Balsall Common
Encyclopedia
Balsall Common is a large village
and one of the larger rural settlements in the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull
, situated 7 miles (11.3 km) west of Coventry
and 13 miles (20.9 km) to the east of Birmingham
, to which it serves as a commuter village in the West Midlands
. It is currently undergoing gradual suburbanisation and is increasingly considered as a small town
in terms of its population
. Balsall Common is also considered to be one of the most prosperous communities in the West Midlands region.
The village is split between the civil parishes of Balsall, which also includes Balsall Street, Temple Balsall
, Fen End, and Chadwick End
, and has a population of 6,234 according to the 2001 census; and Berkswell
. As of 2008, the population was approaching 7,000 residents. It also lies on the Heart of England Way
.
The village is of recent origin; most of the houses and shops were built in the 20th century. Previously, the village consisted of a couple of hamlets
of about six to twelve houses each and a few scattered cottages - as shows. In the 1930s there began the development which linked these isolated buildings, but it was not until after World War II
that the village really began to grow. With its proximity to the village of Meriden
, 3 miles (4.8 km) away, Balsall Common is close to the precise (though much-disputed) geographic centre of England and thus is one of the furthest places from the UK coastline. The local secondary school
is unsurprisingly named the Heart of England School. The local primary school is named Balsall Common Primary School.
It is served by Berkswell railway station
on the Coventry-Birmingham
line. The station is near to a small river, a pond, and the village of Berkswell
.
Balsall Common has two schools, one primary and one secondary
. Nearby towns and villages include Solihull
, Kenilworth
, Warwick
, Meriden
, Hampton-in-Arden
and Hatton
.
Since the late-1990s, plans for a bypass, a large national supermarket and larger swathes of new housing have so far been circumvented. This is mainly due to Balsall Common being situated at the heart of the West Midlands green belt area known as the Meriden Gap
, between Solihull
and Coventry
, and is thus subject to strict planning regulations. Therefore the village/town has so far not witnessed rapid growth given its location, as residents had long-feared that the village would act as a population overspill centre for Coventry, Solihull and Birmingham
.
, Trond Egil Soltvedt
, Trevor Francis
in the late 1970s, Lee Carsley
and Robbie Keane
. Other famous sporting residents include, former England cricket captain Bob Wyatt
and Wimbledon ladies single champion Maud Watson
. Former England international goalkeeper Peter Shilton
briefly lived in the village from late-1995 to early-1996..
The home town of Miss Iceland 2007, Sara Jane Winrow and Miss Reykjavík 2008 Miss Emma Louise
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
and one of the larger rural settlements in the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull
Metropolitan Borough of Solihull
The Metropolitan Borough of Solihull is a metropolitan borough of the West Midlands, in west-central England. It is named after its largest town, Solihull, from which Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council is based. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary...
, situated 7 miles (11.3 km) west of Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
and 13 miles (20.9 km) to the east of Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, to which it serves as a commuter village in the West Midlands
West Midlands (county)
The West Midlands is a metropolitan county in western central England with a 2009 estimated population of 2,638,700. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972, formed from parts of Staffordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire. The...
. It is currently undergoing gradual suburbanisation and is increasingly considered as a small town
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
in terms of its population
Population
A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...
. Balsall Common is also considered to be one of the most prosperous communities in the West Midlands region.
The village is split between the civil parishes of Balsall, which also includes Balsall Street, Temple Balsall
Temple Balsall
Temple Balsall is a hamlet within the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull in the English West Midlands, situated between the large villages of Knowle and Balsall Common. It was formerly in Warwickshire. It is on a notoriously bad bend on the B4101 Kenilworth Road.It is one of the oldest and most...
, Fen End, and Chadwick End
Chadwick End
Chadwick End is a village within the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull in the English West Midlands area. Chadwick means 'farm near a spring'. Part of Chadwick End falls into the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull and part into Warwickshire....
, and has a population of 6,234 according to the 2001 census; and Berkswell
Berkswell
Berkswell is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull, county of West Midlands, England.- Geography:It is in the east of the borough, borders Coventry and is about west of Coventry city centre.- History and places of interest :...
. As of 2008, the population was approaching 7,000 residents. It also lies on the Heart of England Way
Heart of England Way
The Heart of England Way is a long distance walk of around through the Midlands of England. The walk starts from Milford Common on Cannock Chase and ends at Bourton on the Water in the Cotswolds passing through the counties of Staffordshire, Warwickshire and Gloucestershire.The walk provides links...
.
The village is of recent origin; most of the houses and shops were built in the 20th century. Previously, the village consisted of a couple of hamlets
Hamlet (place)
A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
of about six to twelve houses each and a few scattered cottages - as shows. In the 1930s there began the development which linked these isolated buildings, but it was not until after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
that the village really began to grow. With its proximity to the village of Meriden
Meriden, West Midlands
-External links:*****...
, 3 miles (4.8 km) away, Balsall Common is close to the precise (though much-disputed) geographic centre of England and thus is one of the furthest places from the UK coastline. The local secondary school
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
is unsurprisingly named the Heart of England School. The local primary school is named Balsall Common Primary School.
It is served by Berkswell railway station
Berkswell railway station
Berkswell railway station, in the West Midlands of England, takes its name from the nearby village of Berkswell, but it is actually located much closer to the larger village of Balsall Common. In fact the station originally opened as Docker's Lane, changed to Berkswell on 1 January 1853, then to...
on the Coventry-Birmingham
London and Birmingham Railway
The London and Birmingham Railway was an early railway company in the United Kingdom from 1833 to 1846, when it became part of the London and North Western Railway ....
line. The station is near to a small river, a pond, and the village of Berkswell
Berkswell
Berkswell is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull, county of West Midlands, England.- Geography:It is in the east of the borough, borders Coventry and is about west of Coventry city centre.- History and places of interest :...
.
Balsall Common has two schools, one primary and one secondary
Heart of England Business and Enterprise School
Heart of England Business and Enterprise School and Sixth Form Centre is a secondary school located in Balsall Common in the West Midlands. The Headteacher, who joined at the start of the Academic year 2007, is Mr Andrew Mackereth.-Campus:...
. Nearby towns and villages include Solihull
Solihull
Solihull is a town in the West Midlands of England with a population of 94,753. It is a part of the West Midlands conurbation and is located 9 miles southeast of Birmingham city centre...
, Kenilworth
Kenilworth
Kenilworth is a town in central Warwickshire, England. In 2001 the town had a population of 22,582 . It is situated south of Coventry, north of Warwick and northwest of London....
, Warwick
Warwick
Warwick is the county town of Warwickshire, England. The town lies upon the River Avon, south of Coventry and just west of Leamington Spa and Whitnash with which it is conjoined. As of the 2001 United Kingdom census, it had a population of 23,350...
, Meriden
Meriden, West Midlands
-External links:*****...
, Hampton-in-Arden
Hampton-in-Arden
Hampton-in-Arden is a village and civil parish located within the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull, in the West Midlands of England. The village was previously located within the county of Warwickshire, until the 1974 county boundary changes. It lies in the countryside between Birmingham and Coventry...
and Hatton
Hatton
-Places:Canada* Hatton, SaskatchewanEngland* Hatton, Cheshire West and Chester, in the county of Cheshire* Hatton, Derbyshire* Hatton, Lincolnshire* Hatton, London, in the London Borough of Hounslow* Hatton, Shropshire...
.
Since the late-1990s, plans for a bypass, a large national supermarket and larger swathes of new housing have so far been circumvented. This is mainly due to Balsall Common being situated at the heart of the West Midlands green belt area known as the Meriden Gap
Meriden Gap
The Meriden Gap is a mostly rural area located in the West Midlands between Solihull and Coventry. It serves as a green belt which separates the latter from the large West Midlands conurbation, which includes Birmingham and Wolverhampton. The 'Gap' takes its name from the village central to the...
, between Solihull
Solihull
Solihull is a town in the West Midlands of England with a population of 94,753. It is a part of the West Midlands conurbation and is located 9 miles southeast of Birmingham city centre...
and Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
, and is thus subject to strict planning regulations. Therefore the village/town has so far not witnessed rapid growth given its location, as residents had long-feared that the village would act as a population overspill centre for Coventry, Solihull and Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
.
Famous residents
Several Premiership and Championship footballers live (and have lived) in Balsall Common, especially those playing with Coventry City, Birmingham City and Aston Villa. Including John SillettJohn Sillett
John Charles Sillett is a former football player and manager.His father Charlie Sillett was a footballer with Southampton between 1931 and 1938. He is the younger brother of Peter Sillett, also a footballer.Sillett played for Chelsea, Coventry City and Plymouth Argyle...
, Trond Egil Soltvedt
Trond Egil Soltvedt
Trond Egil Soltvedt is a former footballer from Norway. He played in England with Coventry, Southampton and Sheffield Wednesday before returning to Norway. Soltvedt played twice for his country.-Norway:...
, Trevor Francis
Trevor Francis
Trevor John Francis , is a former footballer who won the European Cup with Nottingham Forest and played for England 52 times. He was England's first £1 million player...
in the late 1970s, Lee Carsley
Lee Carsley
Lee Kevin Carsley is a former professional footballer who played in the Football League and Premier League for Derby County, Blackburn Rovers, Coventry City, Everton and Birmingham City. Although English by birth, he represented the Republic of Ireland internationally...
and Robbie Keane
Robbie Keane
Robert David "Robbie" Keane is an Irish association football player who plays as a striker for Los Angeles Galaxy in Major League Soccer and captains the Irish national football team....
. Other famous sporting residents include, former England cricket captain Bob Wyatt
Bob Wyatt
Robert "Bob" Elliott Storey Wyatt was an English cricket player. He played for Warwickshire, Worcestershire, and the English cricket team....
and Wimbledon ladies single champion Maud Watson
Maud Watson
Maud Watson was an English tennis player.Born in Harrow, London, the daughter of a local vicar, she began playing competitive tennis in 1881. Undefeated in tournament play, in 1884 the nineteen-year-old Watson won the first ever Ladies’ Singles title at Wimbledon...
. Former England international goalkeeper Peter Shilton
Peter Shilton
Peter Leslie Shilton OBE is a former English footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He currently holds the record for playing more games for England than anyone else, earning 125 caps....
briefly lived in the village from late-1995 to early-1996..
The home town of Miss Iceland 2007, Sara Jane Winrow and Miss Reykjavík 2008 Miss Emma Louise