Short Heath, Birmingham

Tracline 65 was a bus route in Birmingham, England which included the first guided busway in the United Kingdom. The existing route 65 bus route was upgraded as part of an experiment to improve bus services, by the West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive. A 600-metre section of concrete-edged guideway was installed on Streetly Road in the Short Heath area, a few miles from Erdington village, at the northern terminal of the route. Located in a central reservation once used by Birmingham Corporation trams, it was segregated from the carriageway used by other vehicular traffic. At the southern end of the trackway, buses used ordinary roads to reach the city centre.Fourteen MCW Metrobus Mark II buses were acquired and fitted with guide wheels, which ran along the guideway's concrete edges. The vehicles were painted in a distinct livery, unique to Tracline 65, being silver with black and red detailing. It began operating in 1984. The trial ended in 1987 and all buses had their guide wheels removed and returned to normal services; the last withdrawn on 26 April 2008. The buses retained their distinctive destination display and gap in the front wheel arch where the guide wheels had been. One, fleet number 8110, is preserved at Aston Manor Road Transport Museum.

Perry Common is an area of north Birmingham that includes parts of both Stockland Green and Kingstanding. It falls within the Birmingham Erdington parliamentary constituency. North Birmingham Academy (formerly College High School) is located in Perry Common as are the Hawthorn Shopping Centre on Hawthorn Road and Witton Lakes.

Bleak Hill Park (formerly known as Short Heath Recreational Ground) is a public park in Erdington, Birmingham, UK. It is identified by Birmingham City Council as a "green corridor".

St Mark's Church, Stockland Green is a Church of England parish church in Birmingham.

Stockland Green School is a mixed secondary school located in the Stockland Green area of Birmingham, in the West Midlands of England.Previously a community school administered by Birmingham City Council, Stockland Green School converted to academy status in May 2012. The school is now part of the Arthur Terry Learning Partnership, but continues to coordinate with Birmingham City Council for admissions. The school was founded in the 1950s as a 'secondary modern' school catering for pupils who had not passed the eleven-plus exam for admission to a selective school. In the 1960s, a new wing was built and the school became a 'bilateral' school with a specialism in art. In its early years the school had a strong musical tradition; it had a good brass band and staged ambitious musicals such as 'White Horse Inn'. In 1973 first year pupils from the then named Stockland Green Bilateral School sang the original backing vocals on the hit single I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday by Wizzard, though they were replaced when it was re-recorded in 1981.

Stockland Green is an area of Birmingham, England. It gives its name to a ward which is part of the Erdington formal district, and is located to the south-west of Erdington and north-east of Birmingham City Centre. The area is often mistakenly identified as Erdington, normally through domestic and commercial addresses. The area however has its own council ward and is outside Erdington's traditional boundaries, previously in the Birmingham Aston constituency.

Short Heath Park is a public park in the Short Heath area of Erdington, Birmingham, UK. It is located approximately 0.5 miles (0.80 km) north-west of Erdington railway station. Short Heath Park is located a short walk away from Boldmere High street and Sutton Coldfield High street. Short Heath Park is approximately 14.5 Acres in size and Is operated by the Birmingham City council.

New Oscott is an area of Birmingham, England. It was named after the Oscott area of Birmingham, when St. Mary's College, the Roman Catholic seminary, moved from that site to the new one. The original then became known as Old Oscott. The only pub in New Oscott is the Beggars Bush. The area also hosts the Princess Alice Retail Park and adjacent Tesco Extra superstore. Princess Alice Retail Park was the site of a large and well known children's home from the late 19th century. When the site was sold for redevelopment in the 1980s the home was demolished leaving Brampton Hall which was a Community Centre serving the local area. Brampton Hall offered a range of classes and interest groups to the community and was a popular venue for parties and children's birthday parties. In recent years, this hall got knocked down and turned into a fast food chain, Frankie and Bennie's, which has since been turned into a KFC. The area near The Beggars Bush used to be home to a traffic island which was removed and a new double traffic light system was put into place. The name Beggar's Bush derives from a thorn bush that was located in the middle of the Chester Road and was encircled by iron railings. At an unknown date, it is said that a beggar died after sheltering under the bush, and as the bush marked the boundary of the parish, there was debate over who should pay for the burial of the man. The bush was destroyed by road workers in the mid-1930s to the disapproval of locals. Bus services in New Oscott are operated by National Express West Midlands and Diamond Bus providing links to Birmingham, Sutton Coldfield, Erdington and Walsall. The nearest railway station is Wylde Green although more convenient for connecting bus services to New Oscott is Sutton Coldfield.

St Mary's College in New Oscott, Birmingham, often called Oscott College, is the Roman Catholic seminary of the Archdiocese of Birmingham in England and one of the three seminaries of the Catholic Church in England and Wales.

Witton Lakes (previously known as Upper Witton Reservoir and Middle Witton Reservoir) are a pair of former drinking water reservoirs between the Perry Common and Erdington areas of Birmingham, England (not in nearby Witton). Two brooks, arising at Kingstanding and Bleak Hill, Erdington, respectively, feed first Witton Lakes, then overspill into Brookvale Park Lake (previously known as Lower Witton Reservoir), before reaching the River Tame, and eventually the Humber and the North Sea. The brooks are natural; the lakes were completed in 1880, to supply drinking water for Birmingham. They were then in the countryside, and the water relatively clean. Industrialisation and urban sprawl led to the water no longer being fit for drinking, so the city turned to the Elan Valley in Wales for a supply. The lakes' capacity is 80,200 m3 (104,900 cu yd).The lakes are now maintained as a leisure amenity by Birmingham City Council. One is used for model boating and the other nature conservation. The north Birmingham cycle route runs through the surrounding park.

Brookvale Park Lake previously known as Lower Witton Reservoir (grid reference SP091911) is a former drinking water reservoir in the Erdington area of Birmingham, England. Two brooks, arising at Kingstanding and Bleak Hill, Erdington, respectively, feed first Witton Lakes (previously known as Upper Witton Reservoir and Middle Witton Reservoir), then overspill into Brookvale Park Lake, before reaching the River Tame, and ultimately the North Sea, via the Trent and Humber. The brooks are natural; the lakes were created at the end of the 19th century to supply drinking water for Birmingham. They were then in the countryside, and the water relatively clean. Industrialisation and urban sprawl led to the water no longer being fit for drinking, so the City turned to the Elan Valley in Wales for a supply. From 7 October 1909 until 1926, Brookvale Park Lake was used as an open air swimming pool operated by the Birmingham Baths Committee. The lakes and the surrounding area, Brookvale Park, are now maintained as a leisure amenity by Birmingham City Council. The first ring-necked duck in the West Midlands county was found here in 2001.

Witton Isolation Hospital was a facility for the treatment and quarantine of smallpox victims and their contacts in Birmingham, England, from 1894 to 1966.