At the centre of Selly Oak in
Bristol Road is a cluster of five Grade 2 listed Victorian buildings. They are
badly neglected but CP4SO believes that they could be restored to become the
civic quarter of Selly Oak. Surrounding them are major new developments of
student housing, the Selly Oak Shopping Park, and the University of
Birmingham’s planned Life Sciences Park. CP4SO is campaigning for some of that
energy and investment to be harnessed to upgrade and, where possible, find new public
uses for the listed buildings.
Developers, retailers, the
university, city council, residents and the student population should all
benefit from sensitive restoration of the buildings and the areas between them.
Proximity to the canal running from Birmingham to Worcester offers additional
opportunities to make this an attractive recreational area. This could become
the heart of a renewed Selly Oak.
In a full page article on 11
July 2019, the Birmingham Post nicknamed our campaign ‘Save the Selly Oak
Five’. The article is expanded on in Birmingham Live. The five buildings are:
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| Former Selly Oak Library |
Sign our petition to save the Library building here. (Link may not work in Firefox).
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| Selly Oak Institute |
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| Pumping Station |
The Selly Oak Pumping Station located just behind the
Library and is now used by Western Power Distribution as part of the electricity
network. Still in good repair its gothic style make it stand out among the Victorian
terraces of Selly Oak.
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| 659 Bristol Rd |
659 Bristol Rd is one of two houses flanking the entrance to
Bournbrook Recreation Ground it is identified as the former house for the
manager of the Pumping Station.
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| 641 Bristol Rd |
