MERIDEN MP Caroline Spelman was returned with a handsome majority, although Conservatives
nationwide were stunned after losing seats.
During the campaign we attended a hustings at Chelmund’s Cross, with the audience there whipped into a frenzy over the EU, foreign policy and ailing public services.
Other Side of Solihull also spoke to some of those behind a campaign to improve levels of funding for cash-strapped schools in Solihull.
This month also saw a flurry of enquiries from residents in local high-rises, who feared for their safety following the tragic fire at London’s Grenfell Tower.
In a grim coincidence, a blaze had in fact broken out on the roof of Chestnut House a few weeks before the conflagration in Kensington, but the flames were fortunately dowsed.
As the year reached its half-way point, North Solihull also welcomed Radio 4’s Any Questions and saw a flurry of arrests following a major disturbance in Chelmsley town centre.
JULY:
AFTER a series of delays – which left local residents deeply frustrated – plans to revamp the ageing Kingshurst Parade finally moved forward.
Fall out continued from the Grenfell Fire tragedy, with increasing calls for Solihull Council to install sprinkler systems in every single tower block.
Steve Sandford from Chelmsley Wood needed nerves of steel after he had to deliver his baby daughter by the side of the Collector Road!
From a new arrival to a long-awaited reunion, Andy Steggles returned from the US to meet the man and woman who had saved his life when he fell into Hatchford Brook as a toddler.
If that noise wasn’t enough, a fresh spate of incidents involving off-road bikes racing around parks and side streets led to renewed calls for action.
AUGUST:
KINGSHURST was left reeling following the death of 20-year-old Callum Lees. A young man
was subsequently charged with murder.
Such were the fears about violent crime on the estate, an urgent meeting was organised at St Barnabas Church to provide locals with an opportunity to air their concerns.
In what proved to be a difficult month, a man also lost his life at Marston Green Railway Station and a brutal robbery took place outside the village’s One Stop store.
Better news came when Kingshurst Caterpillars, a local nursery, secured a £50,000 grant from Children in Need, and another popular event took place at The Green, in Meriden Park.
And St Mary and St Margaret’s Church rang the changes, with the culmination of the long-running project to restore its bells.
SEPTEMBER:
AS pupils returned to school after the six-week break, parents at Marston Green Infant Academy had to adjust to the introduction of tough new parking restrictions.
Mums and dads were also increasingly frustrated by the fact that youth services in and around North Solihull continued to dwindle. We ran a special report on the controversy.
Elsewhere, Caroline Spelman refuted claims that the north of the borough had been singled out for a disproportionate amount of new homes – though she admitted she felt the Babbs Mill development was a mistake.
It emerged that councillors were poised to sign off savage cuts to the crossing patrol budget – with the facility in Hurst Lane North among those set to be axed.
Troubling new data suggested that Solihull was the most polarised council area in the country, with one Smith’s Wood councillor calling for more to be done to address the gulf in living standards.
In another political development, it was announced that plans to create a new constituency – dubbed Chelmsley Wood and Solihull North – had been dropped. Meriden, it seems, will remain.
OCTOBER:
WE revealed the extent of the housing crisis in areas such as Chelmsley Wood, with one councillor revealing that many local families were regularly reduced to tears by their difficulties.
There was, however, some good news with the official opening of a new facility in Ipswich Walk to assist those facing homelessness.
In Marston Green, parishioners at St Leonard’s Church unveiled plans to install a memorial window in tribute to much-loved member of the local community Anne Dunkley.
A more sombre anniversary was marked by Dawn Lewis who appealed for help in tracing a suspect wanted in connection with the murder of her husband Giovanni 12 months earlier.
And Sophie McEvoy, from Marston Green, had her dream come true when her idol Craig David agreed to perform at her wedding.
NOVEMBER:
IN an important milestone, the opening of Chelmund’s Court care home marked the end of the final phase of the Chelmund’s Cross development.
Residents in Marston Green turned out to cheer on Team Rickshaw, who rode through the village as part of a One Show challenge raising money for Children in Need.
Elsewhere in the village, news broke that a former charity boss was facing jail for his part in a major fraud which had hit Birmingham Dogs Home.
The Three Trees Centre played host to an event with a difference, when it staged a “death cafe”, a session designed to promote discussion about a traditionally taboo topic.
For soap fans there was no reason to be shy about the arrival of EastEnders star Jake Wood, who was booked to flip the switch at the Chelmsley Christmas lights.
FED-up residents in Marston Green got in touch with us to complain about planning chiefs’ handling of an unpopular development in Blackfirs Lane.
Following a survey of hundreds of locals, the newlycreated Community Action Network vowed to take action to tackle long-standing concerns in and around Fordbridge.
Castle Bromwich Singers celebrated their 50th year with a Christmas concert produced by Stella Aston - a local woman who had been involved since the group’s very first meeting!
More details emerged about the plans to recreate Meriden Park’s much-missed Bogey on the Stick sculpture.
There was alarm that a fund which helped charities, including Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens, was to be restructured by the local authority.
The final Full Council meeting of the new year saw residents lambast congestion problems on the Chester Road, through Chelmsley Wood.
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