The Birmingham pub redevelopments that have turned the most heads in 2022

Some of the most iconic watering holes across the city are being transformed
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Like many businesses, pubs across Birmingham were hit hard by the Covid pandemic – with many closing their doors for the last time.

Now some of the most iconic watering holes across the city are being transformed with new functions such as coffee hubs and religious sites taking their place.

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Here, we take a look at some of the pub redevelopments that have turned the most heads in 2022.

York pub, Hall GreenYork pub, Hall Green
York pub, Hall Green

The York Pub, Hall Green

Plans to transform the iconic ‘Peaky Blinders style’ pub in Hall Green into a mosque had divided a community with hundreds of people writing to the council to support or object to the application. But in September, council planning chiefs voted to green-light the application with five in favour and one against.

After the last orders in 2019, the pub was very nearly converted into a hotel. It has now been bought by the ArRahma Foundation and will be turned into a place of worship including a school, kitchen and showers.

View Of Brookhill Tavern From Brookhill Road Near Alum Rock Road JunctionView Of Brookhill Tavern From Brookhill Road Near Alum Rock Road Junction
View Of Brookhill Tavern From Brookhill Road Near Alum Rock Road Junction

Brookhill Tavern, Alum Rock

The century-old Brookhill Tavern in Alum Rock will be turned into a religious hub after plans were rubber-stamped by Birmingham City Council.

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After last orders were served in 2012, the previous owners left the tired pub and it has stood vacant ever since. It will now be bulldozed and replaced with a mosque, men’s and women’s prayer halls, office spaces, kitchens, dining facilities, washing areas with WC facilities and an associated residential unit for the Imam (prayer leader).

Bagot Arms, ErdingtonBagot Arms, Erdington
Bagot Arms, Erdington

The Bagot Arms, Erdington

A historic pub in Erdington which became a playground of criminal activity and an arson attack is set to be flattened to make way for apartments. The Bagot Arms, on the corner of Eachelhurst Road and Chester Road, will now be transformed into 51 apartments – 31 one-bedroom flats, 17 two-bedroom flats and three flats with three bedrooms.

The pub was previously discovered to be an undercover cannabis farmby West Midlands Policein 2019. Last year, the pub was also devastated in an alleged arson attack – and has since remained derelict.

A total of 30 letters of objection and a 31-signature petition against the development were received from local residents. The loss of a landmark building which they believe should be restored, inappropriate design, increased traffic volume and overlooking of neighbouring properties were among the chief concerns.

Britannia pubBritannia pub
Britannia pub

The Britannia, Proctor Street, Nechells

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Plans to transform a derelict pub into an Uber Eats and Deliveroo hub are now back after refusal in June. The Britannia pub on Proctor Street in Nechells has been vacant since 2017 and developers had hoped to transform the site into a ‘ghost kitchen’, cooking and serving food for various online delivery retailers.

But a Birmingham City Council Planning Committee had refused the plans in June citing parking and highway safety concerns. Since then a new application was lodged in November updated with delivery times and an explanation of disruptions that could be caused by the new takeaway hub.

Horseshoe pub in Hall Green

Formerly a Wacky Warehouse, the Horseshoe pub in Hall Green dates back to the 19th century but closed down shortly before the Covid pandemic in 2020. A damning report, published by West Midlands Police in 2020 revealed the pub was a hotbed for gang activity.

An initial bid to demolish the building to make room for a mixed-use redevelopment was refused by the council in 2020. Owners City Estates submitted a second application – again for a drive-thru coffee shop and supermarket – the following year, this time proposing to demolish only the banqueting suite. The plans were approved in April.

Costa Coffee has confirmed its intentions to open within the main Horseshoe building. Frozen food chain Farmfoods is listed in the application as the occupier of the new supermarket unit next door.

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