Crabbs Cross

Cadbury World

Bournbrook · 11 miles

Cadbury World is a visitor attraction in Bournville, Birmingham, England, featuring a self-guided exhibition tour, created and run by the Cadbury Company. The tour tells the history of chocolate, and of the Cadbury business.

Back To Backs

Chinese Quarter · 14 miles

The city’s only surviving court of back-to-back houses offers a rare glimpse of the cramped, courtyard-based terraces that once housed thousands of industrial workers. Set on 50–54 Inge Street and 55–63 Hurst Street, the court lies adjacent to Birmingham’s Chinese Quarter and is run as a historic house museum by the National Trust, with an admission charge required. Inside, four separate dwellings have been restored and furnished to represent distinct periods – the 1840s, 1870s, 1930s and 1970s – illustrating how living conditions and interiors evolved over a century and a half. The original occupants were skilled artisans such as button makers, glassworkers, jewellers and tailors, many of whom worked from home; records show over 500 families lived in Court 15. By the early 20th century the ground floors had been converted into shops, later including a tailor’s premises once owned by George Saunders, whose voice now narrates his story in a recorded exhibit. The court received Grade II listed status in 1988, was surveyed by the City of Hereford Archaeological Unit in 1995, and was restored by the Birmingham Conservation Trust before opening to visitors on 21 July 2004. Visitors reach the site on foot from the Chinese Quarter; the museum is operated by the National Trust and charges an entry fee. No additional facilities are detailed in the source material.

Edgbaston Reservoir Local Nature Reserve

Ladywood · 14 miles

70 acre site, less than two miles from the City centre is a site of historic importance, designed and built by Thomas Telford in 1827 to supply his new Main Line Canal. Friends of the Reservoir came together in 1990 to protect and promote the site.

Abbey Fields

Abbey Fields · 16 miles

A sizeable green space occupies the centre of Kenilworth in Warwickshire, offering both historic remnants and modern leisure facilities. The area was originally farmland attached to St Mary’s Abbey before the abbey’s dissolution in the mid-sixteenth century; today the ruins of a sandstone gatehouse and stonework from the former abbey’s doors and windows can be seen incorporated into the doorway of St Nicholas Church, a building whose origins date from the mid-sixteenth to seventeenth centuries. Within the park’s boundaries the natural lake and Finham Brook, a tributary of the River Sowe, provide water-side scenery alongside the town’s war memorial and a museum housed in an old barn that records the abbey’s history. Management of the site rests with Warwick District Council, which also operates a leisure-centre complex featuring indoor and outdoor swimming pools, five tennis courts and a large children’s play area. Visitors can obtain refreshments at the on-site café, and the volunteer group Friends of Abbey Fields assists with upkeep. The park regularly accommodates community events such as the Lions Club show, the town carnival, bonfire night activities and a Boxing Day charity duck race, and it serves as an orienteering venue for the Midlands club Octavian Droobers. Access is straightforward from the surrounding town, with no admission charge mentioned for the park or its main attractions.

Warrens Hall Nature Reserve Black Country Geosite

Springfield · 16 miles

A mixture of former industrial sites and natural habitats characterises the Warren’s Hall Country Park, a local nature reserve managed by Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council. Situated on the eastern edge of Netherton, roughly 1.5 miles south of Dudley and bordering Dudley Metropolitan Borough, the reserve lies close to the town of Springfield. The area incorporates grassland, ponds, canals and small wooded sections, and marks the entrance to the Netherton Canal Tunnel. Its landscape overlays former farmland and the locations of the Windmill Hill and Warren’s Hall collieries, with visible remnants such as Cobb’s Engine House and the Dudley No. 2 Canal. The reserve was officially designated as a local nature reserve in 1996. Visitors can reach the site by car via Dudley Road, and a visitor centre positioned beside the Dudley No. 2 Canal on the Bumble Hole side supplies information for both Warren’s Hall and the adjoining Bumble Hole Nature Reserve. Two of the small pools permit angling for a fee, subject to specific conditions. The visitor centre also offers guidance on the surrounding features, including the Blow Cold Bank Colliery spoil heap, now covered in grass. No additional admission charges are mentioned for general entry, and the facilities focus on interpreting the reserve’s industrial heritage alongside its current ecological assets.

Saltwells National Nature Reserve Black Country Geosite

Pear Tree Lane - Industrial Estate · 16 miles

The site offers a rare combination of natural woodland, grassland and industrial archaeology within the West Midlands. Established in 1981, the 247-acre Saltwells Local Nature Reserve lies in the Netherton area, roughly two miles south of Dudley and adjacent to the Pear Tree Lane industrial estate. Its boundaries follow the Cinderbank Road (A459) to the north-east and the A4100 to the south, while the Tipsyford and Mousesweet brooks mark its western edge. Within the reserve lie two Sites of Special Scientific Interest – Doulton’s Claypit and Brewin’s Canal Section – and a scheduled ancient monument that records medieval coal-mining activity. Visitors can walk along Hall Lane, the historic route to the demolished Netherton Hall, and encounter the small Daphne Pool set among gorse-covered slopes of Netherton Hill. The southern portion, Saltwells Wood, is an 18th-century plantation noted for bluebell carpets in spring and contains wooden and metal sculptures created with input from local schools and artists. Remains of opencast and underground coal extraction, as well as the canal cutting dating from the 1858 improvements, are visible along the paths. The Saltwells Inn, an 18th-century public house within the reserve, provides traditional British pub fare and local ales, offering a convenient stop for walkers. No specific admission fee or opening hours are detailed. Access is via Cinderbank Road (A459), the A4100 and the footpaths that run through the reserve.