Acocks Green (occasionally written as Acock’s Green) is located in the Yardley District of Birmingham, in the south-eastern part of the city. It covers an area slightly under 5 square kilometres or 2 square miles and in the 2011 census had a population of 28,371.
The History of Acocks Green
The area gets its slightly unusual name from the Acock family who built a large house in the area in 1370, though the earliest reference to the name is as late as 1604 when it appeared in the Yardley Parish Register. The area’s fortunes changed in the late 18th century when the Warwick and Birmingham Canal was constructed. Its path took it through Acocks Green and the subsequent wharves that sprung up along its path brought prosperity to the area resulting in its expansion throughout the following century until it was absorbed into Birmingham officially in 1911.
Transport Links
Acocks Green is very well served when it comes to transport options. It has two mainline stations, Acocks Green and Spring Road which are on two different lines. Trains from Acocks Green Station take less than ten minutes to reach Birmingham’s Snow Hill and Moor Street stations as well as Solihull, while Spring Road is on the Stratford Upon Avon line.
The area is served by the 1, 4, 4A, 11A/C, 32, 36, 41 and A12 bus routes.
Schools
The area is also well provided for in terms of education with 7 primary and 2 secondary schools:
- Acocks Green Junior School
- Cottesbrooke Infant School
- Cottesbrooke Junior School
- Holy Souls Catholic Primary School
- Lakey Lane Junior & Infant School
- Oaklands Primary School
- Severne Junior & Infant (NC) School
- Archbishop Ilsley Catholic School
- Ninestiles Academy
Amenities
Acocks Green has numerous pubs, restaurants and eateries catering for all tastes. It has several banks, pharmacies the Dudley Park Medical Centre and two supermarkets. The Acocks Green library dates back to 1932 while the area is also home to the Hall Green Little Theatre a twenty-lane bowling alley, a Laser Quest and the Fox Hollies Leisure Centre.
Things to do in and around Acocks Green
There are many parks and green areas in and around the area, including Pool Hall Park and Fox Hollies Park with its man-made lake, Barn Lane Recreation Park, Olton Jubilee Park and Langley Hall Park Nature Reserve.
There is the Gospel Lane Skatepark and of course Birmingham itself with its endless shopping and dining options is only a ten-minute train ride away.