Terraced street near Gravelly Hill station - geograph

Gravelly Hill is an area of

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

Location

Gravelly Hill is approximately 4 miles north-east of Birmingham city centre. To the north-west is

Perry Barr Perry Barr is a suburban area in north Birmingham, England. It is also the name of a council constituency, managed by its own district committee. Birmingham Perry Barr is also a parliamentary constituency; its Member of Parliament is Khali ...

and to the north-east are

Stockland Green 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 mistakenl ...

Erdington Erdington is a suburb and ward of Birmingham in the West Midlands County, England. Historically part of Warwickshire and located northeast of central Birmingham, bordering Sutton Coldfield. It was also a council constituency, managed by its o ...

and Sutton Coldfield. Aston is to the west and

Washwood Heath Washwood Heath is a ward in Birmingham, within the formal district of Hodge Hill, roughly two miles north-east of Birmingham city centre, England. Washwood Heath covers the areas of Birmingham that lie between Nechells, Bordesley Green, Stec ...

lies to the south. The housing in the area is mostly Victorian and pre-war with some recent developments of modern apartments. Housing in the area is popular with students (particularly those attending

Aston University Aston University (abbreviated as ''Aston''. for post-nominals) is a public research university situated in the city centre of Birmingham, England. Aston began as the Birmingham Municipal Technical School in 1895, evolving into the UK's first ...

) given its good transport links to the main campus.

Spaghetti Junction

The

Gravelly Hill Interchange The Gravelly Hill Interchange, popularly known as Spaghetti Junction, is a road junction in Birmingham, England. It is junction 6 of the M6 motorway where it meets the A38(M) Aston Expressway in the Gravelly Hill area of Birmingham. The inter ...

, also known as Spaghetti Junction, provides the intersection between the

A38(M) Aston Expressway The A38(M), commonly known as the Aston Expressway, is a motorway in Birmingham, England. It is long and was opened on 24 May 1972.M6 motorway The M6 motorway is the longest motorway in the United Kingdom. It is located entirely within England, running for just over from the Midlands to the border with Scotland. It begins at Junction 19 of the M1 and the western end of the A14 at ...

. The complex junction also supports local roads joining the two motorways. The design of the intersection was also made complex by the presence of two railway lines including a high speed electrified railway and the existence of three canals including a turning basin, and two rivers.

Industry

The area has a number of industrial units in variable condition. One of them, Gravelly Industrial Park, is among the city's largest industrial estates. Companies with units in the park include Carlsberg, which distributes to regional accounts and national depots. Gravelly Hill railway station is part of the

Cross-City Line The Cross-City Line is a commuter rail line in the West Midlands region of England. It runs for from Redditch and Bromsgrove in Worcestershire, its two southern termini, to Lichfield, Staffordshire, its northern terminus, via Birmingham New ...

Local government

Gravelly Hill is a ward of

Birmingham City Council Birmingham City Council is the local government body responsible for the governance of the City of Birmingham in England, which has been a metropolitan district since 1974. It is the most populated local council area in the United Kingdom ...

; until 2018 it was part of

ward. However it was previously a ward in its own right and also formed part of the Erdington Constituency. The previous ward was occasionally won by the

Conservatives Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

, with the mother of current Conservative Councillor for Erdington Robert Alden, narrowly losing the seat in 1976 elections. His father was parliamentary candidate in 1975-79 for the area, gaining one of the largest swings in the country in

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the '' International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the '' Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the so ...

References

Areas of Birmingham, West Midlands Erdington Wards of Birmingham, West Midlands {{WestMidlands-geo-stub