is gathering pace. The popular restaurant and kiosk overlooking Bracebridge Pool has been a popular eatery for years, with the hugely popular kiosk also a halfway house for walkers, dog walkers and cyclists traversing the area.
Following its sudden closure in October, the venue is set to reopen under new ownership with a renowned chef at the helm, according to previous owners, the Brough family.
Activity has been taking place in the last week or so, with groups of people seen meeting amid paperwork and laptops in the main restaurant area, with cars and people with briefcases spotter nearby.
Currently the area is closed off with metal barriers. Those who use the park will welcome the return of the kiosk in particular, a popular starting and finishing spot for a couple of hours walking, cycling or riding in the park.
It provided snacks and drinks and a seating area to view the spectacular view of Bracebridge Pool.
The restaurant and kiosk closed with a previous Facebook message saying they were closing with a ‘heavy heart’.
It looks like the venue could be opening soon and will be a welcome move for park users.
Demolition of former Waitrose and Flints in Mere Green begins
The bulldozers have moved in again in Sutton Coldfield as work get under way to build a new Aldi supermarket. The former Flints and Waitrose buildings complex is being demolished to make way for the discount supermarket in Belwell Lane, Mere Green.
Blue fencing went up around the block of buildings including the former Atlas House, early this month. Waitrose closed in 2020 and the building have remained empty.
The new Aldi is one of two in Sutton Coldfield, with a large store also being built on Brassintgon Avenue in the town centre.
The Mere Green store wukk join the existing Lidl, Sainsbury’s, and Marks & Spencer Foodhall as well as Poundland, for food shopping.
The site is being cleared with the new Aldi to be built to the left of the site, with car parking to the right-hand side and at the back, as the former Waitrose had.
The construction of the shop will create 100 jobs, with the new store set to offer 40 more jobs in the area when it opens. The new Aldi will open 8am to 10pm Monday to Saturday and 10am to 4pm on Sundays like its other shops.
Gaynor and Liz, healthcare assistants at St Gile, are urging people to support the raffle
Team urges people in Sutton Coldfield to support raffle in aid of local people living with terminal illness.
A local charity is urging Sutton residents to support a local charity. Gaynor and Liz, healthcare assistants in the St Giles Hospice at Home team, are calling on people to support the local charity by participating in its Christmas Raffle.
Gaynor said “I’ve worked at St Giles for 16 years and have worked every Christmas Day – for some families we support, the day is full of festivities, but we see the other side too.
” Throughout the day I’ll experience the sadness and pain of people who just can’t get into the Christmas spirit because of what they’re going through. Sometimes it is simply about getting through the day.” As part of the Hospice at Home team, Gaynor and Liz visit terminally ill patients on Christmas Day, to help them manage their condition, provide pain relief, and support their loved ones.
Liz said: “Christmas really makes you appreciate what you have, and I am privileged to witness patients celebrating in whatever way they can with loved ones despite their heartaches.
“It’s a very emotional time for the families, as many will be sharing their last Christmas together, so it’s important that we do what we can to make sure people have something to hold on to and remember forever.”
Every year, the St Giles team dedicate their time to care for local people and their loved ones, living with a terminal illness at Christmas.
Hannah Fahy, Head of Fundraising at St Giles, said: “Playing our Christmas Raffle is a fun and easy way to support St Giles, with the chance to win some fabulous cash prizes.
“Whilst we receive some funding from the Government, we still rely heavily on donations and income generation from our local community. Tickets cost just £1 each, and every ticket sold helps St Giles to continue to be there for people when they need it most.”
Raffle tickets can be purchased until =January 3 2024 and the draw date is January 17 2024. For more information, or to purchase your raffle tickets visit http://www.stgileshospice.com/raffle or call 01543 434020.
Residents of New Hall and Four Oaks, have received a Christmas update from Sergeant Neal Marsh Neighbourhood Team officer for Four Oaks and New Hall
It has been an extremely busy period since I last wrote to you. I have previously expressed my desire for the team to increase our visibility through both social media and physical visibility. I think at this time we are achieving part of this but more work needs to be done.
But those of you that I have spoken with know that we are dealing with high levels of demand and it is only right that we support our colleagues with responding to those calling the police asking for help before we do anything else.
However, we have recently been trialling weekly online beat surgeries on the New Hall ward to improve our availability to report lower level issues, meeting the team and to provide advice. This format was set up to make it convenient to the community. There has also been a monthly Cuppa with a Copper arranged in order to physically meet members of the team to discuss issues, build relationships and to receive crime prevention advice.
Those that have attended have provided some really positive feedback. However, overall attendance at these events has been low. These are not ward meetings these are drop in sessions, the events are advertised in advance, if you have nothing to raise that is not a problem by all means just stop by if nothing else just to get to know your local team.
I have been attending a number of residents meetings to talk about community concerns and we are trying to address these concerns along with our partners.
One of the biggest problems that has been raised with me is The Lanes Shopping Centre, Wylde Green. Since becoming aware of the issues at the location I have been working tirelessly in order to try and reduce them, we have issued a number of Civil Warnings and Notices, have been conducting high visibility patrols and started to work with one particular business in the centre where we co-ordinated our efforts with their loss prevention management and an individual who was causing great harm was subsequently arrested and convicted for multiple shoplifting offences receiving a custodial sentence.
There has been some media coverage around some new fencing that has been erected around a premises that was seen to be as a hub for this anti-social behaviour. This was as a result of some work by the team where they were able to evidence the anti-social behaviour and had attempted to work with the landowners but when this failed we used our civil powers to ensure that the site was more secure. It is still early days and only a small part of the puzzle to solving the problem but we have already seen some positive results.
Whilst the issues within that location will not impact upon all of you, anti-social behaviour and retail crime in our shopping areas does, as such I do want to start replicating parts of this ongoing operation elsewhere.
We are now quickly approaching Christmas, the team have been working into the early hours in order to try and prevent your vehicles and houses being targeted by criminals. We will continue to do this but we do really need your support.
If you own a keyless car please invest in a signal-blocking bag or get a crook lock. With the cold mornings we saw a slight increase in the number of vehicles being stolen from driveways whilst they have been left running to de-ice.
This is a seasonal issue and is not just exclusive to Sutton Coldfield. I will likely be passing this message until all cars come with heated windscreens. By not doing this will likely put potential offenders off attending the area full stop. There is no rhyme or reason to this style of offending; it is mostly opportunistic, only you can prevent it.
I am still regularly briefing our response colleagues on our burglary offences in the hope that we are in the right place at the right time. This paid dividends on Saturday evening when our response team was already patrolling an area that we had been highlighting for offences and managed to detain an offender at the time of an offence.
I did mention Christmas back in September when I first wrote to you and hope that this advice has been heeded, please make sure that you do your research if you are considering buying electric bikes/scooters or other off roaders.
Unless it states otherwise none of these vehicles are legal to be used on the roads or parks. It is not the retailer’s responsibility to highlight this to you, it is your responsibility. This also needs to be considered when purchasing drones, you are on the flight path here and as such you really need to consider which drone you buy and where it can be used. There is a significant amount of legislation around drones and some require specific licences so please make sure that you double check before you buy them.
Thank you for your continued support and I hope that you all have a great Christmas.
Police issue warning about leaving cars unattended
Police in Sutton have warned drivers not to leave their cars unattended with the engine running on frosty mornings. For the last couple of mornings, we’ve all woken up to cold mornings – and cars that need defrosting.
There has been a spate of car crime in the Sutton area over the last couple of years.
A police spokesperson said: “Please remember it’s really important you don’t leave your vehicle unattended with the engine running – even though it might feel tempting.
“Criminals can take the opportunity to steal high value vehicles in this way as normally their advanced security technology makes it difficult.
“We know sometimes people think they’re being security conscious by locking the door of the car with a spare set of keys, while leaving the other set in the ignition. However, thieves can still smash a window in order to drive away in your vehicle. “
Over the last few cold days we’ve seen an increase in vehicles being stolen as they were defrosting or had been left to warm up.
The spokesperson added: “As the colder mornings have only just arrived, and we’ll be expecting more over the coming months, we want drivers to get into a good habit of keeping their vehicle as secure as possible.
“No matter how late you are running, you should never leave your vehicle running as you nip inside the house to collect your bag or drink a last sip of coffee. We know this happens and opportunist criminals know this happens. “
Car insurance policies are often invalid when cars are stolen in this way – the owner is deemed to have been responsible for the theft. You could be left out of pocket as well as without a car.
It only takes a few seconds for someone to jump in and drive away.
The police advice is always to stay with your car as it defrosts and use de-icer spray or a scraper to speed up the process. You could also sit inside your vehicle while the heater de-mists the windscreen.
Sutton Coldfield Life 