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Fordbridge is a civil parish in England between Kingshurst and Chelmsley Wood in the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull, which is in the West Midlands and also part of the West Midlands conurbation. It is 8 miles (13 km) east of Birmingham city centre. It has a town council. According to the 2001 census, the parish had a population of 8,749.[1] Fordbridge lies within the historic county of Warwickshire.

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Fordbridge
Fordbridge Location within the West Midlands
Population	8,479 (2011)
Civil parish	Fordbridge
Metropolitan borough	Solihull
Metropolitan county	West Midlands
Region	West Midlands
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	BIRMINGHAM
Postcode district	B37
Dialling code	0121
Police	West Midlands
Fire	West Midlands
Ambulance	West Midlands
UK Parliament	Meriden
List of places UK England West Midlands 52.484°N 1.749°W / 52.484; -1.749

The area falls within the borders of North Solihull, parts of which are currently undergoing a £1.8 billion regeneration project. Many inhabitants of Fordbridge do not recognise it as a distinct area, instead classing it as part of the larger Chelmsley Wood Estate. The area around the eastern end of Cooks Lane is also often referred to as "Bacon's End".

Etymology

Fordbridge gets its name from the crossing over the River Cole on Cooks Lane, which was referred to as "Ford Bridge" on 19th century OS maps.[2] This name suggests this site was previously a ford, but eventually a bridge was built on the site of that ford, thus giving the bridge and ultimately the civil parish its name.

Education

Fordbridge lies inbetween a number of schools in the surrounding areas. Schools in and around the local area include:

Nearby Secondary Schools

• Tudor Grange Academy Kingshurst
• John Henry Newman Catholic College
• Grace Academy (Solihull)
• Smiths Wood Sports College
• Park Hall Academy
• The Coleshill School
• Tile Cross Academy

Also close by in Smith's Wood is the Solihull College Woodlands Campus.

Primary schools

• Fordbridge Community Primary School
• St Anne's Catholic Primary School
• Bishop Wilson Church of England Nursery, Infant, and Junior School
• Kingshurst Primary School
• Saint Anthony's Catholic Primary School
• St John The Baptist RC Primary School
• Kingfisher Primary School

Transport

National Express West Midlands operate a number of buses in and around the Fordbridge area. The Cooks Lane area is served by the 94, 55 and 71 bus services while Bosworth Drive is served by the 97 and 14 routes. Close by is Chelmsley Wood shopping centre which hosts a wide range of transport options. Buses are available to and from Solihull town centre, Coleshill, Castle Bromwich, Birmingham city centre, Sutton Coldfield and Birmingham Airport.

The closest railway station is Marston Green. From there, there are trains to Birmingham International, Birmingham New Street, and stations in Coventry as well as services to London Euston station.

Leisure

Fordbridge is served by North Solihull Sports Centre.

Politics

In the British House of Commons, Fordbridge is in the Meriden constituency. The Conservative Party have held the seat since 1979, with the current MP being Saqib Bhatti, although Fordbridge itself is traditionally Labour-voting area.

References

External links

• Fordbridge Town Council

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