Wednesbury Town Centre is further benefiting from improvements made under the Levelling Up Partnership, as a community square opens following community safety improvements.
The main phase of public realm work was completed in June and was marked by a planting event at Ethelfleda Square with school children from St John’s Church of England Primary Academy.
The square is named after Queen Ethelfleda, daughter of Alfred the Great who fortified Wednesbury in Anglo-Saxon times. It honours her as a strong leader. Students from Wood Green Academy helped choose the name to celebrate Wednesbury’s history.
Councillor Peter Hughes, Sandwell Council’s Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Infrastructure, said: “The council wants to thank residents, visitors, and businesses for their patience during the main works. The square will provide a new focal point for Wednesbury that everyone can be proud of.
“And my special thanks to the children of St John’s and Wood Green schools for taking part in naming and opening our new space and choosing a name which reminds us of Wednesbury’s important history.
“The completion of Ethelfleda Square follows on from the installation or improvement of 26 CCTV cameras and eight deployable cameras across Wednesbury and Friar Park, which have already assisted in arrests linked to thefts and burglaries."
Maria Jardine, Board Chair of the Wednesbury Levelling Up Partnership added: !The Wednesbury Levelling Up Partnership Board is please to reach this milestone. We want more people to use the town centre and for residents to have a better experience of living and working in the town."
Further work continues in the town centre, at Hydes Road Playing Fields, the Friar Park Millennium Centre, and at Friar Park Urban Village.
The Levelling Up Partnership focuses on the Wednesbury area of Sandwell and builds upon regeneration and plans in place to deliver ambitious projects for the community with £20.4 million investment.
Sandwell Council is one of the first local authorities in the country to have a Levelling Up Partnership. This follows on from Sandwell gaining over £107 million investment from funds including the Towns Fund and the Levelling Up Fund.
The Levelling Up Partnership will help Sandwell Council deliver much-needed new homes, help tackle crime and antisocial behaviour, improve green spaces and Wednesbury town centre, and expand the Millennium Centre so that more can be done to give people the skills they need to secure better jobs.
Find out more about the work of the Wednesbury Levelling Up Board.