The new Queen Elizabeth Hospital has opened

THE ACCIDENT AND EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT AT THE NEW QUEEN ELIZABETH HOSPITAL OPENED ON WEDNSEDAY 16 JUNE AND THE A and E DEPARTMENT AT SELLY OAK HOSPITAL HAS CLOSED. The section of the Selly Oak New Road from Harborne Lane Island towards the QE Hospital and the new Hospital Link Road are also now open. To download your copy of a reminder poster, please click here. There will be a progressive move of other services from SOH to the QE over the coming months. Please note that the OUTPATIENTS DEPARTMENT at Selly Oak has not yet moved.

Three images on the right show the move from Selly Oak Hospital, preparation of the New Road for opening and the new QE Hospital. Please click on each of the images to enlarge them. We are very grateful to Wendy Pearson of our neighbouring Ten Acres Residents Association for sending us these images which are her Copright (c) 2010.

Selly Oak New Road - Latest information on construction and diversions

Updated for the seven days commencing Saturday 31st July and featuring new easier to follow format for road users and pedestrians.

The scheme is for the construction of a new A38 dual carriageway road to relieve the current A38 Bristol Road running through the Selly Oak Centre. It will run to the north west of the existing Bristol Road, between Harborne Lane and the junction of Bristol Road and Edgbaston Park Road. There is also a spur road leading direct to the new Queen Elizabeth Hospital. Please note that the sections of the project from Harborne Lane Island to the QE Hospital are now open to traffic.

Programmed Works: Extensive works are scheduled for the week Saturday 31st July to Friday 6th August. For details please click here.

To read the most recent edition of the illustrated Selly Oak New Road Newsletter (published a few months ago) please click here for Page 1 and click here for Page 2. (Published on this website Thur 1st April).

EDF Energy Birmingham Half Marathon 2010

Updated information about the EDF Energy Birmingham Half Marathon - Sunday 24th October 2010 : The race will pass both ways along the Pershore Road this year and the section of the road through Selly Park will be closed to traffic and parking from 01:00BST to 13:30BST on the Sunday. Access to the roads on the Kitchener Road Estate will be possible from Dogpool Lane and Moor Green Lane, but access to and from all of the roads joining the Pershore Road will be closed. Provision will be made for access by the emergency services to all roads. Birmingham City Council will keep residents informed of details by letter. This website will also be updated as necessary. Links to further important information are provided below.

Sporting legends launch 2010 Half Marathon - press release. For details please click here.

Letter to residents - giving full details of how the race will affect them. For details please click here.
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Road closures map - showing all of the roads in the City which will be closed and from what time. Times are different for different areas so if you are travelling anywhere on the Sunday you will need to check this map. Please note that it is a large pdf file and may take a number of seconds to download. For details please click here.

Road reopenings map - showing reopening times for all of the roads in the City which will be closed. Times are different for different areas so if you are travelling anywhere on the Sunday you will need to check this map. Please note that it is a large pdf file and may take a number of seconds to download. For details please click here.

Police drugs raid in Fashoda Road

Three men have been arrested and charged after police executed a warrant at a house in Selly Park, Birmingham. Officers visited the address on Fashoda Road and executed a warrant under the Misuse of Drugs Act. The officers discovered over 400 mature cannabis plants with a street value of approximately £95,000, along with heat lamps and hydroponics equipment occupying almost every room in the property. Sergeant Sally Olsen who led the raids said: "We are extremely pleased with this operation as it has removed a large quantity of drugs from circulation, stopping them being sold on our streets. We are committed to dealing with the issues that really matter to local people and we will continue to work with the community to take strong action against anyone caught in possession of drugs, and particularly those individuals believed to be dealing in drugs. " As a result of the raid, three men aged 16, 28 and 36 were all charged with producing a controlled drug and illegally abstracting electricity. They have been remanded in custody to appear at Birmingham Magistrates' Court. Anyone with information relating to drugs activity in their community can contact their local neighbourhood team on 0345 113 5000 or alternatively call the Crimestoppers number anonymously on 0800 555 111.

NHS South Birmingham - Pharmacy Needs Assessment

The Pharmacy Needs Assessment is all about identifying the different types of pharmaceutical services that are needed at a local level. The information gathered from this survey will help us to see where our pharmacies are doing well and where we can improve. This will then help us plan where resources need to be invested for the future, ensuring that services provided by our local pharmacies (or chemists) match the needs of the communities they serve. We would like to know your thoughts on the pharmacies in your area, and how you access them. We hope you will join us by contributing to the project by taking part in our survey. To take part in the survey, please click here. Note: If a security warning appears asking you if you wish to only view the parts of the page that were delivered securely you will need to click the NO option or the survey form will not display.

Birmingham Counts Down to the 2011 Census

On 27 March 2011 all residents in the UK will be asked to take part in the census by completing a questionnaire about their household. During the course of the 2011 Census over 600 part time opportunities will be created in Birmingham. To find out more about the Census, how it will affect you and also the job opportunities it will create please click here.

Flood Action Group Exercise - May 2010

On the morning of Saturday 22nd May twenty-five of the volunteer members of the Selly Park South Flood Action Group took part in an exercise of the Neighbourhood Flood Action Plan. The exercise was directed by the Birmingham City Council Emergency Planning Officer and the Environment Agency Senior Flood Incident Manager who have responsibility for the SPS Neighbourhood. The weather was warm, sunny and dry - the very opposite was of flooding weather! However, the directors fed warning information typical of a flooding situation into the Group's communications system. Flood Wardens were alerted by their Coordinator to contact the Flood Volunteers in their groups, who at a more advanced stage were called to their Area Control Points. Flood defence equipment was delivered to each group and members of the group made megaphone announcements in the streets and called on a number of the local residents, who had been warned by leaflet that the exercise would be taking place. The exercise lasted a little over two hours and then the members of the Flood Action Group met at Christ Church for a feedback discussion which lasted for another hour. It was agreed that the Flood Action Plan had worked well and also that useful lessons had been learned on potential improvements which will make the Plan even more effective. The Neighbourhood Forum Management Committee is very grateful to all of the members of the Flood Group who gave up their time and to the officers of the City Council and the Environment Agency for helping to formulate the Flood Plan and directing the exercise, to try to make the Neighbourhood and its residents safer in the event of another major flood.

Photographs of the exercise appear below.

Latest news on the Dogpool Lane Bridge Replacement Scheme

Updated May 2010

The Highway Maintenance and Management Private Finance Initiative (HMMPFI) agreement, under which the new bridge will be built, was signed by officials from the City Council and Amey plc on Thursday 6th May. Amey is one of today's leading public services providers, managing the vital infrastructure and business services that practically everyone, everywhere rely on. It is estimated that work on the rebuilding of the bridge will start between 6 months and 9 months after the signing of the agreement which means that rebuilding should be underway by March 2011.

This photograph of the bridge was taken on 1st November 2009 with the River Rea in flood following heavy rainfall. The image shows clearly how the bridge, with its temporary concrete piers and steel jacks shoring it up in order to make it safe to carry road traffic, obstructs the flow of the river.

To watch a short video of the SPS Flood Action Group Coordinator explaining the flooding of September 2008 and subsequent action taken, please click here

News Archive

Articles which appeared previously on this LOCAL NEWS page can be found in the Archive section accessed at the base of our FEATURES page. This includes the recent article on parking problems in Wallace Road.