Wall Heath

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Wall Heath is a small village on the western fringe of the Black Country and the West Midlands conurbation in the United Kingdom. It is located on the A449 road, approximately seven miles south of Wolverhampton and 9 miles North of Kidderminster.

It is part of the Kingswinford township and Dudley borough, having been in Kingswinford Rural District until 1938 and Brierley Hill Urban District until 1966.

There are approximately 5000 inhabitants in the village.

1 Amenities
2 Churches
3 Community
4 Politics

[edit] Amenities

The village has a shopping area with many local shops and restaurants. It has four public houses and until recently a small library. The village is supported by a small sized Co-Op supermarket, National Cooperative Pharmacy, a podiatrist, a private dental surgery and two primary schools; Maidensbridge Primary School and Church of the Ascension. Maidensbrige Primary School has hosted the Helen Taylor School of Dance for 15 years, who perform annually at the Wolverhampton Grand Theatre. The Gables, a Dudley Council shelter, is located in the village. Also in Wall Heath, one may find Holbeache House, which once played host to the conspirators in the gunpowder plot. For those with an agricultural interest, Wall Heath is a goldmine. The village is situated near the countryside and contains two allotments. There are three parks in Wall Heath, one accessbile from Albion Street and two accessible from High Street.

[edit] Churches

There are three churches in the village: The Church of the Ascension Primary School (CofE) sits at the centre of the village next to the church after which it is named, with the smaller St Andrew's (United Reformed) and Evangelical Churches a short distance away.

[edit] Community

Wall Heath is generally considered to be a good place to live and many families have a long history in the town. John Sparry, local historian, has made many valuable contributions to the community through his well supported book shop on Enville Road. Another respected local resident is Roy, the local window cleaner, who is often seen riding his bicycle through the village. Locally, these individuals are considered highly, comparable to the status of Black Country and Birmingham characters such as Carl Chinn and Ed Doolan, only on a local level.

The Wall Heath Community centre regularly hosts National Blood Service blood donation sessions.

Maidensbridge Primary School escaped what seemed to be an inevitable closure in 2005. However, a remarkable effort by local people, old school pupils and benefactors prevented the closure and the school has now gone from strength to strength.

Amusingly, the road signs welcoming visitors to the village are incorrectly spelt as "Wallheath", without the space between "Wall" and "Heath".

[edit] Politics

The village is part of the Kingswinford North and Wall Heath ward, which is represented by three seats. Currently these are occupied by two Liberal Democrat councillors and one Conservative councillor.