Month: February 2025

In a concerted effort to bolster local biodiversity, the West Midlands has introduced ‘bee beaches’ across several sites, including Shire Oak Park, Barr Beacon, Pelsall North Common, Chasewater Country Park, Brownhills Common, Wharf Lane, and Muckley Corner.

These initiatives are part of the Purple Horizons Nature Recovery Project, led by Natural England in collaboration with Walsall Council, Staffordshire County Council, Lichfield District Council, the University of Birmingham, and the Birmingham and Black Country Wildlife Trust.

The project focuses on restoring historic heathland habitats by creating bare ground areas, termed ‘bee beaches,’ essential for the nesting of threatened pollinators. Notably, these efforts have already attracted rare species such as the Tormentil Mining Bee (Andrena tarsata), a national priority species considered endangered in Europe, and the Spotted Dark Bee (Stelis ornatula), previously recorded only once in the region.

Councillor Gary Flint, Walsall Council’s Portfolio Holder for Wellbeing, Leisure, and Public Spaces, expressed pride in the borough’s role in environmental conservation, highlighting the successful return of nationally threatened bee species as evidence of the project’s positive impact.

“It is so pleasing to see this amazing work continuing in our borough,” said Councillor Flint.

“The remarkable presence of two nationally threatened bee species, the Cats Ear Mining Bee and Nomad Bee, is a testament to how effective the restoration has been.

“Walsall is proud to play its part in environmental conservation, and the discovery of thriving bee populations serve as a clear indicator of the positive impact of our long-standing restoration program. “

Nationally, approximately 80% of heathlands have been lost since 1800, making this habitat rarer than tropical rainforests. The Purple Horizons project aims to connect green spaces, facilitating the movement and thriving of local reptiles, birds, and pollinators, which is crucial for the climate resilience of these species.

For more information on the Purple Horizons Nature Recovery Project and its ongoing efforts, residents are encouraged to visit the Walsall Council’s official website.

On Wednesday, 19 February 2025, Bloxwich Library and Theatre hosted the Bloxwich Launchpad Expo, offering residents a glimpse into the upcoming Bloxwich Launchpad centre set to open this spring. The event provided an opportunity for locals to engage with service providers and learn about the array of support that will be available.

The Bloxwich Launchpad, currently under construction at the former Post Office site in central Bloxwich, aims to deliver digital skills training and entrepreneurial support. As part of the Bloxwich Town Deal, Walsall Council is collaborating with various partners to offer services encompassing digital and IT skills, job search assistance, and technical training in areas such as artificial intelligence, 3D printing, and virtual reality.

Deputy Mayor of Walsall, Councillor Louise Harrison, who inaugurated the expo, expressed enthusiasm about the centre’s potential impact:

“It was a pleasure to open the Bloxwich Launchpad Expo and to meet all of the providers. There’s such a wide range of services on offer to support local people, and the centre will be a huge asset for the people of Bloxwich. It’s excellent to see the progress being made on site, and I’m pleased to see the former Post Office being refurbished and brought back into use for the community. I look forward to the official opening later this year!”

Starting in March 2025, taster sessions will be held at Bloxwich Library, offering insights into the support services that will be available at the new centre. This initiative is part of the broader Bloxwich Town Deal, which has secured £25 million in government funding to revitalise the area.

The Bloxwich Launchpad project is a collaborative effort involving several partners, including Althaus Digital, Black Country Chamber of Commerce, Department of Work & Pensions, The King’s Trust, LEAD Training, The Recovery College, Open Lens Media CIC, National Careers Service, Urban Hax, Vision for All, Walsall College, Walsall Energy Action Project, whg (Walsall Housing Group), Walsall Works, and South Staffordshire Water.

For more information on upcoming taster sessions and to stay updated on the Bloxwich Launchpad’s progress, residents are encouraged to visit the Walsall Council’s official website.

Residents and Businesses in Sandwell are helping to formulate and guide plans to improve commuting through the borough and the Black Country as a whole using the busy Birmingham New Road and Wolverhampton Road.

A Black Country wide consultation has recently held a series of public events to give residents a say on how travel could be improved including on the A461.

The proposals aim to look at ways of improving road safety, bicycle parking and provide a greater choice of healthy and affordable travel.

Work could also include tree planting, new segregated cycle lanes, pedestrian footways and real-time information at bus stops.

Black Country Transport (BCT) has secured funding from the Government to drive forward travel Improvements which compliment other road improvements including those done on the A461.

Councillor Keith Allcock, Cabinet member for Highways and Environment for Sandwell Council, said: “These suggested improvements relate to other travel improvement projects across the Black Country.”

As part of Walsall borough’s £1.5 billion transformation programme, funding has been secured to revitalise Walsall Town Centre. Plans have now been unveiled to create a greener, more attractive, and open space around Gallery Square and Park Street.

The project plans to deliver a high-quality public space at the northern end of Park Street, linking it with Gallery Square. This initiative aims to strengthen connections between the High Street, The New Art Gallery, the Canal Basin, and nearby restaurants and entertainment facilities.

Councillor Adrian Andrew, Associate Leader of Walsall Council, expressed enthusiasm for the plans, stating:

“The plans for Walsall Town Centre look great and are much needed. We’ve worked with consultants and architects to create a plan that will open up Park Street, introduce more greenery and create a more inviting and attractive space.

We hope that a more accessible, attractive town centre will drive footfall and create more opportunities for leisure and business.”

In partnership with the Canal & River Trust, improvements will also be made to the canal basin. These enhancements are designed to benefit both town centre users and canal boaters, encouraging longer stays and creating a vibrant, active waterfront for casual visitors, shoppers, and gallery patrons.

Walsall Council is once again reminding residents how to report potholes in the lead-up to National Pothole Day on Wednesday, 15 January 2025.

The purpose of the day is to highlight the risks that potholes pose to road users, particularly cyclists, and to raise awareness about how residents can report them.

Councillor Kerry Murphy, Portfolio Holder for Street Pride at Walsall Council, said, “During 2024, Walsall Council repaired 4,846 potholes at an estimated cost of £290,000.

“Every pothole reported to the council is assessed based upon the risk to road users. A priority timescale is then set for each repair, and our teams work hard to fix them as quickly as possible.

“I’d like to thank all of our residents who take the time to report potholes, and I would encourage anyone seeing a pothole on a road or footpath to report it via the council website.”

Potholes occur when sections of the road surface collapse due to bad weather and traffic, creating hazards for all road users. Cyclists, in particular, are at greater risk.

Councillor Murphy added, “For several years, Walsall Council has been investing in long-term highway maintenance. This is proving to be beneficial and maintenance techniques at the right locations help the council keep its roads in good condition, benefiting residents, businesses and visitors to the borough.”

Of the 4,846 potholes repaired in 2024, 4,223 were fixed using a velocity patcher. This efficient and cost-effective method involves spray injection patching, which is not only fast but also has exceptionally low carbon emissions. The remaining 623 repairs were completed using traditional techniques, which involve manually breaking out the road surface and replacing it.

Residents are encouraged to report any problems with roads or footpaths by visiting the council’s website at: https://go.walsall.gov.uk/roads-parking-and-travel/report-a-street-problem.

Walsall Council is encouraging car park users in the town not to scan any QR codes found on parking machines or signs, following reports of fraudulent activity in several council-owned car parks.

Bogus QR code stickers have been discovered on parking machines, directing users to a fake website designed to steal credit card details and other personal information.

To avoid falling victim to this scam, car park users are advised not to scan any QR codes or barcodes they come across on parking machines or signage.

For a safe and secure payment experience, it is recommended that users download the official PaybyPhone (PBP) app directly to their mobile phone. Alternatively, parking fees can be paid using cash or card where available.

Always be cautious when paying for parking online, and ensure you are using the genuine PaybyPhone app to protect your personal and financial information.

The Power Of Community & Localness

Nothing is more important to us than the local communities that we serve. We believe in inclusion and accessibility for all. We want to see local businesses thriving and local people finding the help and information they need whether that’s for home improvements, general wellbeing or finding a great place to go out for a meal!

The power of being part of the local community is that we as individuals can help make where we live, work and play even better. A strong community is a force for positive interaction and change. We don’t want to see our high streets declining or elderly people feeling lonely. We don’t want to see our young people getting a bad press – again. There are so many positive things being done by fantastic people all around the local area so, at the Pioneer Magazine and Great Barr Gazette you will find positivity for our local community positively flowing!

I was recently asked “What problems do you solve for your readers?” That took me back to the reasons we launched our first magazine in Walsall in 2005. It was because we as a family didn’t know what was happening on our door-step and when we needed help of some kind, we didn’t know where to look.

Localness is paramount. For us localness means that what we publish on our website and in our magazines is relevant and accessible for local people. Accessibility leads to inclusion. If something is local, then our readers are more likely to find it useful and if it’s a local event our readers are more likely to be able to get to it.

Doing things locally and buying from local businesses is better for the environment, whether you are buying your vegetables or booking a plumber. And, fewer miles travelled means lower carbon emissions. But a blog on the environment is for another day!

Across our website our magazines you will see the many ways that we provide helpful information and do out bit for the benefit of our local community, much of which we do for free. However, the reason we can do so much community promotion is because of our advertisers. Through their local advertising and the excellent service, they provide they are also playing a huge role in supporting their local communities.

Whilst other publications have remained static or have folded altogether, we have continued to grow, and I firmly believe that it is our firm support of community beliefs and values for all who live and work here that has enabled this to happen.

A good community is one where people are encouraged to come together, get involved participate and feel included.  That’s why we do so much to support our local community groups. This is our ethos and this underpins why our magazines and community website exist. Our team lives and works in the areas we cover.  We are the only local publication that can say that and this is important to us because this is our community and why we are so passionate about it.

WIth five local magazines – Pioneer Magazines Walsall, Pioneer Magazines Villages, Great Barr Gazette, Sutton Coldfield North and Sutton Coldfield South, we put community first by hosting lists of community events online and within our publications.

The Promotion Of Community Groups Just Got Better

We promote our local community groups on a double page in every printed issue, for free. This is titled Community Pages, look it up in our latest editions.  In February we launched our new community website. This means we now promote our local groups online. This facility is brilliant because much more information can be included.  For example, in print we are limited to basic information only, because we want to include as many community groups as possible.

On our website each community group has their own profile page. We charge £30 per annum which helps with our admin costs.  On their profile page groups have space for:

• A logo
• A .pdf
• 5 images
• Details of what they do
• Where they meet (with a Google map)
• Contact details
• Website and social media links

If you are not technically minded, we will create the profile at no extra cost.

We’ve made our local Community Groups easy to find via a big menu that you can search by category and we’ve got a site-wide search too.

Local Community Events Are Easy To Find

We’ve always had a Community Notice section in our printed magazines, where community groups can advertise their events. This is free of charge.  All we need is information and we need it in good time for each issue, please.  Our deadlines are on our Advertise page. However, with our new website events can be added at any time and this is a free service offered to groups, charities and not-for-profit events with an entry fee of £7 or less. Simply click on Submit Event and put the details in.

The What’s On section on our website lists All Events and can be searched by keywords, by date, month or year which makes finding what’s going on really easy.

Where possible we will promote your events on our social media.

Feature Articles On The Local Community

We take every opportunity to write articles highlighting the great work of our local community groups and charities.  For example, in every issue we feature helpful advice from West Midlands Police and Fire Services, doing our bit to keep people safe. We’ve written and published articles for Aldridge Sailing Club, Aldridge Shed, Walsall Photographic Society, Pelsall Common Folk, Streetly Eco-Festival, Stonnall Gardeners’ Guild, Sutton Road Allotments and Walsall Senior Citizens Orchestra to name but a few.

Get Involved In Your Local Community

Through our mighty efforts we hope more people will get involved in local events and join our local community groups. Together we can reduce the number of people feeling isolated and excluded. We really believe that a lack of knowledge and awareness is the biggest problem.  If people don’t know what’s happening and what’s available to them, how can they join in and be part of their local community? That’s why we started The Pioneer Magazine 20 years ago and we are still striving to connect all things local.